Bloggers Who Blog about New Media

Today, I ran across a blog entry which provides a list of TOP 100 blogs dealing with new media. Some of the blogs listed are familiar to me. I found this post useful for me as a scholar and course instructor. As for the blog post itself, wow, well done! :)

My Article in The New Star Newspaper (AU-CA, Bishkek)

Click on the picture to enlarge the image.

The Dangers Behind Oversimplification: Rape of a Four Year Old Russian Girl in a Kyrgyz Village Petrovka Provoked a Pogrom of Kurdish Family Houses

There was a girl raped in some village in Kyrgyzstan.
This is not big news. Violence towards women, especially young women in traditional patriarchal societies, takes place every day all around the world. These are stories with variations, which give me creeps. The rape of a Russian four year old girl in a Kyrgyz village of Petrovka, and the rape and murder of her grandmother which took place later as a result of her attempt to bring an action against a 21 year old Kurdish young man --- this story is not an exclusion. But it received an exclusive attention of the local and international news media.

On 26th of April, the ayil okmotu (village gathering) ended up in a verbal and physical abuse. The Kyrgyz and Russian villagers demanded that the criminals, who happened to be ethnic Kurds in this case, got punished. And that was not only it: the Kyrgyz and Russian villagers demanded that Kurds leave the village. The Kurdish villagers with guns organized themselves and confronted the anti-Kurdish crowd. According to AkiPress.org, the militia major Aliev could not stop shootings: three people were wounded. The Kyrgyz and Russian villagers looted the Kurdish property. The MIA Vice-minister Isaev reported 6 autos were severely damaged, one of which was set on fire; the windows of 15 houses were broken, etc. Around 800 villagers participated in pogroms. 100 villagers were arrested. The next day, the participants of the Sunday pogrom organized an action on the strategic route Bishkek-Osh demanding from the militia to release the arrestees.

The bloodiest "inter-ethnic conflict" in Kyrgyzstan took place in 1989 in Osh, Ferghana Valley. In 2005, there happened another inter-ethnic conflict between the Kyrgyz villagers and Dungan diaspora of the Iskra village. The controversial story that took place in April 2009 was served by the local news media as another manifestation of the latent inter-ethnic conflicts. Most of the local press explains the violence in Petrovka: the rape of a four year old Russian girl by a Kurdish twenty one year old Kurd and then the murder of her Russian grandmother could not be tolerated by the Kyrgyz villagers --- these accidents provoked pogroms of the Kurdish houses and forcible exclusion of the Kurdish diaspora from Petrovka.

This oversimplification of the conflicts between the Kurdish, Kyrgyz and Russian villagers is outrageous! By storing the problem into the box labeled "inter-ethnic conflicts", we avoid answering the long-standing acute questions raised by the demonstrated intolerance time and time again.

To be continued.

WEIRD VOTING ABROAD EXPERIENCE: A Short Story about How One Citizen Cast Her Vote for the Kyrgyz President in 2009 During Her Stay in Germany

23rd of July will stay in my memory as a stressy day when I, the citizen of Kyrgyzstan --- currently studying and teaching in Dortmund, Germany --- got on the train to Frankfurt-am-Main in order to practice my right to vote. In this blogpost, let me praise the Hauptkonsulat der Kirgisischen Republik in Frankfurt-am-Main for the Kyrgyz --- "vote easy" --- organization of the presidential elections 2009.


Failure to Inform Voters to Take Active Part in Elections
I have received official notification about the Kyrgyz Presidential elections 2009 neither from Konsulat der Kirgisischen Republik (Frankfurt am Main) nor from Botschaft der Kirgisischen Republik in der BRD. I was not in the lists as a result of not being registered in Konsulat (How was I supposed t know about it?). I learned about the dates of elections from relatives, friends and Kyrgyz news media. Surprisingly, Botschaft der Kirgisischen Republik (Berlin) announced about elections only on the Russian website (!!) Compare the German version of the Embassy's website, which I always consulted, and Russian. If you are attentive enough, you will see pink (Russian language) and then blue (Kyrgyz language) sentences running above the picture of the Embassy, Font 14, perhaps, Times New Roman. Today I have discovered a banner inviting to taking part in the presidential elections on the German version of the website, located --- or rather, hidden --- down-down below... The scarlet banner is worthless. The dead link. Please, leave a comment if you manage to open the link!

The website itself looks too simple. To my astonishment, my first impression of the website was: how unprofessional! (For the sake of comparison, here is the official webpage of the Deutsche Botschaft in Bischkek.)
It does not function in an efficient and effective way. It is clumsy and unattractive, absolutely non-interactive, rarely updated, consequently, uninformative, and user-unfriendly. To sum up, the Kyrgyz Embassy and Kyrgyz Consulate in Germany failed to provide sufficient information about the presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan in 2009. Yet it is worth of noticing that I have received a reply concerning voting and requirements the very next day after sending a short message via e-mail. Yet the website and other tools the Kyrgyz Embassy and Consulate apply to outreach the eligible voters in Germany should be considerably improved.


How I Cast My Vote for the Kyrgyz Presidential Candidate in 2009

23rd of July will stay in my memory as a weird day when I stepped into the Hauptkonsulat der Kirgisischen Republik in Frankfurt-am-Main around 7:30 p.m. to discover that the voting cabins were not in use anymore and the commission started counting the votes!

The voting was supposed to stop at 8 p.m. I still had time. I was asked to proceed to the office of Mr.X. and sit at the table where Asian dry fruits, biscuits and soda drinks were generously served. "Ah, how Asian!" I thought, I was supposed to wait in that room, have a snack and drink if I please, and proceed to the cabin to cast my ballot.

Wrong. This was the place where I was supposed to vote!

Mr.X was sitting right opposite to me. We exchanged greetings.
"Are you Russian?"
"My parents are Russian."
"Don't be ashamed of being Russian. Russian language has a special status in Kyrgyzstan..."
"I am not ashamed of being Russian. I just prefer to identify myself not according to ethnicity..."
After a short clumsy conversation, I was supposed to tick the box openly and pass the ballot into his hands directly(!!!).

My natural curiousity (some would say, bitchiness) could not but break through. "Why no voting cabins?" The answer was: "None showed up during the previous hour, so we are about to start counting the votes. You came late."

I did not.

Jakshy Kalynyzdar! (Good Bye in Kyrgyz) I felt like suffocating. And here I was walking down the street in the direction of the Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof to catch my --- German --- train. I felt relieved to walk through the German city and hear the German language, and meet immigrants... I felt it was all so wrong in that room I just left. Does my vote matter? Will it be counted?

I fulfilled my duty as a Kyrgyz citizen --- one of the other 108.000 --- living and studying abroad.

Results:

Kyrgyzstan’s incumbent president appeared Friday to have won a landslide victory, gaining more than 80 percent of the vote in a contest that local and Western monitors said was marred by major violations of election laws.

