Sunday 30 November 2014

Artefact


… research into Internet-democracy practices would want to explore the democratic possibilities afforded by the technical aspects of the medium, user motivations and intentions, and the social structuring of online communications and identities.

 

Dahlberg. L (2004) Internet Research Tracings

 

 

Bell (1973) technology is a central organizing factor in social transformation

 

Quoted in Dahlberg, above

 

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/islamic-state/11208382/Inside-Kobane-Isil-militants-release-shocking-images-of-destruction.html


The above link illustrates the way in which terrorists & others can quickly spread propaganda worldwide.

 

 

 



 
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-16212447



The above link is a synopsis of the Arab spring, illustrating how the early optimism faded. A 2014 update would presumably be gloomier.





There was, at the beginning of the Arab Spring, in 2011, much worldwide speculation as to the role of mobile technology and social media in the political uprisings. Such speculation was particularly rife with regard to the anti-government protests in Egypt, which the Mubarak regime ultimately failed to overcome.

There was a certain amount of euphoria associated with many early news reports concerning the Arab spring. To quote Rebecca Johnston (core reading, week 2 re. internet metaphors) there was a feeling that ‘the Internet empowers political activism, giving voice and power to oppressed people. Wall (2007) discussed ways this communication technology can change social movements and allow political outsiders to challenge insiders.’ This is, it would seem, the utopian vision.

Given the failure of the Arab Spring to gain traction and establish widespread democracy in the Arab world, it might also be useful to consider Johnston’s alternative dystopian option: ‘If the Internet is destruction metaphor becomes the predominant schema for reflecting on online experiences, how might this impact the future of the Internet? Could this metaphor encourage censorship and oppression online?’

The question of surveillance of e-mails & social media by governments has indeed become a hot topic, as has the use of social media & electronic communication by terrorist organizations. The British Prime Minister recently (during PMQs in the Commons, November 27th 2014) called for social media providers to do more to police messages sent by their users & to pass on any suspicious material to the security services. This is certainly a serious matter for all concerned with preventing the spread of terrorism. The problem is now whether it is possible, or even legal, for social media providers to comply, even if they so desired.

To quote Janet Daley, in the Daily Telegraph, 27/11/2014: the US Constitution ‘specifically forbids “unreasonable searches and seizures without probable cause” – although the revelations of Edward Snowden seem to suggest that the US security services are playing fast and loose with this Constitutional protection’.

Daley points to a further problem. ‘It takes a human mind to analyze the context and the intention: the difference between an academic essay that discusses jihad and the notion of Islamic martyrdom, and an actual declaration of a terror attack. So the computer can only trigger what must be an examination from a sentient being who must then inspect the private content’.

Her conclusion is interesting in terms of the course readings: ‘… there must be a realization that radicalization and plans to act on its vicious programme take place inside people’s heads. To stop every possibility of them occurring would involve getting open access to the inside of everyone’s thoughts. Even attempting to do this is something free societies have generally abhorred. If we undermine one of the most basic principles of personal freedom, what sort of life is it that we will be protecting?’


The impact of social media in a broader social/political context is tackled by Matthew Parris in The Spectator, 29.11.2014. He asks whether we are heading to a new barbarism, citing the case of Emily Thornberry who was forced from political office in the UK after a storm of social media criticism of fairly innocuous remarks she posted during a parliamentary bye-election in Rochester.

Tuesday 25 November 2014

Week 4 Reflection '#edcmooc'

Film 1: Robbie


If he has a human brain (he became self-aware in 2032) I guess he's human in terms of rationality, feelings etc. Like 2001: A Space Odyssey, it makes a 'machine' seem 'human'.
Sad & dystopian.
 
Film 2: Gumdrop


Cheerier, more optimistic & utopian.


Film 3: True Skin


Today it is easier than ever before to store information electronically & access it  rapidly: see the  'Is Google Making Us Stupid?'
This digital/electronic capability has obvious relevance for  education/ways of learning.


Film 4: Avatar Days


One voice says his basic character doesn't change while he is gaming, but the final section raises questions re. reality & fantasy. Is it healthy to spend long hours in gaming activities which involve life & death decision-making?

Wednesday 12 November 2014

Week 3 reflection'#edcmooc'

Film1: Toyota GT86


The suggestion is that the modern world is artificial & dully uniform but at the same time there is a strong human desire to be natural & different. The way to do this, says the advert, is to buy a Toyota GT86 and smash through the barrier of the unnatural to the natural world, even though it takes a man-made 'artificial' motor car to do this. With regard to education, some people see technology-mediated education as impersonal, even artificial, and believe we should return to more  natural face-to-face teaching & learning.


