For this week, we had to read “The Connected Age”, Six Degrees by Duncan Watts. This is probably the reading that I have enjoyed the most this semester. I am pretty sure that I understand the message that he was trying to get across and I got a lot of information from the reading. It was pretty interesting reading about electric power and the “blackout” in the western United States in the summer of 1996.
I also enjoyed reading about networks and how individual parts interact with other parts to make up a complex system or network. The text also talked about synchrony. I didn’t really get that much information out of that section other than the runners’ analogy.
It was also really interesting to learn about the six degrees of separation. I had obviously heard about it before but I couldn’t remember if I had ever learned how it had originated. I thought that Milgrams’ experiment testing his small-world method was a pretty ingenious experiment. I would have never have thought about trying to doing anything like that.
I did have one question, though. The term oscillator was used throughout the text and I had a hard time trying to get what Duncan Watts was trying to mean. I think that he used this word to talk about networks and how they are very dependent on all of the parts that make up that network, but if someone else has another interpretation I would like to hear it.
Well, I guess that is all for this blog. I know that it is a little shorter than normal but I don’t really have much to say because I don’t have that many questions.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Dreamweaver 1 class
I ended up taking the Dreamweaver 1 class last Thursday night in the Computer Sciences building. I really had a good time. I almost had my first web page completed, from using time in class, so it was a good time to troubleshoot some of my problems to people who really knew what they were doing. It worked out really well.
I really wish that I could have gotten into the Dreamweaver-in-a-day class because I think it would be a lot of fun. In Dreamweaver 1, we barely went into CSS, which is (I think) the best part of making a web page. I thought about going to the Dreamweaver 2 class that they had a couple days later but I just didn’t have enough time. I think that I might watch to see if they have any Dreamweaver-in-a-day classes available in the rest of the semester because I think I would enjoy working more with CSS.
I would definitely recommend taking a Dreamweaver course because you never know when those skills could come in handy.
I really wish that I could have gotten into the Dreamweaver-in-a-day class because I think it would be a lot of fun. In Dreamweaver 1, we barely went into CSS, which is (I think) the best part of making a web page. I thought about going to the Dreamweaver 2 class that they had a couple days later but I just didn’t have enough time. I think that I might watch to see if they have any Dreamweaver-in-a-day classes available in the rest of the semester because I think I would enjoy working more with CSS.
I would definitely recommend taking a Dreamweaver course because you never know when those skills could come in handy.
Monday, February 19, 2007
N. Katherine Hayles and Lexia to Perplexia
There seems to be a reoccurring pattern, for me, at the beginning, middle and the end of most of the readings that are assigned for English 201. Most of the time I have no idea what is going on or what points are trying to be made. I leave the reading feeling more confused than before I read it. So once again I have a lot of questions that maybe some of my classmates will be able to help me with.
For this Tuesday, we were assigned to read a couple of chapters of Writing Machines by N. Katherine Hayles. I had a very hard time trying to decipher what she was trying to say. Maybe it is because I am not familiar with most of the technology terminology that she uses throughout the reading. I think that she tries to explain what some of the terms are but I get even more confused after reading the definitions.
There are three main terms that I couldn’t figure out what they mean and maybe some of you who read this will be able to help me out. On page 75, of the course packet, she makes use of the phrase inscription technology. On page 77, CP, she says media-specific analysis or MSA. And throughout the readings that were assigned she uses cell.f or cell….f. If anybody knows what any of these terms mean, I would greatly appreciate a response back.
One thing that caught my attention was on Page 75, CP, when she says, “the physical form of the literary artifact always affects what the words (and other semiotic components) mean.” This sentence brought me back to last week when we were reading The Medium is the Message and Media Hot and Cold by Marshal McLuhan.
She also talked about HTML throughout these readings and let me just say that I am glad that we don’t have to use it. I am also glad that someone, who is a lot more techno-savvy than me, came up with programs to allow those less fortunate people enjoy the luxuries that techno-savvy people have. It allows many more people to use blogs or create websites.
