Proposition 1: Wikipedia is ruined, as a reliable information source, by edit wars.
Proposition 2: Generally, edit wars happen when people care about the information.
Proposition 3: People care more about information with a high social, as opposed to factual, value.
Theorem: The value of Wikipedia as a reliable information source is strongly inversely correlated to the social value of the information sought.
1st Corollary: Smart-phone access to Wikipedia will be the death of pub quizzes.
2nd Corollary: Wikipedia, en masse, has a significant social value.
The Cynics View: It is often useful to know, not just the truth, but what the mass herd of human sheep believe. In countries where the Daily Mail is not available, Wikipedia has an role.
An Appeal For A Functioning Spellchecker?
16 hours ago
1 comment:
That's very true. I edited a wiki entry on Obama to state that he was not elibible for President and that started a war.
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