Disruption: The role of image in communication

From Disruptions: Social Media Images Form a New Language Online

“This is a watershed time where we are moving away from photography as a way of recording and storing a past moment,” said Robin Kelsey, a professor of photography at Harvard, and we are “turning photography into a communication medium.” (Bliton)

I think that this is absolutely correct. We live in a society today where so much emphasis is put on social media. Facebook, for example, holds all of my photos from the last decade. Social networking companies are spending all this money to gain members and are making it easier and more convenient for us users to share our entire life in pictures and 140 characters or less.

I can remember as a child, taking photos with friends and family, mailing them out, waiting a week to get them back to see how they turned out and enjoy them. They were put in frames and scattered about the house or walls and tables. Now, we take 100 pictures with 100 different poses just to get THE PERFECT ONE (deleting the unflattering ones, of course) to post on Facebook in hopes of likes and comments.

I recently upgraded phones. Now I can upload pictures directly from my phone to Facebook. Someone said to me "welcome to the 21st century". I laughed, but it's true! In the blog post, it mentions simply sending a photo, completely omitting words, to tell someone where you are or what you're doing. This is common in my own life among my friends and family. It is easier to send one photo rather than type out exactly where you are and what you're doing.

Just in my lifetime I have seen an enormous swing in the way we communicate with one another regarding texting, pictures, and social media. And while sometimes I miss a good phone conversation or picture in a frame hanging on my wall, I keep up with the current technologies.

Is it fair to say that this new trend is making us lazy? Insulting our intelligence? Mocking the English language?... I don't know. But I do know that each time I discover something new, I can't understand how I did without for so long!

    Talking Without Saying a Word

In this visual metaphor, I am comparing this common child's tin can phone to the way in which we communicate today. Supposedly, this 'phone' will allow you to communicate with someone whom you can't see. I personally was never successful at this. I never heard the voice on the other end of the line. I believe that this represents communication today; we have the all the necessary devices, but it's frustrating and it's lengthy and it doesn't always work the way it's supposed to. Let's skip all that hassle and send a picture. Besides, isn't  a picture is worth a thousands words?

Resources:

Bilton, N. (2013, June 30). Disruptions: Social Media Images Form a New Language Online. Retrieved May 29, 2015, from http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/30/disruptions-social-media-images-form-a-new-language-online/?_r=1 





Introductory Post

Hello all! My name is Amanda Smith and I live in Mannington, WV. I am currently an adjunct in the Math department here at Fairmont State. This is my third semester teaching, and to date, I’ve taught College Algebra, College Algebra Support, Tech Math Lab, and Fundamental Concepts of Mathematics. In the fall, I plan to add pre-College Algebra to my repertoire.

I graduated from FSU in May 2009 with a BS in Mathematics/minor in Office Administration. Since then, my career path has been all over the place! I worked at a car auction, I was the transfer specialist in Enrollment Services here at FSU, I was a substitute teacher in Marion County for a year, and had a very brief stint at a bank. In July of 2014 I was asked to become an adjunct for FSU and I have finally found my calling! I enjoy teaching math, working with adults, the environment of higher education, and the freedom and ability to make each class my own.

I’m pursing a Master’s in Education with a concentration in Digital Media, New Literacies and Learning. This is my first semester in the grad program, so I expect to finish my degree in the spring of 2017. With my degree, I plan to become a full-time Mathematics professor (perhaps at FSU).

I would like to walk away from this class with the ability to bring new ideas and methods involving technology into my classroom. Teaching Math is sometimes very black and white on a chalk board, so I would like to discover new and exciting way to present the material that makes learning fun and efficient!

YouTube Video-- Literacy is Like Velcro