One of the last things that we had this week was look through the website Lexia to Perplexia. I don’t know if we are going to go over it in class but I had absolutely no idea what was going on or even the subject matter the website was about. I honestly think that if it was in a foreign language I would have understood it better. Maybe it was supposed to be like that or maybe if I knew what was going on I would have been able to enjoy it better.
Well I guess that is all for now. Maybe if we talk about it in class tomorrow some of my questions will be answered and I will be able to write back on what I have learned.
For this Tuesday, we were assigned to read a couple of chapters of Writing Machines by N. Katherine Hayles. I had a very hard time trying to decipher what she was trying to say. Maybe it is because I am not familiar with most of the technology terminology that she uses throughout the reading. I think that she tries to explain what some of the terms are but I get even more confused after reading the definitions.
There are three main terms that I couldn’t figure out what they mean and maybe some of you who read this will be able to help me out. On page 75, of the course packet, she makes use of the phrase inscription technology. On page 77, CP, she says media-specific analysis or MSA. And throughout the readings that were assigned she uses cell.f or cell….f. If anybody knows what any of these terms mean, I would greatly appreciate a response back.
One thing that caught my attention was on Page 75, CP, when she says, “the physical form of the literary artifact always affects what the words (and other semiotic components) mean.” This sentence brought me back to last week when we were reading The Medium is the Message and Media Hot and Cold by Marshal McLuhan.
She also talked about HTML throughout these readings and let me just say that I am glad that we don’t have to use it. I am also glad that someone, who is a lot more techno-savvy than me, came up with programs to allow those less fortunate people enjoy the luxuries that techno-savvy people have. It allows many more people to use blogs or create websites.
One of the last things that we had this week was look through the website Lexia to Perplexia. I don’t know if we are going to go over it in class but I had absolutely no idea what was going on or even the subject matter the website was about. I honestly think that if it was in a foreign language I would have understood it better. Maybe it was supposed to be like that or maybe if I knew what was going on I would have been able to enjoy it better.
Well I guess that is all for now. Maybe if we talk about it in class tomorrow some of my questions will be answered and I will be able to write back on what I have learned.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
You Want Me To Do What?
This semester I am taking a Spanish class, a Geology class, Intermediate Composition, Weather and Climate, and a Math class. I am an undergraduate in my third year here at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Some of the things that I have learned this semester are about different parts of the earth. I have also learned about the varying climates that affect all of the different countries around the world. And, while we are talking about countries, it is safe to say that different countries use their governments in different ways.
Also, in my other classes, I have to deal with formulas and translations. The homework load has been tremendous and hopefully some of my professors will start to withdraw some of the onslaught of homework.
Hopefully, if we have to do this again, I will be better prepared. I can definitely tell whoever reads this that these couple of paragraphs are not my best writing. I don’t even understand what I am trying to say.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Monday, February 12, 2007
"The Material Medium"
I guess the first thing that I have to say is WOW! I think that if I didn’t know that The Medium is the Message by Marshall McLuhan was written over 40 years ago I would have read/absorbed the information differently. It seemed like these passages were ahead of their time. I wonder what he would have to say about today; especially with the internet and the connection of people worldwide.
Well now that I got that out of the way I can talk about some of the passages that I found either interesting or confusing. These passages were very hard to follow and read but the summary on Wikipedia helped.
The first quote that I found interesting was when Marshall McLuhan in the first paragraph said that any medium is an extension of ourselves. I totally agree, especially in writing. It allows a person to collect and put their thoughts on paper and (like in this class) show other people.
One thing (I am worried it is one of the main points of his passage) that I was confused with was the comparison with the light bulb. It was hard to follow his examples and hard to make some of his connections.
Another passage that commented on what we have talked about over the course of this class was by Napoleon (pg. 63). He said, “Three hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets.” This comment attributes to the fact that words are very powerful. It also shows how some people can use words to have control over or command legions of people (an example may be Hitler).
