week 15 - Reading Assignment 19

what do you think of when you hear "Remix Culture"?

I suppose I think the term 'Remix Culture' refers to the fact that, in our culture, there has been a rising trend in re appropriation. Meaning, we live in a world where we digitally have access to most creative works, legal or not,and with that access we no longer have to start from scratch. We can simply scramble past works and place them in a new context then call them our own.

what do you think is the biggest consequence of remix culture?
how is remix culture affecting innovation?

I think the biggest consequence of our remix culture is the fact that it has now placed a halt and then resulting decreased motivation to produce new forms and coming up with new solutions. I think that coupled with our current climate, recycling has come to play a huge role in current trends. Which plays into why people are not building innovative new pieces of work, they don't have to and isn't what is "in".

ATLAS Speaker Series Response

watch one lecture from the ATLAS Speaker Series and respond in 400-500 words.

Digital Media Design, Gender and Games Yasmin Kafai - November 5, 2012

Being a woman in the field of Computer Science, I have definitely had a lot of first hand experience on the male centric nature of technology. I think it is interesting that she began the talk in speaking to why girls are not brought up to be 'interested' in technology as a malleable tool. In high school I played a lot of sports and spent my time living the typical socially driven high school experience while most of my fellow Computer Science majors were becoming acquainted with computing as an interactive activity. When I talk to my guy friends, computer scientists or not, most have had some sort of exposure to the field be that through video games or classes. Yet girls rarely know anything about the possibilities and access made available through the study of computer science. Its as if men have been given the confidence to pursue and contribute to that educational world while women have been left to play eternal catch up. I would definitely agree with the judgement that a lot of this divide has been developed through the separation of those who play video games and those who don't. I have two brothers who play a lot of video games and when I first decided to declare CS as my major they were the only people in my family who had really any idea what is the purpose and methods used in such a study. However, as she mentions, women have not become more prevalent in the act of computing even in Scratch which is meant to be a more inclusive community. I think it is pretty obvious that the disconnect comes from the social developed archetype of what is meant to be feminine in our society. I think I may take a pretty strong stance against the fact that she is proposing and promoting these “crafty” natures that women have been limited by. To bring women into computing, I would argue that we need to debunk this relationship between computers and 'geeks'. Computers are a tool that can be used in many areas of life to many different ends. Computer science is typically a study tied with engineering, which then inevitably ties it to robotics or mechanics as that is the general interaction it has with its neighboring majors. But the computer, and an understanding of the inner workings of that computers, is a means that can benefit many intellectual studies. Therefore, as maybe some of you hav heard, the college of Arts and Sciences has recently begun the development of a major program for attaining a bachelors of arts in the study of computer science. I predict this idea of breaking the mold of who is creating our computers will inevitably change the computer industry itself. 

week 14 - reading assignment 18

read one article and post a question in response.
What is Intellectual Property? WIPO

1. Do you think a core practice in writing copyright law is semantics? It seems that the wording, in order to not be contested, really needs to be concise and specific.

briefly describe your feelings about intellectual property, relating it to your own life.
I work at the Visual Resources Center in the Art & Art History department here on campus as a visual resources assistant and I do digital imaging for students and professors. So I basically scan in images, perform image corrections on those digital images, then catalog all the images to be incorporated in the University digital image library. Thanks to fair use, with the right legal observances, our collection i able to grow for educational purposes without violating the law. However we come in contact with fuzzy copyright law and have a lot of trouble navigating the minefield. This has spurred a lot of conversations with my bosses regarding the copyright system we use. One major topic we have discussed is whether or not copyrights are doing what they are meant to do, which is encourage exclusive creative work for a defined time period without creating monopolies. 

week 14 - reading assignment 17

when you hear "digital divide," what does this mean to you?

I guess I would say that it is a term used to describe the cultural barrier that exists between communities with access to the benefits of a 'digital revolution' and those who do not. It seems to me to be a very negative repercussion of our evolution into the technological realm. 

watch this video on the digital divide and write a reaction. what did you find interesting? what bothered you? how would you approach the situation?

I think the comparison of learning how to use a computer, more specifically how to utilize the computer as a tool for learning, with the idea of learning to ride a bike is pretty powerful. I have a 5 year old cousin, Walker, who I have had the pleasure to watch grow up. One of the hands down most fascinating things I have found in that process is his aptitude for technology. Growing up immersed in the era of the internet and mobilized information, I think Walker has an engrained understanding of how technology has come to work, which allows him to adapt towards new forms of that technology very quickly. His common sense now incorporates the conceptual mind computers have been built with. This always shocks me and at times worries me as it is a direct example of the exclusivity of technology. That exclusivity not only holds from first world to third world clefts, but even generationally. Fascinating stuff, very telling of the trajectory of our world as we know it.

week 13 - source-listing/bibliography (Group 10)

The following are some websites we found helpful in our research.

Album sales Down in 2012

Downloading Music: The Real Deal

Fight Builds Over Online Royalties

The Powerful Role of Music In Society

Music and Digital Media; Making Sound Creative

History of Music Players

The Greatest Change in the History of Media

A Brief History of Digital Media

Digital Music Creation

The Pros and Cons of Using Digital Technology

Does Bitrate Really Make a Difference?

Perspectives on Digitization of Music

week 13 - reading assignment 16

In general, describe the relationship between I.T. and war as it has existed throughout history and into the present.

I guess I would just say that they exist in a symbiotic relationship as they both support the advancement of the other. I feel that because our country's economic model seems to favor our military, it is only natural that that industry is where research and development occurs most heavily. Not only does the military support I.T. development but medical as well, which has proven very beneficial. 

watch one video and read one article, then respond by incorporating three extracted quotes into a concluding thought to the statement above.

War and Technology Alex Roland 2009
Waging War: A New Generation [video] Frontline: PBS

"Technology is wrapped up in the story of war, its wrapped up in the story of human history" (Frontline).

"These technologies aren't being built in some secret desert lab that we don't know about. They're here, they're surrounding us. We better deal with them" (Frontline).

"Technology is a possibility, not an imperative" (Roland).

As an extension to my initial statement on the relationship between war and IT I would like to emphasize the point made in both the video and the article. That point is that human beings are the creators of this technology. Those human beings exist in a heavily contextualized mindset as is inherent in our nature, which then informs the possibility of what technology may become. In our world, as it exists today, the military is a primary responsibility that has evolved into a priority. As a priority, it requires a great deal of money and time. This money and time (a finite resource) is also needed for the development of technology. Therefore it stands to reason that we may kill two birds with one stone and efficiently develop our drive to proliferate our technological position whilst protecting that drive's hometown. 

week 12 - reading assignment 15 +

write about your initial understanding of virtual reality and how you may interact within them.
I suppose I would define a virtual reality as an environment that has been digitally recreated to reflect some form of reality. I think these environments often are created to supply possibilities not available in our own physical world. 

I suppose I may consider First Person Video Games and Avatar-based Video Games as virtual realities, though this may be incorrect. I play Mario games and Donkey Kong and Halo every now and again. When I was a kid I played Disney's Toontown which is a MMORPG and really fun. I have also dabbled in Second Life as well as WoW.


read one article and respond with three questions.

A Brief History of Virtual Reality and its Social Applications Ebersole 1997

1. I find it really interesting that the concept of Virtual Reality be so tied with the study of Communications. Do they teach much on the subject in formal Communications practice?
2. Do many people who study the effects of Virtual Reality connect it with the concept of Hyperreality?
3. Does Virtual Reality only include environments that support the interactivity tools of googles and gloves?