COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCEWHAT IT MEANS TO THE WEB AND WEB 2.0

INTRODUCTION

Collective intelligence is a term that has become essential to modern internet

functions. In this presentation, I will:

Explain what collective intelligence is

Provide some examples as to how it works

Examine how it relates to Web 2.0

INTRODUCTION

In addition to the topics already mentioned, I will also:

Describe some of the benefits of collective intelligence

Examine social media and how it relates to collective intelligence

Give an example of the effects of social media and collective intelligence on a larger

scale

WHAT IS COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE?

Collective intelligence is defined as, " a phenomenon in sociology where a

shared or group intelligence emerges from the collaboration and competition of

many individuals." ( Dictionary.com's online dictionary, n.d.) Though this term is

used in several fields, this presentation will focus on collective intelligence as it

relates to the internet.

WHAT IS COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE?

Collective Intelligence, in terms of the internet, generally refers to users of a

website, software or internet service making contributions that better the

function of that service as a whole. There are a large number of ways that users

can add strength to a website. Next, we will look at some examples of websites

that make use of collective intelligence.

BLOGS

Blogs are a way of sharing information with others. This form of communicating

has become increasingly popular in recent times. Wordpress.com, one of the

leading sites for blog creation, has over 409 million people viewing over 14.7

billion pages each month. (Wordpress.com stats, n.d.) Collective intelligence

tools are a common part of most blogging practices.

BLOGS AND COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

Linking to other blogs is often done in the blogging world. These links create a

connection between blogs of similar interests. The advantage of this is a

network of information and opinions that spans a large variety of interests in a

way that was not easily accomplished before blogs became common, and it

demonstrates some of the principles of collective intelligence.

WIKIS

Another website in which collective intelligence tools are put to use is a wiki. A

wiki is a type of website that allows multiple people to edit or add to the content

on the pages of that wiki. A wiki is usually text-based and can be edited by

anyone or just a selected group of people. The description of a wiki makes it a

good example of collective intelligence ideas.

WIKIS AND COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

In the use of a wiki, contributors edit the information contained on a page or they

may choose to add their own insights. With a large number of people working in

this manner, wikis are able to provide information that is a collaborative effort.

Mistakes and inaccuracies have a higher chance of being corrected than if the

text was edited by a single person. This is one of the reasons wikis are a good

example of some of the benefits of collective intelligence.

VIDEO-SHARING WEBSITES

Video-sharing websites such as Vimeo, Dailymotion and the popular YouTube,

get their content mainly from users. They generally allow users to upload videos,

add tags, and share these videos with others. As is the case with the other

websites mentioned previously, collective intelligence is in use in these websites

as well.

VIDEO-SHARING WEBSITES AND COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

One of the main effects collective intelligence has on video-sharing websites is

that without input from the users themselves these websites would not function

properly, if at all. The tags added to each video by users adds important

information for sorting the videos but can also add more abstract terms, such as

the feelings associated with the video. The fact that users can add harder to

define terms to their tags exemplifies another facet of collective intelligence.

VIDEO-SHARING WEBSITES AND COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

In addition to the benefits for searching, the tags added by users to video-

sharing websites also allows for the display of related videos that might not have

been chosen under a indexing system strictly controlled by the website. With

100 hours of video being uploaded to the widely used YouTube every minute

(YouTube.com statistics, n.d.) the tags added by user likely gives a needed

supplement to the sorting tools already in place. The collective information

submitted by users gives additional strength to the websites.

COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE AND WEB 2.0

Now that I have explained collective intelligence and given some examples of

how it can be used, I would like to discuss its relevance to Web 2.0. Web 2.0 is

a more contemporary way of designing internet content with a focus on

cooperation. Because of this cooperative center, collective intelligence has a

definite place in Web 2.0.

COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE AND WEB 2.0

The 2005 article 'What Is Web 2.0' written by Tim O'Reilly says this in reference

to collective intelligence and Web 2.0, "The central principle behind the success

of the giants born in the Web 1.0 era who have survived to lead the Web 2.0 era

appears to be this, that they have embraced the power of the web to harness

collective intelligence."(O'Reilly, 2005) This statement summarizes the impact

that collective intelligence has had on Web 2.0. Incorporating content and

information contributed by users can have a strong positive effect on a website

and is considered one of the key points of Web 2.0.

