MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (W6-P3) Fa15

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.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

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




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.
What need does this meet?


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…”

See transduction in this process?


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.

See connections to Winston's model?
Similar story to other communication inventors?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (W6-P2) Fa15

Think of a news event being covered live by a news crew.  How does the story get from the location of the event to you watching it on TV or maybe on your mobile device?

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (W6-P1) Fa15

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."  Examples of transduction include energy going from physical energy to electrical, from light to electrical and from electrical to electromagnetic (radio waves).

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

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.



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

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?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

DigPhotog: Video Composition: From the Basics to the Advanced (W6-P2) [VID] Fa15

In terms, of the basics, note the techniques of getting a good hand-held video shot as laid out in the video below.  The video below is about using a professional video camera, but the same techniques apply to you using your smart phone or tablet camera.



And now, on to some more advanced aspects of video composition.
Q: What is the rule of composition that cant' be used well in still photography\
A: Movement

For some keen lessons on composing with movement let's go to the master, Akira Kurosawa, famed Japanese film direcor.  Note the specific rules of movement discussed.





Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

DigPhotog: Can't Leave Composition Behind: How to Use in Video (W6-P1) [VID] Fa15

We've previously talked about photo criticism and photo composition, the artistic aspects of photography.  We'll very soon move into the technical aspects of photography.  However, before we take a look at the tech, let's take one last look at composition.  This time will not look at it in still photography, but moving photography.

The "rules" of composition that you learn for still photography can also be used in your video work.

Note that when shooting video on your smart phone or tablet, the rules of composition still apply. And now that you are adding more time and movement to the shooting of a subject, you can do some interesting things with the still photography rules of composition.

Note the four rules of composition that can be used in video work which are discussed below.





After you learned about composition in still photography (rule of thirds, framing, etc.), did you start to spot those same rules being used in your favorite TV show or movie?  If not, look for it the next time you are watching TV or a movie.

Take, for example, the Tarantino film, Kill Bill.


Just focus on the rule of thirds.  How often do you see the rule of thirds?  How is it used?




Now, you try it.  Go to YouTube (or another video source) and look for clips of a favorite movie.  See how many rules of composition you see being used.  Besides the rule of thirds, what else do you see?  Framing?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: Operationalizing Your Variables (W4-P4) [VID] Fa15

Once your variables have been identified, then they will need to be measured, but how?   And, what does an operational definition have to do with it?

What is an operational definition?  What does it mean to operationalize a variable?

"Operational definition" is "a statement that describes the observable characteristics of a concept being investigated…”(Frey, et.al).  Or, put differently, an operational definition “specifies the procedures [or operations] the researcher uses to observe the variables” (Stacks, et.al).  Notice how the second definition indicates why it is called "operatioal."

Both I.V.s & D.V.s need O.D.s.   Operational definitions allow you to measure a variable.

What does the following Jeff Foxworthy comedy have to do with operationalization?  What is Foxworthy doing in his jokes?  Is he operationally defining something?




----
Operationalization Examples:

1. Let's say you are going to do some research on prejudice, how would you operationalize prejudice?

• Start with the conceptual definition or dictionary definition:
• “the irrational hatred or suspicion of a particular group, race, religion, or sexual orientation”(Jandt).
• What would the operational definition be?  How would you measure prejudice?

What are the basic “operational procedures” or ways of measuring variables?

Operational procedures:

1. Self-report 
1. the researcher asks subjects to report about themselves
2. Observer’s ratings 
1. researcher asks subject to observer and rate another
3. Observe behavior
1. researcher observes subject

Which method would you trust more?  Which would give a more valid measure?  Why?

How would you use these procedures with prejudice or violence?  Which would "work" better?



2. Let's say you are going to do some research on violence and video games, how would you operationalize violence?

• Conceptual/dictionary definition of violence: "exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse" (Merriam-Websters)

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• A 2/12/13 NYT news article about recent research on video games and violence
• A longitudinal study of the association between violent video game play and aggression among adolescents.  by Willoughby T, Adachi PJ, Good M.  Developmental Psychology. 2012 Jul;48(4):1044-57.

3. Let's say you are going to do some research on the effects of television on children, what would be the variables you'd study and how would you operationalize them?

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• 2013 study:
• Swapping violent shows for educational TV may boost children's behavior (CBS video)
• Certain Television Fare Can Help Ease Aggression in Young Children, Study Finds (NY Times)
• 2012 study in Journal of Communication:
• 'Social Aggression' Plagues Most Kids' Shows (ABC video)

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: Research Questions (RQs) & Hypotheses (H) (U4-P3) [VID] Fa15

Research question (RQ): "An interrogative statement exploring the relationship between two or more constructs [concepts, variables, etc.]" (Stewart, 2002, p. 173).

