CS100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Logogram, Technological Determinism, Llama
22 Nov 2014
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Document Summary
Technological determinism: technology determines social or cultural change, it is a point of view, ignores the role of people in determining how we use technology. Language the first system for representing information. Early textual representations could be pictographic, logographic, glotographic. Writing involves the adaptation of natural materials, the creation of communication media (papyrus, clay are both media. Harold innis (in media in ancient empires ) identifies clay as an influential new communication medium because it demanded a shift from pictographic representation to more formal writing patterns (similarily, text messaging has demanded shifts in writing practices. Writing (initially) requires special tools and special skills; the creation of special class/specialists (logographic writing in particular) Greek alphabet (from which our alphabet is descendent) appears around. Greek alphabet said to have democratized writing (havelock 38); writing no longer confined to a group of specialists.
