CLASS05FA Doctoral Seminar

LABOR DAY -- NO CLASS

Mon, 05 Sep 2005 14:40:32 -0600

read ALL of Douglas

Mon, 12 Sep 2005 14:42:26 -0600

Today's question: Douglas has written an explanation of the social construction of radio in order to avoid technological determinism. The "constructors" proposed in this book are inventors, the press, amateur operators, the military, the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and others. One sure way to avoid "determinism" is to advance a narrative that contains more than one possible outcome. Can you use the materials in this book to propose a plausible alternative way that radio might have developed in the U.S.? If yes, explain the alternative. If not, explain what information you would need in order to propose an alternative (that is, information that you don't have in this book).

read Marvin: intro, ch. 1-3

Mon, 19 Sep 2005 14:42:43 -0600

Today's question: Expertise and "new technology" are two concepts that are often inextricably linked in writing about technological change. Comment on some significant use of the concept of "expertise" in When Old Technologies Were New. For example: You might elaborate on Marvin's definition of "expertise" and analyze why she defines it this way. You might explain how expertise functions in Marvin's understanding of the social construction of new technologies. Or, you might differentiate Marvin's concept of expertise from Douglas's discussions of engineers (or other readings or popular ideas).

read Marvin: ch. 4-5, epilogue

Mon, 26 Sep 2005 14:43:04 -0600

Today's question: Marvin has been both praised and criticized for the unusual methods in this book. "Methods" should be understood broadly: for example, it could mean her choice of sources, the application of her chosen theoretical framework, the structure of her argument, her deployment and analysis of historical data, or her close reading and analysis of texts. Now that you have read the entire book, in this blog post, please characterize her methods in some way and offer an assessment of them. For example, you could (1) relate her methods to her stated goals. Or, you could (2) compare her methods to others you have read (for this course or outside it). Or you could do something else that offers a characterization and assessment.

read Fischer: ch. 1-4

Mon, 03 Oct 2005 14:43:29 -0600

Today's Question: When scholars write about communication technologies, they often focus on successful technologies. Successful technologies, in turn, are usually described as ever-expanding or "diffusing" throughout society until they are widespread. In this context, Fischer's analysis of the decline in rural telephony in Chapter 4 is remarkable and unusual. Please evaluate this argument in chapter 4. You might comment on his evidence for the decline, his analysis, or his explanation of it. Is the explanation convincing? You might compare it to discussions of other technologies we have read. Does this analysis demonstrate a strength or weakness in his method? (Or, Why did he find this decline when other scholars rarely if ever highlight any declines?)

In-class handout: Seminar Papers and Proposals (PDF, 1 page)

read Fischer: ch. 5-9

Mon, 10 Oct 2005 14:45:23 -0600

No question today.

PAPER PROPOSAL DUE (post it to your blog)

read Miller & Slater: ch. 1-4

Mon, 17 Oct 2005 14:45:47 -0600

and: read all other class member paper proposals
(from the blogs)

Today's Question: Miller & Slater have elaborated four cross-cutting, non-exhaustive "dimensions" or "dynamics" that mark the Trinidadian Internet, and perhaps the Internet everywhere. Choose one of the four dynamics introduced in chapter 1 (Objectification, Mediation, Normative Freedom, Positioning) or a sub-concept within one of the dynamics (expansive realization, expansive potential). Analyze how the dynamic manifests in the ethnographic material presented in chapter 3 (Relationships) or chapter 4 (Being Trini). You might consider: What does the dynamic mean? How is the dynamic analytically useful? How is it applied? How is its use related to the method employed here, or the assumptions?

read Miller & Slater: ch. 5-7

Mon, 24 Oct 2005 14:46:08 -0600

Today's Question: For this answer, try to highlight a conclusion that Miller & Slater make that differs from what we know about an older technology. That is, Miller & Slater cover themes that are very familiar from our earlier readings -- such as businesspeople and consumers trying to come to terms with a new communication technology -- but they occasionally come to strikingly different conclusions. Consider Chapter 6, "Doing Business Online," which chronicles several instances where Trinis try to employ new communication technologies (Web site design businesses, textiles catalogs, Miss Universe, etc.). Compare one of these instances and any conclusions that Miller & Slater draw from this material (e.g., about decommodification, virtual vs. real, the dynamics from ch. 1) to an analogous instance with an older technology covered by another author in this course (Douglas, Marvin, Fischer, Williams). How do you explain this difference in conclusions? e.g., Is the difference the result of technology (the Internet?), the method, the theoretical approach, assumptions, Trini culture, etc.?

read Innis: introduction-p. 91

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 14:46:33 -0600

Today's Question: The Bias of Communication is known as a "classic" in the study of communication technology, but it is also described as "difficult," "nonlineal," "puzzling," and "a struggle" -- probably chiefly because the book does not build to a sustained or coherent argument. Choose one of the three essays assigned for today and read them in the manner suggested by the introduction -- as an "idea file." Identify some important concept, theory, or insight in the essay you chose and describe its importance. Please describe the idea critically as appropriate -- list drawbacks as well as praise. It may be helpful to reference earlier class readings as a point of comparison to show what is different about Innis' ideas or his disciplinary approach (economic history).

In-class discussion: Pedagogy.
In-class handout: Bloom's Taxonomy of Learning Objectives (PDF, 1 page)

read Innis: pp. 92-198

Mon, 07 Nov 2005 14:47:07 -0600

read de Sola Pool: ch. 1-5

Mon, 14 Nov 2005 11:47:28 -0600

Today's Question: Ithiel de Sola Pool's discussion of the "convergence of modes" (see esp. ch. 3 but also throughout) is now over twenty years old. Assess and discuss the degree to which some feature of this concept is still useful today. For example, you might consider: Did some of Pool's predictions come to pass? Do Pool's predictions still seem immanent? Is the historical foundation of the concept defensible? Are similar predictions made by scholars (or their sources) in our other readings or in the popular press today? Is there a "rhetoric of convergence" that spans multiple communication technologies and/or time periods? Are the political or structural concerns reflected in Pool's discussion of convergence (e.g., cross-ownership, the First Amendment) still provocative? Does the Internet show this discussion to be outdated, or is the Internet the expression and triumph of this concept? Etc.

THANKSGIVING-- NO CLASS

Mon, 21 Nov 2005 14:41:24 -0600

read de Sola Pool: ch 6-9 AND Price: part I

Mon, 28 Nov 2005 14:47:58 -0600

read Price: part II and III

Mon, 05 Dec 2005 14:48:23 -0600

And: read all other class member teaching assignments
(from the blogs).

In-class discussion: Teaching Exercise

Today's Question: Prepare a constructive discussion question to ask Monroe Price about his book in case we can get him on the phone. Don't worry about the word minimum for this post (that is, it can be short).

Also, please prepare contructive comments about the teaching assignments to share in class. (You do not need to post these to your blog.)

PAPER DUE -- NO CLASS

Wed, 14 Dec 2005 14:51:47 -0600