In short, is there a relationship between one variable and another?

In the past I asked students to offer research questions they had a serious interest in answering.  Do the student examples below fit the definition?  Any problems you spot with the examples?

• "Does visual stimuli, or auditory stimuli, in advertisements positively affect a consumers buying behavior, meaning will the consumer be inclined to buy if a stimulating message is communicated across one of the two communication channels."
• "Is there a positive (or a negative) relationship between the amount of violence communicated in cartoons?"
• "Is there an increase in female orgasms in relationships related to the increase in communication?"

What are the types of variables?

• A variable is any concept that takes on two or more values.
• Two types:
• Nominal: Categories
• e.g., gender, profession, race, nationality, etc.
• Ordered: Takes on numerical values
• e.g., age, IQ, a prejudice score, time in conversation, etc.

What's the difference you spot between nominal and ordered?

Note: We'll add other types later, but this will work for now.




Could you generate some RQs based on the variables listed under nominal and ordered?

More importantly, based on the research topic that you identified earlier, what are some possible RQs you could ask?

When thinking of media-oriented RQs make sure of the following:

• RQs are questions that can be answered using research methodologies. (Remember: Ways of knowing?)
• RQs are related to media.  At least one variable/concept should be related to media.

Now, that we've got a grasp on an RQ, what is exactly is an H?  They are related, right?

Hypothesis is a tentative statement about the relationship between two or more variable (the dependent and independent variables).
Null hypothesis is a statement that says there is no relationship between the research variables.

How are RQs and Hs similar?  How are they different?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: How is Doing Research Like Being a Detective? (W4-P2) [VID] Fa15

Use the previous posts on theory and research and the video below to answer this question.

How is doing research like being a detective?


Theory: an explanation of how something works based on evidence.
Research: "“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.).

Also note that a researcher does research to test and build theories.

What roles do theory and evidence play in this comparison?

From: The Mentalist




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: What is Research? (W4-P1) Fa15

Research is:

“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.)

Keywords: planned, reporting and replicate
What do they mean in this context?

Research, as discussed here, is more than "research" done at the library.  Instead of reading through books and online materials for answers that some other researcher has found, you conduct original research on your own to find the answer.  That is, you conduct an experiment or a survey or a textual analysis or use some other research method to find the answer.  Somebody is not telling you an answer in a book or report, you are finding the answer to your research question on your own.

Two types:

• Scholarly 
• conducted to promote public access to new knowledge
• usually conducted by a professor at a university
• Proprietary
• conducted for a specific audience, results not shared
• usually conducted by a research at a company

Why are results not shared in proprietary research?
Could you give examples of each of the two types?
Which of the two types of research would you be more likely to do in the future?

How does this discussion of research relate to the earlier discussion of science?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: The Night Sky, Critical Thinking & Science Literacy - Part 3 - Neil deGrasse Tyson (W3-P3) [VID] Fa15

Back to my favorite astronomers.

Neil deGrasse Tyson is "an American astrophysicist and science communicator."
@neiltyson | Facebook

Below Tyson speaks of science and scientific literacy.
What is scientific literacy?  Is it important?

My Tyson Mashup

1. Stephen Colbert Interview of Tyson (start at 6:15 and get to at least, 25:30, if you can)


2. Tyson at a science festival



3. Audio clip of Tyson speaking at the Science Pub in Portland, Oregon, 2009 (play clip from about 4:00-11:20).

A formal definition of scientific literacy: "scientific literacy is the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity" (National Academy of Sciences report).

What does Neil DeGrasse Tyson add to the definition?
You may not plan to be a scientist, but should you be science literate?  How do you become science literate?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: The Night Sky, Critical Thinking & Science - Part 2 - Amazing Randi (W3-P2) [VID] Fa15

Have some claims that you doubt?    Why do you doubt them?

How does critical thinking fit into this?
Is Amazing Randi a critical thinker?  What is it that he does that makes him a critical thinker?
What are his relevant skills and attitudes?

To get answers to those questions check out the Amazing Randi video below.

James Randi is another one of my personal critical thinking heroes.



How does critical thinking relate to science?

Consider this Albert Einstein quote:
“All of science is nothing more than refinement of everyday [critical] thinking.”  - From "Physics and Reality", 1936

Yes, I inserted "critical," but I don't think Einstein would have objected.

Or as I like to put it: "Science is critical thinking on steroids" or "Science is extra careful critical thinking."




How does skepticism relate to critical thinking?

What is Skepticism?

