In the demonstration of Google Wave, they talk about the metaphor of a "hosted conversation." Whatever the ultimate impact of Wave is for the future, as I begin my TLT faculty fellowship for a project on Socratic Politics in Digital Dialogue, I am struck by the recognition that what the Wave speaks to at its very core is something deeply human and ancient: the need to engage in dialogue with one another in ever new ways that open new possibilities for human being together.
Google Wave is potentially revolutionary because it is the latest articulation of the human drive to communicate with one another as we move through and attempt to come to terms with the world in which we live.
I am particularly excited about Google Wave because of the central metaphor in which it is rooted: the dynamics of dialogical conversation.
There is one other point I would want to make as I begin to think about my own project: there is something significant about the way Google is introducing the Wave. They are inviting people to participate in its development, which means they are, at least theoretically, taking seriously the central metaphor in which the phenomenon of the Wave is rooted: the creative possibilities opened by and in dialogue.
If I am going to open my research into the meaning and nature of Socratic Politics at this early and embryonic stage, I will need to trust the possibilities of dialogue and accountability; I will need to perform research in dialogue.
Great post, Chris. Love the comparison and early insight. The Wave introduction is a bold statement -- they are fully embracing the notion of, "we made this for you ... now go make it great." I am clearly excited by the overall potential. Just like I am excited by the potential this summer's fellowships offer. What I think is important in your opening post is the wonder related to exposing early scholarship in an open space. Does writing here about fresh ideas challenge the traditional thoughts on protecting v promoting early scholarship? I think this is a potentially interesting undercurrent all of us will face this summer. There could be real forward progress made through it that may be completely unintentional.
As I begin to think about exactly what I am trying to do, I am struck by a sense of being exposed in a way that is unconventional. Usually, you start by spending a lot of time reading, thinking, processing on your own in the library or your study with books and articles. As you process and hone the thoughts and ideas, think about their connections and allow the project (be it a book an article or whatever) to develop and grow in that protected space. Then, once you feel they are ready to be clearly and effectively articulated, you allow them to appear in public writings and presentations.
What I plan to do is expose that period of private cultivation to more public exposure earlier that usual. Although I don't plan to do away with the private cultivation altogether, I do plan to do some "thinking out loud" using the blog space, podcasting, perhaps even voicestreaming, etc.
There are pros and cons to this and I would be interested in hearing what others think they might be. My feeling of being overexposed as I embark on this is tempered by the sense that if I present what I am doing as a process and clearly indicate that these ideas are tentative, immature and probative, this exposure might open possibilities of connection and integration that I could not have imagined alone in the library in dialogue only with books and articles.