Just what is it to be human in the information age? I believe it is still a time to connect with one another, in spite of my sometimes cynical and anti-bureaucratic take on control systems. People have always connected and presumably we always will. There are discussions that take place about when to text, when to turn off the cell phone, when to be offline, and when to become completely unplugged. All of that discussion is part of the way we are still connecting with one another. We want to keep the humanness in our technological lives.
The pins on my board are highlights of that theme: connecting. From an artists' rendition of village women, to the industrial age and the post-industrial age, to pins about adult literacy and control systems, and finally to links about my belief and love of theatre, the pins highlight the idea of connection between people. We live, we love, we laugh - no matter the culture.
Language forms such a big part of every culture's way to connect, whether high-context where less direct language is needed, to low-context such as in Canada and America, where we want the message to be direct and specific (Jandt, 2013). Privacy concerns and change can be difficult to deal with no matter the culture. Bureaucracy and consumerism can feel overwhelming. Over all this is the reality that globalization is the dominant culture and connecting between humans is now codified and charted to the 'nth' degree. The knowledge economy is ever present in our lives, but in the midst of that people still connect over the things that are important in their lives. They go to their faith assembly or to the park, they go to city council meetings or to a ball game, they post on Twitter or Skype their grandfathers, all in the name of connecting.
All is not doom and gloom; we are still communicating with one another. Call you mum and connect, eh?
Linda
http://www.pinterest.com/linbrookslbs/being-human-in-the-information-age/
Bibliography
Jandt,
F. (2013). An introduction to intercultural communication: identities in a
global community. San Bernardino:
Sage.
The pins on my board are highlights of that theme: connecting. From an artists' rendition of village women, to the industrial age and the post-industrial age, to pins about adult literacy and control systems, and finally to links about my belief and love of theatre, the pins highlight the idea of connection between people. We live, we love, we laugh - no matter the culture.
Language forms such a big part of every culture's way to connect, whether high-context where less direct language is needed, to low-context such as in Canada and America, where we want the message to be direct and specific (Jandt, 2013). Privacy concerns and change can be difficult to deal with no matter the culture. Bureaucracy and consumerism can feel overwhelming. Over all this is the reality that globalization is the dominant culture and connecting between humans is now codified and charted to the 'nth' degree. The knowledge economy is ever present in our lives, but in the midst of that people still connect over the things that are important in their lives. They go to their faith assembly or to the park, they go to city council meetings or to a ball game, they post on Twitter or Skype their grandfathers, all in the name of connecting.
All is not doom and gloom; we are still communicating with one another. Call you mum and connect, eh?
Linda
http://www.pinterest.com/linbrookslbs/being-human-in-the-information-age/
Bibliography
Jandt,
F. (2013). An introduction to intercultural communication: identities in a
global community. San Bernardino:
Sage.