The Magic Number: How many friends does one person need?

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Comment by Trevor G. Evans on June 3, 2010 at 12:50

Vince, sincere apologies for responding so slowly, work and friends got in my way!!

Essentially the logic of Dunbar's Magic Number was generally agreed by our group. In fact, like many perceptive insights, it is common sense expressed in a manner/format that people had not previously considered. After the event, at least one of our group felt unmoved by Dunbar's number and felt that it did not apply directly to his life but he could see that it may have general application; I suspect that there maybe quite a number of RSA Fellows to whom Dunbar's number is not a 'tight fit' but the notion of having circles of "friends" spanning outwards according to the intensity or frequency of the direct contact that one has with these various groups does seem logical.

The odd thing is that as we [RSANE] endeavour to bring our NE Fellows together we are leapfrogging over these circles and reaching out, directly to the Magic Number of 150 and the Less Magic Number of 450.... and this means we are contacting people whom we have never met. So, it looks as though prompted by Dunbar's Magic Number 'lesson', we are railing against his logic!!

Comment by Peter Churchill on June 2, 2010 at 21:31

Thanks all for this. Please make any further comments about what to do after the free Ning goes on the Virtual Coffee House Development forum discussion.

Comment by Vince Taylor on May 30, 2010 at 10:03

Sorry I couldn't make this event. Do you have anything about the actual idea as well as the conclusions, Trevor, for those of us who weren't there?
On the idea of an RSA consultancy, rather than a commercial one (if that was being mooted) we might like to consider another model. In South Yorkshire we had a professional services network where lawyers, accountants, architects offered a proportion of their time for free to community groups and the like for specific projects. They would assess the merits of each project submitted and if accepted share out the work evenly over the year so that no-one ended upout of pocket. Worth considering?

Comment by Trevor G. Evans on May 29, 2010 at 13:23

Belated but heartfelt thanks to all of those who attended last Tuesday's event.

The evening maybe summarised as follows:

Negatives:

- Lack of bandwidth meant that our 'Net users could not join in the fun, all of the time.
- Video was poorly edited but Don made up for this afterwards [!].

Positives:

+ 15 attendees.
+ Although the video of the subject matter was a little disjointed, several of the points did prompt discussion.
+ Healthy debate took place with many different contributions.
+ Potential project/new initiative sparked between Kate and Daniel and possibly Ben.
+ General desire expressed to maintain and develop contact in an effort to meet the RSA stated objectives.
+ The bottle of wine Jamie bought those of us who were able to go to the bar after the event and the chips Bill Gibbon bought; now that's what I call Fellowship!

General:

* Uncovered a need to blend the initial motivations of the RSA's founding fathers with today's technology and the need to develop "...Arts, Manufactures and Commerce", as opposed to just encouraging such goals.
* Concern expressed that JSA was not entirely in touch with members, resulting in a lack of regional cohesion.
* Concern expressed that we should not let this become another talking shop; that the momentum gained is converted into positive action.
* A summer/autumn social event [ball/barbecue] was suggested.
* The need to operate a more dynamic, productive network in the NE will be considered in parallel with new offshoot projects/initiatives being spawned as a result of the 25th May event and future intended gatherings.
* The free Ning platform upon which the VCH is based will be withdrawn in July and so an alternative must be found as we cannot afford to let the facility provided by the VCH evaporate: constant communication is vital. All are encouraged to contribute to an effective solution.
* The notion of establishing some form of RSA based consultancy was floated; this received a mixed reception.
* The need to talk to all RSA Fellows known to us individually about this event but who were unable to attend, was noted.

In subsequent dialogue after the event, Jamie noted that Matthew Taylor is addressing the subject of 21st Century Enlightenment on 17th June and suggested that we should look at a live streaming of this event into a place where we could all gather to contribute, online, and then discuss amongst ourselves after Matthew's delivery. This is being looked at by the '>1%s' and Jamie; anyone else who wishes to contribute, please do not hesitate to make contact.

More, I suspect, as we progress through next week. Please add comments that you would like to make.

Comment by Peter Churchill on May 27, 2010 at 22:51

Lynn sorry you missed out due to Skype, hadn't realised. You probably had a lucky escape given our gremlins.

By the time we have it perfected you may have Skype up and running.

Comment by Peter Churchill on May 27, 2010 at 21:45

Some very useful pointers, thanks all. I wish I could find time to have a go at evaluating the options, but it really needs doing properly anyway, so very happy Vivs is willing. (ps Justin might be well placed to help - he specialises in web2 advice to organisations and set this ning up - see home page).

I intend to convene some more virtual (coffee house - although after last time G&T might be more in order) events in the near future, initially to test the technology with willing enthusiasts (volunteers please) before unleashing it on another group of innocent victims.

Still hankering for something that moves us closer to the "vision"....

Comment by Lynn Broadbent on May 27, 2010 at 11:55

so sorry that my technological limitations prevented me from participating! my kids have promised to set me up on skype - it's just one more thing on the agenda! it sounds like a very interesting discussion and I might pinch some of the feedback from Jamie's blog to share with Fellows here in the US. The questions are universal. Good luck in your search for a new platform. I mentioned to Vivs that Buddypress seems very popular and easy to use; might be worth a look.

Comment by Viv Long-Ferguson on May 27, 2010 at 9:41

All sounds good. Thanks for the suggestions take a look at

www.socialgo.com (very similar to ning)
and http://grou.ps/ (which appears to have improvided functionality)

Vivs

Comment by Bill Gibbon on May 27, 2010 at 9:09

All,

I did a little bit of exploration yesterday and discovered a couple of short term alternatives:

http://blog.grouply.com/ning/

http://www.spruz.com/

both of which offer to import current nings.

But I agree that we need to look beyond current needs and lay the foundations for future use - eg if we're going to do more online flashmeet type events then we'd need somewhere to archive them etc.

The LAST thing we should do is give up a web presence. I'm pleased that Viv is taking a lead. The hard part is getting a balance between 'push' (eg email notifications/texts that land whenever they are sent etc) and 'pull' (stuff on forums/websites that you only see when you log in) that we are all happy with.

Viv - I'd be happy to join a discussion/facilitation group to support you!

B

Comment by Viv Long-Ferguson on May 27, 2010 at 8:20

Thanks all - I am indeed looking at "what next" option for all regional/thematic nings. There are several immediate thoughts emerging from Fellows I talk to on this issue:

- There are too many "nings" and Fellows are confused where to start
- some should continue and be paid for (on an interim basis) with ongoingreview and measured criteria
- creating online forums does not guarantee participation, engagement and activity
- faciliation is required balanced between staff and Fellows
- I agree with Peter directing all to Fellowship ning would not work for local events, discussions with group (it would simply become too big/confusing)
- userbility is crucial; not all Fellows have the knowledge to find there way round
- we need to improve the "how to" offer for Fellows

and lots more to consider.

Ning introduce the new pricing structure in July we then have 30 days to decide on next steps.

Happy to discuss further - perhaps another video webinar to discuss this specific issue and brainstorm some other options? This would be really helpful for me. Would this be a good way to test the technology.

Any volunteers to organise?

Vivs

Also check out the #RSAde group (Fellowship Council Working group) all your views are useful.

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