Ballot stuffing, intimidation and media bias were just some of the infractions noted in Thursday’s election by observers from the monitoring arm of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, or O.S.C.E.

With about 86 percent of the ballots counted on Friday, the incumbent, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, had won about 85 percent of the vote, according to Kyrgyzstan’s election commission. The commission said official results would be announced Saturday.

But Radmila Sekerinska, the head of the observer mission for the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the O.S.C.E.’s monitoring arm, declared Friday, “Sadly, this election did not show the progress we were hoping for, and it again fell short of key standards Kyrgyzstan has committed to as a participating state of the O.S.C.E.”

In a statement, she said, “The conduct of Election Day was a disappointment.

Meanwhile, an observer mission from the Commonwealth of Independent States, a Moscow-dominated alliance of former Soviet republics known for its rose-colored reporting on the region’s elections, announced Friday that the elections were “open and free.”

Fair or not, the elections in Kyrgyzstan appeared largely to be a domestic sideshow, eclipsed by the competition between Russia and the United States for influence over the country.” Read more in English

"The Internet's Role in Campaign 2008"

This is the title of the report published by Pew Internet and American Life Project. You don't want to miss it! It's like reading a cool American thriller! The PDF version is a click away! =))

My Grand-grandmother Was Technophobic

My grand-grandmother was technophobic. She was “Staroverka” (that stands for female Old Believer). Today, we are supposed to be technophilic---or at least techno-friendly---in order to function and develop our skills and talents to their full potential within the modern society. (Or ‘post-modern’, if you please).

There is a never ending debate between those who see new informational and communicational technology as the key to solving problems of social and human life, opposed to those who see technologies as something dangerous, harmful and unnatural. Nevertheless, the companies and corporations involved into development and improvement of information and communication technologies position themselves as lending hand in solving problems of the 21st-century Homo sapiens. Communication is the key. Talking, texting, connecting to data services, etc---these are like oxygen to us. (In my opinion, the ‘O2’ brand successfully managed to incorporate all these values in their logo and branding strategy).

What was considered internet addiction in 90’s is socially acceptable today. (To what extent are you addicted to the internet? Take a test). “The concept of addiction is not easy to define, but central to it is dependence on a substance or activity.” (Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., 2004) “Hooked on Internet? Help is just a click away.” (Unknown internet user) Fight fire with fire (?!).

The advances in computer technology and internet have changed the way humans live, learn, and interact. Thanks to internet, I found out about the Master and PhD opportunities in Germany. I had a long-distance relationship with my Beloved. If something happens and there will be no internet, I am afraid, there will be no way for me to carry out my research projects and fulfill my career dreams. All in all, I am pretty sure, my grand-grandmother would have exclaimed, “My God, she is crazy!”

Obviously, internet has become an integral part of economic, political, and social life. Yet one should not forget that there are places on the Earth, where internet is still considered to be luxury. According to the 2007 report of the OpenNet Initiative, “an emerging regime shift toward more restrictive policy, dependence upon Russian and Chinese Internet connections, and political instability pose problems for clear and continual access to Internet in Kyrgyzstan.” (Interested in details?.)

Prof. Richard Rogers, who introduces himself as a Web epistemologist, views the Web “as a knowledge culture distinct from other media”. He concentrates on the research opportunities that would have been improbable or impossible without the Internet. The IssueCrawler software, which helps to trace “issue networks” on the Web, was one of his initiatives. Unlike Google Search which bases results on outside factors like links and popularity, issue networks do not privilege individuals and groups. His book "Information Politics on the Web" opened my eyes: there are certain “philosophies” behind new information and communication technologies. They do have (different) impact on certain dynamics within our society. And I am looking forward to dicussing it all in class in the closest future. The first "moment of Zen" (for those who don't know: this is our in-class excercise) demonstrated that there are many students interested in learning more about these problems.

I did not expect this Zen-moment to be so "juicy" from the very start! I have done a preliminary overview of the potential research questions and hypotheses the students shared with me---this is awesome. I really hope someone decides to write a research paper or thesis about any topic we touched upon during this class. The "moment of Zen" excercise demonstrated how reflective my students are ("my students"--- hey, folks! I am sorry if it sounds possessive!!:) You have many reasons to be proud of yourselves!! I will prepare a brief report on your successful start with a list of top-questions and problems you shared today. The *Zen-moments* will be available next week. This is a very good material for your future blog-posts. Just don't forget to give credits to those authors who triggered your interest in the problems.

One of the purposes of this course is to create a mini-community on the web, and see how it functions. We will start our blog-projects in two weeks. Yet I already encourage you to start thinking about the topics for future blog-posts. ...Did you also have a technophobic grand-grandma? :)

Comfortably Dull

I love poetry. Sometimes I have some rhymes in my head. I will share this with you.

Comfortably Dull

It’s good when people leave
And shut the door---politely.

Emerging from black sleeve,
Refined white fingers
Clutched door-handle lightly
And tightly shut the door.

The micro-slam caused fracture of the skull.

Then everything became so
Comfortably dull.

The Joe Trippi Effect

Today I've reread Joe Trippi's Afterword from "Revolution Will Not Be Televised". It is awesome. Every time I read it, I become inspired.

Yet my enthusiasm was shattered by dreadful news which relate to me directly. I can say, "Why, who cares?" But I am not a little scared animal anymore. And I hate it all too much to stay away this time.

For the sake of my record: it started with a Wikipedia entry about Kyrgyzstani presidential election, 2009. I copy-paste the piece which drives me mad.

A presidential election will be held in Kyrgyzstan on 23 July 2009. The date was set after the constitutional court ruled that the extension of the presidential term from four to five years did not apply until the next presidential election, calling for elections by 25 October 2009; in response, a parliament committee proposed the July election date, which was then passed by the incumbent president Kurmanbek Bakiyev's Ak Zhol-dominated parliament.[1] Bakiyev had previously announced his intention to run for reelection.[2]

The article is available here.
NOW READ THIS.
Unfortunately, The Pre-election Fauna of Beshbarmakiya (whole website is a political satire) is available only in Russian.

And the it-feeling motivates me to do something. But due to many reasons (personal and political) I shut up my mouth and carry out my plan alone in darkness.

P.S.: Joe Trippi, you are awesome.

On Postmodern Aesthetics

My art and conduct
Demand no interpretation.

I draw a portrait of a man
Demanding logical (!)
Justification:
"What does it mean?"

"Sincerely, I don't know.
But how does it make you feel?
Does it hurt? Or does it heal?

There is no meaning,
Depth,
My own interpretation."

(Voices scanding)
NARRATION!
WE
DEMAND
NARRATION
!!!

"Well, maybe it is all about sex.
Yet it's too simple---More complex.
May be, it's all about pain
Which brings me pleasure to record...
Or, may be, it's about your brain---
All coffee-stained---
In dirty train!
Aesthetics over ethics.
I never really know.

