More Secrets of Academic Success: Mnemonics and How to Use Them - Fa16

Earlier I shared a variety of secrets to academic success (methods of studying, etc.) and I suggested learning tools like Quizlet.

Below is a continuation of that same conversation.

A mnemonic is "any learning technique that aids in information retention" (Wikipedia).
Mnemonic is pronounced like 'knee-monic' (think: a demon with really big knee caps).

There are several mnemonics or memory tricks that can help when learning new material.  The first video below defines and explains six tricks (acronyms, acrostics, the PEG system, image mnemonics, chunking and memory maps).



So, according to the video:

• acronyms: "word or term is created from the first letter of each item to be remembered."
• acrostics: "a complete sentence or series of words in which the first letter of each word stands for something to be remembered."
• PEG system: "is useful for remembering numbers - uses key words which are represented by numbers."
• image mnemonics: "the information to be recalled is constructed in the form of a picture that enhances memory."
• chunking: "involves grouping individual pieces of information together in a way that makes them easier to remember."
• mind map: "a visual pattern that can create a framework for improved recall."

Now, the last video covers the memory palace technique (my favorite).



How could you use the above memory tricks to learn course material or anything else you need to learn?

Study smarter, not harder.

If you are curious, you can find more information about mnemonics on YouTube and Google.

I'd especially suggest these two YouTube videos:

• Memory Champion Teaches You How to Memorize Anything
• How To Study Better - Best Study Techniques

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HistMedia: Social Media and Web 2.0: Facebook and the Zuckerberg Story (W15-P2) Fa15

In our coverage of the history of media, we've taken a biographical approach.  We have studied some of the people especially relevant to the history of media.  We have covered media scholars (and their media theories and related concepts).  We have covered media technologists (and their media technologies).

We close our study of the history of media by looking at one last (and more recent) biography, that of Mark Zuckerberg (and Facebook).

How did Facebook come to be? What is Mark Zuckerberg's story?

Fact and Fiction

You might know some of the story from the 2010 film, The Social Network.



However, is the film based on the fact?  What does Zuckerberg object to?



If you are curious, you might also want to check out a recent article "Zuckerberg reveals he found The Social Network 'hurtful'."

A documentary or news story would be a better way of getting to the true story.



If you are curious, you might also want to check out a full bio on Bloomberg's Game Changers series.

How is his story similar to past media tech visionaries?


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HistMedia: Social Media and Web 2.0: Intro (W15-P1) Fa15

We began our discussion of the history of media with the beginnings of language and we end our discussion with some coverage of social media.

What makes Facebook or Twitter examples of social media? Is YouTube social media? 
What is social media?  

"Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as 'a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content.'" (Wikipedia).

So, Web 2.0 has something to do with social media. What is Web 2.0?

"The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design,[1] and collaboration on the World Wide Web. A Web 2.0 site allows users to interact and collaborate with each other in a social media dialogue as creators (prosumers) of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to websites where users (consumers) are limited to the passive viewing of content that was created for them. Examples of Web 2.0 include social networking sites, blogs, wikis, video sharing sites, hosted services, web applications, mashups and folksonomies" (Wikipedia)

So, if this is Web 2.0, what was Web 1.0?

How did social media develop/evolve?  What is the short history of social media?




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HistMedia: Internet/New Media: The Jobs-Gates Rivalry (W14-P2) [VID] Fa15

"Are you a pirate?"  What's that mean?  Is that a good thing or a bad thing?
Any life lessons you learn from this movie?
Any career lessons you learn from this movie?


The Pirates of Silicon Valley tells the story of the Jobs-Gates rivalry from the early 1970s until the late 1990s.



The following video interview of Jobs' biographer picks up the Jobs-Gates story where Pirates left off.





For a humorous, but insightful look at the rivalry you might also want to check out the "Steve Jobs vs Bill Gates. Epic Rap Battle."

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HistMedia: SCOT, Tech Determinism and the History of Media Tech (W14-P1) Fa15

Ev Rogers and I wrote a book chapter which, in part, explained the Social Construction of Technology and Technological Determinism theories.  We also tied the two theories together.


The chapter appeared in The Changing Conversation in America edited by Eadie and Nelson.



Ev and I wrote about Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) this way:

We said of Technological Determinism:

At the end of the chapter we included a diagram.

NOTE: There is something missing in the figure.  It was included in the paper we submitted, but left out in the printing.  What is missing?

What do we mean by "complete picture" (see caption of the diagram)?



Using SCOT and TD to Understand the Historical Development of Technology

How do these theories help us understand how media technologies develop?

