http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/magazine/16-07/pb_theory is a short introduction to the idea that theory is no longer all that relevant... Triggered quite a bit of controversy... Actually, I worry less that a focus on data is 'cold'. I like data ;-) I worry more that we focus on the things we have data for (time spent, who interacts with whom, clicks on links, etc.) and not on the things that are more tricky to measure, even if they are more relevant, especially in more open ended, deeper forms of learning...

This was one of the sessions I enjoyed most at OpenEd... I am definitely going to 'steal' the idea and will use my daughters and the non-linear approach in future presentations! I would be very interested to explore further the notion of 'little oer' - it is related to the relevancy of repositories, etc...

I agree with Martin's comments. In addition, I've come to rely on permanent connectedness, and it makes me uncomfortable when I get disconnected. Like many of you, I am at a conference or in a meeting abroad two a three days every week and it becomes difficult to balance that with work and family obligations when the connection disappears. After two days without a connection, I actually stayed away from the last day of the conference because of this reason! Pity I missed some good talks and conversations as a result...