Tuesday, August 23, 2011

The Right to Think...Crowdsourcing

Crowdsourcing was first coined by Jeff Howe
in a June 2006 Wired magazine article "The Rise of Crowdsourcing."
Essentially, it means to take advantage of the talent of the public
with an open call to a group of people,
to perform tasks, solve complex problems, or contribute relevant and fresh ideas.
There are four types of crowdsourcing strategies:
crowdwisdom,
crowdcreation,
crowdfunding,
crowdvoting.



I tap crowdwisdom with each blog post.
With the collective intelligence of the commentary,
each right becomes better written
and more well-rounded,
when I harness the power
of the collected genius of
multiple viewpoints
in comments
from
the
group.

I have found that, over and over again,
crowdwisdom helps to complete the creation of each right I write.
And aren't rights supposed to be for the people
by the people?

I declare the Right to Crowdsourcing.
Many, many things could be solved by crowdsourcing.
This is an important right for the future.

56 comments:

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing can be a great way to solve many of our nation’s problems, by making a website to gather opinions and Ideas about topics or problems happening in our community then have others review this gathering of thoughts and possibly put them into action. AG

Anonymous said...

I agree we all should get together and fight for what we believe in. Many of us say almost everyday "Man I wish .... would happen." Well your not the only person that wishes that something would come true; and with a huge crowd of people who think the same or similar way you do can make a big difference. So I say yes to the right to crowdsourcing. Cd884

Anonymous said...

As much as I want to agree that crowd sourcing is a better way to voice opinion or demand change, I would have to say that it is more like a crowd of crying children with mothers covering their ears. In other words, no one listens but those who are speaking, not those who are spoken to. Is it me or does my comment sound like philosophy?

Chuck F.

Anonymous said...

I support crowed sourcing. It's always good for a persons opinions to be heard. However, most of the time, no ones lessening because no ones paying attention. But if you add a few more voice's into the equation, the volume tends to rise.
M.D.L.

Anonymous said...

I have often heard the saying, "Great minds think alike". Crowd sourcing makes sense as to why people would say that. In my opinion, crowd sourcing is very useful in our society. The benefit of using crowd sourcing is being able to evaluate a group's opinion, versus an individual's. Using more creativity for a specific goal or project can produce a better outcome. Most importantly, listening to the group as a whole, can create a better understanding of mankind. We, as humans, are more powerful in groups and can attain great accomplishments in working together.
~TP~

Anonymous said...

This is the first time I have heard about Crowd sourcing. I like the idea. I thinks it's a great idea to get everyones input. I think in a society everyones opinion matters. By using Crowd sourcing you can evaluate everyone opinion and it would make for a better outcome on the situation. Our rights should be " for the people, by the people". By using Crowd sourcing it gives the people just a little more control.

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing could be a powerful tool for businesses to grow without spending to much money. Also,could give the chance to many people to show their fresh, innovative, or brilliant ideas. On the other hand, these people could bring mediocrity in their ideas too.J.V

Anonymous said...

I find the idea of crowdwisdom very productive because it does not only let people express their ideas, but also lets them see that they are not the only ones with the same idea. Many times people are too afraid to voice their opinion because they think they are going to be laughed at. With crowdwisdom, I see people's opinion getting expressed more loudly than ever.
G.I.M

Anonymous said...

I am not to sure that I like this method because from my understanding I believe that certain opinions might be lost in translation. Don’t you think that by using this system not every voice will be heard? Why should we bundle all the opinions as once when everyone has a different perspective. Then again people might have similar views but maybe not exactly the same views to be able to group the views as one. What I'm getting to is that some main points might be lost or forgotten while grouped using crowdsourcing. VA

Anonymous said...

The concept of crowdsourcing has tremendous potential. Each person has unique ideas, gathering and analyzing all these individual ideas is a powerful tool that can be used to resolve complex problems. Currently, there are multiple tools that use this approach. A survey is an example of these tools. Entrepreneurs have also capitalized on this concept; one example is GasBuddy.com, a site that allows readers in more than 100 communities to share real time reports on gas prices. If properly executed, the four crowdsourcing strategies: crowdwisdom, crowdcreation, crowdfunding and crowdvoting can be of great benefit to public and private sectors.