But it is very nice."

Hi, I am Postmodernism. I am a Ghost (!)

This post (as many others) are not supposed to be scientific articles. They are written for fun and for the sake of putting down some ideas related to my research interests.

---
Division of the human intellectual heritage into convenient historical "periods" is always a big problem. Ungrateful task, so to speak. If you will, these attempts are conspiracies of the literary and art historians who earn money by publishing articles in obese dusty anthologies(!)

I have learned about postmodernism within the context of literature & art lectures and seminars as a university student. The term itself is applied to the literature, art, philosophy, etc. shortly before, during and after World War II. All the definitions of bla-bla-ISM usually deal with wars. Some would insist on technological inventions (for fighting wars, but not only, of course).

So, how does a common definition of the European postmodernism in most of the dictionaries or anthologies start? Here is the step-by-step scenario:

POSTMODERNISM. Okay, folks, it's difficult. Veeerry difficult. Even for us, the literary and art historians. Remember World War II, nazis and communists? Postmodern art, music and literature HATE those. Postmodern artists, musicians and writers (pre)tend to reject traditional authority, experiment with their body-psyche, (frequently) behave bizarre, preach about eclecticism and multiculturalism, naively think they were the first to start the club of the arrogant cynics, etc. What is special about POSTMODERNISM? Hmm.... We would suggest that postmodernism is an exaggeration of modernism. What is modernism?

MODERNISM. Okay, folks, it's difficult. Veeerry difficult. Even for us, the literary and art historians. Remember World War I...?

Really, one should be very careful with these classifications. Stay sceptical. These amorphous historical classifications should not be taken for granted. Not at all.

In my M.A. thesis I was studying SENTIMENTALISM. I felt like I was studying a ghost (!)

Post-Modernism, Baudrillard and Psychotherapists

I am no expert on Jean Baudrillard. I am reading his works and the works of those who were inspired or disgusted by his ever-revised views. I like that about Baudrillard. He reminds me of a website which is frequently updated by different administrators; yet we can always find the older versions of this website in cache. And they will always deliver some wisdom.

I do not want to devote myself to the camp of "post-modernists" (as it's stubbornly done to Baudrillard). I just find Baudrillard's critical approaches to (American)consumerism, technologies and media studies appealing. Yet not scientific. In this respect, Baudrillard reminds me of Freud and his impact on scientific scholarship and arts.

Speaking about Baudrillard and psychotherapy, Questia search engine generated a curious result for me today: the title of the book is "Post-Modernism for Psychotherapists: A Critical Reader". Below is a chunk from the book's Introduction:

The post-modern challenges, and through this, potentially stimulates, in a variety of ways. Crucially, it attacks the 'modernist' ego-centric/person-centred approaches of much psychoanalysis, counselling, psychotherapy and psychology. Post-modern Continental philosophers suggest that we are 'subject to'. For example, for Lacan we are subject to language, for Levinas we are subject to the other and to difference, for Foucault we are subject to power/knowledge relationships, for Derrida we are subject to undecidability and the constant deferral of meaning, for Kristeva we are subject to strange, disruptive and potentially creative forces. In that he insisted that we are subject to the unconscious, Freud himself is a foundational post-modern thinker.
...
By reminding us that we are 'subject-to(o)', it can be a challenge to omnipotence, both the patient's and the therapist's, and it can be a plea for humility. It can induce a sense of wonder. It questions whether language and speech are ever neutral or transparent, merely pointing to meanings outside themselves. It can alert us to the fact that language is never static, but always changing, within the culture which language also shapes. It can remind us that our words and gestures are cultural, personal and inter-subjective acts.

In the chapter dedicated to post-modern continental philosophers, Baudrillard was honored with nine pages. Reading the compillation of chunks cropped from Baudrillard's works for psychotherapists was a rewarding experience, in the end. I should do a more extensive research on Baudrillard's views on simulation and the hyperreal. This philosophical framework might turn out as a very big contribution to my class and thesis. I am a bit concerned that my thesis might appear too method-oriented. And we are doing cultural studies here.

IssueCrawler is like calcium for the bones of my research, while Baudrillard's concepts of simulacra and the hyperreal might be a good serving of protein for the body muscle of the paper.

Finally, snack with this quote from Baudrillard's "Symbolic Exchange and Death" (1993):

Reality is no longer stranger than fiction: it captures every dream before it can take on the dream effect. A schizophrenic vertigo of serial signs that have no counterfeit, no possible sublimation, and are immanent to their own repetition - who will say where the reality they simulate now lies? They no longer even repress anything (which, if you like, keeps simulation from entering the sphere of psychosis): even the primary processes have been annihilated. The cool universe of digitality absorbs the universe of metaphor and metonymy. The simulation principle dominates the reality principle as well as the pleasure principle.

I will echo this quote with a line from Edgar Allan Poe: "Is all that we see or seem but a dream within a dream?"

William Merrin, his book about Baudrillard, Nietsche and some thoughts on university education

Today, on a sunny Tuesday morning, I was drinking cappuccino with William Merrin.

William Merrin is a Senior Lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Wales, Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. I am a PhD student stuck at the Hauptbahnhof on my way to the Technische Universitaet, Dortmund, Deutschland. My self-assigned reading for this week is the book titled "Baudrillard and the Media: A Critical Introduction" (2005). I cannot afford the exchange of symbols with this smart and incisive person due to a plenty of reasons. Yet I can afford "a tightly controlled simulation of communication" (quote from Millard, p. 25) while reading his book and googling his name. Luckily, the author of this fascinating book has a blogger.com profile; he holds THREE blogs. My favourite so far is the Media Studies 2.o Forum. I enjoyed reading the post titled "Media Studies 2.0 - My Thoughts..."; especially the chunk in which he compares the media world of his son and the younger generations of his students to the media world of his own when he was of the same age... The first chapter following Introduction of the beforementioned book opens with a quote from Nietzsche's "Human, All Too Human". The quote is long. To sum it up, Nietzsche suggests "removing ourselves disctinctly from our time", let "ourselves be driven far from its shore back into the ocean of former world views". This enables us to be in a position of a contemplative observer of our own "coast". Consequently, upon the comeback to our time we have a better understanding of it. It seems to me that it's exactly the approach of William Merrin to his life and work, as well as the lives of others (his son, students, etc.) and the work done by others (Baudrillard and his writing come first to my mind).

When I meet a person, I recognize those abilities in him or her by observing him or her or/and starting a conversation. (I wish I could say "recognize easily", but I am afraid to sound supernatural to myself) Some people just posess those abilities to "sail off-shore and come back". Some - not. I had a friend, she sailed away from the "shore" and it took time to have her back again. This is extreme (frankly, I don't think so: it's just inappropriate in this culture, it would have been appropriate at some other age/ in some other place). Yet I believe the purpose of the university education is to train students, professors, instructors, etc. to practice those journeys as often as possible together. Hey, stop giggling! I am not talking about smoking pot together.

