Public is good.

An interesting probability mentioned in this week's reading is the probability of public goods. David said in his article that public goods are things that can be used or benefits that can be obtained by anyone. It looks to me like an infinite length of communal seating. Many people can sit in this seat together, and you won't have to compete for a place (Non-rivalrous). Also, you don't need to pay money or be a member to use the seat, anyone can use the seat if they want to sit (Non-excludable). According to the text, public goods have the following two characteristics:

• Non-rivalrous: The item that many people can use at the same time.
• Non-excludable: There are no costs or conditions that prohibit others from using the item

What surprised me was that David mentioned the concept of printed versions of resources as not public goods. At this time, I was thinking, aren't the paper leaflets distributed everywhere public goods? The leaflets also seem to be spreading pretty quickly. Later, I thought about it. I think paper leaflets do have the function of spreading information, but the speed and scope of its dissemination are limited. The internet spreads faster and wider than paper leaflets. I think this is why more and more businesses now advertise on video instead of handing out paper leaflets. Sharing resources on the internet will make them available to more people. this is why David thinks online versions of the same resource should be public goods.

About this week's theme, which is sustainability. I think as OER is seen and understood by more and more people, more and more people will use OER. Because when they see the benefits of OER (more flexibility, cost savings), it's hard not to be convinced. In today's Internet, the spread of information is no longer a problem. You can spread a long message with a few clicks of your finger. Now that the medium of OER communication (the Internet) is so powerful, what we need to do is to get more people to know and use OER. Only by using OER with more people can make OER sustainable.