Torpedo179

Anonymous said...

I believe that crowdsourcing would make a good tool to be used by society since we all are part of it. I can not think of a better way to make everyone oppinion count, and from this point take the best out of it to improve our world. Cy.U

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing, as mentioned in the article, benefits from multiple points of view being shared simultaneously. However, many of the comments focus on the "great minds think alike" problem. Why is it a problem? As a supervisor professionally, I do not want to be surrounded by "Yes Men". In a democratic society you would want varied voices. Unfortunately, our government representation seems to be varied for the sake of political achievement, not for the betterment of our people. The shared voice that we achieve through using new public forums such as Twitter could be an instrument of change. In some countries, social networking sites have already brought people together from crowdsourcing to coups. JS

Anonymous said...

I've noticed that this type of thing has become very popular as of late. More and more sites are geared towards gathering reviews and feedback from consumers about a specific product or company; even social networking giants like Facebook are in on it. It's great for companies and even better for consumers! Cbereng

Anonymous said...

I agree with crowd sourcing because is not only good for the government but for a private company as well. I believe that in order to run a successful business you need to be open minded and a great listener. I own a small construction company and thanks to crowd sourcing my company is very successful, ( happy employees means happy costumers, and happy costumers means great income). I believe that if our country reaches out to its people to gather information by crowd sourcing this country would be debt free and become one of the richest if not the richest country in the world. I also agree that from crowd sourcing you can obtain really meaningless ideas but there are some great undiscovered minds out there that can be of great help to solving our problems. Crowd sourcing is a great way of achieving new ideas. CMP

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing is a very useful tool and can help many people solve difficult problems by using the intelligence of others. But at the same time you must consider the people in the crowd and if they are intelligent, because if they aren’t then the tool and right of crowd sourcing just might damage whatever you are trying to accomplish through it. So if the people in the crowd are basically stupid then the information coming out is going to be negative, but if the crowd has a majority of intelligent people then the information coming out will be positive.
C.Munoz

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is a powerful tool. It is a way of hearing what is in our societies heart. Some people pull right, others left; I feel that with crowdsourcing we can come to a happy medium of finding the right methods in solving today's problems. Listen to the voice of our people!
KP

Anonymous said...

I agree with most of you guys. Crowd sourcing is a strongly way to be heard. I think multiple voices are heard more than one voice, but on the other hand I'm also in accordance with VA, many times the message can be changed or simply be lost in translation during the destination. Therefore, crowd sourcing can be a powerful tool when it is used in an appropriate manner, but also a double edged sword when it is not.
*NG*

TrustMeImADoctor said...

Crowdsourcing can become a great tool in society if everyone participates. I think it can be used to better our society and help find solutions to a lot of our problems weather it is a political problem, an economic problem, or a medical problem. For instance many scientists may find effective way to treat or prevent certain diseases. With crowdsourcing many scientist may study and improve these treatments.

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing like you mentioned, can be an amazing way to discuss problems and possible solutions. These problems can include almost anything, as long as there are people willing to exchange information, things can get done. Through crowd sourcing we can listen to different opinions and express our own, and it's always nice to be able to speak your mind even if it's only once in a while. I think any kind of society should take advantage of the idea of crowd sourcing especially now that so many technological resources are available to many people all around the world.

BS

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing provides different perspectives and points of views, allowing the public or defined group to express their opinions and move forward with it and make their own contributions. DAD

Anonymous said...

Share what you know learn what you don’t…. Sometimes the simplest of solutions are right in front of you. You are more than likely to find a solution to something the more people you involve.
Costs for product can be lower, or free ( people pay to be able to showcase their work). Results can be found more quickly. Results can be solicited from outside traditional organizational boundaries.
The Lady Philosopher is right, this blog grows and takes on new meaning with every comment. While we see and read the original statements, each comment adds a new interpretation to it and in this way continues the thread in possibly a path no one of us could have anticipated, but is thought provoking and stimulating nevertheless.
CTK

Anonymous said...

