Knowledge and the Arabic Web

YLSMC-

Desiree El-Chebeir6 March 2010

Overview

• Knowledge development as crucial to the advancement of nations

• The status of the Arab World’s intellectual arena

• The Arabic Web as an opportunity to leapfrog other countries

Hello, World War!

• War + Bookstore = Nerd (in disguise)

• Read:– to learn– to escape reality– to make sense of the world

• Curiosity to learn 13 year exploratory journey to USA, Europe and Asia

A B C vs. ا ب ت

• Books accessible everywhere: Europe, USA

• Asia: only in more developed countries (Singapore)

• Reading as a hobby

Difference in Attitude

• Reading on the bus, waiting for a plane or a train, in coffee shops, at the hairdresser’s, everywhere!

• People loved to read

• People loved to debate ‘big ideas’ – disclaimer: I was usually in highly intellectual circles (San Francisco, Paris, Frankfurt, etc…)

Reading Material

• “Dating for Dummies” and “The Innovator’s Dilemma”

• “ المذهلة بطوطة إبن المؤامرة ” and ”حياةلبنان على ”العالمية

• Books as a reflection (and a reinforcement) of our mind-numbing reality

Vicious Circle

• No real appeal to the youth of today Smaller Market Fewer Books

• UN Study:– Spain or Italy’s book production in ONE year >

Arabic book production from ALL Arab countries for the last 10 years

– Population: 338 Mil (Arab World) vs. 60 Mil (Italy) ~ 5.6 times bigger!

So What?

• OECD Report: education has been directly linked to GDP growth

• GDP:– $1.6 Mil (Arab World) vs. $14.2 Tril (USA)

• Innovation – according to a WIPO report:– ~200 patents for ALL Arab countries combined in 2008 vs.

~53,500 for the USA or ~3,000 for Italy– Population: 338 Mil (Arab World) vs. 300 Mil (USA)

New Face of the Arab World

• 65% of the region’s population is under 30 among the youngest in the world

• Leaders of tomorrow

• Social networks, online gaming, sports and entertainment

Garbage In, Garbage Out

• Responsibility as young, educated, Lebanese or Arabs for content development

• Arabic web “under construction” as opportunity and threat

What can We Do, Now?

• Paper-based books patterns are an indication

• Leave everything as is Dark Ages, “death by intellectual handicap”

• Lack of real government involvement Need for Community driven planning and involvement

Framework at a Glance

• Framework for content enrichment

• Three Parts:– Collective framework for translating books– Platform to submit original work/essays– ‘Forums’ for knowledge transfer

Part I: Translation Project

• A lot of knowledge already developed in other languages

• Arabic as main language for many of the Arabs

• Crowdsourced translation

• Deals with foreign book authors/publishers

Translation Process

Book titles Translations

Community/diaspora

Validation

Conducts

Suggests

Community Translators/Volunteers

CommunityEditors/Publisher

Community Officers

Approved/Negotiated by

Released for Translation

Part II: Platform for Original Work

• Crowdsourced

• Voting and prizes

• Publisher’s involvement

• Research projects

Publishing Process

Original Work Published Books

Community/diaspora

Adopts for publishing / Awards prizes / Builds on research

Votes

Posts

Community/diaspora

Publishers/Universities/Research

Collaborators

Community Officers

Approved for Publishing by

Released for Voting

Part III: Forum for Knowledge Transfer

• Many experts with varied knowledge

• Many locals (or returning locals), but also large diaspora

• A la “YallaStartup!”

Risks and Considerations

• Money factor, Commitment

• Lack of Publishers collaboration

• Licensing issues / distribution

• Acceptance

• Others?

Get Involved

• Email: edesiree@gmail.com

• Need: – Web developers– Marketers– Private businesses– Academia– Financiers– Editors– Publishers– Negotiators– Volunteers

Thank You!

• I hope I convinced you to get involved, with my reading project and beyond

• Here’s to our bright future: Cheers!

Final Thoughts

• "Your mind is yours and yours alone. It is your right, correction: your obligation, to challenge it!“

• "Be gentle to others, and critical of your own thoughts. And then go and have a chocolate on me :-)"