Wikipedia Might Just Suck
Encyclopedia Britannica has challenged Nature to retract its article comparing Wikipedia to Britannica. "The entire undertaking—from the study’s methodology to the misleading way Nature 'spun' the story—was misconceived," Britannica claims. Andrew Orlowski of The Register suggests Nature editor Jim Giles, the author of the article comparing the two encyclopedias, is predisposed to believe that collective intelligence, at least in this context, produces results that match traditional editorial oversight.
Collective intelligence has its place, as Google's PageRank algorithm has shown. But the overall soundness of the concept belies its limitations in specific circumstances. In terms of authorship, collective intelligence produces results like collective cooking—edible but uninspired, and occasionally dangerous. Then again, you get what you pay for.
Search
About
Categories
Archives
Syndication Feed