I've been enlightened with this blog. I never knew that crowdsourcing existed. I would love to be a part of something like this. My mother always said "two heads are better than one", so imagine hundreds of people showing true passion for what they believe and in union expressing their views and opinions. NOBRA

Anonymous said...

In my opinion crowd, sourcing is a great marketing plan for many large companies who would love feedback on their products. However, the negative side of crowd sourcing is while everyone is voicing their opinion is anyone genuinely listening. –J.DeShazior

LXC said...

Like many of you have mentioned, crowd sourcing can be an effective way to voice opinions, share different perspectives, and communicate the needs and wants of our community. Although as Chuck F. mentioned that a lot of times those in power do not listen, it is more likely that they will listen when numerous people are knocking on their doors as opposed to just one. Therefore, crowd sourcing can be an efficient way of lobbying for rights and finding a solution to a problem, as well bringing the community together.

Anonymous said...

I believe in the right to crowd sourcing for people that want to communicate with that method of collaboration. I personally would not reach out to a group of people that I do not know for advice, especially if it relates to business and money. RhW

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing helps people to think "outside of the box." A person may only think a certain way but after reading what other people think and feel, he realizes that his way of thinking is not the only right way to think. Every person's opinions matters. Hanalv

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing is an ideal way for businesses and companies, in today’s world, to stay competitive. To connect with the general public to brainstorm relevant ideas to make a product or company excel is a great idea. The world is changing everyday and businesses are trying to stay on top with new ideas, products, and concepts. DH63

Anonymous said...

Last semester I actually had to write a paper on crowd sourcing, and at first I didn’t agree with it, but after doing well research I came to the conclusion that it can actually help us out. Two brains are better then one, and if one person can’t take on that difficult task, others will. I totally agree crowd sourcing could solve many problems in this so-called place we call earth. Why not work as a team. Crowd sourcing and outsourcing save companies a lot of money each year. AFF

Anonymous said...

I totally agree with the right of crowd sourcing. It has been too long that we were taken advantage of and fleeced of unbelievable mark up from businessmen. Can you believe an item costing a dollar and they selling it for ten dollars? With crowd sourcing we can compare and get the products we need at the cheapest cost. However, we need to do our due diligence and make sure that the product is of good quality. This can also be done with crowd sourcing. RR

Anonymous said...

I believe that crowd sourcing can be helpful and allow us to tap into the minds of others for useful information but I don’t think we have the right word for it. For instance, in the case of crowd wisdom a crowd is only as wise as the wisest person that is already in that crowd. So therefore a crowd can only get wiser if the crowd expands and there happens to be a wiser person in the new boundaries. So the idea of crowd sourcing seems perfect but I think we missed out the part where we have to constantly increase the crowd and break down barriers. If we all give in our two cents then maybe we can all stand balanced on an equal agreement.
-LZ

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing is first and foremost probably an excellent way to vent. There are many people with ideas running through there minds and sometimes want to let them out, they might make a difference they might not but they got to exercise there right to freedom of speech and I am sure they felt a lot better when they got home. This itself is a form of crowd sourcing and to be honest I love reading everyone’s opinions on these posts. If your open to hearing others insight on things it could be a wonderful thing. There are some great minds out there and ideas that without crowd sourcing would never be heard. SG

Anonymous said...

The term crowdsourcing is unfamiliar to me. Reading the blog makes me think of the endless possible areas it may be used. What about crowdinstruct where everyone joins together to teach something new to a child in need. Why not crowdinpeech? Hey we saw this action recently. Now this may all sound grand, but we all must realize that every group, organization, and so forth always has a key speaker. Although united for the same reasons, and our thoughts and desired are addressed cohesively, it is much better to listen to the one individual rather than a crowd. YYD

Anonymous said...

I've never heard of Crowdsourcing before, but i like it. I think it's powerful, it's like all voices becoming one. Sometimes we think we are the only ones who think a certain way, but many people aside from us may have the same idea or concept. Crowdsourcing can allow us to make an idea happen and can help fix a problem that can change a city, a state, or even a country.
ME
ME

Anonymous said...

