“Legacy Avatars” A Journey : My course journey to consider future post-Humanism “LEGACY AVATARS” Final: Digital Artifact EDCMOOC: The University of Edinburgh Ralph L. R. Bietz Connect on: RalphBietz.com RalphBietz on LinkedIn RalphBietz on Flickr RalphBietz

My Course Journey & Reflections What do we leave as a contribution to future generations? Are we leaving works that others in the future can build on? That really contribute? Albert Einstein stated: ““A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other men, …living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and still am receiving.” With that in mind, though-out the course I had many reflections both of the past and what the future of education and passing on knowledge could be. In my journey thru this course, the concept of our works contributory to mans future, of being AVATARS post-Humanism, for many years to come after our existence, being representative of our self beyond our physiological existence, and thus becoming our “Legacy Avatars” started to really become a focal point. In the past, education and knowledge have been passed on via symbolism and language in basic communication sense. Then evolving to story telling, to written word on Sanskrit on tablets to papyrus scrolls, and books and the advent of the printing press for mass propagation of books and paper forms of transmission. Next to wireless communication to hardwired phone lines, on to television, punch card computers and eventually to evolving technologies of the personal computer, satellites, and the internet. The evolution of the communication vehicle itself critically important to aiding breaking thru the barriers that open up the opportunity of the education and communication interface. For the future, how far can we go beyond? We are already broadcasting sounds waves to the heavens, And at what point will we communicate to other life forms or even to other dimensions like the metaphysical that we have yet to clearly establish. In the end for me this journey started with a simple quest to improve myself and update my skills with the internet MOOC. The ending, for the moment of course conclusion, in concept of creating digital Legacy Avatars in line with Einstein famous quote that will transcend my physiological earth planetary existence. This shift of my thinking, and with it bringing into play more digital means of expression and social networks that I had not connected before, but now have, is my first real digital Avatar on a journey to create Legacy Avatars

E-Learning and Digital Culture Course Impact on my understanding, my digital/social networking tools, and my strategy for the future, Thankfulness! Greater Appreciation: A greater appreciation for the history of education, technology, and communications evolution Provocation of New Thought: New thought provoking material and presentation. I feel this course provided an intellectual environment to challenge my current status quo for improvement and advancement. The course demands the expansion of your current thinking. Intellectual Environment: A new refreshing intellectual environment of what “could be”? Creating Future Choices : Researching MOOC lead me to a network way beyond Coursea expand my future educational choices. New social networking tools added to my overall internet presence. I added Flickr, SlideShare, and greater website presence due to course. New Linkages created in the limited social networking and internet organizations that I had already started to be a part of. In specific, I cross-linked my: website RalphBietz.com, Facebook, Goggle+, and Linked in pages as an outcome from this course. My Past and Future for a personal endeavor : The course clearly caused me to look at the past at a time when I personally was a heretic to the known educational system at that time (as documented in a feature article in “ The Wall Street Journal” ), and tie it to new theories that I have which I believe will be innovators in the future thru my books on “ The DNA of Business” which is now being published. This course Thankfulness that a university, specifically in this case, The University of Edinburgh was willing to step forward from the traditional bricks and mortar norms to embrace the future and what could be.

Legacy Avatars What do I want to leave as an Avatar image of myself post-humanism? My Avatar, a Living Legacy that contributes and is immortal for generations to come. Remember the Einstein quote from earlier; “A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other men, …living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and still am receiving.” Literally, Its’ form can live on my website and media via Digital artifacts, live posted presentations, books that I’ve written, and cross-linked socially between popular social networking of today, and left in the hands of my predecessors who can build in it for generations. This particular one for the course “Final: Digital Artifact”, is only the beginning of building a number of Legacy Artifacts, some of which I hope to become Legacy Avatars. The DNA of Business artifact is already posted from the great influence and the inspiration of this course. It is on the website that I was inspired to launch, RalphBietz.com Having created my first on line digital Artifact with video, sound, picture, and words with this power point medium as a base, it has already changed my approach for the future influencing my DNA of Business education & communication strategy. And a clear change of strategy for all future education and communication endeavors. Each one to be, A Legacy Avatar !!! I hope you will consider one of your own!