Always Unaligned

I guess a blog for a class...

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The Finale

[Image: Finishing Line for GoodLide Fitness Marathon at night. Image by Chris Harbeck. Image used under cc licenses]

This week was geared towards wrapping up our work for the semester. By the end of this week, we were to have the “2nd Draft” of our final project completed along with some first drafts of some other assignments. For me, this project was not as overwhelming as I was making it out in my mind to be. This helped me out a lot when it came to organizing and formatting my website. During the beginning of the week, we checked in about where we were with our final projects. It was noted that my project would have a lot of visual elements, and to keep that in mind when designing my site. This was helpful since before that point, I wasn’t sure how I wanted my site to look. After this point, my ideal website would have the cartoons in the background and the text overlaying that image. That way, when the reader was viewing the content, especially the analysis of the cartoons, they would be able to easily reference the cartoon. However, finding the template to do that proved to be difficult. I was excited once I had pretty much everything, such as text, where they needed to be. At this point, I wanted to run my site through the WAVE program to see how accessible or not accessible it would be. To my disappointment, my site was not error free. To add on to this disappointment, these errors included changes that involved editing the source code, which I could not do through the website editor. This week, we also completed peer review of the sites that we had created. For my review, it was noted that I might want to try to adapt the backdrop color of my site so that it was easier to read. There might be a few more additions to the website such as a video and maybe other pictures, but for the most part, I feel that the website is completed. I will be working on trying to remove the errors for accessibility, but some seem to be inherent with the website designer platform. Overall, I think through the creation of this site, it demonstrates how far I have come since the beginning of the semester when I was nervous about a Tumblr blog post. It has been challenging, but I truly appreciate the experience this course has provided.  

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Changed Perspective

[Image: Handicap parking spot for a covered parking lot. Image by Suresh /R. Used under cc license]

  This week, we looked into the topic of accessibility. Before this week, I did not really understand what that meant and as a result, learning about this topic has been very eye opening. Not only does it make me appreciate the fact that I am not hindered in accessing things, but it puts a different light on why certain things are designed the way the are (ie: snuggies). For the first part of this week, we looked at two articles. One was a review of the Disabilities March that occured online. In a similar way to Twitter and Tear Gas, this inclusion was really only possible because of the technology that we have now. From this perspective of the possibilities that the Internet and technology present, I find it very surprising that things are not more accessible for those with disabilities. The other article that we read was an analysis of the social model for approaching the topic of disability. It was also an interesting take on how to view the topic as it would be addressed in the past under a cure model. For the second half of the week, we looked at the WebAim introduction page. On this sight it demonstrated what it is like to use a computer for those with different disabilities. There are things that I never took into consideration in regards to why someone may not be able to access certain information. Side note, my dad is color blind and I never even considered how his Internet experience could be different from mine. In regards to our projects, it provided a list of people that we should keep in mind so that the sites that we create can be accessible. It also provided instruction of how to complete the small extra steps to make these changes.

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Codes Everywhere

[Image: text on a white wall of English phonetics in black type. Image by David Gotta. Used under cc license]

This week we began the very confusing process of understanding semiotics, which the most basic definition is that it is the study of signs. However, this is not merely a study of street signs. Rather it can go to the extent of breaking down why we communicate the way that we do. Part of coming to understand this study is knowing that essentially, everything is a code. This makes sense as our own language may not seem like a code but when challenged to learn a new language, it seem as if the new language is a code as it has its own system and symbols to represent different things. These written symbols then help create a larger world of texts and beyond. The study of semiotics relates to Hall’s communication loop as there is a need to break down the codes that are being distributed. Another important insight was how this relates to rhetoric and schools of thought such as intertextual criticism. The reason why semiotics seems to apply to everything is that it can function as the big umbrella that connects these different schools of thought. As it was mentioned in class, all these theories as schools of thought functions as different avenues to explore varying ways of thinking. In delving into intertextuality a bit more, the fact that everything is built on another seems quite obvious. However, this also can be seen as another reason of why codes are seen in everything as well as then why semiotics can be used in analysis of everything.

As we move closer to the end of the semester, we are learning a bit better on how to apply these theories to the final project that we are creating. For myself, having a clearer conceptualization of Hall’s communication loop has helped me narrow down my entry point and exit point for what I will be focusing on. As we will turning in an annotated bibliography, this has also been helpful in determining what kind of resources I will be needed to best complete my website.