I agree that many things/problems can be resolved by the collective power of people from all walks of life worldwide. One idea links to another stimulating the thought process resulting in creative and innovative solutions. Too often an individual is boxed in by an unwillingness to accept a concept by an outsider to the trade or profession. Though this forum may be contributing to major breakthroughs in science and technology, I can’t help but wonder if it will become another form of exploitation of the workforce. VMR

Anonymous said...

As great as I think crowdsourcing is I do not believe it to be the best answer in terms of advancement towards the future. With crowdsourcing, an individual can simply agree with the previous individuals thoughts. Conventional everyday wisdom is often not the answers we are looking for. The best wisdom is from those who are passionate about what they have learned or who have studied rigorously and above all practiced this knowledge.

R.A.T. Jr

Anonymous said...

We sometimes dont take advantage on our right of freedom of speech. i beleive crowdsourcing is an even better idea of taking "freedom of speech" into use. Its great to have a vision of open ideas in a controlled manner to discuss or review problems. All possible outcomes may be considered and coming from other people that you might not even know how much in common you might have with them.Or even better a possible right outcome from a person that might not think like you. LC

Anonymous said...

Grabbing someones attention. That is the main goal in trying to achieve a goal. With a crowd the numbers are higher, the voices are louder, and the diversity is abundant. Crowd sourcing is a brilliant way of making a point and gaining attention. Already we use this method in breast cancer walks and presidential elections. Let's make crowd sourcing a way of uniting our nation... mlv.

Anonymous said...

The book that I am reading, “Wisdom of the Crowds”, discusses this very subject. When you have a wide range of people of different intellects in a crowd and are presented with a problem to solve, they tend to come up with the best answer to the problem more times than not. Stock markets, small businesses, large corporations could stand to use crowd sourcing. In a gathering of usual intelligence they discover superior solutions when averaged together. This is new to me but I am a convinced crowd sourcing can be a valuable instrument of information the public can use to help solve mysteries. DS

Anonymous said...

Crowd sourcing is not a futuristic term. It has already been developed and established with many different corporation around the world. Crowd sourcing is an amazing tool in the 2.0 world that we live in today. One concern with crow sourcing is that it also means that there has to be less control on the end of the recipient, and the crowd has to feel that their opinions count. I would think that governments would have a tougher time with this due to the control factor. Blogs, webinars and something so simple as the like button on Facebook all capture the strength of public opinion. What about YouTube, when a video has 10 million hits, does that mean anything? Twitter has also allowed the public to Sherman their opinions and can group then by placing the hash# sign next to the pertaining topic. Topics with a lot of attention are known as trending topics. Opinions count just as much as they are acted upon.AAA

Anonymous said...

you can accomplish a lot of tasks with crowdsourcing.It's a great way to solve our nation's problems.I say yes to crowsourcing, if the people want to accomplish the same thing.It can make help us voice our opinion better and change our society.cjj

Anonymous said...

I think the idea of Crowdsourcing is great. But realistically how many opinions would get through a crowd of two thousand people, as shown in the photo. How would anyone be able to get accurate and useful information and/or opinions from all of those people. I just don’t see how it could work. However, I do believe that for this blog it is a brilliant idea to Crowdwisdom. Not only are there new ideas and views being presented to you, we all get to see them too. JENS

Anonymous said...

I think that crowdsourcing is a very valuable tool in today's society. The internet is such a prominent part of our every day lives in this time in age and social networks are constantly using crowdsourcing. Websites, Blogs, Facebook and Twitter are all examples of people coming together to share their wisdom, creativity and knowledge with one another to better develop an idea or concept. - KP

Anonymous said...

I think that crowdsourcing is a very valuable tool in today's society. The internet is such a prominent part of our every day lives in this time in age and social networks are constantly using crowdsourcing. Websites, Blogs, Facebook and Twitter are all examples of people coming together to share their wisdom, creativity and knowledge with one another to better develop an idea or concept. - KKP

Anonymous said...

