Why Is 'Second Life' Still a Thing? To an outsider, Second Life may look like a crappier version of World of Warcraft. It’s a vast digital space many people can log into with their virtual avatars, only instead of going on wild adventures, slaying dragons and collecting epic swords, it just seems like a bunch of people hanging out in bars, offices, galleries—normal places. That’s a fair assessment of Second Life, but what makes it special and lasting isn’t as apparent. Yes, Second Life, which first launched in 2003, looks incredibly dated. The short answer is that there’s nothing else quite like it. A crucial difference between Second Life and MMOs like World of Warcraft is that the latter are mostly fixed worlds. If you let users make whatever they want, they’ll make a lot of sex stuff. That means that Second Life users can build anything from virtual genetics labs, to depraved sex dungeons, to campaign headquarters for Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.
Arnold Bakker Employees' psychological connection with their work has gained critical importance in the information/service economy of the 21st century. In the contemporary world of work, to compete effectively, companies not only must recruit the top talent, but must also inspire and enable employees to apply their full capabilities to their work. Contemporary organizations need employees who are psychologically connected to their work; who are willing and able to invest themselves fully in their roles; who are proactive and committed to high quality performance standards. They need employees who are engaged with their work (Bakker & Leiter, 2010). Work engagement is most often defined as "...a positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption" (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2010; Schaufeli, Salanova, González-Romá, & Bakker, 2002, p. 74). See Bakker, Albrecht & Leiter's (in press) position paper for a research agenda on engagement:
What is Disruptive Innovation in Education? | Learning Impact Blog At the 2013 Learning Impact conference I presented a keynote “Innovation, Disruption, Revolution – Oh My!” I chose this topic because the degree of hype about “disruption” in education seems to be at an all time high right now. BTW it’s amazing how well the Gartner Hype Cycle fits the Wizard of Oz! From Rob Abel’s Learning Impact Keynote: Innovation, Disruption, Revolution Oh My! Excitement about the role of technology in improving education is a good thing as far as I’m concerned. Education is a segment that needs disruptive innovation. But, as leaders in the education segment we do need to get better at understanding where we have been and where we are going, what constitutes innovation and/or disruption that is worthy of investment? In IMS we try to ferret out “winners” by looking at criteria for something we call “Learning Impact” – which is defined by a set of judging criteria we use in our annual Learning Impact Awards (LIAs). Are MOOCs potentially promising innovations?
Virtual Worlds, Disability, and New Cultures of the Embodied Self I was late…again. Story of my life. I love to be busy and engaged. I had promised I would come and talk about social stuff we might do at Ethnographia Island. So, late, I finally got to where I was supposed to be and as the group discussed a co-operative holiday build I pondered the idea with anxiety. Then, it popped out, just like that! In most any other place the response would likely be, “That’s cool!” From there it rolls, fast. We share visions of how a group might work, what it might do. After an hour some of us must go now, and the rest of us, as business folks, must go soon. We confirm a mission statement, dedicate the land, form a group, take a picture and decide we must have a ground breaking. The birth of CENT is complete. Its mission is to be an organization of virtual world business owners who demonstrate the virtual world is a place of possibility for persons with disabilities. But I am not alone. The Days Before CENT Happened: So began the chatter. Work.
Työterveyslaitos - Tiedotteet Tiedote 20/2013 25.4.2013, Work goes happy -tapahtuma, Helsinki Suomen työelämästä voi tulla Euroopan paras, jos työpaikat joustavat henkilöstön elämäntilanteiden mukaan ja johto pystyy tekemään työstä mielekästä. Tavoitteen saavuttaminen lisäisi taloudellista kasvua ja kansantalouden kestävyyttä. Johdon tulisi toimia muistaen, että henkilöstö on yrityksen tärkein voimavara, kertoi professori Guy Ahonen Työterveyslaitoksesta Work Goes Happy -tapahtumassa torstaina 25.4. Työelämän laatu on nostettu keskeiseksi asiaksi nykyisessä hallitusohjelmassa. – Euroopan huipulle pääseminen on mahdollista, mutta se edellyttää sekä rakenteellisia että asenteellisia muutoksia työpaikoilla. Hänen mukaansa tavoitteen saavuttaminen edellyttää ainakin seuraavien ehtojen täyttymistä: Työelämän joustoja pitää edelleen lisätä. – Muutokset ovat välttämättömiä, koska työelämän laadun huononeminen heikentää taloudellista kasvua. Lisätietoja
A Beautiful Timeline On The Evolution of Learning Technologies February 16, 2015 "Human beings have always been seekers of knowledge. The minute we discover something new, we want to share it with others and move onto the next achievement. Since the beginning of recorded history (and probably before) we have always strived to discover the mysteries of the planet, of Earth and of ourselves. How has learning evolved over the course of human history and what might the future hold for us?" Check out the visual below to learn more Source Open Colleges Courtesy of eLearning Infographics
Making a Case for Virtual Healthcare Communications To cite this articleDavis, D. Z. (2014). Making a case for virtual healthcare communications: Mayo Clinic’s integration of virtual world communities in its social media mix. Case Studies in Strategic Communication, 3, article 6. Available online: Access the PDF version of this article Donna Z. Abstract This case study reviews current health-related activity in virtual worlds and documents Mayo Clinics’ use of the Second Life virtual environment specifically, externally for developing community and providing health education, as well as internally for professional continuing medical education for a globally connected health network. Keywords: Mayo Clinic; Second Life; uses and gratifications; media effects; social capital Introduction In the growing and rapidly changing social media landscape, organizations often find they must run faster to get no further ahead in the quest to reach new and existing audiences. Background Social Capital Presence
Tämä voi 100-kertaistaa työpanoksen - "Ei vain tiettyjen etuoikeus" Innostunut työntekijä on työnantajalleen kullan arvoinen. Asiantuntijatyössä työn imua kokeva työntekijä voi tuottaa jopa satakertaisen tuloksen leipääntyneeseen kollegaansa verrattuna. Työn imu ei silti ole vain korkeasti koulutettujen etuoikeus. "Joka työpaikalla voi kokea työn imua", sanoo Työ Terveys Turvallisuus -lehden haastattelema vanhempi tutkija Jari Hakanen Työterveyslaitoksesta. Kun Työterveyslaitos keräsi tietoa 87:stä suomalaisesta organisaatiosta, löytyi 12 voimavaratekijää, jotka auttavat työpaikkoja menestymään ja työntekijöitä voimaan hyvin. Vahvistamalla voimavaroja työn imu lisääntyy, mikä tarkoittaa myös energisyyden ja toimeliaisuuden lisääntymistä.
Ambient Intelligence | Media Arts and Sciences Finding Healthcare Support in Online Communities The PDF file you selected should load here if your Web browser has a PDF reader plug-in installed (for example, a recent version of Adobe Acrobat Reader). If you would like more information about how to print, save, and work with PDFs, Highwire Press provides a helpful Frequently Asked Questions about PDFs. Alternatively, you can download the PDF file directly to your computer, from where it can be opened using a PDF reader. To download the PDF, click the Download link above. Fullscreen Fullscreen Off This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. The full website for the Journal of Virtual Worlds Research can be found at: