• 5 kinds of minds that people will need, and should develop in the future

– with these minds “a person will be well equipped to deal with what is expected, as well as what cannot be anticipated; with out these minds, a person will be at mercy of forces that he or she can’t understand, let alone control.” p2

The disciplined mind

• mastered at least one way of thinking
• characterises a specific scholarly discipline, craft, or profession
• Research proves it can take up to ten years to master a discipline, the disciplined mind knows how to work steadily over time so that a skill can be improved and understood
• with out a discipline, they are “destined to march to someone else’s tune.”

The Synthesising mind

• takes information from different sources, understand and evaluate said information objectively (not influenced by personal feelings), put all elements together and make sense of it for themselves or for other people
• an important mind as we have access to more and more information

The creating mind

• puts forth new ideas, poses unexpected questions, thinks of things in a new light, finds unexpected answers
• Seek to remain one step ahead (“of even the most sophisticated computers and robots” pg3)

The respectful mind

• note and welcome different human groups
• try to understand these ‘others’
• seek to work effectively with them
• Author argues that “in a world where we are all linked, intolerance or disrespect is no longer a viable option” p3

The ethical mind

• examine the nation of their work and the needs and desires of their society
• conceptualises how workers can serve purpose beyond self-interests and how citizens can work unselfishly to improve everyone
• more abstract (compated to the respectful mind- more concrete)

• author argues that these minds are at a premium in the world or today “and will be even more so tomorrow” p 4

While I am not entirely sure which ‘mind’ i fit into best, this reading was a wonderful reminder that even though people think and approach tasks differently, it doesn’t mean that we can’t and shouldn’t work together, for it’s these different minds that help us to produce the best content as we venture into the future.

Judy Wajcman, 2015, ‘Finding Time in a Digital Age’ in Pressed for Time: The Acceleration of Life in Digital Capitalism, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, ch.7.

Judy Wajcman writes about an accelerated society, arguing that we have become slaves to the monsters we have created. She suggests that people are becoming accustomed to instant gratification as a result of online shopping, pre-made meals and meal kits, and same day shipping. Although she does remind us that this concept of having things delivered to our doorsteps is not a new concept, with household deliveries and mail order catalogs common in the 19^th century. The idea of ‘immediacy,’ the “[assumption] of instant delivery and effortlessly achievable abundance” is not exclusive to this period of time as a result of technology- although it is made easier. This fast past, inescapable world where we are all constantly connected the idea of a slower life (or at least slower aspects in life) have become desired; slow food, slow cities, simple living network.

Through the reading, it is evident that we cannot simply chose a fast or slow passed life and rather have to pick and chose aspects of technology and all they have to offer that benefit our lifestyles best, as technology grows we are provided with many new positive opportunities- if we chose what suits us correctly.

“Machines, of course, do not make history by themselves. But some kinds of machines help make different kinds of histories and different kinds of people than others.”

– Susan Douglas

Cal Newport, 2012, ‘The Clarity of the Craftsman’ in So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work, NY Business Plus, ch.4.

Newport presents two different approaches to thinking about work:

The Craftsman Mindset

• “What can you offer the world?” (p8)
• Rather than focusing on the little details, focus instead on being better
• “If you’re not focusing on becoming so good they cant ignore you, you’re going to be left behind.” (p.37)
• “[Eventually] you are so experienced [that] there’s a confidence that comes out.” – Steve Martin (p34)

The Passion Mindset

• “What can the world offer you?” (p38)
• Newport argues that if you only focus on what your work can offer you, it makes you aware of what you don’t like about it, it also prompts you think bout unanswerable questions such as “who am I?” and “what are my true passions in life?” which results in confusion and unhappiness

Newport suggests that the craftsman mindset will offer you clarity, while the passion mindset leads to overwhelming, unanswerable questions. The reading reminds us that “no one owes you a great career… you need to earn it- and the process wont be easy.” Newport responded to criticism that suggested that the craftsman mindset is only applicable to people who know what their passion in life is by arguing that if you focus on what you can put out into the world, and focus on producing and becoming the best you can do/be that the passion will follow. A final point that I really liked and think is important to remember was this: “what you produce is basically all that matters.” (p41) So stop focusing on irrelevant issues and put all that concern to creating something wonderful, and being the best you can possibly be- “be so good they cant ignore you.” (p33, Steve Martin)

Ramon Lobato and Julian Thomas, 2015, ‘Work’ in The Informal Media Economy, Polity Press, Cambridge UK, ch.3.