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We Do Not Choose

[Image: a white computer screen with a list of code in various colors. Image by Austin Gruenweller. Used under cc license]

This week we took a closer look into what shapes our understanding of the world, algorithms. The reading for this week was Algorithms of Oppression and its highlighting of how Google’s search algorithm supported racism and sexism in society. It was very eye opening of how much something as fundamental in our way of life could produce such results. It was also very scary in how much of a monopoly Google has in the search engine industry as we address Google as the same thing as the Internet. Considering that to an extent an algorithm can be a type of artificial intelligence, are we not in a day of age where technology controls us and not the other way around? During this week we also had to look up articles for the class to read to help better our understanding of algorithms. The claim is that the data collected is for ad purposes but it has also gotten to the point that the algorithm can know what we want before we even know we want. The book brings up questions of at what point is the result of the algorithm a result or within the control of the creators. This relates back to the ideas brought up in remediation and new media as algorithms have less human influence and have been developed to better suit the desires of humans. In the class, we discussed how Hall’s communication loop relates back to the reading. In finding where the pieces fit in the process of encoding and decoding, it made it clearer of how the author is going about in bringing attention to the issues presented by Google. After looking at the information within this process, it was easier to see how the message from the book relates to the gaps that we learned during the sound and comics portion of class.

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Head in the Gutter

[Image: Scrabble tiles spelling out the word “sound” on an a black background. Image by Sarah Barker. Used under cc license]

For the first part of this week, we looked at comics and how the strictly only visual component appeals to the other senses. For the reading, it described how the gapping between each of the frames created multimodal gutter. Within these spaces, the reader fills in the blanks of what has happened in between frames without pictures to depict every moment. This gutter also exists when there is juxtaposition in film (such as the tone of the sense not matching the actions and feelings being depicted). This allows the viewer to better understand the message that is trying to be conveyed. However, within this space, there can be chances for misinterpretation as there is not explicit depiction of what the creators want the viewers to walk away with. For the video portion, this idea that an image can create more than image was made clear in McCloud’s lecture. There were components of being aware of the remediation factor in the mediums used to display comics, creating a format that would be a “durable mutation”. McCloud also proposed ideas that would make viewing comics a more immersive experience based on how the comic is displayed. For the second part of this week, we shifted to concepts of sound theory. The sound clip for Sound Rherotics was eye opening in the impact of the sound and how it can create a mental visual component. We also got to look into some of the theories surrounding sound theory. Although most of aural rhetoric study applies to how speeches are made impactful, there is something interesting in how sound can have a big impact based on people’s experiences. Understanding how visual and sound components impact the viewer, this can help with creating our final projects such as understanding where there might be spaces for the multimodal gutter. That way the message we are trying to convey has a better chance of reaching the reader.

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Back to the Grind

[Image: White background with words mixed to create an abstract shape. The words fall under the topic of the Internet and computers. Image by chris-sy. Used under cc license]

This week, we began the process for the final project that we are creating for this class. Part of this process includes creating a proposal for the topic that you will be expanding on. For the sake of time, I decided to build off the topic that I chose earlier in the semester for my website which follows the lines of analyzing the American perspective of the United States’ relationship with Iran through the use of political cartoons in the 1980s. Although I do have some foundation, I find that there is still a lot to work on in order to reach the equivalence of a 15-20 page paper. However, I would like to include many of the theories that we have covered in this semester and how the theories relate to my topic. From my experience of creating the previous website, I learned that the there is no such thing as collecting too much information as researching one thing leads to needing to learn about maybe five other things. In reflecting on that process, I know that I’ll need to focus on one, maybe two theories max, which will provide the best analysis of the rhetoric surrounding the rhetoric. As this this needs to have content of a substantial length, I also need to reconsider what pieces, if I choose multiple, I will be focusing on. I have also needed to learn how to create an informal proposal which I have not needed to do in any other class so far. I am learning that I need to specific on what I would like to accomplish and why I would like to accomplish that task or consider why I think that aspect of my project is significant. I am grateful for assignments such as the website rational as it also required me to understand why I had preference for certain things and make me consider think about how I think.

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OHHH, Halfway there!