Michael Shermer in Skeptic magazine writes:

"Some people believe that skepticism is rejection of new ideas, or worse, they confuse "skeptic" with "cynic" and think that skeptics are a bunch of grumpy curmudgeons unwilling to accept any claim that challenges the status quo. This is wrong. Skepticism is a provisional approach to claims. It is the application of reason to any and all ideas--no sacred cows allowed. In other words, skepticism is a method, not a position."

Shermer adds:

"Modern skepticism is embodied in the scientific method, that involves gathering data to formulate and test naturalistic explanations for natural phenomena. A claim becomes factual when it is confirmed to such an extent it would be reasonable to offer temporary agreement. But all facts in science are provisional and subject to challenge, and therefore skepticism is a method leading to provisional conclusions. Some claims, such as water dowsing, ESP, and creationism, have been tested (and failed the tests) often enough that we can provisionally conclude that they are not valid. Other claims, such as hypnosis, the origins of language, and black holes, have been tested but results are inconclusive so we must continue formulating and testing hypotheses and theories until we can reach a provisional conclusion."





How does skepticism relate to critical thinking?

Are you a critical thinker?  Are you a skeptic?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: The Night Sky, Critical Thinking & Science - Part 1 - MythBusters (W3-P1) [VID] Fa15

Photo by Luke Zeme

When I was little I wanted to be an astronomer.  My family lived out in the country.  So, the sky was clear and beautiful, filled with stars.  I was fascinated, full of questions.

As a grew up and got into college and grad school, my research interests changed, but I still have a fondness for the night sky and astronomers.

Carl Sagan is an astronomer-hero of mine. More recently Neil deGrasse Tyson fills Sagan's shoes. What these astronomers have to say goes beyond the stars. As scientists, what they teach is a way of thinking.  They teach critical thinking.








The Thinker's Way by John Chaffee is a good place to start a journey into critical thinking.  Some of what follows is inspired by this book.


Try this little exercise:

1. Think of a topic that you know something about.
2. Write down five things that you know about that topic.
3. Don't write down definitions.  Write down claims.  Two options: (1) Write that one thing has an effect on another or (2) one group is different from another.  For example, video games cause violence in players or Americans are more individualistic than Chinese.

Now, questions to ponder:

What does it mean to say “I know something”?
What can we know?  How well?
How do we know it?

How would you go about testing these claims?

One of my favorite television programs is Myth Busters.  The key reason that I like the program is because it uses critical thinking and tests claims.  Check out the video below.

Busting Myths: Asking Questions, Finding Answers


If you are interested, see also Do Larger Breasts Equal Bigger Tips? | MythBusters


What claims are the Myth Busters testing?   How?
What issues pop up?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: Convergence and Transmedia Projects (W2-P1) [VID] Fa15

The concept of media convergence has been around for a while now, as the video below shows.



Now in this year, convergence is surely upon us.  And so, it is helpful to get a good grasp on the idea of convergence and related concepts.  This is especially relevant for young media professionals.  One book on the topic that I'd recommended is Henry Jenkin's Convergence Culture.


In his book Jenkins defines convergences as:

• "A word that describes technological, industrial, cultural, and social changes in the ways media circulates within our culture. Some common ideas referenced by the term include the flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multiple media industries, the search for new structures of media financing that fall at the interstices between old and new media, and the migratory behavior of media audiences who would go almost anywhere in search of the kind of entertainment experiences they want. Perhaps most broadly, media convergence refers to a situation in which multiple media systems coexist and where media content flows fluidly across them. Convergence is understood here as an ongoing process or series of intersections between different media systems, not a fixed relationship."

Also in his book Jenkins defines a related concept that should be of special interests to media professoinal, especially the creators of stories.  The related is transmedia storytelling which Jenkins defines as "stories that unfold across multiple media platforms, with each medium making distinctive contributions to our understanding of the world, a more integrated approach to franchise development than models based on urtexts and ancillary products."

See the Jenkins video below for background, examples and further explanation.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

"Radioactive!" (My New Liked Vid on YouTube) [VID]

Radioactive!

""
Via YouTube http://youtu.be/nS27KfXeM4I
Liked on September 17, 2015 at 01:28AM


Sashily is a former student.  I didn't know she had yet another talent.

MediaTech: Innovation Adoption & Development: Winston's Model (W4-P3) Fa15

In his book, Media Technology and Society: A History From the Telegraph to the Internet, Brian Winston describes his model of technological development and diffusion.

Let's focus on the development of an early communication technology, the telegraph.

Recall...

