Culture in Bits

Culture in Bits
Author: Gary Hall
Publisher: A&C Black
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2002-08-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1847144284

Cultural Studies seems to have lost its way somewhere between today's preoccupation with the empirical and the theory revolutions of the 1980s and 90s. Assessing the work of key theorists across the history of cultural studies--Raymond Williams, Stuart Hall, Meaghan Morris and Angela McRobbie--Culture In Bits argues that the trend towards a more politicized practice is in fact not political enough; theory, and deconstruction in particular, can offer a more radical and a more political engagement.Pinpointing the ambiguities that both constitute and disturb cultural studies and outlining a radical agenda for its future, Culture in Bits is vital reading for all interested in cultural practice and theory.

Two Bits

Two Bits
Author: Christopher M. Kelty
Publisher: Duke University Press
Total Pages: 402
Release: 2008-06-09
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9780822342649

In Two Bits, Christopher M. Kelty investigates the history and cultural significance of Free Software, revealing the people and practices that have transformed not only software but also music, film, science, and education. Free Software is a set of practices devoted to the collaborative creation of software source code that is made openly and freely available through an unconventional use of copyright law. Kelty explains how these specific practices have reoriented the relations of power around the creation, dissemination, and authorization of all kinds of knowledge. He also makes an important contribution to discussions of public spheres and social imaginaries by demonstrating how Free Software is a “recursive public”—a public organized around the ability to build, modify, and maintain the very infrastructure that gives it life in the first place. Drawing on ethnographic research that took him from an Internet healthcare start-up company in Boston to media labs in Berlin to young entrepreneurs in Bangalore, Kelty describes the technologies and the moral vision that bind together hackers, geeks, lawyers, and other Free Software advocates. In each case, he shows how their practices and way of life include not only the sharing of software source code but also ways of conceptualizing openness, writing copyright licenses, coordinating collaboration, and proselytizing. By exploring in detail how these practices came together as the Free Software movement from the 1970s to the 1990s, Kelty also considers how it is possible to understand the new movements emerging from Free Software: projects such as Creative Commons, a nonprofit organization that creates copyright licenses, and Connexions, a project to create an online scholarly textbook commons.

Two-bit Culture

Two-bit Culture
Author: Kenneth C. Davis
Publisher: Boston : Houghton Mifflin
Total Pages: 458
Release: 1984
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

Cultural Software

Cultural Software
Author: J. M. Balkin
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 354
Release: 1998-01-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780300084504

In this book J. M. Balkin offers a strikingly original theory of cultural evolution, a theory that explains shared understandings, disagreement, and diversity within cultures. Drawing on many fields of study--including anthropology, evolutionary theory, cognitive science, linguistics, sociology, political theory, philosophy, social psychology, and law--the author explores how cultures grow and spread, how shared understandings arise, and how people of different cultures can understand and evaluate each other's views. Cultural evolution occurs through the transmission of cultural information and know-how--cultural software--in human minds, Balkin says. Individuals embody cultural software and spread it to others through communication and social learning. Ideology, the author contends, is neither a special nor a pathological form of thought but an ordinary product of the evolution of cultural software. Because cultural understanding is a patchwork of older imperfect tools that are continually adapted to solve new problems, human understanding is partly adequate and partly inadequate to the pursuit of justice. Balkin presents numerous examples that illuminate the sources of ideological effects and their contributions to injustice. He also enters the current debate over multiculturalism, applying his theory to problems of mutual understanding between people who hold different worldviews. He argues that cultural understanding presupposes transcendent ideals and shows how both ideological analysis of others and ideological self-criticism are possible.

Culture in Networks

Culture in Networks
Author: Paul McLean
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2016-11-11
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0745687202

Today, interest in networks is growing by leaps and bounds, in both scientific discourse and popular culture. Networks are thought to be everywhere – from the architecture of our brains to global transportation systems. And networks are especially ubiquitous in the social world: they provide us with social support, account for the emergence of new trends and markets, and foster social protest, among other functions. Besides, who among us is not familiar with Facebook, Twitter, or, for that matter, World of Warcraft, among the myriad emerging forms of network-based virtual social interaction? It is common to think of networks simply in structural terms – the architecture of connections among objects, or the circuitry of a system. But social networks in particular are thoroughly interwoven with cultural things, in the form of tastes, norms, cultural products, styles of communication, and much more. What exactly flows through the circuitry of social networks? How are people's identities and cultural practices shaped by network structures? And, conversely, how do people's identities, their beliefs about the social world, and the kinds of messages they send affect the network structures they create? This book is designed to help readers think about how and when culture and social networks systematically penetrate one another, helping to shape each other in significant ways.

