Jul 19, 2024
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Place for throwing words around
For what it's worth, lawsuits against Apple over emojis are not entirely unheard of. You may recall that Apple was sued by a woman who claimed it was copyright infringement for Apple to have emojis that represent more diverse communities, for...
Transmedia and Media Convergence.
Henry Jenkins, Ph. D., discusses the concept of transmedia and convergence culture.
Henry Jenkin, Ph.D., on what is Media Convergence.
Media convergence
Henry Jenkins, Ph.D, was the director of the Comparative Media Studies Program at MIT. In his two videos, Jenkins discusses the concept of media convergence and is affects on our culture. Every story, image, brand, or bit of information is carried and shaped by the media industry (larger pre-existing organizations and entities) as well as the consumers or the former audience. People have always struggle with the limitations of technology; its accessibility and its functionality to share their messages and information. As the technology becomes more accessible, and the technology to produce media becomes easier to use, society’s ability to consume and produce media content becomes more widespread across the population. Henry Jenkins, highlights the fact that the our culture is changing and so too is our technology. They way in which media is consumed and produced has also changed. Media has becomes more integrated into our technology and the resource of the web has allowed this media convergence to new heights. Within our networked society, as stories are told and information is being shared through our various platforms, society is enhancing its collective intelligence.
I have chosen to share an alternative video on media culture that echoes the beliefs of Henry Jenkins, Ph.D.
There has been an adaption in the way in which stories and information are shared. Now we have access to the traditional forms of media in a digital arena, the web. We can socialize and collaborate. Social technology has given rise to much innovation, but could also give rise to sever problems within industries that relied on their sole control of how media was produced and distributed.
The Bard Meets: Jess Dillon from Nominet Trust
Last year, PulseGuard won the NT100 award from the Nominet Trust, which acknowledged social tech entrepreneurs, who are changing the lives of people all around the world. A few months back, we were in London recently catching up with Nominet Trust and I had the opportunity to learn more about the trust, and throw a few down-to-earth fun questions at Communications Manager, Jess Dillon.
Tell me about yourself and your role at the Nominet Trust?
I’ve worked for Nominet Trust for 4 years now and I’m the Communications Manager, part of the current team of 10. It’s a great place to work because we get to support the most amazing social tech entrepreneurs tackling big social challenges using the internet and digital technology.
How did you come to work at the Nominet Trust?
It was actually through connections I had from my previous career, working for an organisation that developed and sold ICT to education, so I’ve got 15 years’ plus experience working in marketing & comms. It was an exciting transition to make; from working with tech in a commercial organisation, to tech for social good.
Can you tell me more about Nominet Trust and what they do?
Nominet Trust is the UK’s leading ‘tech for good’ funder and is the charitable foundation of Nominet, who are best known for managing the ‘.uk’ domain space. They are a public benefit company and to date have donated £39m to Nominet Trust. We work in three different ways. We fund organisations like PulseGuard, that use digital technology for social good; we work in partnership with organisations such as Comic Relief, BAFTA and Creative England to extend our reach and help tackle social challenges on a broader scale; we advocate and champion the use of the internet and digital tech for social good through programs like our annual NT100, which PulseGuard also featured in last year.
When you were young, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I was quite girly and loved horses and animals. So anything to do with horses and animals!
And who was your childhood hero?
Jason Donovan (Obviously!) and Philip Schofield - Shows my age!
And do you have a current hero? Someone you look up to.
I’m always genuinely inspired by individuals who are developing solutions to personal challenges they have experienced within their own lives and families. People like Adrian and his family who have developed PulseGuard and others like Samiya and Naveed Parvez who developed Andiamo, using 3D printing and scanning to create orthotics for children, borne out of their experiences with their own child. In fact, in our search for the 2016 NT100, we are looking to celebrate Everyday Tech Heroes, so make sure you nominate!
During your time at Nominet Trust, are there any memorable moments that you want to share?
Yes! Every time we host a ‘kick-off’ meeting for our funded projects, it’s a proud moment because it brings home what we do and we hear directly from the founders and social entrepreneurs that we support. It’s always a touching moment and it makes your job worthwhile. And also the launch of the NT100 in December 2015, which was an enormous amount of work, carried out over 6 months. When we launched, it was fantastic to highlight the 100 most exciting projects we found from around the world that are using tech for social good and it gave all of those organisations a platform to share what they do.
Beans on Toast or Sunday Roast??
Sunday roast, cooked by my Mum with veggies from my Dad’s allotment!
Would you rather be able to swim like a dolphin, but only in mud, OR, be able to turn invisible, but only when no-one’s looking?
Invisibility! Even if no-one’s looking! (Laughs)… only in mud!?! This shows the way your mind works!! (More laughs!)
You’ve heard about what we do at Adris Technologies and PulseGuard. What are your own thoughts on the PulseGuard system?
PulseGuard, in all honesty, is one of the projects that I always explain to exemplify what Nominet Trust does and who we fund. It has amazing potential to change the lives of the whole family, not just an individual. It’s relatable; you can easily understand what it does and how it works without being technically minded. Everybody knows someone with a condition like epilepsy, and can understand the huge benefits of a product like PulseGuard. I’m also inspired by the family story of PulseGuard, it’s fantastic it’s been developed into a successful business out of the Perry family’s passion to make lives better for families like them.
Have you had any experience with epilepsy, or anyone you know who suffers with epilepsy?
