A Data Mining Project (day 1)

I've decided that the following weather station is a suitable model to get started with (http://goo.gl/vQSQu).
"Smartweather Professional Weather station with PC hookup and Solar power" http://goo.gl/vQSQu. It looks very similar to the (rebadged?) Ambient Weather WS-2080 Wireless Home Weather Station http://www.ambientweather.com/amws2080.html

Anyway: it has a solar battery recharger - so I don't have to maintain the outdoor part - wind speed and direction sensor, temperature, rainfall, barometric pressure; so lots of interesting data to accumulate.

However as Alex said "the fun is in deciphering the protocol used to transfer the data from the unit to the PC".

The console acts as a local display and the connection point between the PWS (personal weather station) and a PC. The Smartweather kit comes with an EasyWeather software install CD.
n.b. Davis provide the WeatherLink software application for their own products. There may also be other basic client software packages from open source or free. Some resources to investigate:

• the Cumulus Weather Station Software (link)
• the Weather Station Data Mining Project on sourceforge (link)
• the Weather Underground (wunderground) weather station network (link)
• for OS X, the Weather Snoop (link)

All good stuff. Now to read Mike Puchol's blog on "where are the all the beautiful Mac OS weather apps?"... (link)

Working life byod (r)evolution

Do you have the option of flexible work locations?
Do you work as a member of a virtual team working in different time zones?
As a member of a virtual team working in the same time zone?
What BYODs do you use (smartphone, tablet, laptop, other?)
Do you use paid-for IT services or 'free'?
Are your IT services provided in-house or by a supplier?
Who pays (for bandwidth, valued added services, hardware, support, breakages)?
Is it secure? Has data spread beyond the 'login' of the corporate zone?
Have you experienced data loss from file corruption? From erroneous use? From other's erroneous use? Due to faulty software or systems failure?
Is my working day spreading into private time? How much?
Has your BYOD ever failed, been broken, been stolen?
Are personal files (family photos, emails) mingled with your work files?
Are your personal files synched or backed up via regular docking or cloud services?
Have you paid excessive charges for backup or cloud services? Does your employer reimburse you?
Has your BYOD been audited by your employer? If so how was the audit conducted? What was the outcome?
Has your BYOD device been seized or subpoenaed as evidence?
Has it been subjected to a forensic examination?
Have copies of the files on your BYOD been made by other agencies in connection with investigation or litigation?
Do you know what files have been copied?
How are those files disposed? Retention/destruction period if relevant?

Exercise: Learning to learn in groups...

Adapted from material developed and provided by Maeve Houlihan and Aoife Doherty 
Lecture time: 1h15'

Objectives (5') - S1-S2 

To produce and present a critical analysis
To conduct independent research
To experience and reflect on group work

Transition (5')

Identify groups

Provide readings

Group work starts (20') - S3 

In groups of approximately 5

• Critically evaluate one of the articles provided.
• Preparing a group review (without visual props). 
• 20' to read and prepare of which 5' quiet time.

Presentation delivery (30')

10x 2-minute presentations followed by one quick Q&A on the subject matter

---

Articles

• Power points – an Irish-German affair (The Irish Times) 
• Criticism of Project Maths syllabus fails to add up (The Irish Times) 
• Western tales of China’s imminent collapse are a bit rich (The Guardian)
• Teenage angst – the implications of China’s slowdown (The Economist) 
• The rise and fall of the Boomtown Prats (The Irish Independent) 
• Death of the Celtic Tiger? (New Zealand Herald – long article) 
• Hey, not so fast on European Austerity (New York Times – 3 page article) 
• Elisabeth Murdoch attacks News Corp values and praises BBC (Irish Times) 
• Verdict on UK riots: people need a stake in society says report (The Guardian)
• Why insensitive bosses make more sense (Financial Times) 
• Waiting for the great leap forward (Irish Left Review)

---

Debrief Discussion (10')

What is critical analysis?

• Evaluating
• Subjective
• Persuasion
• Evidence
• Scientific
• Political 

Did typical roles arise? What were they?

