Archive for the ‘culture’ Category

Ted Nelson, Xanadu, and “The Completely New System of Media”

Thursday, October 9th, 2008

The avatar of new media, Ted Nelson, is always worthy of (re)consideration. YouTube brings his great project Xanadu to life (in a manner of speaking) with these brief demos.

Xanadu Spaces

ZigZag Data Structures

For the very tortured history of Xanadu, check out Gary Wolf’s article in the June 1995 issue of Wired magazine. And if you’re interested in what starts the Nelson story, checkout the great Computer Lib/Dream Machines.

Posted in culture, design, information architecture, technology, visualization | 3 Comments »

15 Minute History of Printing

Sunday, September 28th, 2008

Veteran printing industry consultant Frank Romano has produced an entertaining 15 minute video on the history of printing. Worth a look. 

Posted in culture, social, technology | No Comments »

Digital Intimacy? Ambient Awareness?

Saturday, September 6th, 2008

Clive Thompson’s article, “Brave New World of Digital Intimacy” in the September 5, 2008 issue of the New York Times examines the changing social mores of the digital world. What exactly is “intimacy” in the public realm? How close can we feel to someone when our experience is mediated by a screen? Well worth a read. 

Posted in culture, social | 1 Comment »

Grand Central Station Flash Mob

Monday, February 18th, 2008

Thanks to Brian Moore for this link. Not sure if dynamic media played a role in this particular flash mob. Interesting example of harmless collusion.

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Posted in culture, social | 1 Comment »

Blogs

Saturday, February 16th, 2008

Sarah Boxer of the New York Review of Books looks at ten blog-related books. Great overview of the social and cultural influence of blogs. Find it here.

One of the books included in the article, AGAINST THE MACHINE:
Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob by Lee Siegel, is examined in an interesting review by John Lanchester here in NYT.

“The fact that a man as smart as Siegel came to put Lonelygirl15 and Iraq into the same train of argument is a sign of the Internet’s power to make people lose all sense of perspective. The ramped-up affect of “Against the Machine,” its air of haste and its ad hominem quality are uncomfortably reminiscent of the blogs Siegel so dislikes.”

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Web Playgrounds for the Very Young

Sunday, February 10th, 2008

Yikes. As if analog childhood weren’t tricky enough. Here’s a NYT article on the rush to develop online worlds for kids.

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Posted in culture | 3 Comments »