This weeks reading reiterated what most of us already know (or are soon to find out) about the industry we are preparing to enter. In order to one day get a job in the creative industry, and maybe even the job of our dreams, we know that we have to put in the long yards. To be considered for a job (paid or unpaid) we must have experience gained through courses or self-taught practice (or a combination of both) and and then develop a school/work/work experience/life balance with hopeful thoughts that this will give us greater chances of paid work in an area we are interested in after we graduate. When I first read this weeks reading I was disheartened to be reminded of the negatives I am to be facing as I work towards my goals, negatives that am reminded of, and have carefully considered since the day I decided to pursue my dreams in the creative industry. However, upon completion of the reading and after a few hours of consideration it was actually good to have a detailed exploration of the creative industry, with academics and experienced reflection, the negatives and positives explored in logical and informed detail.

An area I found incredibly interesting in this reading was the exploration of Richard Florida’s ‘The Rise of the Creative Class’ (2003) (p73) in which he suggests that workers in the creative industry choose to work in an informal, less “routinized” work environment- different work hours, unlike the traditional 9-to-5 days in many work industries, casual wear in the work place (and so on), all what he considers to be “pleasurable flexibility.” This weeks reading looks at few peoples experience with the romanticized ‘pleasurable flexibility’ in their job; an employer in a digital media company wrote, “Look at me! I’m in New York and I’m working really late! Then, of course, you realize that it sucks.”(p 73) The reading also incorporated different critics responses to Florida’s interpretation of the creative industry, highlighting problematic aspects of informal work in creative industries- “underemployment, unhealthy working conditions, underpaid overtime, self-exploitation, discrimination and lack of unionization and minority representation.” (p73) It was also stressed that, “employers often force flexible work upon employees, not the other way around.” (p73) While it is understood and simply accepted that “young hopefuls” are often expected to do unpaid work experience “with no guarantee- and in some cases, no prospects- of a job at the end” (75), this reading goes further to explore that going from project to project not only makes it incredibly difficult in creating a living for industry new comers, but also experienced and “skilled veterans.”

The reading concluded stating that the problem with the creative industry is that “we want it both ways.” We want stability and support at the same time we want “the seductive informality” of creative jobs, we want “9-5 wages without 9-to-5 drudgery.” While one day it may be possible to “build a system that let these things coexist… few would assume the probability or even possibility of that outcome.” (p88).

As we prepare to get ready for this exciting industry with some very grim realities we will find a way to adjust to the realities of our industry, and if we one day are able to reach our goals (goals that will help us to push through the negative areas of the industry) we may one day be able to reflect upon and maybe even change these negative areas, like many have and are trying to do. But, in the mean time, it is probably wise to “make the best of the situation.” (p69)

Kesim, M. and Ozarslan, Y. (2012) ‘Augmented reality in education: Current technologies and the potential for education’, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 47, pp. 297–302.

