TED Community » Karthik Krishnamurthy

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I'm passionate about

Entertainment Technology, Interactive Media, Social Media and Intercultural Understanding

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Entertainment, Games, Virtual Reality, Technology, Social Media, Intercultural Understanding and Learning, Psychology and Education.

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• A comment on Conversation: Where are we all moving with Social Networking / Online Communities?

  Mar 14 2011: Social Networking and online communities are a powerful force - and I think it will stay around for the simple reason that people have a strong desire to connect with others.
  I think right now, there are two distinct type of online communities (or if you prefer 2 distinct ways of using Social Networking):
  1. Connect with people you already know, whether they are from far away or people you interact with constantly
  2. Follow an area of interest, connect with others that are interested in it, and share things that are of common interest
  
  The majority of Social Media users today use these online communities for point 1. A smaller percentage, mostly made up of people who are very passionate or interested in an area, those that work professionally in such a field, and people who are deeply engaged in Media and Technology in general use Social Media for point 2.
  
  I think Social Media will stay around, especially to connect to those we already know - having a one-stop destination for a number of different contacts will likely continue to be an attractive proposition for some time now, and the fact that these tools allow us to stay engaged and aware of things going on in people's lives will always be an important factor.
  
  On the second front, I would hope to see a much larger percentage of people using Social Media to engage their interests, delve deeper into topics, and connect with people that would have interesting perspectives to share with them. This part of the story had barely been written. I think that this will expand very quickly, and give us a much larger group of people who are engaged and aware of the areas of their passion - and more importantly, influenced by viewpoints of similar people around the world

• A comment on Conversation: Are printed textbooks obsolete? Are there good reasons to keep using them along with or instead of digital learning environments?

  Feb 27 2011: To me the biggest con is the most obvious one - the cost involved in actually digitizing all existing material, and also accessing readers that are as functional as traditional books.
  If by digitize, you mean convert to a PDF, and allow someone to use on a traditional Desktop/Notebook/Netbook, then I would side with traditional books.
  
  However, today this is not the real question of importance. With the multitude of ebook readers, and tablets, a form factor that is as convenient as a regular book is now available - with the obvious advantage of not requiring space and extremely long lifespan. These make it more convenient to transport books, and actually also makes it more convenient to read them. One can doodle, make notes and anything else with these technologies as well.
  
  The only cons are that it will take some time until this type of device is commonplace, and until then the solution is expensive (though it works out, if actual book costs are reduced to the extent they actually should). As long as a reasonably large portion of the reference material is digitized, there is no other negative I can see.
  
  The major hurdle before going fully digital, is that the vast troves of paper content needs to be digitized.
• +1

  A reply on Conversation: Culture in the age of the Internet

  Feb 27 2011: Well actually they don't - in fact this is what I touched upon in my direct reply to the topic as well. While people might know what manga is, that doesn't mean they are likely to be more interested in it. In my own case - I listen to a certain type of music (metal).
  While my friends know what it is, this in no way means we are merging. In fact, as I interact more with others that share my tastes, receive suggestions, explore other things related to what I already like - the more we diverge. It is the same with others as well, people in the "same interest" groups merge with each other, but diverge from others.... simple because there are underlying ways of thinking and tastes that result in the formation of groups in the first place

• A comment on Conversation: We are planning to show 2 TED videos in TEDxNajd, what do you suggest?

  Feb 27 2011: I would actually go on a slightly different note. While talks like Ken Robinson and Hans Rosling are amazing, they're true TED superstars - and would probably be better to put on a website (even if not, people will probably find them online after the TEDx event is done).
  
  My first suggestion would be to show "Ethan Zuckerman - Listening to Global Voices" - www.ted.com/talks/ethan_zuckerman.html
  My connection to the theme is "more understanding+aware society = better society"
  
  Another suggestion is for you to show a video by Jacqueline Novogratz where she talks about the concept of Patient Capital. I would suggest "A third way to think about aid" or "Patient Capitalism". I haven't watched all the videos of her on the site, but from what I can tell any one of them will do - since they talk about the same concept, and her organzation. This one is bang on topic.

• A comment on Conversation: Get each speaker to define 3 do-able actions for viewers. 1 that can be actioned within a day, 1 within a week, & 1 within a month.

  Feb 27 2011: We should ask ourselves if requiring an action from every talk is actually the best thing for TED. My answer is no
  
  While having a suggestion that speakers draw up one (as opposed to three) actions to take their talk forward, I think making this a requirement would hinder some of the best ideas that come out.
  
  One important aspect of TED, in my view - is to get radical ideas and insights, and use those to make changes for the better. While everyone can get inspired and receive insights, only a select few will actually be in positions to implement something on their basis. By forcing speakers to have actions, we are asking them to avoid talks on "ideas/insights" into such topics, and rather focus on a much smaller group of topics that every person watching the talk can do something about.
  
  Just to add - if they are already talking about one of the smaller topics, which don't require great power in order to implement, it'd be a positive sign to have an action outlined.

• A comment on Conversation: Culture in the age of the Internet

  Feb 22 2011: There are several questions, but I'd like to focus on the ones where you talk about diversity with respect to the internet. Personally, I am a strong believer that true exposure reveals a different type of diversity - this too can be called a culture, but I think "sub-culture" might be a more appropriate term.
  
  The whole world might have access to the same movies, books, and music (there are caveats of course), but everyone accesses different types of content. The ability to strike up conversations among common interests through the internet also creates sub-cultures based on personal interests and personality traits - people get together with those that think alike, and have more interesting and enriching conversations.
  
  What is normally brought up when discussing the loss of culture due to globalization is losing out on historical values, traditions and art forms. I am of the view that sub-cultures are far more representative of individuals, since they reflect personal choices and decisions as opposed to ones that people have much less control over. So, while we may be losing our 'cultural' diversity, the possibility of forming unique sub-cultures based on preferences and inclinations is probably bringing everyone closer together, and helping people get in touch with their own true opinions.
  
  Essentially, the internet is actually maintaining and increasing our diversity of thought by allowing people to get in touch with any niche they would like, which is (to me) more important than diversity of traditions and rituals.
• +1

  A comment on Conversation: Social network movements .. Could this be the end of politics as we know it?

  Feb 22 2011: Despite the fanfare about Twitter and Facebook, I personally am not convinced that these mediums deserve the huge amounts of credit they have been given for the revolution.
  I think more than cyber organization, it was cyber-propogation of an idea. That idea would not have been sustainable had it not been for a large number of on-the-street protesters. I do not agree with the thought that typical politics have lost its effectiveness - even if some politicians have lost their credibility, their methods of working still apply to the masses.
  Social media is an interesting tool, and in the case of areas where such protests are popular, it provides an outlet for a younger, more urbane and educated section of society to voice support. While this group represents an important aspect of getting attention worldwide, especially in the West, they are only add-on's to the primary organizers, who still follow traditional methods of protest and raising awareness.
  My experience in a "developing" (I prefer this compared to third world) tells me that youth politics is still in the hands of the masses, and not this select group that is so well represented online and through social media. It is likely to take a very long time before social networks end politics the way we know it in these places