1. What was the first message transmitted over the Advanced Research and Projects Network (a predecessor of the Internet)? What does that tell you about the nature of the Internet, about computers, about life in general?
2. Post-modernist philosopher Jean-François Lyotard says contemporary society is losing its "grand narratives" (the French for "big stories," or commonly accepted myths, values and beliefs). How did he say the communications media contribute to this breakdown? Do you agree with him or not? Does the Internet contribute to a fragmentation of "grand narratives?"
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
COM 150 -- Oct. 25 -- QUIZ
Referring to our textbook Media Now and/or information you find on the World Wide Web, post your answers to the questions below as comments to this blog post:
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4 comments:
1. the first transmission over arpnet were the letters L…O…, trying to tell the other person to log in, but the server ended up crashing before the message could be typed in completely. I find this incredibly amusing. We put so much stock into the internet these days, but it can be a very fragile thing. We rely on the computer and internet, but at any moment it could crash.
2. According to Lyotard, the new media permits many forms of expression, creating new social formations. As more groups use these forms of media, we become more focused on the groups rather than with nation states and other vestiges of the modern era. We are focusing on getting our information in a quick and specific manor instead of relying on face to face time with each other. I agree with Lyotard in this sense. The internet is definitely contributing to this. Society is spending more time in front of a computer screen rather than speaking to each other. We even communicate with each other through email now. This allows us to have a conversation with each other without even seeing one another. The grand narratives are basically non existent on the web. The internet is about getting the information and getting it quickly.
1. The first message was L...O..., which was supposed to tell the person it was sent to to LOG IN but the system crashed before the message was finished. This is funny because even today people deal computer crash related problems. This is an indicator that computers are not as reliable as some people may believe them to be, and unexpected problems are possible as with any other element in life.
2.He believed that the majority of opinion would be more widely spread do to the media giving different information and introducing new ideas to the public. I believe this to be true but I look at it as more of a positive than a negative. I also believe that the internet is contributing to the fragmentation because it is the home to every form or viewpoint on literature and art imaginable
1. The first message was L...O...so then it was called Log in, because the system couldn't handle it so it crashed. Everyone now a days relys on computers and one day it will crash and know one will know what to do.
2. According to Lyotard that new media permits new knowledge and social formations. More choices lead to a greater variety and less things in common. This allows everyone to have a conversation with each other without even seeing one another. Modern instances and facts about current issues should be talked about on worldwide or nationwide news and papers.
1. The first message transmitted over the Advanced Research and Projects Network was "L...O...". The operator was trying to tell the person at the other end to LOG IN, but the system crashed before the message could be completed. This is a prime example of life not always going your way. The nature of the internet is very high tech, however, through this example, we see that you cannot count on the interet to always work. You can definitely never count on a computer to work, because the minute you save everything on your desktop without also saving a hard copy, your computer is destined to crash on you. he main point of all of this is ALWAYS have a back up.
2. As the media grew, it provided people with more choices. Becasue there were more choices, there weren't many people who shared the same choices and ideas. People listened to different music, watched different TV shows with different focuses, and read different novels, etc. The high schools and universities began to disagree on what should be the required readings for Freshman English. So many options came about through the innovations in technology, and people began to obtain wildly diverse opinions. Throughout the many fragmentations of media, and the process of segmentation, the breakdown continues to occur. I actually do agree with Lyotard. I think that with so many segmentations, and choices of how to obtain media, there is a definite breakdown in the concensus of the "main stories" which guide our societies. The internet also plays a definite role in the fragmentation of "big stories". The convenience of the internet is one reason. Another reason the interet plays a role in this fragmentation is that is a fast and easy way to obtain information on any focus, be it news, entertainment, etc.
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