According to Winston's model a new technology starts (1) as an idea based on science and then (2) develops into early prototypes. As a technology develops it faces some social pressures ((3) does society see a need for it and (4) will powerful competitors or the government attempt to repress the technology?). The technology will then (5) diffuse through a society and may (6) spin-off related technologies.

The same process applies to the telegraph.  Did you see the process in the video clip above?

Let's highlight certain parts of this process.

See the Winston process in the Empire of the Air?


Source: Media Technology and Society: A History From the Telegraph to the Internet











Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Innovation Adoption & Development: Rogers Development (W4-P2) Fa15

Note: Don't confuse this with the adoption decision process.

How does the innovation development process work?
How does an innovation come to exist, diffuse and influence society?

1. Recognizing a Problem or Need
2. Basic and Applied Research
3. Development
4. Commercialization
5. Diffusion and Adoption
6. Consequences

Did you see this process in the Empire of the Air?


1. Recognizing a Problem or Need

• Was there a need for radio?   Did it solve a problem?

2. Basic and Applied Research

• Basic research: gain basic scientific knowledge related to the problem/need
• Applied research: using scientific knowledge to specifically solve the problem.
• What did the early inventors of radio need to know?  What was there research?

3. Development

• How did radio develop?  What is the story?
• Role of skunk works in organizations?   (Oxford Dictionary definition) 
• Technology transfer: two-way exchange of tech
• Technology transfer: “two or more parties must participate in a series of communication exchanges as they seek to establish a mutual understanding about the meaning of the technology” (Rogers)
• Example
• VCR invented by Ampex, a U.S. company in late 50s
• Sold big VCRs to television stations
• Home use: They said “we’re not in that market”
• Sold rights to Sony
• And now you know the rest of the story

4. Commercialization

• Commercialization: “the production, manufacturing, packaging, marketing, and distribution of a product that embodies the innovation” (Rogers).
• Did they talk of the commercialization of radio in the clip?  In the reading?
• Technology cluster: “consists of one or more distinguishable elements of technology that are perceived as being interrelated closely.” (Rogers)
• e.g., computer and mouse
• e.g., mp3 player and __________
• What are the elements of the radio cluster that would also diffuse?

5. Diffusion and Adoption

• How did radio diffusion?  Did it diffusion widely?

6. Consequences

• What effects did radio have on society?
• More on consequences later.  We'll return to that important topic later.

Did you see this process in the Empire of the Air?


Besides radio, do you have some understanding of this process as it relates to some other media technology? What about some Apple devices?  Did the recent Jobs movie show any of this process?



Source: Diffusion of Innovations, 4th ed.


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Innovation Adoption & Development: Rogers Decision (W4-P1) Fa15

In his book, Rogers explains the process people go through when adopting an innovation, more specifically the decision process.

See below.

Source: Diffusion of Innovations, 4th ed.


We can boil the decision process down to just five steps.


Rogers’ model for the adoption decision process

What are the steps in the adoption decision process?

1. "Knowledge - learning about the existence and function of the innovation
2. Persuasion - becoming convinced of the value of the innovation
3. Decision - committing to the adoption of the innovation
4. Implementation - putting it to use
5. Confirmation - the ultimate acceptance (or rejection) of the innovation”

Think carefully about the most recent new tech you bought, I mean adopted.  Did you go through this process?  Review the process above and think about it.

What was the tech?  How did you learn about the new tech?  How were you persuaded to get it?  What about the rest of the process?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

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

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

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.


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

DigPhotog: Apps for the Dig Photog Beginner - Flickr, Instagram & Pinterest (W4-P3) Fa15

As beginning digital photogs, there are obvious apps and online services that you should be familiar with and should be using.  Apps and online services like Flickr and Instagram come to mind.  You can use Flickr and Instagram to show off the photography skills you are learning.

However, a little less obvious app/service that you should be using is Pinterest. Pinterest can help in two key ways.  It can help you collect and share photographs from around the web that you like.  It can also help you specifically collect photographs from photog mentors that you should have.  Unlike Flickr and Instagram, Pinterest is designed to help you collect other peoples photos.

In his book, The BetterPhoto Guide to Digital Photography, Miotke suggests that beginning photographers should keep a visual notebook.

"One excellent way to define your goals is to keep a collection of images that inspire you. You could simply write down a list of photo ideas, but as photographers are generally visual people, it’s usually more effective to collect pictures. Subscribe to magazines or visit the library. Look though catalogs, books, and Web sites like BetterPhoto.com—anything with the kind of photographs you enjoy" (Miotke)

I agree.  However, we can use Pinterest and update Miotke's idea of a visual notebook.

There are also photo editing apps/services, but we'll get to those later.


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

DigPhotog: Photo Composition (W4-P2) Fa15

Remember our bumper-sticker saying: "You don't take a photo, you make a photo"?

