Weekend Reading 17 December 2010

Another Friday, another round of Weekend Reading.  Where to begin?

via Megnut  

How about with a joke?  Or, more specifically, how about a joke I stole from a friend the other day?  How many hipsters does it take to screw in a lightbulb?  It's probably an obscure number you've never heard of.

Now telling that joke, actually typing that joke for this blog post, might be considered stealing were it not for the fact that jokes are not copyrightable.  A recent post on the Media Law Prof Blog dealing with the issue of copyright with regards to jokes is my first selection for Weekend Reading, as there are several links to pdf's and arguments dealing with the issue.  Very interesting stuff dealing with an area of law and comedy I never really thought about before.  

The second selection for Weekend Reading is the Berkman Reading Group dealing with Wikipedia Research.  Here is a quote from their wiki page as to the larger purpose of the group:

This group is a small, user-driven forum for discussing topics of interest to those interested in Wikipedia. We will discuss recent research, current practice in different fields, engagement of universities in Wikipedia and other broad collaborations, and historical parallels in large-scale synthesis and sharing of knowledge. Participants are welcome to report on their own work and experiences and contribute to the reading list.

On the wiki page you can find links to papers the group has already read, (they just finished the Fall term and are beginning to focus on the Winter/Spring readings) covering topics like territoriality in collaborative authoring, governance of online communities, and a look at the Chinese Wikipedia.  Collaborative online tools, such as the various wiki sites, are allowing not just wired Americans to work together in knowledge building activities but also the relatively less affluent citizens of so-called third world nations, or nations possessing an authoritarian government, the potential to participate in the global debate of ideas and contribute their viewpoint and expertise.  Great stuff.  

Plenty of stuff to read at the above mentioned sites- take some time to check them out and expand your worldview.