Blown to Bits

Blown to Bits
Author: Harold Abelson
Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
Total Pages: 389
Release: 2008
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 0137135599

'Blown to Bits' is about how the digital explosion is changing everything. The text explains the technology, why it creates so many surprises and why things often don't work the way we expect them to. It is also about things the information explosion is destroying: old assumptions about who is really in control of our lives.

The Gender and Consumer Culture Reader

The Gender and Consumer Culture Reader
Author: Jennifer Scanlon
Publisher: NYU Press
Total Pages: 401
Release: 2000-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0814781314

In this consumer culture studies anthology, 23 reprinted essays (1934-98) consider both the empowering and disempowering elements of consumerism. In her introduction, Scanlon (women's studies, Plattsburgh State U. of New York) views consumer culture as a collaborative process, not simply a matter of perpetrators and victims. The themes the essays address are: stretching the boundaries of the domestic sphere; you are what you buy; the message makers; and sexuality, pleasure and resistance in consumer culture. The book features bandw illustrations promoting the cults of domesticity and identity through proper consumption. It lacks an index. c. Book News Inc.

Media, Communication, Culture

Media, Communication, Culture
Author: James Lull
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2000
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780231120739

"For this new edition coverage has been expanded from six to eleven chapters, and has been thoroughly updated to include all new developments in the field."--BOOK JACKET.

Understanding Intercultural Communication

Understanding Intercultural Communication
Author: Adrian Holliday
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 237
Release: 2018-10-10
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1351139509

Understanding Intercultural Communication provides a practical framework to help readers to understand intercultural communication and to solve intercultural problems. Each chapter exemplifies the everyday intercultural through ethnographic narratives in which people make sense of each other in home, work and study locations. Underpinned by a grammar of culture developed by the author, this book addresses key issues in intercultural communication, including: the positive contribution of people from diverse cultural backgrounds; the politics of Self and Other which promote negative stereotyping; the basis for a de-centred approach to globalisation in which periphery cultural realities can gain voice and ownership. Written by a leading researcher in the field, the new edition of this important text has been revised to invite the reader to reflect and develop their own intercultural and research strategies, and updated to include new ideas that have emerged in Holliday’s own work and elsewhere. This book is a key resource for academics, students and practitioners in intercultural communication and related fields.

Communication For Professionals

Communication For Professionals
Author: ANATH LEE WALES
Publisher: DADYMINDS PUBLISHERS INSIDER
Total Pages: 1216
Release: 2024
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

Book Description: Unlock the power of effective communication with "Communication for Professionals," the second instalment in the Business Professionalism series by Anath Lee Wales. This essential guide is designed to elevate your communication skills, providing you with the tools needed to thrive in the modern business world. In this comprehensive book, you'll explore: Introduction to Business Communication: Learn the foundational concepts, including Encoder/Decoder Responsibilities, Medium vs. Channel, Barriers to Communication, Strategies for Overcoming Barriers, and the dynamics of Verbal vs. Non-verbal Communication. Structuring Business Communication: Understand the structure and lines of communication within an organization, define your message, analyze your audience, and learn how to effectively structure your communication. Developing a Business Writing Style: Discover the roles of written communication, characteristics of good written communication, and strategies to develop an effective writing style. Types of Business Writing: Master various business writing formats, including Business Letters, Memos, Reports, Emails, and Online Communication Etiquette, ensuring you can handle any writing scenario with confidence. Writing for Special Circumstances: Gain insights into tactful writing, delivering bad news, and crafting persuasive messages tailored to specific contexts. Developing Oral Communication Skills: Enhance your face-to-face interactions with guidelines for effective oral communication, speech delivery, and active listening. Doing Business on the Telephone: Learn the nuances of telephone etiquette, handling difficult callers, and leading effective business conversations over the phone. Non-verbal Communication: Understand the importance of body language, physical contact, and presenting a professional image in business settings. Proxemics: Explore the impact of space, distance, territoriality, crowding, and privacy on business communication. Developing Effective Presentation Skills: Prepare for public speaking with tips on managing presentation anxiety, using visual aids, and leveraging technology for impactful presentations. Conflict and Disagreement in Business Communication: Learn about conflict resolution values and styles, and strategies for managing cross-cultural communication challenges. "Communication for Professionals" is your definitive guide to mastering the art of business communication. Whether you are a seasoned professional or just starting your career, this book provides the essential knowledge and skills to communicate effectively and confidently in any professional setting.