Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Not All Mutant Wanderers Are Lost

J.R.R. Tolkien said it best, "Not all those who wander are lost."

A Mutant Wanderer will stumble upon something unique. A new idea. A new product. A new process. Something that isn't in their area of expertise, but they stumbled into it and found a new solution to a problem.

But, rather than concealing the information and keeping the knowledge to themselves, they'll share it with everyone. Whether they know it or not, these mutants are creating new learning fragments that become part of the Learning Explosion, fueling it's expansion.

Example:
  • Margaret is a language aficionado and has a blog on the topic. However, one day she figured out how to download her Facebook album and posted the instructions on her blog. She wandered into the knowledge and then shared it with everyone. She is a true Mutant Wanderer.
CAUTION!
Because many Mutant Wanderers are not considered experts in the information they are creating, you need to be careful of what you accept as fact. Be sure you triangulate this new knowledge with other sources.

Example:
  • Vishalicious was a beginner at the bass. He posted on a forum about something he thought he figured out. It seems like good information, but as you read through the comments posted by others you realize that his information is incomplete. His initial post erupted into a classic case of Mutant Learning. Other mutants jumped into the discussion to help teach him and they stayed with him until he fully understood the concepts. That's the power of Mutant Learning!
So go. Wander. Discover and share. Try and lose yourself in new knowledge but remember to return home and share what you've learned.

1 comment:

  1. I wasn't quite on board with this until I read the second example then it struck me - the real power here is the collaborative aspect, everyone chipping in to get the point where someone learns or a new solution is created out of the fragments presented. A great set of articles, keep them coming.

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