Glamorous Coffin for the Newspaper Industry

Newspaper ad revenues have fallen 23% in the last two years. Some papers are in bankruptcy, and others have lost three-quarters of their value. By our calculations, nearly one out of every five journalists working for newspapers in 2001 is now gone, and 2009 may be the worst year yet.

See the sixth report on the American journalism "State of the News Media 2009" issued by the Pew Research on March 16, 2009.

Watch the decline of the old media (well, except the cable television which is flourishing!!!)




For details, I suggest visiting A Year in the News section of the The State of the News Media report on StateOfTheMedia On-line.

We observe the end of the printed newspaper industry. If I were an owner of another dying newspaper, I would have organized a glamorous burrial of the last issue of my newspaper: an exclusive kitchy plastic coffin for each of my farewell newspaper distributed by sellers dressed as Snowhites and dwarfs. Price?.. Double.

I wonder, why that dwarf doesn't look sad ENOUGH...

What ICT User Are You? The Pew Research Developed a Quiz.

Reading The Pew Research reports is a great pleasure. To me, what The Pew Research does---is an uttermost manifestation of the best quality research. Argue with me on that. I really wish I could hear someone criticizing The Pew Research for anything. So far, no prunes for this fact-tank.

The weekly Pew Research newsletter keeps me updated on the issues like American politics, state of American mass media, polls, Internet, technology, etc. I would say, this newsletter is of a great help to the American studies scholars who want to stay updated and avoid filtering poor-quality journalism all over the place on the web.

On March 25, 2009, The Pew Internet & American Life Project published "Internet Typology: The Mobile Difference/ Wireless Connectivity Has Drawn Many Users More Deeply into Digital Life". I accessed the report from the Pew Research publication website.

This is a constant debate: do information and communication technologies make us more sociable or, on the contrary, enable us to be more distanced? This was not the thesis of the report I am talking about. But I liked how the researchers differentiated among the different groups of the ICT users. This attempt is applausable. To me, the arguments and results of their surveys look convincing enough.

If you are interested and have some spare minutes---take the quiz compiled by The Pew Research team to find out what type of the ICT user you are. Surprisingly (well, why should I care?), my self-"definition" did not correspond with the results of The Pew Research. I thought I was more like an Ambivalent Networker-type; yet the results suggest quite the contrary. I am a Digital Collaborator (!!!)
Compare the two:

Digital Collaborators: 8% of adults use information gadgets to collaborate with others and share their creativity with the world.

For many Digital Collaborators, digital information is input into a creative process that often involves others and whose output they share with the world using the web. Members of this group can almost always get access to the internet, whether that is with an "always on" broadband connection or with an "always present" mobile device. With such robust connectivity, Digital Collaborators share their thoughts or creative content with others. Using blogs and other content-creation applications, they collaborate with others online to express themselves creatively. For Digital Collaborators, the internet can be a camp, a lab or a theater group -- places to gather with others to develop something new.

This pattern of active and continuous information exchange puts ICTs at the center of how Digital Collaborators learn, work, socialize and have fun. Most play games on electronic devices, with half playing games on the internet. At least occasionally, most of them watch TV on a device other than a traditional television set. And one-quarter have avatars that let them participate in virtual worlds. The typical Digital Collaborator is in his late 30s and has had years of online experience to hone his skills to get the most out of ICTs.

Ambivalent Networkers: 7% of adults heavily use mobile devices to connect with others and entertain themselves, but they don't always like it when the cell phone rings.

Digital information flows through handheld devices and social networking sites for Ambivalent Networkers as they have seamlessly integrated these cutting-edge resources into how they connect with others. With a handheld device at the ready, Ambivalent Networkers stay in touch with their family and friends and gather intelligence about what is going on in the world. They are the most frequent cell phone texters of any group. While some message content might be about current affairs, a portion is undoubtedly about culture, as Ambivalent Networkers will watch videos or listen to music using online access tools, mobile or otherwise.

While they welcome the connections to people and knowledge that easy access opens, Ambivalent Networkers don't always like a knock on their door. Like Digital Collaborators, frequent information exchange is a key part of Ambivalent Networkers' profiles. Unlike Digital Collaborators, they sometimes struggle with traffic volume. They are less likely than average to enjoy the extra availability enabled by mobile devices and less certain than Digital Collaborators about whether ICTs offer them more control over their lives. Most Ambivalent Networkers say they think it is a good idea to take a break from using the internet. Nonetheless, they are confident in their ability to manage gadgets and would be hard pressed to do without mobile access.

The other types of the ICT users coined by The Pew researchers are:

Media Movers: 7% of adults use online access to seek out information nuggets, and these nuggets make their way through these users' social networks via desktop and mobile access.

Roving Nodes: 9% of adults use their mobile devices to connect with others and share information with them.

Mobile Newbies: 8% of adults lack robust access to the internet, but they like their cell phones. A typical Mobile Newbie, who is about 50 years old, is a novice with modern ICTs, but is wading into the waters thanks to a new cell phone.

Desktop Veterans: 13% of adults are dedicated to wireline access to digital information, and like how it opens up the pipeline to information for them.

Drifting Surfers: 14% of adults are light users -- despite having a lot of ICTs -- and say they could do without modern gadgets and services.

Information Encumbered: 10% of adults feel overwhelmed by information and inadequate to troubleshoot modern ICTs.

The Tech Indifferent: 10% of adults are unenthusiastic about the internet and cell phone.

Off the Network: 14% of adults are neither cell phone users nor internet users.

Check out the report for more detailed definitions.

This attempt to differentiate among the ICT users provides an insight on why the information and communication technology can be both: a tool for getting connected and distanced from the society/social environment (to certain extent 'cause both can be an illusion). Yet these technologies ALSO enable us to switch identities. That's what I find particularly comfortable.

That's what the Pew research did not address so far.

"We need more curiosity driven research" (c) Informationlab

The Issue of this week is IssueCrawler.

Luckily, the "fathers" of the IssueCrawler not only developed a software which enhances research of the WWW communities, but also made a great effort in answering the W-questions about the project itself. This post is an invitation to a step-by-step overview of the websites one would find informative and useful. So, let's start surfing.

Before you start clicking the links, I suggest you look through the Q&A I have compiled.

Who Are the "Fathers" of the Project?
The Govcom.org Foundation (based in Amsterdam) and its collaborators* (need more research on that).
*UPDATE:
Richard Rogers and the Govcom.org Foundation acknowledge support of 1. the Center for Arts and Media (ZKM), Karlsruhe, Germany; 2. Crooked Line, with contributions by Creative Industries and Anderemedia, organizations all based in Amsterdam; 3. Govcom.org and Anderemedia, Sonologic (The Hague) provided the software, and 4. Noortje Marres furnished the issue as well as significant findings, 5. Marc Tuters produced the Issue Crawler exhibition ("The Places of Issues").