[Image: a table with a laptop, a notebook with notes in it, some pens, and a small stack of books. Image by rhodesj. Used under cc license]

This week, we worked more specifically on our website rational as well as drafting our midterm portfolio. In both assignments, it was interesting to reflect not only the progress that I have made in the course but in recognizing my preferences for rhetoric. In regards to the website rational, I discovered that the reason I chose many of my initial design choices was because it fit my eye and my interest. However, once I revisited and edited the sight, I tried to take into consideration a broader group and what might be appealing to people who do not think or like the same things I do. Although the edits that I made to my site were mostly based in the content that I was creating, I still applied this same thought process in how I encode my message to better reach my potential audience. There was also a bit of a challenge as it felt as though I was analyzing the rhetoric of the rhetoric of the rhetoric. Even though it was the rhetoric that I created and thought of, it was somewhat odd to gain that perspective. The other thing that we worked on was our midterm portfolio. It was very helpful to maintain the journal and assignment tracker as it provided refreshers on what exactly we covered and some of my insights throughout the course. I believe that I have been able to learn a lot in regards to the theories that we have covered as well as gain skills with technology that I would not have gone out of my way to learn had it not been for this class. Overall, it was actually somewhat exciting and fun to see the progress that I made not only in something such as a website but the knowledge and confidence that comes with being in this course.  

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The Wonders of Texting

[Image: Screenshot of iMessage GIF from GIPHY Selena Gomez account]

This week we covered two item that furthered our understanding of rhetoric and the theories that we have learned in the semester. The first item that we looked at was a poster about the use of the word “lol.” Within our discussion, we addressed McSweeney’s rhetoric of the word and then the rhetoric of her poster. In a sense it was like rhetoric inception. It was interesting as we could see how she was applying, or how there were elements, of her applying Hall’s theory of communication. As she notes, “lol” has more implications than simple literal meaning of “laugh out loud.” The fact that she even has a poster of how to decipher this word demonstrates the encoding and decoding in texting. It can be easy to see how there is often miscommunication over instant messaging as people use words like “lol” in different senses depending on their experience on how to use the word. One of the aspects that was interesting the fact that this information was displayed on a poster. Why not show it through the use of animated GIFs of the messages appearing on something like powerpoint? It almost seemed odd that she would be discussing something that has such strong ties to technology on something that seems pretty old school. Although this is a biased generalization, it might have appealed to the older audience who viewed her poster. The fact that it is discussing the deeper implications of “lol” would seem to me that the audience is not as aware of this fact. For the younger audience this seemed like a very obvious idea that gets articulated in fancy terminology. Another item that we looked at was the website Enchanting the Desert. It was very helpful in understanding what we need to make our websites look like. It was also interesting in seeing an example of remediation and people’s desire for immediacy. As this website is a recreation of a book, there is the aspect of the old folding into the new. This was a good example of a website as it not only showed the potential of what can be done with the use of technology but what needs to be considered for the interest of the audience. It is apparent that there is a lot of freedom provided to the viewer as there are multiple way to go about exploring the site in a way that the book would not be able to provide. In this way, the site addresses people’s desire for immediacy as they can not only experience a deeper sense of immersion of the Grand Canyon but have their expectations met of what this platform should be able to should be able to provide.

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Circulation Project

[Image: Man in a white room with his head on the table and a laptop in front of him. Image by whereugotthat. Used under cc licences] 

This week we were challenged to apply the theories that we have learned in the semester to examples of media that conveyed a message that we were interested  in. One of the obstacles that I faced from the beginning was picking a topic. Initially, I wanted to have my topic include some type of research on terrorism or genocide in a particular region. However, this would have been much too broad for me to cover effectively. I finally landed on political cartoons that represented some type of American perspective on Iranian politics. I figured that by choosing this topic, I would be able to find two media examples, one that was old media and the other new media, which would allow me to look at theories introduced in What is New Media?.  Since one of the requirements was that the two examples had to be thirty years apart, the complexity of the topic would allow me a lot to work with. However, it was this complexity that lead to a lot of confusion and stress over the time that I tried to work on the project. The project itself seemed very simple but I as tried to answer the questions, I discovered that in order to adequately answer them, I needed a lot of specific details. Especially if I wanted to really apply the theories that we learned. Another obstacle that I needed to overcome was my anxiousness in creating a website. Similarly when I created my first blog post, I felt a need to make sure that everything was perfect because anyone could potentially read the content that I put together. After the class, I was able to get a better idea of what I needed to do to get more organized. I learned that rather than trying to apply all the theories, I really should only focus on one or two that fit the topic that I am working with. With that, I will be looking more at the circulation component of how my media pieces fit in to that.