• Manager
• Timekeeper
• Recorder/checker
• Sceptic
• Big boss
• Lurker
• Facilitator

Were roles assigned or volunteered for?
Did people change roles? Why?

Did each member have a voice, make an impact?

What was the dynamic (over time)?

• Initial analysis
• Independent research
• Synthesis
• Chaos
• Lost in the desert
• A cavalry charge

Did the group...

• Present a brief and cogent piece? 
• Add value - illustrate, relate etc?
• Reflect and critically evaluate?

e.g. (t: critical analysis - 30s) / (t: synopsis + 30s) + insightful analysis + impactful conclusions.

Wrap up - S4 - S5 - S6 - S7 - S8 - S9 - S10

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Further reading

A process for combining self-directed and group-based learning can be organised as follows. Note, groups should adapt and modify the steps to suit the round style and conditions. (Schwartz et al., 2001) 

1. First encounter a problem ‘cold’, without doing any preparatory study in the area of the problem.
2. Interact with each other to explore their existing knowledge as it relates to the problem.
3. Form and test hypotheses about the underlying mechanisms that might account for the problem (up to their current levels of knowledge).
4. Identify further knowledge gaps or learning needs for making progress with the problem.
5. Undertake self-study between group meetings group to satisfy identified learning needs.
6. Return to the group to integrate the newly gained knowledge and apply it to the problem.
7. Repeat steps 3 to 6 as necessary.
8. Reflect on the process and on the content that has been learnt.

The Seven Jump or Maastricht process offers a similar template for structuring small-group tutorial learning. (Grave et al., 1996)

1. Clarify unknown terms or concepts in the problem description.
2. Define the problem(s). List the phenomena or events to be explained.
3. Analyse the problem(s). 
• Step 1. Brainstorm. Try to produce as many different explanations for the phenomena as you [can] think of. Use prior knowledge and common sense.
• Step 2. Discuss. Criticize the explanations proposed and try to produce a coherent description of the processes that, according to what you think, underlie the phenomena or events.
4. Formulate learning issues for self-directed learning.
5. Fill the gaps in your knowledge through self-study.
6. Share your findings with your group and try to integrate the knowledge acquired into a comprehensive explanation for the phenomena or events. Check whether you know enough.

Alternatively the MacMaster ‘triple jump’ represents three main stages for student-driven problem investigation: initial analysis, independent research, and synthesis. Each stage consists of a series of activities (not necessarily taking place in sequence).

1. Initial analysis: identify problems, explore extant knowledge, hypothesise, identify knowledge gaps
2. Independent research: research knowledge gaps
3. Synthesis: present findings – relating them to the problem(s), integrate learning from others, generate a synthesis, self-assessment of learning process, repeat ‘triple jump’ if needed.

References:

• GRAVE, W. S., BOSHUIZEN, H. P. A. & SCHMIDT, H. G. (1996) Problem based learning: Cognitive and metacognitive processes during problem analysis. Instructional Science, 24, 321-341.
• SCHWARTZ, P., MENNIN, S. & WEBB, G. (Eds.) (2001) Problem-Based Learning: Case studies, experience and practice, London, Routledge.

Discuss: IP is a drag in Cyberspace

The motion for discussion is...
"Intellectual property is a drag in cyberspace: discuss"

Goal
The use of GPL, open source, copyleft and creative commons licenses suggests that intellectual property protection is a drag in cyberspace. Our goal is to study and understand the structure, powers and implications of the GPL.

Instructions
Two groups (red-against, blue-for) will present an analysis and then debate the merits of their different positions, involving the whole class in the closing stages.
The readings given for initial investigation are listed below. We strongly encourage the use of additional secondary sources and providing examples as evidence supporting arguments.
Each group has 5 minutes to present.