Kesim and Ozarslan consider Augmented reality to be a new way to manipulate how we interact with the world. They explain Augmented Reality as technology that augments virtual information over your interrupted (through a devise) view of the real world. They refer to Azuma’s (1997) three characteristics that (he believes) Augmented Reality must have: “combining the real and virtual worlds, having real-time interaction with the user, and is being registered in a 3D space. Augmented Reality allows the user to see the real world and aim to supplement reality without completely immersing the user inside a synthetic environment.” (p298) Kesim and Ozarslan go on to discuss technologies that support Augmented Reality Systems. These include; Head Mounted Displays, worn on the head, directly or as part of a helmet using technology that allows the graphic overlay information to be reflected in the users eye, handheld displays, that overlays graphical information through “video-see-through” techniques with advantages that include portability, and the fact that smart-phones and tablets (handheld devices) are found virtually everywhere (ubiquitous) and pinch gloves, gloves with wireless sensors (that are often paired with a digital camera, gps and a range of other sensors) generally linked to a computer that analyzes the data. Kesim and Ozarslan argue that Augmented Reality technology used in education is not new, and has been used across a range of industries including medicine, engineering design, psychological treatments and medicine. They argue that augmented reality allows users to interact with the real world in ways “like never before.” This article was great introduction into what Augmented Reality is and how it can be used. It provides an overview of Augmented Reality, the devices that support it and its relation to education. While it was only brief it allowed the context to be understood clearly and provided a good starting point. One thing to be aware of when reading the article is the developments and larger use of Augmented Reality in the four years since the article was published, while the lists of platforms that supported Augmented Reality technology was informative over the last four years Augmented reality technology has moved more (in a public, easy to use sense) in the direction of handheld displays through tablets and predominantly smartphones.

Yilmaz, R.M. (2016) ‘Educational magic toys developed with augmented reality technology for early childhood education’, Computers in Human Behavior, 54, pp. 240–248.

The article identifies a relationship between playing and learning as an essential part in children’s development. Yilmaz argues that over the last few decades the concept of “toy” has changed considerably as traditional games and interactive computer games have been combined and proved to be of great benefit to children. These ‘smart toys’ or Educational Magic Toys (EMT) enrich play, providing a more creative environment, increase fantasy and enhance interaction and provide mixed reality. These toys do not only improve playtime, they also have great educational benefits. Yilmaz examines Lampe and Hinske (2007) ideal learning experience as: “a combination of physical experience, virtual content and the imagination of the child.” Yilmaz also identifies Azuma (1997) three characteristics that (he believes) Augmented Reality must have: “combining the real and virtual worlds, having real-time interaction with the user, and is being registered in a 3D space.” Yilmaz argues that 3D objects appearing in the real world creates a sense of magic, encouraging surprise and therefore curiosity. EMT has a range of different toys and games including; puzzles, flash cards and match cards (testing animals, fruits, vegetables, vehicles, colours, numbers and so on) aimed at children of the ages of 5 and 6, in early childhood education. These toys differentiate from other toys as they “integrate multimedia materials on toys and to provide magical sense by means of AR technology.” Yilmaz discusses a report on the attitudes, relationship and behaviors of students (and teachers) on EMT. The report concludes to find that teachers and children liked EMT activity, teachers positive attitude ad acceptance of the toys will allow them to use them in the future and that children, while playing with the toys, had high cognitive attainment, and as a result found that these toys can be effectively used in early childhood education. The article provided a large focus on EMT, which aren’t just augmented reality but augmented reality on a physical toy. The inclusion of the actual report, method and findings while harder for me to understand as it was written as a proper research report was interesting and allowed me to see the original thoughts and attitudes towards EMT and the shifts after the experiment for both teachers and children. The inclusion of teachers in the report was also great because it look to see if EMT could realistically be used in a classroom, children learning and benefiting from these toys is one thing but the teachers have to understand them and have positive attitudes towards them or else they will not be implemented to their full capabilities in the classroom.

Wu, H.-K., Lee, S.W.-Y., Chang, H.-Y. and Liang, J.-C. (2013) ‘Current status, opportunities and challenges of augmented reality in education’, Computers & Education, 62, pp. 41–49.

