CC WEEK 9
Week 9: Web culture: Impact of Vannevar Bush
10 minutes: Clarify: Requirements for final project (see last page of syllabus). Show Sketch 8 (SWF, mo-tion tweens) if time permits.
40 minutes: Discussion: Vannevar Bush’s significance in 1945 and now. Pop quiz at discretion of instruc-tor. If time remains, look at student blog sites.
Questions for discussion (note, the page numbers refer to the article as published in the New Media Reader, available at Flaxman). Students read Vannevar Bush, As We May Think, 1945 (NMR, p.35-48), online: http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/194507/bush
1) What year was Bush’s article written? Where was it published? What kind of audience was this written for?
2) What does the editor’s comment prior to the Atlantic Monthly essay say about Bush’s feelings about WWII? Bush alludes to this himself also in the first few paragraphs of the essay.
3) Who was Bush? What kind of research did he do before WWII? Specifically, what kind of collaborative research did he do?
4) What was Bush’s true passion and research interest?
5) What does Bush say about progress? In particular, what is his general attitude about increasing specialization to fuel advancements in science (p. 37, NMR)?
6) As you read through the article, what devices of the future does Bush talk about?
7) What is the Memex? (p.44-45, NMR) What would a user wish to do with the Memex?
8) What medium is the Memex’s vast storehouse of information written on? (p.44, NMR)
9) On page 44, Bush makes a distinction about how libraries index information (alphanumeric systems) and how the human brain works (association). In this section, Bush discussses his concept of trails. What are trails, and how might they be useful on a device like the Memex?
10) Today, do we have any software that allows us a “trails-like” glimpse of our actions? What are some examples?
11) Why do you think Bush’s conceptual invention, the Memex is significant?
12) Why do the writers of the introduction to this essay believe Bush’s contributions to be vital to creative individuals interested in knowledge management tools?
13) What tools do we have today that are similar in concept to the Memex?
>Homework
Update your blog:
PICK TWO WEBSITES TO COMPARE. Select two artists’ website or two designers’ websites whose site layout and interface you admire and explain why this site design is interesting to you as a viewer. Compare the two sites in your blog entry, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of both. Be prepared to show this via your blog in class.
Study for quiz: HTML terminology and imaging selection for the web