My friend’s brother has epilepsy, so I understand how important it is to manage his seizures. I’ve heard many times the scenarios my friend has experienced during family holidays and day outs. And all the other things that a young person with epilepsy has to think about, like drinking, and remembering to take their medication, and issues with sleep, having to live with his parents as an adult as its necessary for his wellbeing.
Rock, Pop, Jazz or Death Metal Ragtime?
Rock and Pop! I like anything from Take That, Paloma Faith and Florence and the Machine, to Guns ‘N’ Roses.
Are there any interesting developments within the Nominet Trust that you are willing to share?
Yes! Our team is expanding. Our new Partnerships Director, Ed Evans has recently joined us, as has Programme Director, Chris Ashworth. We are also recruiting further trustees to join the current board of four plus a new Chair. That will be interesting as we bring different experts on board to help steer the Trust and the types of social tech initiatives we support.
Would rather be a quadriplegic leopard or a crocodile with no teeth??
Oh gosh! Well either way you’d starve! I’m going with the crocodile because my 6-year-old daughter has a book where a little mouse pulls out the tooth of a crocodile with tooth-ache. He’s a grumpy old croc and the mouse helps him.
Does he become a nice croc?
He does, He does!! I’m going with the nice croc. I wouldn’t be so snappy!
What was one of the most ridiculous applications you’ve received for the Nominet Trust?
Despite being a ‘social tech’ funder, sometimes we still get enquiries about projects with no tech element whatsoever!
What is your take on the fashion that is storming the UK by storm…? Ear Wellies…
Are you joking?? (Laughs)
Will you be buying a pair?
Ear Wellies?? Where did you get that from?? Have you got ear wellies??
Finally, what does the future hold for Nominet Trust?
Hopefully we will still be doing what we do best, and that is providing grant funding and business support to more amazing social tech ventures. If money and time were no object, then we would provide the best personal and business support, along with the cash, because to be a successful venture, it’s about building your expertise to make connections and making sure your business is sustainable.
Our search is on for the 2016 NT100 too, so make sure you nominate inspiring tech for good ventures by 30th September at: socialtech.org.uk/nominate
For more information on the Nominet Trust, click the following links: Nominet Trust Website, details on the NT100 and to nominate, & Twitter Page
Click here to visit the PulseGuard website. Click here to sign-up to the PulseGuard Mailing List. Like our PulseGuard Facebook Page & Follow us on Twitter @PulseGuard
LSE supports creativity...
Thank you LSE for supporting this new legacy to students like me- interested to experience due diligence on an impact investment deals before graduation http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/ipa/2016/06/17/achieving-my-dream-participating-in-the-miint-competition/
Episode XV – Bridging Human Connection And Technology
There are more than 1.5 million applications on the Apple Store, and just a little more on Google Play. Competition in this environment is not merely driven by the quality of the app, the efficacy of the execution, or the reach of marketing, its also luck and – just like the stock market – can depend on some variables outside of anyone’s control and unable to perfectly predict. The game Flappy Bird illustrates that trend: it was originally released on May 24, 2013 and only took off suddenly in January the following year, becoming the most downloaded app in the store and earning its creator $50,000/day.
However, when your name is Casey Neistat – a social media influencer with a cult following shy of 3 million people on YouTube, half a million on twitter and 1.1 million on Instagram – releasing an app assures dozens of thousands of downloads, a day. In the summer 2015, Casey launched Beme, an app in which videos are shared and disappear, similarly to Snapchat. A viewer can easily respond to the video with a reaction, a photo of his face as he reacts to the video. What differentiates Beme from its competitors is its social aspect: you can’t take a video and look at the screen at the same time. Thereof, you are forced to put the screen against the palm of your hand – of your chest, as Casey demonstrates it – to shoot a film. Neistat wants to allow people to connect through technology without giving up human and interpersonal live experiences. While his app was still in very early stages when released, he and his team have since worked to revamp it and make it more functional by giving it a more intuitive UI. Today, the New IOS app can be downloaded here, and might open tech companies to consider developing technologies that keep us in touch with our humanity.
“Alongside a commons and sufficient subsidy, online commons-based peer production depends on the interaction of some sort of communal ethos and multiple, non-monetary forms of compensation (Weber, 2004). In the open-source software community, for example, programmers often think of themselves as warriors fighting the dark forces of Microsoft, a firm they imagine to be hierarchical and closed (Weber, 2004). In other settings, such as the Wikipedia project (www.wikipedia.org), collaborative news production ventures or even parts of eBay (www.ebay.com), a rhetoric of community often pervades production processes (Turner, 2005).To make information goods valuable is to give ‘gifts’ to the ‘community’.This shift in rhetorical frame from factory and market to gift and community in turn legitimates the multiple systems of reward actually in play. Because they are explicitly removed from systems of market exchange, gifts can come back to participants not as money, but as reputation, artistic pleasure or friendship – or all three.At the same time, rhetorics of mission and community allow collaborators to imagine that all participants, regardless of their actual standing, are in fact social and ethical peers. In any online production community, some participants have greater intellectual, social, financial or reputational capital than others, and thus the wherewithal to monetize the group’s work more easily in other settings. However, in terms of the ethical frameworks established by the rhetoric of community, or of the battle against the ‘dark forces’ of Microsoft, they can be imagined as peers devoted to a collective mission”