Uploaded on 12 May, 2006 by Marvin (PA)

I hot-footed it from Cheltenham to the Pervasive Media Studio a couple nights back for a Gurteen Knowledge Cafe. The topic was ‘unlearning’ which is a sufficiently interesting topic for a Knowledge Transfer/Exchange professional to drag me out and through the wind and rain that Bristol chose to throw at us!

I wasn’t entirely sure what ‘unlearning’ was; I’d constructed a meaning that was roughly a bit more purposeful than forgetting. The brief presentation from Daniel Doherty (University of Bristol, Management School) ranged from the quite possibly certifiable Institute of Unlearning through to more constructivist (and believable) approaches.

There was quite a bit that bordered on (or was overtly about) brainwashing and ‘re-programming’ people Leaving aside the ethics and morals of those particular applications of unlearning, the discussions were mainly around trying to decide if there was more to it than situational flexibility. We touched briefly on meta-physics in trying to figure out how far back into perceptions of reality you had to go before it became ‘unlearning’.

Quite a few of the examples described were really just putting one set of learnt behaviours or patterns of thought aside to more effectively address a particular situation. We didn’t feel (and I’m speaking in the royal ‘we’) that this represented unlearning. Quite a few of the proposed unlearning situations (miltary training, regime change, etc) are externally imposed. Even if there is a degree of consent there is an external mechanism, framework and big shouty Sergeant Majors moulding you to become the best of the best of the best. Sah!

Uploaded on 12 May, 2006 by minxlj

I was curious to see if anyone could propose an instance where that level of ‘unlearning’ could be initiated and carried through in a purely individual framework. Apart from physical impact injuries to the skull, or psychotic drugs, there didn’t appear to be. Which got me to wondering if in fact unlearning is something that you can consciously undertake.

Even more benign approaches to unlearning, such as the coporate merger or unlearning intolerace require external intervention. The incoming organisation (or new CEO) will impose ‘their’ view on the organisation being absorbed. The UN has a conference series on unlearning to help people identify strategies to tackle intolerance in their societies through education, inclusion and example.

There’s no doubt that you can learn new patterns and behaviours that are more effective to the changing circumstances and social ‘norms’. Can you unlearn without the rather scary brainwashing aspects, I’m less sure. The brain is remarkably good at retaining data, sometimes we are less good at retriving it and most of us can’t recall every detail of every second of our lives, but I think it’s all in there.

Thanks go to Ed for organising and the Pervasive Media Studio for the venue.

Uploaded on January 7,
2008 by wabberjocky

Open Coffee continues to grow in Bristol with more new faces plus a good number of ‘regulars’.

There was a definite mobile-video thing going on (at least around the conversations I heard). Matt Thurling from Science.TV (a video sharing community dedicated to science communication) was a new face to OpenCoffee. He’s particularly interested in the iPhone and was one of the early adopters downloading it to see how it would fit with his particular offering. That project is still in gestation but Matt has announced today a collaboration with Clifton College (which is why this post is a bit late) that will see students devising their experiments, testing them, recording the evidence and then sharing those films with Science.TV’s global audience of scientists and students.

Following the iPhone and discussion about using video to record and provide a learning platform there was a side discussion about monetisation and hopefully there’ll be more anouncements or developments to see arising from that.

Uploaded on March 4,
2007 by NguyenDai

Just had an email from Craig at Podchains Ltd that, having met Mark from OK-Cool on Tues at OpenCoffee they went for a follow-up meeting and have now “struck up a working relationship”.

I think we can chalk that up as the first deal of this OpenCoffee series!

If you’d like to come along and find out more please check out the Upcoming or Facebook groups. We meet every other Tuesday in Starbucks off Park St in Bristol. The next couple of meetings are 1, 15 and 29 July.
The OpenCoffee Club was started to encourage entrepreneurs, developers and investors to organise real-world informal meetups to chat, network and grow.

This is awsome!

Its sometimes difficult to explain to people what sailing training is really about. They tend to think of big square riggers a la Hornblower and the Tall Ships Youth Trust (which is part of it). Generally they believe me when I tell them that the young people do everything on board (sail handling, helming, repair work, cooking, cleaning, engine maintenance, navigation, etc), but that’s not what it’s really about. I try and explain that its about bringing a group of young people (that have never met before) together and over the course of a week help them form into an effective and social group, but that doesn’t really convey what it’s about.

As a volunteer Ships Captain with the London Sailing Project I could refer to our ‘mission statement’ which is accurate but a bit dry:

No more - I’ll just point them to this YouTube video, produced by the 22 kids and Afterguard (yes the Captain is in there) over 6 days sail training (plus a bit of post production) filmed between the UK, France and Channel Islands. They’re raising money for the project (visit http://www.justgiving.com/rockstar to donate). Oh, and of course there’s the website and Facebook page.

Remember, those young people hadn’t met beforehand to plan that out, and because of the volunteer nature of the LSP, the afterguard (Captain, First Mate, Watch Officers and Watch Leaders) probably hadn’t met before either.

Fantastic!

Just back from the opening of the Bristol Design Festival down in the old Fire Station. Don’t let the website put you off (it’s a bit Flash heavy and not very up to date). The festival is getting underway with a wide range of product and concept designs, including the ever popular Grafikea.

Upstairs is the Expressions design show from UWE final year students, quite a few dealing with various packaging and fast food solutions (obviously close to the interests of students) but also some very clever ideas including a neonatal incubator designed to encourage and strengthen the bond between between premature babies and their mothers.

The main floor has design consultancy showcases from across Bristol (and beyond) and the Grafikea exhibits. Mobile Pie have set up an SMS voting system so you can text your vote for the best example of what you can do with a Lack table from Ikea, and you can buy your favourite table direct from the artist (prices vary, the ones I saw went from £15 up).

Lots to look forward to over the coming 4 days:

• Spike Design (Spike Island) Sat, 14 to Thur 19 June, 10:00-18:30
• Drop In Design (The Old Fire Station) Sat, 14 June, 11:00-16:00
• The Pitch in partnership with businesszone.co.uk (The Old Fire Station) Mon, 16 June, 14:00
• Designer Karaoke (The Watershed) Mon, 16 June, 18:30-23:00