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Showing posts from October, 2017

Interesting, Unrelated Content

Youtube algorithms allow users to browse related videos. Recommendations are based on what other viewers, who have also watched the same videos, have browsed. This nifty feature has become an essential part of Youtube, where 300 hours of video are uploaded every minute. By clicking on a recommended video, the Youtuber can reach new content with expectations that it will fit one's taste. But what if a Youtuber wanted to learn something new? What if a Youtuber who only watches NBA highlights has an undiscovered desire to watch videos of a cobra fighting a mongoose? Though the sidebar recommendations are great at featuring interesting, related content, there is no way for interesting, unrelated content to show up. And while the Cobra v. Mongoose  example is facetious and trivial to some people, the idea of unrelated recommendations can be applied in education. Picture a curious student who wants to learn about the world. One problem that the curious student faces is that he may no