Mary's NET11 Blog

I've just read some articles about transmission models of communication from the media studies infobase (which was recommended in the assessment details for this assignment)
The articles I've read so far are:

*The Shannon-Weaver model.
*Transmission models -criticism.
*The Lasswell formula.
*Berlo's S-M-C-R Model.

These were all very interesting, and certainly got me thinking, but I'm unsure about how I could use them in relation to my assignment. I guess I'll keep on reading.

Yesterday after listening to Helen Merrick's entertaining lecture on Information Ecologies (she really got me enthusiastic about this essay!) I did make a ~450 word start on my essay - just by going through the concepts documents and thinking about which concepts related to any module tasks I completed.

This was good, as it at least got me started on my essay, even if I won't use any of what I wrote yesterday.

I also reflected on some questions posed in Module 5:

• 
  How might the metaphor of an ‘ecology’ impact on the way you think about, understand or use the Internet?


It changes my thoughts about the Internet because you realise how everything is dependant on everything else. That the internet is the 'house' within which all these technologies work.

• 
  How are the concepts ‘information’ and ‘communication’ understood within the framework of an ‘information ecology’?


Information is what is sent, communication is when what is sent makes sense between (at least) two people.

• 
  Why don’t we talk of a ‘communication ecology’?

Because communication is not the implied result of swapping information.

- Mary

Labels: Assignment 2, Module 5