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Realities of the World

[Image: People running aware from the tear gas being released in Cairo. Image by Alisdare Hisckson. Used under cc licenses]

The reading for this week has been interesting as we are continuing to understand media and the impact it has in our lives. The chapter from New Media would seem to fall into the definition category of the stasis questions. Throughout the chapter, the author is describing what new media is and how it differs from old media. In describing these aspects, the concept of remediation becomes more clear in this context. The author also expands a bit on the concepts that Hall presented for the communication loop as well as discussion on hypermediacy with hyperlinks. Essentially, old media had a lot of human influence in order to function. With new media, humans have programmed computers and technology to make things which in turn makes other things. The author describes how people have changed technology to fit the way they  think and view things. This idea seems almost contrary to the reading we had at the beginning of the semester where people described how the environment has shaped their writing. These two ideas come together in the other reading for this week, Twitter and Tear Gas. New media is what allowed for people to get the supplies that they needed and without the use of a large group or even a company to effectively respond to the cries for help. In contrast to how protests in the past were organized, this group, for example, was able to get $40,000 for medical machines within five hours when it would have taken weeks or months to obtain that in the past. However, there are some down sides to this type of organization as when these groups have a chance to make change on real political level (such as negotiating with government officials) there is no one leader to represent the group. The factor that allows them to be inclusive to many, is what keeps them from finalizing their goal. Because of the platform, people seem to gain a sense of belonging to the group, and therefore they wish to go back to that sense of unification. However, with no one central person or group, it becomes harder to recreate. We also have project for this weekend in creating a website that is essentially a rhetorical analysis on two pieces of media on a topic that we are interested in. One of the factors that makes this uncomfortable is the need to make a website. To follow with that, rhetoric on a type of media is also something that I have yet to do, so this will be an interesting experience.

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Endless Cycle of New Old Stuff

[Image: an infinity symbol draw with a white line on a black background. Image created by Dan Simpson. Used under cc licenses]

This week has been very enlightening in understanding how everything in this course is related to each other. At the beginning of week, we discussed the concepts of remediation, mediation, and immediacy. I had a difficult time trying to understand these concepts since they are so broad in their definitions. However, once I applied the four stasis question to these definitions, it became clearer why someone would write a whole book on something that is taken as as given (the advancement of technology). These concepts of this change and why it happens directly correlates to the Medium is the Message, which Hall responds to in his Encoding, decoding. In increasing our use of technology, we have begun to change the medium in how we receive information. Bush has had an impact in this category as he dreamed of the memex which was to allow access to all human knowledge. The argument in the Medium is the Message would  seem to hold true as there has been studies on how information is presented impacts how people behave. Hall’s writing holds more importance when considering the reading we did with Bodker. Bodker provides some insight on why or how Hall came to the conclusions that he did. This can be seen in the quote given from Marx who described at what point a product becomes a commodity. This same process is what leads an idea or definition to become a universal definition that which would remove miscommunication from the communication loop. Before reading Bodker, I had questions on how relevant Hall was in the current day of age with how information is distributed. With information moving at such a high rate, it would then seem impossible for the full communication loop to be completed. Also, with social media providing a global platform, would it be possible to create “universal” definitions to prevent miscommunication?

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The Process of Learning

[Image: the first page of the emoji keyboard. Image by portal gda]

This week has been an interesting one. I have been able to learn something new about writing and social media, both of which have left me uncomfortable. In regards to the actual reading material for this week, we went over how to write a rhetorical analysis. However, this is not the type of rhetorical writing that I was introduced to in high school. This approach to writing is on a broader scale with the four stasis questions, and it has been difficult to wrap my mind around them. It was made a bit clearer when we revisited “As We May Think” by Vannevar Bush and how one could develop a research project with these questions. We discussed where this article falls into place in the four stasis questions. Some said that it explained the relevancy of science while others saw it as a plan of action of where to take science in the future. It then made sense how exploring the four questions could lead to further study rather than simply looking at the textual strategies. This help me understand the concept that all of our own ideas and knowledge are connected to each other. Just like how there can be preconceptions of a topic that lead to different interpretations due to one’s prior experience with different phrases and words. This was made very obvious when looking at the lol cat bible. It required previous knowledge on multiple fronts to understand the meaning and content. It made me honestly wonder how people fifty to a hundred years from now will look at this point in internet history. Would that type lol speak seem old fashioned to them as Shakespeare is to us? In another learning experience, I acquired Snapchat for the first time. It has been a very confusing experience as I didn’t understand why my messages would disappear or why there were emojis everywhere. After about a week of use, I am slightly more familiar with it and more comfortable with selfies than I thought I’d ever be or ever want to be.