Like the ideas of Kuhn and Burke (presented previously), technological determinism and social construction of technology are theoretical constructs that help us understand the development (or history) of technologies.

How do these theories help us better understand the history of past media technology?  Books? Radio?  TV?   How do they help us understand the stories of Gutenberg, Edison, Woods, De Forest, Armstrong and Farnsworth?  For example, how could we use the idea of  social construction of technology to explain (or understand) the story of Granville Woods?

How do they help us better understand the development of more recent media technologies (computers, the PC, the Internet, etc.)?   How do they help us understand the stories of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs?  Mark Zuckerberg?




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HistMedia: Connections - Past & Future: Mr. Burke & His Connections Approach to History (U13-P1) Fa15

Previously we took Thomas Kuhn's theory of scientific revolutions and applied it to the study of communication broadly and international communication specifically.  That is, we used the theory as a way of understanding the history of these fields of study.  According to the theory, first this happens and then that happens.  There is a pattern in the histories.

In a similar fashion, here we are going to use James Burke's ideas of scientific and technological development to understand the history (and prehistory?) of media technologies.

But, first who is James Burke?

To start to understand his approach, let's first recall our much earlier discussion on why we study history.

Note the reason that is in boldface.  That will start to get us thinking like Burke.

Burke: "If you don't know how you got somewhere, you don't know where you are" (ep. 10, Connections).

With that reason in mind, let's next look at Burke's concept of the "Trigger Effect."
What's the "Trigger Effect" of which Burke speaks?

Burke laid out some of his ideas, including the Trigger Effect, in his TV series Connections from the late 70s.


Play video from 0:00 to about 4:50.

NOTE: If the video is not available online then see this transcript.

Now let's take a look at some of Burke's further thoughts on technological change.  In the 10th episode of Connections, Burke...  outlines....explains...

As you watch the beginning of episode 10 of Connections ("Yesterday, Tomorrow and You"), here are some questions to answer.

What did the plow triggers?   The plow lead to what which lead to what?  See what Burke means by connections?

As the title of the episode implies, what will be our technological future?  Can we look at the trigger technologies around us and figure what the key triggers are?  In what ways are these key triggers likely to act?

Is there anything we can learn from the past that would help us understand possible technological change in the future?

As Burke points out, this may be difficult to figure the future because of the way we've been taught the history of technological development.

The history has been presented to us as happening in a linear, discrete fashion.  We are told history...

• in packaged units (e.g. the history of agricultural technologies).
• as the story of the "lonely genius in the garage with a light bulb" creating all by themselves (Eastman, Edison, etc.) 
• as sets of "Golden Ages" that began on such and such date and ended on such and such date.

According to Burke what is the problem with each of these ways of thinking?

These ways of thinking about the history of technological development makes you think in straight lines, when indeed, as Burke stresses that history is web of inter-connections.

Now, with this understanding of Burke's ideas, what do you see in terms of technological change in your future?  What would think Burke would say of today's technologies, especially communication technologies?

---

Now with a good understanding of Burke's alternative approach to change, I'd encourage you to watch episode 9 of Connections in which Burke applies his ideas to tell a history (and prehistory?) of some media technologies.

As you watch episode 9 of Connections ("Countdown"), here are some questions to answer.

How are cannon balls connected to film and television?  What is the path?  What's the process?  Can you list the steps and briefly explain each step in the process?  Can you make the connections using Burke's approach?


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HistMedia: Spotlight On Hedy Lamar (W12-P3) Fa15

Here recently was the 101st birthday of actress and technologist/inventor, Hedy Lamarr.
Google even made note of Lamarr with an animated doodle on their search page.
What was her story?  What did she invent still relevant to today's communication technologies?




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HistMedia: TV Technologists: Farnsworth, Sarnoff & Zworykin (W12-P2) Fa15

Now let's return to our discussion of media technologists, the creators, the inventors of media.

Previously we studied the creation of radio by looking at the lives of de Forest, Armstrong and Sarnoff.

Next, we turn to TV technologists.  Note that Sarnoff returns to play a role in the beginnings of television too.

While Sarnoff did play an important role in the beginnings of TV, note that Sarnoff is more on the business side of things as he was with radio.  Who are the key inventors that deserve attention when talking about the beginnings of TV?

Here we study the creation of TV via a recent National Geographic Channel documentary titled AMERICAN GENIUS FARNSWORTH VS. SARNOFF.



Note that, as clearly stated at the beginning of the film, this NGC doc "includes dramatizations inspired by history."


