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             “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
                                                      – Arthur C. Clarke


                            KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER TECHNOLOGIES

KEY POINTS

1. Cognitive content is created by information. It represents and conveys knowledge.
2. Knowledge transfer technology is advanced information technology.
3. Knowledge transfer technology combines cognitive science (cognition) with information technology.
4. Knowledge transfer technology deals with the information flow that builds knowledge.
5. The knowledge transfer technology “magic” is intended to make knowledge transfer better (improving quality) and more efficient (reducing waste).
6. Knowledge transfer technology helps the process of knowledge transfer to be personalized and controlled in real time.

Dear Reader,

Throughout history, both human species Homo habilis and Homo sapiens have consistently created and produced a variety of tools to help themselves in a variety of physical activities. Later, with the advent of the “Industrial Age”, the more complex “tools” created by humans were renamed “technology.” Today, technology is science applied in humans' everyday lives.

Knowledge Transfer Technologies for Building Knowledge

Human mental activities are based on the perception and processing of information. So, information technologies (IT) were “invented” and developed to help us process ever-growing information and data collected and generated by nature and society. In business, IT goals are automation, control, and use of information/data and knowledge for decision-making.
The development of technology and the needs of society already require a new kind of technology related to humans’ cognitive activities – building knowledge. This demand created the emergence of a new group of specialized IT, which it is appropriate to call “knowledge transfer technologies” aimed at assisting us with activities related to improving knowledge transfer and acquisition. We usually call this process just “learning” but this term doesn’t cover some very important pre- and post-processes that make it successful or a failure in targeted knowledge acquisition.
Knowledge technologies support the creation, design, transfer, and management of knowledge for various individual and social needs. They may vary depending on their primary application areas and specific uses.
My next book project (in progress), will present a lot more information on knowledge technologies and their key role in the future of human society's evolution and progress, but some “glimpses” of my research findings which are presented there you will find here in the section titled The Future of Knowledge Transfer.
Let’s now focus on a specific group of the whole spectrum of knowledge technologies targeted at knowledge transfer. That’s why I name these further in the text “Knowledge Transfer Technologies” or for short Knowledge Technologies (KTech).

What are knowledge transfer technologies?

What could be the role of technology in improving the quality and efficiency of the knowledge transfer process?
Sure, here we mean information technology, as the whole chain of subprocesses is initiated by information and focussed on its subsequent processing until it “turns” into proven knowledge residing in the human brain.
So, what are knowledge transfer technologies?
Answering this question, first, we have to define their goal(s). The major goal of knowledge transfer technology (KTech) is improving human cognitive abilities and achievements by using a variety of selected information technologies (IT). So far, they do this by assisting them in the knowledge transfer (KT) process making it more efficient as KTech is “external” to the human brain.
So, let's look at KTech as a focused segment of knowledge technologies involving a variety of IT. They are specifically focused on increasing the quality and efficiency of knowledge transfer (KT) and acquisition. This way they form a substantial field of Educational Technologies (EdTech) which include also some organizational activities on a social level.
The technology-supported knowledge transfer process is also tightly related to “intelligent” technologies (we call those “AI-powered” technologies). KTech is a wide field for the future effective applications of various intelligent technologies as knowledge and intelligence (usually) come together. We will discuss those in the next blog section titled Intelligent Technologies (IntelTech) meaning integration of AI technologies into various applications of knowledge transfer technologies.
The application area of knowledge transfer technologies covers several related processes usually separated into consecutive phases. These are initiated after “knowledge gaps” are detected or new (updated or upgraded) knowledge is required. These processes usually include:
- Selecting and collecting required (trusted) knowledge (re)sources
- Designing information structure (cognitive content) that represents and conveys the required knowledge
- Designing the KT process (we usually call this Instructional Design)
- Initiating and managing the KT process (we call it Learning)
- Evaluating the outcomes of the KT process and collecting feedback information (we call those Tests or Exams)
- Improving the complete process based on the feedback information/data if any faults, gaps of knowledge, and/or discrepancies are detected.
Sure, all of these processes are tightly related and interconnected forming a “chain” targeted at a goal – transferring and building the required knowledge in the most efficient way (i.e. using the least resources).

What are the benefits of using knowledge transfer technologies?

Any technology, created and used by humans, gives them any kind of benefits. That’s why humanity constantly creates new tools and technologies.
What are the benefits of using digital technology in knowledge transfer?
Socially, KT technologies will help humans augment and improve their cognitive abilities, thus making them competitive with machine intelligence in the knowledge-based economy. They will assist billions of people worldwide to gain new knowledge on-demand and support their skill shifts just in time.
At the individual level, KT technologies will foster do-it-yourself (DIY) learning/training and career-building. They will offer an easily accessible and affordable on-demand continuous/lifelong learning focused on just-in-time re-skilling and up-skilling. Combined with AI-powered personal assistants (agents), they will make KT personalization effective.
Businesses will benefit from 24/7 KT technology-assisted continuous on-demand qualitative re-skilling and up-skilling of the workforce. KT technology will “bridge” humans to “just-in-time” expert knowledge for completing production and business operations more efficiently and for better decision-making based on “collaboration” with (A)Intelligent “coworkers”/systems.
You can find more info on KT technology benefits in the next blog sections.

Trends in Knowledge Transfer Technologies

As information and knowledge are basic for the development of human intelligence, the next “natural” level in KTech development will involve artificial intelligence (AI) to assist the process. Most probably, various AI-powered specialized “intelligent technologies” (IntelTech) will be developed and integrated into KTech soon, thus “elevating” KTech and its applications to a new level – the “intelligent” one.
Why are knowledge and intelligent technologies so important now? The answer is simple: Because of the fast upcoming competition from AI and the accelerated need for self-improvement (i.e. DIY skilling, reskilling, and upskilling needed for creative/thinking jobs) in the knowledge economy.
This next section (IntelTech) is dedicated to this group of technologies and their possible applications.
I will discuss the future of both technologies in more detail in the blog section titled The Future of Knowledge Transfer and Book 2 (in progress).

Are you ready to continue your quest for more knowledge?
Let’s do it together (again).
Tinko Stoyanov
Your Author and Guide