When was it developed?
So far, I cannot provide an exact answer. I wish I could interview Professor Rogers or his collaborators about it**. I can only say that the movie about the IssueCrawler was first shown: "Making Things Public: Atmospheres of Democracy," exhibition curated by Bruno Latour and Peter Weibel, ZKM, Karlsruhe, Germany, March-October 2005.
**UPDATE:
Perfect. Professor Rogers published an extensive article about how the IssueCrawler project was launched and carried out. The article can be found on the website of The European Association of Science and Technology. I really recommend it.

What is the IssueCrawler?
It's a software tool that locates and visualizes networks on the Web.

What is special about the IssueCrawler?
It is used by NGOs and other researchers to answer questions about specific networks and effective networking more generally. You also may do in-depth research with the software.

What websites do you recommend to visit first?
Now that you have some idea what the IssueCrawler is about---I suggest you download the video here.

The Issue Crawler Back-End Movie is a demonstration of how the Issue Crawler works. The movie is also a narrative of a research project conducted with the Issue Crawler and allied tools. The movie focuses on the implications of global civil society's 'issue drift.' As global civil society and intergovernmental organizations move from issue to issue, from place to place and from forum to forum, the question is, do they remember what is happening on the ground?

The movie goes like this:

When you meet someone for the first time, they may ask you: Where are you from? Some people have a hard time answering that question. For example, someone may say, "I'm from all over the place." To avoid awkwardness, some people now ask a new question. "Where are you based?"

Issues have a similar awkwardness. The place where an issue is from may not be the place where the issue is now based. The issue may have drifted elsewhere -- to another global forum, for example.

Showing methods and mapping results, the Issue Crawler movie addresses the places of issues - where they are from, and where they are based. The most important question is whether the new base remembers where the issue is from.*

Now, after the movie, I suggest you visit The Govcom.org and read carefully the extended article on "Scenarios of use for NGOs and other researchers".
For the purpose of my research, the following chunk about mapping the Issue Network is the most useful:

2.3 Issue Network

Issue Network: This is the network of organizations around a particular issue, and the original purpose of the software. Who’s doing ‘conflict timber’? Who’s doing ‘communication rights’? What’s the network around an issue at this time? Besides organizations, the network may have key documents, events, products, tools, slogans and more that bind the network, or particular clusters in the network. You may explore these commonalities once you have located a network.

Method: Doing a key word search in Google and using all the top ten or twenty results is one way to start, but it is not wholly advisable, for Google’s returns rely on the ‘entire Web’, while we are interested in only parts of the Web – networks. See also pieces that touch on the Issue Crawler philosophy.

To begin locating an issue network, use a short list of URLs which, in your view, provide a good overview of the issue. To gather such a list, you could use Google or another search engine (collecting one or more of the returns), but you also could ask an ‘expert’, gather organization names or URLs from one or more decent newspaper articles, rely on a particular organization’s link list related to an issue, scrape URLs from a discussion list (archive), etc.

Type or paste URLs in the Issue Crawler, and harvest. The Issue Crawler’s default settings are for issue network location.

Crawler settings:
Privilege starting points (off).
analysis ‘by page’
iterations of method: 2
crawl depth: 2

If you want to go into DETAILS, have a look at the long FAQ here.

Okay, now it is clear to me as a day: I need a trainin in the theory and method of network location and issue mapping to carry out my project. Last year and several months ago, I contacted Professor Rogers concerning the possibility to pay a visit to his Department and attend his lecture at UvA. The answer was positive. So, right now I am sending out the letter to Professor in which I ask about the possibility to visit him in UvA in April or May.
I will keep on updating about my progress.

***URGENT UPDATE!
I have received a positive reply from Professor Rogers. I will be attending his lecture at UvA on 20th of April. This is unbelievable. It means so much to me.

Generated Name for My Coffee Machine

At the moment I am working on the methodology section of my thesis. This is one of the most important moments for whole thesis depends on how I sample the blogs for my research. By the end of the next week I am planning to publish a small overview of the papers about the IssueCrawler, a software tool that locates and visualizes networks on the Web. Presentation can be found here.

But just for the sake of your entertainment, I decided to do something very stupid. Everyone knows there's a plenty of websites which generate names. I have decided to generate a name for my new coffee machine. I have got old Charlotte, now I need to find the matching date for her so that I will have more coffee machines in future. I need a nice name for the buddy to enchant Charlotte. I decided to resort to the help of the Internet name-generators. *sick laughter* I googled "name generator" and found some 13 400 000 websites. I decided to visit those websites one after another. When they asked me to give my real name I was simply typing in Coffee Machine. Have a look what I got here!

Generated at http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20010208b

Cruendithas Joysword
(Male Elf Cleric)
Also known as...
Cruendithas the Cleric
Lord Cruendithas
Lord Joysword
Lord Cruendithas Joysword the Cleric
Cruendithas Joysword the Cook

Random name from http://www.behindthename.com/random/

Fidelis Machine

Random name and IDENTITY from http://www.fakenamegenerator.com/index.php?gen=male&n=gr&c=gr

Erik Durr
Kurfürstenstraße 13
74399 Walheim

(the list to be prolonged)

Spanish Boot Memories: Unforgettable 10 Days in Spain

Hi,

I was away from office.
I needed time to have a rest after "rest". The trip was physically exhausting and emotionally challenging. That's how I imagine an awesome trip.
I was raised as a "normal" kid by Soviet grandparents and post-Soviet parents. (Oh, what a sick statement!) That means when I visit another country or city... of course, I rush into museums. It is a must to go to museums, and as many as possible. C'mon, have a look around once you are in a museum: you will ALWAYS find bunches of Russian and Chinese tourists there.

Some are really interested, some are really bored---but they are roaming around the museum rooms. I tell you, this is smthwithin the culture. It is a shame not to see as many museums as possible. This is how I was raised, too. So, I tell you, my colleague and I made an effort to visit as many museums, cathedrals, churches and parks as possible. Kilometers of walking damaged my feet, and---sorry for these ugly details---I lost my nail on the toe. Damn dilligent tourist I am. YET I should also mention that I bought new Spanish boots, which made the situation even worse. But I tell you: this was the right condition to enjoy art. Oh God, it was one of the most aesthetically satisfactory trips I ever had. I had enough time to draw and contemplate. Nadejda is the perfect person to travel with. In addition, the couchsurfing worked out UNEXPECTEDLY great!! We met wonderful people who shared their experiences with the cities they lived in. Forever in love with Barcelona. And Madrid is my great buddy. Okay, now I go back to work. I am writing scripts for my seminar. :)

My Syllabus Proofread and Approved

Today my syllabus was proofread and approved. It consists, basically, of two parts: the syllabus itself and the detailed schedule of activities.