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HistMedia: Hovland, Persuasion, Propaganda and 'Why We Fight' (W12-P1) Fa15

Early media scholar, Carl Hovland, centered his research on persuasion. During World War II, he was involved in creation and study of Francis Capra's 'Why We Fight' films.  These propaganda films were used by the U.S. government to train new U.S. soldiers.

An Introduction to the Films


Let's also look at the first few minutes of one of the films. How are the films persuasive?  What persuasive tactics are used (e.g., fear appeals)?





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HistMedia: Radio Technologist: de Forest, Armstrong & Sarnoff (W11-P2) Fa15

We continue with our coverage of early communication technologists.  We now turn specifically to radio technologists.

Filmmaker, Ken Burns, told the story of radio in his documentary "Empire of the Air."  Notice the story is not as much about the technology as it is about the people (the innovators).

In the documentary, Burns highlights the lives and work of Lee de Forest, Edwin Armstrong and David Sarnoff.  (Note: We have previously covered de Forest.)

Below is a short YouTube clip on de Forest's audion.

Note: PBS provides a good, but incomplete, timeline for the documentary (see only the "Empire" timeline).



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HistMedia: Communication Technologist: Granville Woods (W11-P1) Fa15

We are taking a strong biographical approach to our study of media history.  We have spent time with media scholars and even some pre-paradigmatic scholars relevant to communication study.

For now, we are going to shift our focus from media scholars to media technologists (inventors, etc.).

First, we give our attention to Granville Woods.

Why not mentioned in history books alongside Edison, Bell, etc.?

Because of attitudes like these...
In 1913...  B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.

1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?


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HistMedia: A History of a Science: Thomas Kuhn (W9-P1) Fa15

Now that we've covered, to some degree, the three big names of Darwin, Freud and Marx, we can start to see their influence on communication study.

Next we'll take a look at some particular sub-fields within communication study and discover the influence of the big 3 on those specific sub-fields.

However, to do that, we need a good understanding of Thomas Kuhn and his concept of scientific revolutions.

Earlier we talked about study of history in general, now, with the help of Kuhn, we will look at the history of science, our science -- communication study.



Note: Earlier the readings for this course, we covered Kuhn's concepts of paradigm and paradigm shift.

While not as visually appealing, let's also take a quick look at this informative description of Kuhn and his book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.




Kuhn's theory of scientific development can be used to understand the history of communication study and specific sub-fields within the discipline of communication.

For example see:
Rogers, E. M. & Hart, W. B. (2002). The histories of intercultural, development, and international communication. In W. B. Gudykunst and B. Moody (Eds.), Handbook of International and Intercultural Communication, 2nd Edition (pp. 1-18). Thousand Oaks: CA: Sage Publications.

Kuhn's ideas have also been used to tell paradigmatic history of agenda-setting theory.

Rogers, E. M., Hart, W. B. & Dearing, J. W. (1997). A paradigmatic history of agenda-setting research. In S. Iyengar & R. Reeves (Eds.). Do the Media Govern?: Politicians, Voters, and Reporters in America (pp. 225-236). Thousand Oaks: CA, Sage Publications.

Before reading the agenda-setting chapter, it may be helpful to get a good grasp of the basics of agenda-setting theory.



Did you spot the parts of paradigmatic history just in this short video?




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HistMedia: The Deep Roots of Communication Study- MARX (W7-P2) Fa15

As a means of supplementing this week's reading on Marx, let's play connect the dots. Let's connect the dots from Marx, to the Frankfurt School, to music on the radio. Finally, mass media.

Marx


The Frankfurt School (Horkheimer, et. al.)


Adorno and Music on the Radio (What is Good Music?)





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HistMedia: The Deep Roots of Communication Study- DARWIN cont'd (W7-P1) Fa15

The previous video clip introduced us to the life of Darwin and some of some of his key evolutionary concepts (e.g., natural selection and artificial selection).

As a means of summarizing the process of evolution. Carl Sagan's explanation of it.

One of the best explanations of biological evolution and the mechanism that drives evolution is found in Carl Sagan's Cosmos video series which was based on the book Cosmos. In the following video Sagan describes the process of artificial selection.  As you are watching this clip from Cosmos, be sure to identify and be able to explain the mechanism that drives evolution. Does this mechanism explain technological evolution?  Do technologies evolve?

Let's start first in Japan some time ago and the story of a drowned boy-emperor, a small crab and the idea of artificial selection.







In this short clip the process is explained in a different way. Slow the process down and catch each step. It starts with organisms vary.

Now, that we have a grasp of Darwin's life and his concept of evolution, let's ask ourselves: so what?  What that have to do with communication study?  Where does Darwin fit in?

According to Rogers (p. 64), Darwin had four key contributions (direct and indirect) to communication study .