Readings

• The GPL: GNU General Public License (www.gnu.org)
• GOETZ, T. "Open Source Everywhere", Wired Magazine, 2004. (wired.com 11.11)

Notes

• From ITworld.com: "Oracle sued Google last August, contending its open-source Android operating system violates Java patents and copyrights that Oracle inherited when it bought Sun Microsystems. Google denies any wrongdoing and has characterized the case as an attack on open source."
• Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (www.wipo.int)
• Yockai Benkler's web, www.benkler.org
• Benkler's 'Wealth of Networks' yupnet.org/benkler/
• The Economy of Ideas by John Perry Barlow (wired.com 2.03)

No Internet?!#... we're all alone

"Over Logging" (or "The Day the Internet Stood Still")

Still from "Over Logging", (South Park Studios, 2008)

Hilarious stupid but also thought provoking, this episode of South Park thinks the unthinkable; what happens if the Internet runs out, when there is not enough Internet to go around? Precise on Wikipedia. 

Discuss: Social Media transforms business

The motion for discussion is...
"Social media transforms business! discuss"
The motion examines both the hype and the facts surrounding social media and Web 2.0 technology.

Goal
To assess the claim that firms employing so called 'Web 2.0 technology' have actually (or not) transformed consumer online behaviour.

Instructions
Two groups (red-against, blue-for) will present an analysis and then debate the merits of their different positions, involving the whole class in the closing stages.
The readings given for initial investigation are listed below. We strongly encourage the use of additional secondary sources and providing examples as evidence supporting arguments.

Readings
Dutta, S. "What’s Your Personal Social Media Strategy?," Harvard business review (88:11), November 2010 2010, pp 127-130.

Extras

• Taylor, C.P. "Eight Ways to Ruin Your Social-Media Strategy," 2009. (online at b.net)
• Kaplan, A.M., and Haenlein, M. "Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media," Business Horizons (53:1) 2010, pp 59-68.
• Benkler, Y., and Nissenbaum, H. "Commons-based Peer Production and Virtue," Journal of Political Philosophy (14:4) 2006, pp 394-419.
• The Forth Estate in a Digital Democracy (online video snippet, accessed March 2011)
• The future of work is social (on Slideshare)
• Using the crowd, to create content, to create a 'service'. Waze and passively capturing GPS to model and share traffic status (http://bit.ly/eqTpXX at curiositycounts.com) RT chrisjhorn
• Are location check-in services a fading fad? (www.readwriteweb.com/) 
• Fractures (or Forks) appear in Twitter's micro-blogging market? (edition.cnn.com/)

Al-Jazeera, the Internet and 21st Century media

View more presentations from Bilal Randeree

The Business Value of Social Media @ Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies - Boston, MA April 2011

View more presentations from Jamie Pappas

ShiftHappens Various Versions
I included these for a number of reasons, they illustrate some of the changes impacting any organisation attempting to cope with the changing social/technological transformations shifting society, education, markets. These videos are also notable for having gone 'viral' April 2010 and since in various remixes.


And the remix version ala FatBoy Slim

Did You Know? from Amybeth on Vimeo.

Shift Happens 2011

Discuss: The future is Smart and Wireless

The motion for discussion is...
"The future of commerce is smart, wireless, and pervasive! discuss"

Goal
This motion examines the idea of an 'Internet of Things', what it is or might be, its uses, its problems, its boosters, its critics and regulation.

Instructions
Two groups (red-against, blue-for) will present an analysis and then debate the merits of their different positions, involving the whole class in the closing stages.
The readings given for initial investigation are listed below. We strongly encourage the use of additional secondary sources and providing examples as evidence supporting arguments.

Readings

• Eu Com (2009) Internet of Things - An action plan for Europe COM(2009) 278. European Commission. (link)
• Saponas, T. S., Lester, J., Hartung, C. & Kohno, T. (2006) Devices that tell on you: The nike+ipod sport kit. Seattle, WA, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. (link)

Extras

• IoT (Internet of Things) 101 presentation on slideshare (http://slidesha.re/hSVJDm)
• Latitude Life Connected (www.latd.com) accessed March 2011
• German railways merge NFC networks (www.theregister.co.uk) March 2011.
• Explanation of the IoT - Internet of Things (www.readwriteweb.comp) 2010
• Talking Yoghurt Pots and the Silence of the Chips (www.theregister.co.uk) 2009
• The Internet Fridge - yet again (www.readwriteweb.com) 2009
• The i-Loo controversy (wikipedia) 2003