I am publishing the final version of the syllabus. The schedule of activities will be published when the class starts.

I must confess I was very pleased with the response of my supervisor Professor Grünzweig. (He is a role model for me in this Department, you know. Sh-sh-shh :)

TU Dortmund University
American Studies
Summer Semester 2009
Presidential Elections and American Culture:
News Media, New Media and American Politics (2 PS)
_______________________________________________________________
Time: Tuesdays, 8.30 am - 10 am
Classroom: 0.406
Instructor: Svetlana Makeyeva, M.A.
e-mail: sveta_makeyeva@yahoo.com
Office hours: Mondays, 8.30 to 11.30 and by appointment
Office location: American Studies Department, 0.405
__________________________________________________________________

Course Description and Goals:

This course takes a cultural studies approach to American political and media issues. The purpose of the course is to introduce and discuss texts which appealed to a larger body of the American news consumers during the presidential race of 2008. The complexity and dynamics of American society will be explored in some of the most outstanding and appealing speeches by Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, and Sarah Palin as well as in a number of articles written by popular partisan journalists and independent political observers who used "traditional" and relatively "new" media technologies to cover the presidential campaign. The course reader will be available at the beginning of the semester; however, most of the primary and secondary sources will be available online and free of charge. Students will use digital media throughout the course, also providing them with practical experience in these media. Each class member is responsible for formally and informally contributing to the discussion of readings, activities and assignments.

By the end of the course student will be expected to examine the impact of new media technologies on American (political) news media, and view these media as expressions of American culture.
This includes an understanding of the nature of new media and especially the ability to
- understand the differences between "new" and "old" media as shown in the American political discussions of the past past year;
- understand the basic concepts of the evolution of new media technologies and to differentiate between different forms of new media;
- understand the "new media" vocabulary and use the terminology freely in writing and verbal communication;
- be able to express her/his opinions on the role of the new media in American political culture in her/his blog updated on a weekly basis.


Student Responsibilities

- Remember our mantra: "Please, be polite." We want a productive working atmosphere inside and outside of class. Try to do your best to criticize constructively and learn to take constructive criticism as an encouragement to improve your own work. Check out recent studies about the benefits of cooperative learning in class (go to http://www.co-operation.org/pages/cl.html);
- Don’t skip classes. You are allowed to miss two classes but must give adequate reasons (preferably, in person or via e-mail in advance);
- Be prepared for each class;
- Have reading and assignments done on time;
- Participate in group discussion inside and outside of class;
- Ask questions if something is not clear. Consult the internet, other networks and printed sources for answers, and be ready to share them in class!
- Preferably, check my wikipage regularly
(go to http://www.iaawiki.tu-dortmund.de/index.php?title=Svetlana_Makeyeva#Course);
- Try to have some fun with your blog;
- In general, try to avoid surface approaches to learning. Challenge yourself so that your skills are greater at the end of the class than in the beginning Good luck!

Please attend the classes, don’t be late and constantly consult the syllabus.


Access to the reading assignments

Required readings include book chapters and articles from printed and non-printed sources. These include scholarly journals, magazines, popular publications, on-line newspapers and blog entries. Assigned readings may be found in the reader and/or on-line. Consult with the course schedule which contains the reading and writing assignments for each class.


Course Structure and Teaching Strategies

In addition to class discussions, this course will include demonstrations of blogs created by students, student presentations, guest lectures, etc. There will be reading and writing assignments. In addition to its seminar quality, this class also functions like a workshop where you engage in practical work. Students will have the chance to explore topics of interest in their projects and writings, and share their findings in class. Class discussions are a key element of the course and students are encouraged to ask questions, offer their own observations, and share their experiences. We will ‘break ice’, participate in ‘fishbowls’ and other interactive tasks. Our communication outside of the class will be via e-mail and the blog designed for the class.

Please see me in my office hours if you would like to talk to me in person. Make sure to make compliments to my old coffee machine. Thanks!


Laptops, Cellphones and Drinks

As this is a class dealing with news media, politics and new media, LAPTOP USAGE IN LAN IS PERMITTED. Students with personal laptops are encouraged to bring them in class to take notes and demonstrate blogs to the team-members. NOTICE: surfing the internet, emailing, instant messaging---all in all, the irrelevant activities of whatever kind---are NOT permitted!

TURN OFF YOUR CELL PHONE(S) and other gadgets which might distract you and the class.

I do not mind if you bring your morning coffee or other drinks to class.

GRADING POLICY

Your grade will be awarded based on the total number of points. Make sure you clearly understand how the points will make up your desired grade:

Class Participation and In-class Tasks 20 points
Blog Development Project 40 points
Presentation 20 points
Final Small Quiz 20 points
TOTAL:100 points


PLAGIARISM

Main Entry: pla·gia·rize
Pronunciation: \ˈplā-jə-ˌrīz also -jē-ə-\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): pla·gia·rized; pla·gia·riz·ing
Etymology: plagiary
Date: 1716
transitive verb : to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own : use (another's production) without crediting the source intransitive verb : to commit literary theft : present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source
— pla·gia·riz·er noun

MLA Style
"plagiarize." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2009.
Merriam-Webster Online. 13 February 2009

Or consult the TU DO website.

Instances of plagiarizing will not be tolerated and will result in a dismissal from the course. Whether you are a scholar or a blogger – try to sustain a reputation of a credible voice. Always give proper credit to information generators whose ideas you decided to use.


What Is a Moment of Zen?

The idea of “moment of Zen” came from “The Daily Show with John Steward” available at the Comedy Central (go to www.thedailyshow.com). Yet the concept of it was almost completely transformed.

NOTE: This is an in-class task which is to be completed in class only.

In the end of each class students will be asked to write down ideas related to the class reading material and discussion on a sheet of paper. These should be in a form of a research question or hypothesis. The students’ “moments of Zen” will be collected and attached to the poster available to students taking this class. The ideas should be signed so that the author is easily identified. The most active Zen-generators will receive 10 extra points which upgrade her/his final grade for the course. This exercise encourages you to be attentive to the class material, sensitive to what the audience might be most interested in and creative. This is also a great opportunity to practice your critical skills.

WELCOME TO CLASS AND GOOD LUCK!

Wonder Technologies and Consumerism

Two days ago I joined a focus group made up of three German males. We were expected by our friend Katrin in one of the offices of the Outstanding Solutions (Dortmund). The room we entered had no windows and there was something like a stage where all the "miracles" were to entertain us.

Then a hollographic version of a sexy female singer entered the stage. She looked very realistic. And she was singing for us. The vid was repeated at our request.

Then we watched splendid advertisements. It was all cool, but I felt dumb. I tell you, I could not concentrate while watching these advertisements. They were so flashy and juicy... Pleasure for eyes and ears... All I could think of was: wow, the porn industry will REALLY benefit from these technologies once they become more available to public. The same happened to the newspapers, TV and the Internet...