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Lost in the Potential of Humanity

[Image: Man standing on a balcony by the a body of water watching some testing of an atomic bomb. Image by C. Gaspard, used under cc license]

It is easy to forget how far humanity has come with technology. To think that it was not that long ago that people only had desktop computers or used the cell phones that didn’t have internet on them. This week, we read “As We May Think” by Vannevar Bush. During the first read of the piece, it would seem that it is a perspective of a very forward thinking individual who has predicted the technological advancements that we have today. However, when doing some research into the author and the context of when this was published, it takes on a slightly different light. For those who do not know, Vannevar Bush was the director of the Manhattan Project which created the first atomic bomb. His insight on the accomplishment isn’t one of horror as we view it now but he views it as an achievement and makes note on how the the physicists have formed a great team. With this idea in mind, it does seem that he views science with a sense of endlessness possibilities as what was once thought as impossible is now proven to be possible. Even if it meant the creation of the most horrific weapon in history. Although he notes that humanity should learn from its “shady past” there is infinite potential on how to deal with new problems that plague humans, preventing them from their fullest potential. An area that he has focus on is improving the efficiency that people obtain knowledge. While this seems fantastic in theory, I wonder if he could predict what it would do to the human condition in as people are seen as more lazy than before as many things are accessible at the touch of a few keys. When speaking of these devices which will help humanity, technology seems to be an extension of the human potential yet it would seem that we are using less of our human potential because of technology. Bush's use of imagery is amazing considering that many of the things he spoke of had not been created. The use of imagery is very effective in gaining a positive response from readers as it engages the imagination and gives technology as positive perspective even though it was given right after the atomic bomb was created. As for updates on being accustomed to the tumblr blog, I am not quite comfortable for this class or the blog but it does make more sense now than the last time. Progress!

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Hello, Welcome to the Possible Beginning of the End

[image: Laptop on a desk with paper print outs and handwritten notes scattered on top of the desk as well as parts of the laptop. Image by Rachel Yu author of the blog post]

It would seem like an obvious concept that the environment shapes who we are as people and furthermore, who we are as writers. However, for myself, I had a hard time grasping this concept. When considering how to analyze the author’s environment, I think of the social climate and how it could have inspired a writer, an example being Charles Dickens. After looking at the reading of Material Culture of Writing by Cydney Alexis, I believe have gained a better understanding of what this concept means. For myself, I come from a background of being home educated and teaching the school work to myself. This meant that most of my work was done in my room and now when I need to complete school work or writing, I complete  it the best at the desk in my dorm. Another thing that stood out to me in this piece was Teo. It was explained that he came from a family that did not have a lot of money and with his interest in writing, he received books and pens rather than toys. Due to his family environment, education and writing was seen as a way to reach a better paying career rather a job on its own. As a result, Teo needed to provide extra effort not only to fund his education but to continue his pursuit of writing even though his family didn’t show much support. Something that I wonder about the future generations is how they will develop as writers. In a day where children learn via tablets, will the idea of writing with pen of any kind be thrown out the window? Will there be a day that children only learn how to type? Cursive has already been taken out of many curriculums, but is that what writing truly is? A hand moving a pen to create words? Something that Teo also demonstrates is a work ethic that is not seen in many kids in school today. In a day where writing can be considered to be acronyms and emojis, will the type of writing on this blog become obsolete? For myself and the type of education I was introduced to, I have difficulty using technology to “write” as I did everything with pen and paper. Today, I believe it has made most deliberate in my thoughts as I still frequently use pen and paper. So with this being the start of my blog for the semester, I invite you to join me on this journey as a semi-up-to-date person with technology attempts to better understand the new literary culture.