“We are as numb in our new electric world as the native involved in our literate and mechanical culture” (pg. 64). This quote really stuck out to me because I feel like this all the time. I finally learn to master some kind of technology or technique just to find out that it has already been outdated or obsolete. This is especially seen with computers and cell phones. You can watch movies from the early 90s to see the characters using cell phones that are as big as their heads. Or when they first came out with computers they were the size of a room in a house. I know that these examples occurred over many years but I just feel like I can never keep up with technology. I always hear my older family members complain about how they don’t know how to use technology or for example don’t know how to turn off televisions or cell phones. I don’t even want to imagine what I am not going to be able to do if I eventually become a parent or a grandparent.
The last thing that maybe stuck out to me the most was at the very end of The Medium is the Message. The psychologist C.G. Jung wrote, “….. Because living constantly in the atmosphere of slaves, he became infected through the unconscious with their psychology. No one can shield himself from such an influence.” I want to take out the word slave and put in the word technology. I think that quote encompasses our lifestyle. Nobody in this country can go through a day without using some type of technology. Nobody can be uninfluenced by the world of technology that surrounds each and every one of us every day.
Well now that I got that out of the way I can talk about some of the passages that I found either interesting or confusing. These passages were very hard to follow and read but the summary on Wikipedia helped.
The first quote that I found interesting was when Marshall McLuhan in the first paragraph said that any medium is an extension of ourselves. I totally agree, especially in writing. It allows a person to collect and put their thoughts on paper and (like in this class) show other people.
One thing (I am worried it is one of the main points of his passage) that I was confused with was the comparison with the light bulb. It was hard to follow his examples and hard to make some of his connections.
Another passage that commented on what we have talked about over the course of this class was by Napoleon (pg. 63). He said, “Three hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets.” This comment attributes to the fact that words are very powerful. It also shows how some people can use words to have control over or command legions of people (an example may be Hitler).
“We are as numb in our new electric world as the native involved in our literate and mechanical culture” (pg. 64). This quote really stuck out to me because I feel like this all the time. I finally learn to master some kind of technology or technique just to find out that it has already been outdated or obsolete. This is especially seen with computers and cell phones. You can watch movies from the early 90s to see the characters using cell phones that are as big as their heads. Or when they first came out with computers they were the size of a room in a house. I know that these examples occurred over many years but I just feel like I can never keep up with technology. I always hear my older family members complain about how they don’t know how to use technology or for example don’t know how to turn off televisions or cell phones. I don’t even want to imagine what I am not going to be able to do if I eventually become a parent or a grandparent.
The last thing that maybe stuck out to me the most was at the very end of The Medium is the Message. The psychologist C.G. Jung wrote, “….. Because living constantly in the atmosphere of slaves, he became infected through the unconscious with their psychology. No one can shield himself from such an influence.” I want to take out the word slave and put in the word technology. I think that quote encompasses our lifestyle. Nobody in this country can go through a day without using some type of technology. Nobody can be uninfluenced by the world of technology that surrounds each and every one of us every day.
Friday, February 9, 2007
What a Thursday Night!
Well I had a rough Thursday so I was looking forward to relaxing with some of my friends. I went to La Ciel and was ready for a couple of drinks. Well a couple turned into a few and a few turned into many, incorporating pong and Mario Kart on Nintendo 64. About 11 o clock I thought it was time to go home because I had class early on Friday. I got on the bus and went home just to realize that I had left my keys at my friends. I didn’t know what time the bus would be going back so I had to walk back to La Ciel which is a little over two miles. By the time I got to La Ciel the busses weren’t running anymore so I eventually decided to stay there and get up in the morning and go to class. Went to sleep and woke up at 8:30 just to realize that all of my school work that I needed was at my apartment. So I planned on catching the bus again (this time I made sure that I had my keys) but I missed it by about 30 seconds. So I had to make the hike again to get to my apartment. By this time I had already missed my first class but I did make it to my last two. And now I am getting ready to go watch the hockey game for the last time this year :(. Hopefully tonight will turn out better than the last. Catch you on the flip side.
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