New Technolgoy, New Thought- Group A

Clive's Thompson's, Smarter Than You Think, houses the chapter "The New Literacies," where he discusses the transformation of how people gather and share their thoughts through the use of new technologies.  Many modes of technology have shifted from their once intended purpose, to now working for the masses. Some modes include text, photography, maps, videos, video games, and 3D printing. At one point in time, all of these were used by only a select few of people, but now technology has become a tool for the general public to share their own personal thoughts and ideas.

Starting with the most basic form of communication, text, it is hard to imagine that this once was a very elite form of sharing one's ideas. Socrates was not an advocate of writing thoughts down. He believed that if knowledge was outside the mind, than the person really does not know the information. Socrates felt that text will lead to peoples' forgetfulness, because no longer do people have to memorize their ideas. While, this is true, it also allowed for many good things to come about, such as books and libraries. Books, however, were once only written by those of wealth. Paper and pen were so expensive that the average person could not write, unlike today. I watched Clive Thompson speak online about this particular chapter in his book at the World Maker Faire 2013. He equated the pen in 1945 to the iPad of today's generation. This was an insane thought to process because now a days I can just find a pen lying on the floor. Yet, back in 1945, pens were $90.

This is where the idea that communication becoming more available to the public comes up. No longer is writing only for the elite, but for the average person. The idea that people use technologies to share their thoughts is only possible because people have become savvy with technology. In the talk at the World Maker Faire, Thompson states that "as tools go from being expensive, to mass, we do things that are more unpredictable and stranger and weirder."

Thompson talks about how our generation does "thinking on the page" (99). This can not be more true. I do not know the last time where I took out a piece of paper to construct a tree chart to collect my ideas. I open up a Word document and just begin to type. I let my thoughts flow, no matter how choppy or incoherent it may sound, because I know I can edit it later. Our generation is "externalizing our thoughts first so that we can ponder them in front of us" (99). This made me think about how Chris brought up voice recognition word processors in class. Chris said that he enjoys using this tool to write creatively. He is able to share his ideas as they come to him, letting his thoughts collect on the page.

The idea of thinking through technologies is not only apparent through text, but other forms of communication as well. Thompson goes on to talk about photo manipulation. He talked about how Stalin once used this in order to erase someone from history. When Photoshop came out, a fear was that people would use it similarly to Stalin. This did not happen, however, because as it became cheaper, everyday people edited photos, making it an everyday concept. He even brought up the Iranian missile launch that happened about four years ago. Iran published a photo in order to showboat their missile launch. What was later discovered was that Iran edited the photo, adding false launches, to seem more impressive. People began to make fun of this, editing photos where there were hundreds of missiles in one picture. This is what happens when media becomes a form of communication, allowing for people to make statements, in this case, through photos.

The public begins to do this through video as well, dissecting clip after clip. TiVo allowed for this, where the public is able to break down the shot, millisecond by millisecond. All of these forms of technology are new literacies because if more people can participate, more of it occurs, and different forms of an idea are shared. No longer are the technologies used just to broadcast ideas, but a way for everyday people to think about things.The concept behind the "post it note phase" was very interesting to me. This idea applies to all technologies.Thompson believes that the post it note phase is to use the new literacy to think through something. I never thought of this before, but it is true, now that I am connecting it with my use of technology. Clearly when I am typing I am thinking about my ideas regarding a certain topic, but I even use photos and videos to think through situations and ideas. No longer do I just gather information by reading. Information is so easily available, in so many different forms, that I can look at a picture, for instance, and allow myself to think a completely different thought. Or, I can take my own photo, and share my thoughts with the rest of the world.

It is a very strange concept how we share ideas and change others' opinions through different forms of technology. While, it is scary and strange to think about, it allows for ideas to flow freely, which is something I find to be very useful and I appreciate very much in today's society. I urge you to watch this video of Clive Thompson discussion on "The New Literacies." If you did not get a chance to read the chapter, it is a great recap. Assuming you did read though, please watch the video anyway! Thompson shares more information not presented in his book. Through this video I learned new things and thought about certain topics differently.Wait a minute, that sounds like a concept I just read about!