Hiding behind IM

In the book Datacloud, Johnson-Eilola’s perspective concerning IM is a little too positive.  I find that it is scary that the author asks his students if they would rather prefer cell phone, email, or IM, and the students overwhelmingly choose IM (pg. 96).  I have been a substitute teacher and I manage high school kids sometimes at my job, so I am well aware of teenage attraction to IM.  And I understand the appeal.  IM alleviates all social anxiety – more so than a phone. 

The IM generation will not call someone if they are mad at them – they will jump on the computer and IM their anger at the convicted.  Why?  To avoid confrontation.  The IM generation will not break up with a lover or ask a person on a date, face to face.  Why?  Because its scary.  Because it is uncomfortable.  I believe IM is not helping the social development of teenagers.  As Nietzsche states in The Twilight of the Idols: “Out of life’s school of war: what does not kill you, makes you stronger.”  I am grateful for every time I was required to withstand and confront embarrassment, hurt, and anger face to face in the cruel environment of high school.  It wasn’t fun; however, the experiences made me a better person.

Tufte’s The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint

This pamphlet surprised me.  I assumed the text would be more liberal regarding the effectiveness of Powerpoint presentations.  I was happy to see Tufte take a stand against Powerpoint.  I haven’t had much experience with PP, only as a viewer not as a creator (although J-man, my roomie during four years of undergrad, was required to create PP presentations seemingly every week, so I had the exciting honor of watching  bullet pointed slides being born.  However, in my roomie’s defense, he tried to liven the presentation by adding random pictures of Han Solo, Jawas, and Jabba the Hutt to the pages.  Needless to say, it confused his audience: they couldn’t figure out how Star Wars related to Economics.  In actualiy, it didn’t relate whatsoever).

Even though I have never created PP presentations, I am not a fan of experiencing such presentations. Like Tufte mentons on page 15, presentors should distribute hand-outs to the audience.  Not only can participants more effectively relate to the info, they also can look over the info at home if they so desired. I believe this is important.

Powerpoint simplifies information to the point of ambiguousness.  I do not believe there is a problem with handing out complex texts to the audience and teaching the audience about the texts.  Such an approach aids mental containment of information because the audiences’ brains are pushed to think more analytically about relevent data.   

Conflict

Chapter Four of M. Syverson’s The Weath of Reality was both commendable and interesting.  I have to commend Margaret for addressing a negative aspect of the ecology theory. This proves that she is being honest to the ideas she is proposing.

 The negative aspect she discusses is conflict.  When many people come together to collaborate written ideas, there is conflict.  Sometimes enlightenment results from impassioned dialogue / conflict.  Enlightenment is the progression towards an answer or truth, therefore conflict can result positively.  On the other hand, sometimes personal agendas of the players shift unknowlingly.  Side are taken regardless of the ideas expressed.  Players become narrowminded.  They think of new ways to creatively refute fellow players, instead of thinking about the ideas themselves.  In other words, players become focused on the conflict between each other, rather than the conflict of ideas.  I find this negative aspect of the ecology to be commonplace on internet forums and lists: many people enjoy arguing for the sake of arguing or to prove they are right – instead of striving towards an infalliable truth.  

Hypertext is power

As I have read some hypertext fiction (Unknown, The Jew’s Daughter)  and read about fiction hypertext, an idea sprung to mind – an idea that I am sure has been thought before – an idea which Nietzsche would address if he was still alive. That is, hypertext allows the reader power and control over the text.  Power is the main appeal of hypertext fiction.  The books from the 1980’s, “Choose your own adventure” books, are a fine example of this.  When the reader has control of the character’s actions and ultimate outcome of the story, the reader becomes a part of the story.  The reader becomes God much as a writer is God: by controlling a reality.  The power to control a microcosm is appealing. There is freedom is the power. It is active reading; it is fun.

Hyperlinks 3.0: nonfiction vs. fiction

 

As a writer who delights in the craft of both fiction and nonfiction, I find the future of literature, i.e. hyperlinked literature, to be fascinating.  I do not think there is any way to doubt: academic writing will become clearer and footnotes will become a part of the text in a more meaningful manner.  I see hyperlinked text as a way to make academic texts accessable to more people.  Hyperlinked scholarly texts will hopefully replace the present sad solution to the accessiblity problem,  namely,  dumbing down the English language of scholarly texts to match our culture’s declining intellect.   As G.P. Landow, author of Hypertext 3.0, points out repeatedly, research will become quicker and less stressful.  Such is an exciting prospect.

