Meetings Made Practical

At least two of the problems with holding meetings are 1. scheduling the things, and 2. keeping conversations on track.  An article in Inside Higher Ed today cites an experiment at Ohio State University in trying to solve the second problem with Wikis.  It seems to me that a discussion board would be more suitable than a wiki, but never mind.  They report equivocal success, with more participation than anticipated, 

But the wiki idea also drew its fair share of skeptics. “I believe (and think most colleagues share this belief) that there’s a value in getting together in the same room to debate and to decide on issues,” wrote Jim Phelan in an e-mail. “The concentrated thinking and discussing is beneficial for group decision-making.”

 To solve the first problem, I discovered TimeToMeet.info,which has a nice interface for finding when a group can meet.  It works by email, and you just paint your available times on the grid.  It looks like the shot below when everyone responds:

Where I've Been

Blogging has been less than sparse lately because I've been working on a novel, and I just didn't have time to do both.  Part one is finished, and I'm partway into part two.  It's not an academic novel.  I started one of those years ago, but ultimately it just seems too narcissistic.  Plus, Giles Goat Boy pretty much covered the genre.

The book is important to me because it is an exercise in thinking through the near future (next 200 years), and the ethical and philosophical questions that will result from changing technology and changing climate.  If you're interested in looking at it, click the graphic.  Part one is in pdf for download.