BENEFITS OF USING COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

The examples given in the beginning of the presentation already present some

of the benefits of collective intelligence. However, there are several more

benefits than the ones I have mentioned so far, and I would like to add what I

believe is an additional advantage.This new point is that, in my opinion, a

website may be able to achieve an increase in efficiency in catering content to a

target audience through collective intelligence tools.

BENEFITS OF USING COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

For an example of these benefits, I look to websites like Reddit that employ a

system that allows users to rate stories and discussions, which gives users a list

of information that is controlled by the votes of other users. This means that the

topics interesting to the users of Reddit have a good chance of being seen by

the appropriate users. With over 114,000,000 unique visitors in March 2014

(Reddit.com statistics, 2014) Reddit appears to have made good use of its

collective intelligence system and is an example of this benefit of collective

intelligence.

SOCIAL MEDIA, COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE, AND THE EFFECT

THEY HAVE ON A LARGER SCALE

Social media websites are a common feature in the online activities of many

internet users. In 2013 it was estimated that nearly one in four people will use

social networks worldwide (eMarketer, 2013). Social media websites themselves

typically have a collective intelligence component with a large network of users

connecting with each other. However, social media can also have farther

reaching effects. Crowd-funding websites, like Kickstarter, that encourage

sharing through popular social media websites like Facebook and Twitter, can

have a positive influence on businesses and communities.

SOCIAL MEDIA, COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE, AND THE EFFECT

THEY HAVE ON A LARGER SCALE

Crowd-funding websites allow average people to fund ideas, inventions, and

businesses. More than five million people have backed projects through Kickstarter

alone.(McGregor & Benenson, 2013) Users of these websites often use social media to

share projects that they are interested in and the people they have shared with may

choose to send this information to more people. This creates an entire network of

people who can fund a project more quickly. This effect is also an example of some

collective intelligence ideas in that this group of people can accomplish a goal more

efficiently together. When these projects are funded they can create new opportunities

for many indiviuals, which in turn can provide opportunities that make a community

better. This is just one of the ways that collective intelligence and social media impact

the outside world.

IN CONCLUSION

In short, collective intelligence occurs when the knowledge from a group of

people is put together and creates a combined center of intelligence. The use of

tools based on collective intelligence has many benefits for websites and other

internet presences and some of those benefits have been outlined in this

presentation. However, there are even more examples that can be given on

collective intelligence and related topics. For more insights I recommend

reading the articles 'Decisions 2.0: The Power of Collective Intelligence' written

by Eric Bonabeau in 2009 and 'What is Web 2.0' written by Tim O'Reilly in 2005.

With all of this information, I hope that I have provided a clear picture of

collective intelligence and what it means to Web 2.0 and the internet as a whole.

NOTES

Bonabeau, E. (2009, January 9). Decisions 2.0: The power of collective intelligence. MITSloan Management Review. Retrieved from

http://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/decisions-20-the-power-of-collective-intelligence/

Collective intelligence. (n.d.). Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon. Retrieved April 21, 2014, from Dictionary.com website:

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/collective intelligence

eMarketer. (2013). Social networking reaches nearly one in four around the world. eMarketer.com. Retrieved April 23, 2014 from

http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Social-Networking-Reaches-Nearly-One-Four-Around-World/1009976

McGregor, M. & Benenson, F. (2013, October 29). Five million backers! [Web log post] Retrieved from

https://www.kickstarter.com/blog/five-million-backers

NOTES

Nations, D., (n.d.). What is a wiki? Retrieved April 21, 2014, from

http://webtrends.about.com/od/wiki/a/what_is_a_wiki.htm

O'Reilly, T. (2005, September 30). What is web 2.0. Retrieved April 21, 2014, from

http://oreilly.com/pub/a/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.html?page=1

Reddit.com. (n.d.). About reddit. Retrieved April 22, 2014 from

http://www.reddit.com/about

WordPress.com. (n.d.). Stats. Retrieved April, 22, 2014 from

http://en.wordpress.com/stats/

Youtube.com. (n.d.). Statistics. Retrieved April 22, 2014 from

http://www.youtube.com/yt/press/statistics.html