Digital resources in the Social Sciences and Humanities OpenEdition Our platforms OpenEdition Books OpenEdition Journals Hypotheses Calenda Libraries OpenEdition Freemium Follow us

Notiz-Blog Developing Ideas through Evidence-informed Note-making

Myth-Writing-is-Thinking-No-it-is-not-Dr.-Stefan-T.-Siegel.png 0

Writing Is Not Thinking — But It Can Extend It

Writing can sharpen, stabilize, and stretch thought. But confusing writing _with_ thinking turns a powerful cognitive aid into a misleading proxy. Cognitive psychology—and recent work on instructional illusions—can help explain why visible writing activity is a poor indicator of thinking.

Cartoon - Lone Learner Myth - Dr. Stefan T. Siegel.png 0

All by Myself!? Exposing the Hidden Costs of the Lone Learner Myth—and How to Learn Better Together

We love the idea of the lone genius, sprinting ahead on sheer willpower. But the reality is different: learning and knowledge work in isolation blinds us to our own errors, cuts us off from tacit knowledge, and slows real progress. working in isolation blinds us to our errors, cuts us off from tacit knowledge, and slows real progress. This piece unmasks the hidden costs of the “lone learner” myth and shows why learning together is not a distraction but a more effective—and often more joyful—path.

==**The Collector’s Fallacy —**== ==coined by Christian Tietze — argues that the act of “collecting” is easy. It feels like progress but it’s not.== > "trap of overconsumption and underthinking" Dr. Stefan T. Siegel, notelab 0

Overfed, but Undernourished: Why Consuming More Content Won’t Automatically Make You Smarter

Content consumption alone doesn’t make you smarter. Learning requires attention, active processing, and application. Like food, information must be digested, not just swallowed. Without elaboration, retrieval, and integration, more content simply leads to cognitive indigestion.

One-Size-Fits-All Dr. Stefan T. Siegel PKM is a Practice, Not a Product: You Can Buy a ‘Done-for-You’ System—But You Can’t Buy the Thinking 0

PKM is a Practice, Not a Product: You Can Buy a ‘Done-for-You’ System—But You Can’t Buy the Thinking

A ‘done-for-you’ knowledge management system sounds tempting—just plug and play. But that’s often merely wishful thinking. Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) is less about adopting someone else’s structure—and more about earning your own. Here’s why.

From Hieroglyphs to Hyperlinks: Why Knowledge Management Is as Old as Time and Not a New Phenomenon Tools for Thought Dr. Stefan T. Siegel Collage 0

From (Commonplace) Notebooks to Notetaking Apps: Why Tools for Thought Aren’t Just Digital

In the age of digitalisation, the digital transformation or the digital state (Stalder, 2018), it is easy to assume that effective and contemporary thinking tools for (personal) knowledge management must be digital, too. However, history and practice show that analog tools—such as commonplace books, index cards, and notebooks—have long played a crucial role in structuring and enhancing knowledge work. This post challenges the myth that only digital tools qualify as tools for thought.