Comments on: Week one: Floating down the lifestream….. http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/2011/09/27/floating-down-the-lifestream/ part of the MSc in E-learning at the University of Edinburgh Sun, 11 Dec 2011 11:08:07 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.1 By: Neil David Buchanan http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/2011/09/27/floating-down-the-lifestream/#comment-8 Neil David Buchanan Thu, 29 Sep 2011 18:50:34 +0000 http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/?p=56#comment-8 Hi Carol, I found myself nodding enthusiastically as I read your comments above. I think your comparison to charity is spot on. There many heart-warming stories along the way yet one wonders what impact it is really having on larger groups. I think, as well, that just as charitable donations are not always used in the way the donors intended, the development of digital culture may not proceed in the direction laid out in Hand et al. Lots more to say on that subject but the film festival is about to start! Hi Carol, I found myself nodding enthusiastically as I read your comments above. I think your comparison to charity is spot on. There many heart-warming stories along the way yet one wonders what impact it is really having on larger groups. I think, as well, that just as charitable donations are not always used in the way the donors intended, the development of digital culture may not proceed in the direction laid out in Hand et al. Lots more to say on that subject but the film festival is about to start!

]]> By: Jen Ross http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/2011/09/27/floating-down-the-lifestream/#comment-7 Jen Ross Thu, 29 Sep 2011 13:16:28 +0000 http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/?p=56#comment-7 ps - you may like to check out Neil's recent post - http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/neilb/2011/09/28/1-wheres-the-magic :-) ps – you may like to check out Neil’s recent post – http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/neilb/2011/09/28/1-wheres-the-magic

:-)

]]> By: Jen Ross http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/2011/09/27/floating-down-the-lifestream/#comment-6 Jen Ross Thu, 29 Sep 2011 13:03:07 +0000 http://edc11.education.ed.ac.uk/carolc/?p=56#comment-6 This question of the place of randomness in the lifestream is a really interesting one, Carol - I look forward to hearing how your thoughts on this develop through the semester. My hunch is that what seems random at first begins to look like a pattern over time - but perhaps that's more an example of our tendency to generate narratives than anything else. I like your connections between the Hand reading and recent world events - the circulation of flows of information could make us think about concepts of propaganda and dissent, for example, quite differently. The use of social networks appears somewhat agnostic - as Hand argues, narratives of inevitability seem to mask the fact that utopic/dystopic distinctions are rather prone to breakdown. I think Neil would find your thoughts about post-colonial theory and Bendito particularly intriguing - if you don't mind, I'll point him over here! This question of the place of randomness in the lifestream is a really interesting one, Carol – I look forward to hearing how your thoughts on this develop through the semester. My hunch is that what seems random at first begins to look like a pattern over time – but perhaps that’s more an example of our tendency to generate narratives than anything else.

I like your connections between the Hand reading and recent world events – the circulation of flows of information could make us think about concepts of propaganda and dissent, for example, quite differently. The use of social networks appears somewhat agnostic – as Hand argues, narratives of inevitability seem to mask the fact that utopic/dystopic distinctions are rather prone to breakdown.

I think Neil would find your thoughts about post-colonial theory and Bendito particularly intriguing – if you don’t mind, I’ll point him over here!

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