This is the first time I have heard the term crowd sourcing. I believe that many things can be learned from what others think, and many problems we have can be solved. Sometimes you need fresh and new ideas from a different source, to figure something out, and what better than other people. I do not consider it taking advantage of others, but more like having an open mind, with endless possibilities.
-LizR

Anonymous said...

I agree with this crowdsourcing idea that has become so popular within the years. I think collective viewpoints and ideas are much more valuable than when it's coming from just a single person.
I feel that we can come to more reasonable conclusions about anything when more people's opinions are involved. With that said, crowdsourcing is genius.

-AQ-

Anonymous said...

Personally i think crowdsourcing is wrong and takes advantage of the people involved. I think if someone needs to find solutions to problems, or come up with new and different ideas they should come up with them themselves. -RBM

Anonymous said...

I believe that the Right to Crowdsourcing would be a great idea.It will allow everyone to gather and share there thoughts and opinions together.Each of us will be allowed freedom of speech while learning something new from someone else.Jp

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is a great idea. Taking into account what other people may think or may feel about each subject. Isn't that what a society is? "Society: Companionship or association with one's fellows." as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. So interacting with our neighbors to ask them what they think about the new parking decal rules would be a way to crowd wisdom and crowd reaction, correct? Crowd sourcing is a great way for everyone to be informed on how other people feel about issues of our community as well as to learn why other people think the way they do and inform other people as well. By the people, for the people. May this right take part in our everyday life.

- DBM

Anonymous said...

Whatever the subject at hand may be, whether it involves a scientific problem or how to solve a mathematical problem, it is more efficient and more effective to bring two or more brains together. Crowd sourcing is not something only corporates or small businesses do, it's in our everyday life, we might just see it differently and not necessarily use this term. When people come together under one purpose their voice has a much more powerful impact. People must become aware of this, set their inhibitions and differences aside and make themselves part of the solution.

-GT

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is a good way to be heard in our society. It allows everyone to take part in the creative process of ideas, therefore an idea is created that everyone can own. I think that with crowdsourcing we are able to come up with one thought, fight for it and solve complex problems.GLT

Anonymous said...

i think crowd sourcing is good because it allows people with the same belief to join together and fight for what they want. Many people share same ideas and wish it can come true. Crowd sourcing is a possible solution. H.I.V

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is powerful, once you understand the need for collaboration. Everyone has a different understanding and look into any given situation;Therefore, knowing that we all have different talents we excell in each and everytime can help when making it the best it can be. Help me so I can help you,and we can help eachother. JE

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is a great way to get people attention and opinions about a particular subject but I don't think that will solve many of our problems. Crowdsourcing in my opinion can only get us so far and after that we have to take matter in our own hands to actually make a change. I don't think opinions over the internet will help us get anywhere.
BJO

muaath alheji said...

Nelson Mandela once stated something along the lines of: our country and society is so scared of change and the consequences that come with us acting on change that we refuse to act upon it. Crowdsourcing is something I definitely agree with. Our society and generation needs to take a step forward instead of a step back, and try to better our futures. Crowdsourcing groups allows people to accomplish what Mandela stated we are so afraid of. Imagine being able to get together with your community, or even just type it out on the computer screen in front of you, and solve all the problems our nation is facing. Imagine being able to make one comment that changes the world. Sounds nice, doesn't it? History is happening every day, why not take an opportunity to make it?
MA (Muaath Alheji)

Anonymous said...

Crowdsourcing is a great tool, and whether or not we know it we use it daily. In essence facebook, twitter, tumblr, and social networking sites all serve the one simple purpose of gathering your thoughts, opinions, and ideas and publishing them for millions to see. In turn you receive the feedback of your audience ("friends" "followers") allowing them to agree with your post and taking action towards some specific point. Crowdsourcing is just another medium of expression. Allowing us a way to cultivate our rich opinions and stand for a certain right or cause. [ang.]

Anonymous said...

Even though crowd sourcing might be an effective way to solve problems, I've always felt that the majority of opinions should not always overpower the minorities.

-AJG