The Massachusetts Institute of Technology
launched the Center for Collective Intelligence in October of 2006 to study one central question:

How can people and computers be connected so that- collectively – they act more intelligently than any individuals, groups, or computers have ever done before?

You can view video from the CCI launch (RealPlayer required) , listen to audio from their 2007 Seminar Series,  and sign up for an email newsletter on their site.