In the previous blogs we have discussed the what and why of AR (Augmented Reality). Now it’s time to think of applicable ways to use it in Extension. Here are some ideas of how AR is currently being used:
3D model using Augment image source courtesy of www.augment.com
The vision I have for the Web is about anything being potentially connected with anything…that provides us with new freedom…unfettered by the hierarchical classification systems into which we’ve bound ourselves…. bringing the workings of society closer to the workings of our minds.
Tim Berners-Lee, in Weaving the Web: The Original Design and Ultimate Destiny of the World Wide Web by its inventor
Many of us take for granted capabilities afforded by the World Wide Web (WWW), what its inventor Tim Berners-Lee described on the world’s very first website as an “information retrieval initiative aiming to give universal access to a large universe of documents.” Starting in 1989, amazingly by October of 1990 he had developed three technologies that remain the foundation of today’s Web:
HTML: HyperText Markup Language, for formatting Web documents.
URI: Uniform Resource Identifier, a unique “address” for each resource on the Web. The most common form of URI is the Uniform Resource Locator (URL).
HTTP: Hypertext Transfer Protocol, allowing for the retrieval of resources from across the Web.
Since that time the Web has grown considerably larger and more complex, dramatically changing the way we learn, work and socialize. Within the academic world libraries like mine at Cornell University have helped develop a variety of robust web accessible resources including online databases and catalogs (WorldCat), digital repositories (HathiTrust) and expertise discovery systems (VIVO), transforming scholarly research, learning and dissemination. We’ve also been strong advocates of open, interoperable solutions wherever possible, in support of an informed and democratic society. Collaborative efforts like Linked Data for Libraries (LD4L), semantic web technologies and Linked Data are supporting the sharing of information in a highly flexible and extensible manner across the web.
These enabling technologies, standards and policies are changing the very nature of knowledge, including how its created, managed and shared. The locus of intelligence is shifting away from individuals and institutions, toward “smart networks” and “distributed intelligence”, from an emphasis on building stocks to maintaining flows. This network revolution is also enhancing our ability to sense and respond to crisis and change much more rapidly, often in real time.
The result, as David Weinberger from Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society writes in Too Big to Know, is that:
Knowledge is [no longer] something that gets pumped out of the system as its product… The hyperlinking of science… links knowledge back to its sources [and] into the human contexts and processes that produce, use, debate, and make sense of it.
And so…
Our task is… to build networks that make us smarter
As a vital part of the Land Grant system supporting knowledge with a public good, Cooperative Extension has an important part to play in this network revolution. Yet many have not fully embraced this role, lacking the skills, resources or guidance to do so.
Visual representation of the Theory of Change for Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN) initiative.
Dedicated to promoting Innovation and Impact in response to key Issues, including climate change and food security, eXtension has partnered with the USDA and GODAN (Global Open Data for Ag & Nutrition) to support the development of such competencies through a new fellowship. Individuals interested in this exciting opportunity to support innovation and impact within and beyond the Extension system are highly encouraged to apply.
Over the next several months, I’ll be sharing insights and reflections from my own “Land Grant Informatics” fellowship. Sponsored by eXtension and Cornell University Library, I’ll be investigating how we might more effectively and collectively link and leverage digital resources and expertise in support of our research, learning and outreach mission. Stay tuned! [The first post of that Solving for Pattern series can now be found here]
As they say, “Tis the Season” and nothing can put one in the mood more quickly than enjoying the sights and sounds of the holidays. Recently, while in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia) working with colleagues interested in developing their own eXtension system, I enjoyed streets adorned with beautiful Christmas banners and signs. During the weekend it was the local symphony playing seasonal tunes including excerpts from The Nutcracker (Tchaikovsky). We were surrounded by reminders of the beauty and special meanings that go with this special time of year.
Each of us is thankful for the blessings we enjoy including our work as Extension professionals. Together we enrich the lives of those we serve by helping to provide the best information and educational opportunities possible. It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we truly work together. So, on behalf of the eXtension staff … Happy Holidays!
eXtension is pleased to announce a partnership agreement with the Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI) Victoria and the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) of Australia.
The 12-month pilot will test three learning networks in the Australia grains industry: a field crop disease network (led by DEPI Victoria); a crop nutrition network (led by the Department of Primary Industries, New South Wales – DPI NSW); and an eXtension support network (led by DEPI and GRDC). The networks will involve researchers, Extension practitioners, agronomists and producers across Australia. These learning networks will support an enhanced level of industry collaboration.
DEPI Knowledge Management Specialist Richard Vines (Right in photo above) said the eXtension pilot would provide a framework for engaging, reaching and connecting people with information, expertise and knowledge while reducing duplication. “DEPI, together with GRDC, is taking a leadership role in the piloting of new online service delivery platforms for Australian agriculture, building on what is an established and effective service platform in the U.S.,” Vines said. “Ultimately, it is about connecting producers with knowledge to help grow their business.”
GRDC Senior Manager of Products and Services Kyle Thoms (Left in photo above) said he saw enormous potential in adopting an established online system for better connecting industry to research results. “In a world of finite scientific expertise, eXtension will provide growers access to reliable research information in forms that suit them best,” Thoms said.
eXtension Foundation Executive Director Dan Cotton (Center in photo above) said the partnership would bring an established learning and information sharing platform in the U.S. to a new market in Australia. “eXtension connects knowledge consumers with knowledge experts to achieve new models of learning and engagement,” Cotton said.
eXtension will assist DEPI and GRDC in the development of the new learning networks by providing gated access to eXtension technologies and services. The pilot will allow DEPI and GRDC time to develop and implement a long-term support model. At the same time, strategies and policies will be pursued to eventually manage and support multi-national collaboration.
The Department of Environment and Primary Services Victoria and the Grains Research Development Corporation has contacted eXtension regarding interest in collaborating with eXtension to implement a similar model for the Australian Research, Development and Extension Framework for agriculture.
The objective of the collaboration would be to fast track the implementation of eXtension learning network pilots in the Australian grains sector and to develop a national business case and implementation plan for an Australian version of eXtension.
eXtension sees this as an opportunity to perhaps develop global learning networks from which people in Australia and the United States may benefit, as well as others throughout the world. The eXtension Governing Committee has communicated its interest in collaborating if certain terms and conditions can be met. Clearly, this is an exciting opportunity should it continue to develop. Stay tuned…
