(This is a text summary of the He Said She Said podcast from September 1, 2005. This is a bi-weekly podcast that deals with a wide range of topic on Education and Educational Technology. The show's host is Rob Reynolds and he is joined by Susan Smith Nash. The He Said She Said podcast is available every Tuesday and Thursday on Xplana Radio.)

Briefly...

[Susan] Okay, Rob thinks I'm crazy. But, think about it – for online courses, textbook publishers have created a situation that has helped academic departments that are cash-strapped, and short on time and instructors.

[Rob] I absolutely think she's a little crazy. And, while I don't think her description of reality is inaccurate for some schools, I do believe she is trying to make lemonade our of lemons and that the real infection will continue to fester until individual teachers decide to do something different.

10:12:50 AM    

Most scientific papers are probably wrong - other than a weak title, this article makes a good point about research: "Most published scientific research papers are wrong, according to a new analysis. Assuming that the new paper is itself correct, problems with experimental and statistical methods mean that there is less than a 50% chance that the results of any randomly chosen scientific paper are true."
What I find interesting is not that the papers themselves are wrong, but that there are very limited opportunities for readers to correct and discuss the paper in its original context. Any format that is "set in stone" isn't going to work today. Blogs are particularly effective at enabling the inclusion of contrary viewpoints. Journals are still one-way, broadcast tools. Perhaps journal pusblishers should reflect on what's happening to TV, newspapers, and music. Two-way knowledge flow is critical.

10:12:28 AM