I left the room with a bitter feeling, though. In some years I will be bombarded by 3-D versions of perfect synthesized sellers in the street. I can already imagine hypnotized kids watching stupid kitchy noisy adds and thinking it's so cool. And wanting more burgers and coke. And those realistic boobs...

P.S. Once again, Katrin, thank you for invitation to take part in the focus group. You made my day! I am looking forward to the updates and your report!

What's Your Progess?

Recently, one of my friends inquired about my progress. Well, I am working. But I shifted my attention to polishing my syllabus. I know it should not be perfect. It's an outline of the course, and, most importantly (?), the explanation of the grading policy. I fly to Spain this week, and I want to manage this Gestalt at last. :) I will definately publish my syllabus here. I see no problem with that.

Indeed, I perceive a syllabus as a contract between an instructor and a student. Hmm, I am becoming too scrupulous with paper stuff. Warum? Probably, the answer is: three years in DEUTSCHLAND! :)

Are You Ok Enough To CouchSurf?

I have heard some negative opinions about couchsurfing... I don't care! Today my colleague Nadya and I have sent out letters to Davis Goodman and Ricardo Morel, the persons we found in the CouchSurfing database who were so nice to reply.

Nadya, meine Kollegin teaching linguistics at the same Department, joined the CouchSurfing network this month. I am thinking of joining in as well. But I decided to make some investigation first.

The most obvious thing to do is to visit the official website and read the info section. Well, this is what I usually do if I am interested in some website or person: how does organization position itself? or how does s/he want to appear? I was pleased by how the mission of CouchSurfing was formulated:

CouchSurfing seeks to internationally network people and places, create educational exchanges, raise collective consciousness, spread tolerance and facilitate cultural understanding.

As a community we strive to do our individual and collective parts to make the world a better place, and we believe that the surfing of couches is a means to accomplish this goal.

CouchSurfing is not about the furniture, not just about finding free accommodations around the world; it's about making connections worldwide. We make the world a better place by opening our homes, our hearts, and our lives. We open our minds and welcome the knowledge that cultural exchange makes available. We create deep and meaningful connections that cross oceans, continents and cultures. CouchSurfing wants to change not only the way we travel, but how we relate to the world!

"CouchSurfing is not about the furniture, not just about finding free accommodations around the world; it's about making connections worldwide." This is a perl I put in my pocket. I am into studying digital networks and how they transform our culture. CouchSurfing, of course, is a social network that would not have been possible without the internet. Again, this is a vivid example of how the internet can connect people. Unlike plain chatrooms, forums, skype, etc---CouchSurfing serves as an interesting example of how the members of this network want to keep it as real as possible. I mean, the CouchSurfers have their own profiles where they publish a bio blurb or, more likely, a narrative of who they think they are. And you decide whether this is the trustworthy person.

This is supposed to be a trust network making the world better. Beneficial altruism which is meant to be something completely different from sacrifice. Would you agree? I wish I had a chance to interview some CouchSurfers. Well, I have found a blog "Passport Diary" where Ryan published an account of Lindsay Pratt's experiences. I really encourage to read the complete version of this blog post if you are interested in the topic. Here is a chunk of text I want to share:

‘How safe is CouchSurfing?’ I hear people ask. There is of course a risk involved, but that risk will be reflected whenever you travel. Precautions can easily be made and this is done via testimonials, friend link-strength indicators, vouching and the verification system. You see, not just anyone is a vouched member. Members can only be vouched for by an already CouchSurfing-vouched member. It’s an entire circle of trust, with the setup being very similar to eBay.

If you plan couchsurfing (one more noun for webster dictionary:)---check out the Safety tips. For the internet surfer who nicknamed himself/herself as Realist---that's not enough. He contributed to the thread of comments to Ryan's post:

Sounds like a great way to get your stuff stolen. I wonder how many people have lost stuff through these arrangements. I could never trust some random with the keys to my place, even if they have spent a little time getting “vouched for”… sooner or later, I’d wake up and things would be gone.

None denies CouchSurfing can be risky. No risk-no champaign. I was very-very sceptical about CouchSurfing in the beginning... Ideally, if the individuals stick to Couch Surfing ethics and the CouchSurfing hosts stick to their code of conduct ---it's the best way for travelin and enjoying the intercultural communication which I lacked in Paris, for example. My Georgian colleague and I did not know French. We wish we could speak it. Yet it's a pity we were ignored by a couple of persons who did not want to help us when we were addressing them in English. I realized there was something really wrong about it all. I was missing what I like the most---the subcultural experiences versus the fatty creams of polished glamorous culture.

Both couch hosts we have contacted so far---are very interesting people. Most importantly, they seem not to be glamorous and arrogant.

Briefly about the folks. Ricardo Morel's interests are: traveling, backpacking, sociology, social anthropology, social development, geopolitics, rhum (ron), pisco, regional/traditional cuisine, hot spicy food, cooking & eating, football... Most importantly, I like his music bands list: Pink Floyd, The Doors, Steel Pulse, Ruben Blades, Grupo Niche, Joaquin Sabina, Caetano Veloso. He mentions Pulp Fiction.

But Davis Goodman caught my attention by that:

Uhh...studying all the time. Im a pseudo hippy, meaning i believe in the cause, but I like to be clean, (relatively), not mooch off of people, not scare people away, and accept those things in life that we must do.

Awesome profile! ;DDD

Maybe, it's a stereotype, but those folks cannot but be interesting to have a nice conversation with. Okay, but will they trust Nadya and I, two complete strangers?

We really hope this first couchsurfing experience turns out great. :)

I Hear You (NOT)

I am a proud Questia subscriber since 2006. If you are looking for a good on-line (American) library consider "10 Cool Things About Questia."

On February 15, I have received another newsletter. I find Questia's newsletters extremely interesting. This time I enjoyed the compilation of readings on listening skills. I found Ralph G. Nichols article very useful.