Landow mentions gains and losses (pgs. 29-34).  If the “gain” of hyperlinks is increased effeciency of academic texts, then what is the loss?  I would say fiction.  To preface this, I would like to state that I have never read hyperlinked fiction so my opinions may change when I actually experience the phenomena.  To me, writing: “The old woman held the knife.” (note the hyperlink), is quite different than: “The old woman stared with a puckered frown. She held the blade of the knife in her delicate fingers and lifted it with accusation. The knife’s handle and blade glimmered in the sunlight.”  It is a matter of description and imagination.  Hypertexting pictures into fiction can destroy an important creative aspect of fiction writing.   

Fleck :(

For my WEC class, I am supposed to read a seemingly highly sought after, academic book on the evolution of facts: Genesis and the development of scientific fact.  Since I love reading philosophies concerning the study of objectivity (arguments for and counter arguments), I was very much looking forward to digging into the text…

After several orders, several back orders (A used dealer on Amazon proceeded to tell me that “The book isn’t back ordered – I just don’t have it in yet.  I’ll send it out when I do.” Isn’t that a back order?), and several cancellations of orders, I officially do not have Fleck’s book.  I have tried looking everywhere  – including the dusty corners of cyberspace – and I read the first ten pages of Fleck’s book on Google Books, and an journal article on Fleck’s theories which unfortunately wasn’t too helpful.  Sonya’s blog was extremely helpful however, so now I at least understand the concepts presented in the book. 

Fleck’s observations about the social behavior of human beings is very interesting and true.  The way he compares such behavior to the medical field and inflection is a bold and fascinating move.  It seems to me that Fleck’s observations and the way he presents such observations are more profound and academically benefitial than Wenger’s observations.  Granted I only read the first ten pages of Fleck and I still hold a gruge against Wenger, but this is my impression.  

Open area problem solved

I figured out why I could not reach the open area.  It was a little bit of a usability problem.  Here are the tech toolbox directions which we were told to consult to access the Open Area network off campus

“Connecting to the Openarea

Connect to the Openarea on a Windows PC:

• Click “Start” from the Windows Start Menu
• Click “Run”
• Enter the following: \\150.250.64.231
• Click “OK” and login using using your Rowan Network username and password
• Double Click “Common”
• Double Click “Openarea”

The line that is italicized and bold is where the problem lies.   Maybe it was just my lack of deduction skills, my lack of internet saviness, or that I just missed reading it somewhere, but I was trying to find where to type  150.250.64.231 somewhere in the VPN window. I was literally typing it in every open blank because the directions do not say where to type the directory number.  The directions just say to type it.  I typed it as a URL out of desperation and it worked.

Discussion questions for McLuhan’s book: Understanding Me

 

Here are five discussion questions for McLuhan’s, Understanding me – Lectures and Interviews:

1.) What are the distinct advantages of the student as co-teacher theory according to McLuhan in Chapter One? Discuss some personal educational experiences (as teacher or as student) where the student as a co-teacher has been rewarding.  Discuss educational experiences where it has not been rewarding.  Is American education adopting McLuhan’s theory correctly as we push into the future?

2.) McLuhan refers to ”light through rather than light on” throughout the book, specifically in reference to television as a teaching vehicle.   What does McLuhan mean by this term?  Discuss television as an active learning tool.  How do you find yourself learning more through a television? How do you find yourself learning less through such a medium?

3.) How does McLuhan see the post mechanical age in relation to the mechanical age? How does the relatively new internet medium factor into these classifications? How might it create a new era classification?   (Chapter 2)

4.) The popular belief is that television is a passive medium.  Discuss the validity of McLuhan’s counterintuitive claim that television is a more active medium than reading.  Do you see differences in how the newer generation interacts with the television in comparison to the older generation? Provide examples.  How might this knowledge gap be related the internet?  Can this techological gap become closed? How so?

5.) Explain what McLuhan means by the terms cool and hot?  McLuhan speaks of these terms in the 1960’s and 1970’s and tells us that the realm of aesthetics is growing cooler. How has his prediction been proved correct? How is it been proved incorrect? Illustrate with examples of books, cinema, and music. (Chapter 4)

Yes, these questions have been revised.

Five questions concerning the LR

The moderation process – why is such a process necessary when everyone’s work will be accessible to each other at all times, given the internet medium?

When are the part A interviews due?

How many observations are we required?

Will we be receiving formal comments from classmates concerning all of our class work?  How will we be able to complete Section B (comments) of “evidence/work samples”?

How much is the LR worth of the final grade?

 

We definitely need to go over the LR in class, step by step, in explicit detail.