1. Influenced Karl Marx and his formulation of dialectical materialism.
2. Shaped Herbert Spencer's concept of social Darwinism [vid].  This, in turn, influenced to some degree the work of early sociologists Charles Horton Cooley and Robert E. Park.  These two sociologist had strong influence on early communication scholars.
3. With the publication of his book, The Expression of the Emotions in Men and Animals, in 1873, Darwin helped start the study of nonverbal communication.

For our purposes here, we'll drop Rogers' original 4th contribution and add our own.  Based on our earlier coverage of Freud, we can add a 4th (indirect) contribution of Darwin.
4. Influence on Freud and the animalistic nature of the id.




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HistMedia: The Deep Roots of Communication Study- DARWIN (W6-P2) Fa15

Now, as a means of priming our interest in discussion of Darwin, let's take a look at the BBC documentary Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life.

Can you give a timeline of Darwin's life and the development of his ideas?

Let's take a look specifically from 0:00 to 30:00 in the clip.


Now that we have the basics down in terms of Darwin's life and his ideas, we'll follow up next week with some discussion of Darwin and his influence on a variety of communication sub-disciplines.

We'll also take a look at Marx and his influence.

In the week after we'll shift our focus to the prominent early media scholars Harold Lasswell and Paul Lazarsfeld.  How did the early works of Darwin, Freud and Marx influence Lasswell and Lazarsfeld? Other early communication scholars?  There is a lineage here.  There is an intellectual family tree.  If you excuse the metaphor, there is an evolution of ideas.



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HistMedia: The Deep Roots of Communication Study- FREUD (W6-P1) Fa15

DARWIN, FREUD & MARX

The above are prominent names from the late 19th and early 20th century.  Each has had an important and lasting impact on a variety of scientific disciplines and on society in general.

As Ev Rogers argues, they too had influence on the discipline of communication and media studies. In the works of Darwin, Freud and Marx we can find some key ideas that later shape communication and media studies.  In the works of Darwin, Freud and Marx we can find the deep roots of communication and media studies.

In this week's reading (History of Comm. Study, Chapter 3), Rogers tells the story of Freud and his ideas and how they influenced communication scholars and communication theory.

As a complement to the reading let's take a look at a documentary which outlines Freud's life and the development of his ideas.  Can you give a timeline of Freud's life and the development of his ideas?


See the following segments: 0:00-4:00, 7:55-26:40, 30:05-43:32 and 48:00-56:59



Here, in these notes, we'll highlight and expand upon some of the key concepts. First, let's given some more emphasis on the concept of the unconscious.




How did the idea of the unconscious and other Freudian ideas influence communication and media study? What does Rogers say?




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More Secrets of Academic Success: Mnemonics and How to Use Them

Earlier I shared a variety of secrets to academic success (methods of studying, etc.) and I suggested learning tools like Quizlet.

Below is a continuation of that same conversation.

A mnemonic is "any learning technique that aids in information retention" (Wikipedia).
Mnemonic is pronounced like 'knee-monic' (think: a demon with really big knee caps).

There are several mnemonics or memory tricks that can help when learning new material.  The first video below defines and explains six tricks (acronyms, acrostics, the PEG system, image mnemonics, chunking and memory maps).



So, according to the video:

• acronyms: "word or term is created from the first letter of each item to be remembered.
• acrostics: "a complete sentence or series of words in which the first letter of each word stands for something to be remembered."
• PEG system: "is useful for remembering numbers - uses key words which are represented by numbers."
• image mnemonics: "the information to be recalled is constructed in the form of a picture that enhances memory."
• chunking: "involves grouping individual pieces of information together in a way that makes them easier to remember."
• mind map: "a visual pattern that can create a framework for improved recall."

Now, the last video covers the memory palace technique (my favorite).



How could you use the above memory tricks to learn course material or anything else you need to learn?

Study smarter, not harder.

If you are curious, you can find more information about mnemonics on YouTube and Google.

I'd especially suggest these two YouTube videos:

• Memory Champion Teaches You How to Memorize Anything
• How To Study Better - Best Study Techniques

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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
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HistMedia: History of Media Theory: Timeline (W4-P1) Fa15

If the timeline is not showing above for you, the History of Media Theory timeline can be also be found at this link.


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HistMedia: Media Tech (-1899): Timeline (W3-P2) Fa15

If the timeline is not showing above for you, the Media Tech (-1899) timeline can be also be found at this link.

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HistMedia: Wilbur Schramm: Timeline (W3-P1) Fa15

If the timeline is not showing above for you, the Schramm timeline can be also be found at this link.



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