Put another way: You compose a photograph.  You don't just take it.

Composition is the arrangement of the objects in the photograph or any other work of art.  As a photographer you have some control of this arrangement in your photograph.  You can move objects around.  You can move yourself around to shoot your photograph from a different perspective.  You take some control over your environment and not just take a photo of what you are given.

In general there are rules of composition that are used in art in general and photography specifically.

One of the best online sources for an introduction to the rules (or guidelines) of photo composition can be found at Photoinf.com.  Go to this site and study carefully the six rules of composition discussed there.

Now, how would you apply these rules in your photograph.  Go try it.  Now go take some photos -- I mean go make some photos.

Of course, there is more to composition than the above, but the above are the basics.

For example, Itten's contrasts provide another way of looking at and exploring composition.  For an online exercise using Itten's contrasts, see The 12 Days of Itten’s Contrasts from the Wild Beat blog.


To go beyond the above basics about composition, I'd recommend The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos









Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

DigPhotog: Intro to Photography: The 4 Stages of Competence & Photography (W4-P1) Fa15

When studying photography you are learning some knowledge/facts and some skills.  For example, you are learning how to compose a photograph.

How do you take a good photograph?  What's the process?  How do you do it?

Learning how to shoot a good photograph is like learning how to shoot a good foul shot in basketball.

Photo by mollyali (flickr.com).
Photo used under Creative Commons license and embedded using  the Flickr share feature.

Whether we are learning how to shoot a basketball, how to study for an exam or how to take a good photograph, we go through some stages.

The Four Stages

1. Unconscious Incompetence - We don't know that we don't know.
We are unaware of what it takes to accomplish a task.  We don't know what it takes to make that foul shot.  We don't know what it takes to get the perfect photograph.

2. Conscious Incompetence - We know that we don't know.
We may not know exactly how to do the task, but we recognize there are things we need to learn.  We become aware that there are certain things we need to do to consistently make that foul shot.  We become aware that there are certain things we need to do to consistently make a good photograph.

3. Conscious Competence - We know that we know.
We are very consciously aware of the steps to doing a task and we can carefully work through the steps of the task.  We know what is needed to make the foul shot and we consciously think through those steps when taking the foul shot.  We know what is needed to make a good photograph and we consciously think through those steps when taking a photograph.

4. Unconscious Competence - We don't know that we know.
We know the task so well, we don't think about it any more.  It has become second nature. We take that shot with little conscious thought.


What was the last skill you remember learning in which you went through these stages?  Can you describe what happened in each stage and when? 

When it comes to photography, what stage are you in now?  What's your goal?

Note: The Four Stages of Competence has been attributed to noted psychologist Abraham Maslow, Gordon Training International and William Howell in intercultural communication.


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: The Invention of Radio - Ken Burns' "Empire of the Air" (W3-P6) Fa15

Now, a great way of using the previously discussed media tech theories is to apply them to the development of a past media technology, for example radio.  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).  Media tech is people too.

The documentary is available...
on Amazon (Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio) and on Netflix (instant streaming).

The companion book to the film is also available (Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio)

Did you watch it?

How did the theories previously discussed help to understand the development of radio?

In the documentary, Burns highlights the story of Lee de Forest, for example. How does his story compare to modern-day media tech innovators like Steve Jobs?  Is there a common story for media tech innovators?

Here is a short YouTube video on de Forest's audion.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Winston's Model and the History of Media Tech (W3-P5) Fa15

Winston's model explains how media technologies develop from ideas to diffusion.  The story begins at the bottom left of the figure and ends at the upper right of the figure.

According to Winston's model a new technology starts (1) as an idea based on science and then (2) develops into early prototypes.  As a technology develops it faces some social pressures ((3) does society see a need for it and (4) will powerful competitors or the government attempt to repress the technology?).  The technology will then (5) diffuse through a society and may (6) spin-off related technologies.

How does this theory help us understand how media technologies develop?  Does it help us understand the future of media technologies?


Source: Media Technology and Society: A History From the Telegrapph to the Internet




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Diffusion of Innovations and the History of Media Tech (W3-P4) Fa15

Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations
“the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system.”(Rogers).

The graph above shows how people in a society over time adopt an innovation.

At first nobody had a TV in the U.S., but over time...


How does this theory help us understand how media technologies develop?  Does it help us understand the future of media technologies?


Source: Diffusion of Innovations, 5th Edition



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: SCOT, Tech Determinism and the History of Media Tech (W3-P3) 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.

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

How do these theories help us understand how media technologies develop?  Do they help us understand the future of media technologies?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.