The ten bad listening habits identified by Ralph G. Nichols in a 1960 edition of The Supervisor's Notebook and posted online by Dartmouth College's Academic Skills Center make much sense. Did you ever catch yourself at these? The speaker has not finished, yet you are already:

1. Calling the Subject Dull
2. Criticizing the Speaker
3. Getting Overstimulated
4. Listening Only For Facts
5. Trying To Outline Everything
6. Faking Attention
7. Tolerating Distraction
8. Choosing Only What's Easy
9. Letting Emotion-Laden Words Get In The Way
10. Wasting the Differential Between Speech and Thought Speed

The article is called "What can be done about listening?"; so, Professor Nichols not only describes the problems, but provides suggestions. I cannot but insert the chunk related to the problem 10:

Americans speak at an average rate of 125 words per minute in ordinary conversation. A speaker before an audience slows down to about 100 words per minute. How fast do listeners listen? Or, to put the question in a better form, how many words a minute do people normally think as they listen? If all their thoughts were measurable in words per minute, the answer would seem to be that an audience of any size will average 400 to 500 words per minute as they listen.
Here is a problem. The differential between the speaker at 100 words per minute and the easy thought speed of the listener at 400 or 500 words per minute is a snare and a pitfall. It lures the listener into a false sense of security and breeds mental tangents.
However, with training in listening, the difference between thought speed and speech speed can be made a source of tremendous power. Listeners can hear everything the speaker says and not what s/he omits saying; they can listen between the lines and do some evaluating as the speech progresses. To do this, to exploit this power, good listeners must automatically practice three skills in concentration:

Anticipating the next point. Good listeners try to anticipate the points a speaker will make in developing a subject. If they guess right, the speaker's words reinforce their guesses. If they guess wrong, they'll have to do some thinking to discover why they and the speaker failed to agree. In either case, their chances of understanding and remembering what was said is nearly double what it would have been if they had simply listened passively.

Identifying supporting material. Good listeners try to identify a speaker's supporting material. After all, a person can't go on making points without giving listeners some of the evidence on which the conclusions are based, and the bricks and mortar that have been used to build up the argument should be examined for soundness.

Recapitulating. With the tremendous thought speed that everyone has, it is easy to summarize in about five seconds the highlights covered by a speaker in about five minutes. When the speaker stops to take a swallow of water or walks over to the blackboard to write something or even takes a deep breath, the experienced listener makes a mental summary. Half a dozen summaries of the highlights of a fifty-minute talk will easily double the understanding and retention important points in a talk.

Now, to cheer you up, let me share my observations: even if you ventilate the room, provide coffee, make a kitchy Power Point presentation which will usually enable you to present a half of the results of your research --- there will be yawning people in the audience, anyways! The question is: HOW MANY? :) So, don't bother too much about being "boring" --- just deliver the message faithfully, and enhance your own listening skills.

According to another article on common problems related to active and passive listening published in the Public Magazine, one should set a "listening goal" by answering the question: why are you listening? Besides the answer "I have to" the source suggests the following constructive answers:

1. Enjoyment.
2. Understanding.
3. Decision making.
4. Conflict resolution.
5. Problem solving.
6. Information gathering.

I absolutely agree with that the U.S. educational system largely rewards the students' abilities to talk. Yet not at an expense of making a point, right? :)

As one wise Chinese proverb suggests: listening is essential to all true conversation. Unfortunately, I doubt that academia provides space for "true" conversations among students and professors/teachers/instructors in class. Very often---we simply have no time to listen to each other. Blogging about our research topics and reading each others blogs could be one of the most fascinating ways to "hear" each other.

“Education makes machines which act like people and produces people who act like machines.” (Thanks, JAN HEUFER, for the German-English translation!:)
I do agree with Erich Fromm. At once, I recollect those teachers and professors I was unlucky to run across. Remember those monsters which were masterfully portrayed in the Pink Floyd's video "The Wall"?

We don't need no education
We don't need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone
Hey! Teacher! Leave us kids alone!
All in all it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

In a brilliant Russian novel "Fathers and Sons," Ivan Turgenev introduced a marvellous character Yevgeny Bazarov, obviously, representing the nihilitic opposition of the 30s-40s. Bazarov said that first of all we need to clear the place to build anew. I would say it is too 'physical.'

If you want to know --- I can hardly imagine myself burning down the school or university. Yet some education systems provide a plenty of space for abuse - physical and emotional. ("I don't care about the fact you are left-handed --- learn to write with the right hand!") We don't need such education. Teaching is the most irresponsible way for boosting one's self esteem with the help of some mean methods. Have you met such 'practitioners'? :(

While compiling syllabus for my studs --- I just cannot get rid of these thoughts. Indeed, by teaching I will put to test my own personality. I expect something spiritual about the future experience.

I BLOG - I EXIST

I am eager to share what I found today. I started my working day in the office with a cup of coffee... with Michael Chorost. He is the person of my Monday today.

I ran across the website of Professor Chorost by pure accident. As some of you might know, I am compiling the syllabus for my class "Presidential Elections and American Culture: News Media, New Media and American Politics," which I start teaching this April. So, I am in constant search of the talanted people out there who have experience in teaching the new media courses. Professor Chorost sounds to be an impressive Professor and Personality. You should check out his website.

Quoted from Chorost's Webpage:

Dr. Michael Chorost (pronounced “kor-ist”) was born with a severe hearing loss due to an epidemic of rubella. He didn’t learn to talk until he got hearing aids at age 3½. Those enabled him to grow up speaking English more or less normally, and he got a B.A. in English from Brown and a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin.

In 1999 he moved from Austin to San Francisco for a dot-com job, and then moved to another job at SRI International in Menlo Park, California. On July 7, 2001, he lost the remaining hearing in his one usable ear and got a cochlear implant shortly afterward. This experience was chronicled in his book, Rebuilt: How Becoming Part Computer Made Me More Human (Houghton Mifflin, 2005).

In July 2008, he contracted with The Free Press (Simon & Schuster) to write his second book, “World Wide Mind: The Coming Integration of Humans and Machines.”

For the 2008-2009 school year, he is a visiting professor at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C.

He has a cat named Elvis. His website is http://www.michaelchorost.com.

First of all, Professor Chorost has a sleek cat. I saw the pictures. And I am deeply inclined to think that men who take good care of their cats --- must be good personalities. Beware of the people who say they hate cats! It's equal to saying: I hate women!

Secondly, Professor Chorost has an impressive bio! His story is inspiring. In his bioblurb (I suppose) he wrote:

"Michael Chorost became a cyborg on October 1, 2001, the day his new ear was booted up. Born hard of hearing in 1964, he went completely deaf in his thirties. Rather than live in silence, he chose to have a computer surgically embedded in his skull to artificially restore his hearing.

This is the story of Chorost’s journey – from deafness to hearing, from human to cyborg –and how it transformed him. The melding of silicon and flesh has long been the stuff of science fiction. But as Chorost reveals in this witty, poignant, and illuminating memoir, fantasy is now giving way to reality.

Chorost found his new body mystifyingly mechanical: Kitchen magnets stuck to his head. He could plug himself directly into a CD player. His hearing was routinely upgraded with new software.

All of which forced him to confront complex questions about humans in the machine age: When the senses become programmable, can we trust what they tell us about the world? Will cochlear implants destroy the signing deaf community? And above all, are cyborgs still human?"

I never read the book, but one can downloaded the .pdf version of the first chapter from his website. The chapter starts with the emotional turmoil: both hearing aids fail on Chorost at once, and the drama of a small human being unfolds --- he loses hearing, and the world drastically changes. He becomes a cyborg.

Sounds like a novel. It's not.

A fascinating story to start another Monday in February 2009.