Film 2: BT heart to heart


Again there is a distinction drawn between authentic human contact & technology. And again   the answer to regaining authenticity lies in a machine, in this case a BT phone.


Film 3: World builder


As your notes say, it deals with simulation, immersion & artifice. But it is optimistic/utopian in that the man seems in control of what he is creating & this brings some degree of pleasure to both him & the girl.


Film 4: They're made out of meat


This ties in with Steve Fuller's point about defining what it means to be human. The 2 aliens cannot comprehend that something made of meat can be defined as real or, as we might say, human. Can education help us achieve  our potential (being more human) if we can't define human?


Steve Fuller's Warwick talk


1.   He mentions education as being a dying art, I think, to shock & challenge the audience. He is trying to get his listeners to consider what it means to be human.


2.   How can education enhance us/make us more human if we can't define human (see Film 4 above).


3.   Only some homo sapiens are human? The political implications of this are chilling. Both Hitler & Stalin, mass murderers, frequently referred to their victims as sub-human or animal-like & set about exterminating them as pests. Several more modern political figures brought to The Hague to face charges of attempted genocide have made similar claims.
If applied to education it would imply that not all  people are capable or worthy enough of education beyond a certain level.


4.   It's rather a sweeping claim that we are questioning the existence of 'human'. I'm certainly not. The humanist project to achieve racial, gender & class equality has made considerable progress in most western societies & some progress is discernible elsewhere, but I believe it is equality of opportunity that is both more desirable & more achievable.


5.   Certainly I think we can see MOOCs as appearing to offer democratization, equality of access etc. One problem is the question of standards & assessment. Another question, as raised in week 2, is whether there is a conflict between so-called impersonal MOOCs & the more personal, traditional, classroom-based model we are all familiar with.

Tuesday 11 November 2014

Week 2 reflection'#edcmooc'

1. A Day Made of Glass         2. Design a Bridge

Education is being visualized as being electronically-based. The classroom still exists but it's high-tech & visually arresting.

What is being learned & taught? How to use technology, to learn, to explore, to discover and to solve.

The nature of communication is a mixture of the personal & the digital/electronic. As such, it seems to be utopian to me because it's not portrayed as inhuman, impersonal or alienating but as empowering and involving. The emphasis in both films is on learning by doing.

3. A Digital Tomorrow

Our digital futures? Similar to our digital present, in terms of frustrations with and limitations of technology. Overall, more high-tech.

4. Sight

The ending was ambivalent to me but, with the staring eyes, slightly unnerving. The idea that you maximize, electronically, info about your date before actually meeting seems unnatural to me.

5. Different future scenarios.

a)   Social media is fiction. Hive mind/artificial intelligence. Smart or stupid?

b)   Privacy apocalypse. We'll all be spied on. Ubiquitous advertising will invade our lives.

c)   Mind control. We'll do whatever large corporations dictate. Viruses might even invade our brains.

d)   Instant social revolution. Max Headroom. Transmetropolitan. You ( and those in power) can't stop the signal. This ties in with what I'll say in my artefact re. social transformation.

Saturday 8 November 2014

Week 1 Reflection'#edcmooc'

The four short films.


1. Bendito Machine III


The ecological & social implications of obsession on technology: we are in thrall to technological changes The film's characters seem to have no choice. They worship each new change. The result of each change is waste: a scrapheap/environmental pollution.


The characteristics of various technologies are portrayed as inhuman & manipulative. To me, this brought back memories of Vance Packard's The Hidden Persuaders (1957) which describes how advertisers manipulate expectations and induce desires. Packard argues that advertisers identify compelling needs which lead consumers to buy products. He questions the morality of such advertising techniques..




2. Inbox


It's dystopian in the sense that the modern world is automated & impersonal. But it's utopian in the sense that technology can connect us & lead to personal relationships. Is there a suggestion that online relationships don't/shouldn't replace personal face-to-face contacts?


3. Thursday


Patterns in life; technology v. nature.
Technology is all-pervasive but also vulnerable.
Technology has agency but in some ways so has nature i.e. the birds.


4. New Media


Technology has taken over & polluted the world.
My wife Mary detected echoes of The Day of the Triffids.