The article presents Augmented Reality as a bridge between virtual and real world. It argues that educational values of Augmented Reality “are not solely based on the use of technologies but closely related to how Augmented Reality is designed, implemented, and integrated into formal and informal learning settings”- how the technologies support learning is more important to consider for educational purposes that the type of technology used to create it. The article recognizes 5 areas, based off their research, that Augmented Reality could be used for educational purposes (page 43): enabling learning content in 3D perspectives, ubiquitous (everywhere), collaborative and stimulated learning, learners’ sense of presence, immediacy, and immersion, visualizing the invisible and bridging formal and informal learning. The break down of different areas that educational tools can be used through Augmented Reality as presented through this article is helpful because as we start to work towards creating something, or if we have an area of research we are particularly interested in we can look closely at one of those areas to get more specific examples and research to guide us. This article was supported by many other examples of research, which strengthened their arguments, and have provided us with more (specific) resources we can look at deeper if we feel they are relevant to our research.

Cascales, A., Pérez-López, D. and Contero, M. (2013) ‘Study on parent’s acceptance of the augmented reality use for preschool education’, Procedia Computer Science, 25, pp. 420–427.

This article presents a study exploring the parental influence on a child’s Augmented Reality use at preschool education. The study identified parents’ perspectives into five components: motivation, knowledge, reading and writing, creativity and degree of satisfaction. The conclusion of the study showed that parents rated the Augmented Reality experience positively. Parents proved to like learning with Augmented Reality and were able to adapt it to the school system. Parents believed that Augmented Reality resources helped their children to promote the five components addressed above. Parents also felt benefits with the resources provided through Augmented Reality with its ability to integrate knowledge, reading and writing into a common framework that supports a variation of learning activities. Ideas presented in this article are important to keep in mind as we continue our research. If we chose to focus on AR education for children it is important to consider parents attitudes towards the technology (something I hadn’t actually considered until I saw this article), this technology is still new in the sense that it isn’t being used commonly in schools so if you were working towards its development parents support would be crucial as this technology has to be supported both at school at home so the children can get the most out of it.

Special Report Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2016-2020

A World of Difference by Chris Lederer and Megan Brownlow

Chris Lederer and Megan Brownlow have pin-pointed five of the biggest shifts, categorized as dimensions, of the global entertainment and media industry These dimensions are: demography, competition, consumption, geography, and business models. Each of these shifts influences one another, and Lederer and Brownlow believe “they should serve as a serious call to action for many of the industry’s incumbent leaders, which can take control of their future.”

Demography:

Lederer and Brownlow recognise the ability, and speed, that younger consumers can adopt to, consume and multitask in different medias. Through their research they found that younger consumers will lead E & M growth through 2020. This was supported when they found countries where majority of the population was under 35 the E&M market is “growing three times as rapidly as in the 10 oldest markets”

Competition:

Lederer and Brownlow believe that “content will reign supreme as platforms seek to differentiate and expand internationally.” While E&M industry is growing on a global scale, it has been found that cultures and tastes remain local (even Netflix, which launched services in “130 new countries in a single day” are focusing on producing local content).

Consumption:

The ability to pick and chose what you engage with from the E&M industry is a powerful trend to emerge. This has created a growth in bundles being sold, which will shift the battle between networks and cable channels to newer platforms.

Geography:

Regulation is an important factor when looking at geographical growth. In china popular U.S websites are blocked and the number of foreign films annually shown are limited. Despite these restrictions China remains to have growth (in dollars) in their E&M sector. A challenge for E&M companies to navigate through local barriers (even as they aim for globalization).

Business Models:

Changes in technology are affecting well established industries. While this may be a challenge it can lead to opportunities if they embrace new technologies (especially digital) and combine it “with industry-centric assets- such as relationships, customers, and knowledge.”

Week One: 

The Fourth Industrial Revolution
For this blog post, I will focus on Klaus Schwab’s three main landscapes of technological drivers that contribute to the mega trends that have come to form, and allow to continue to evolve, what he recognises as ‘mega trends.’ Schwab recognises mega trends as all new developments. Three mega trends convey the broad landscape of technological drivers (of mega trends and therefore the fourth revolution). These trends are:
1. Physical
2. Digital
3. Biological
They are all deeply interested, and they all benefit from each other, even as they grow and develop further. Each of these innovations have been made possible and enhanced through digital power.

Physical (pg16)
There are four main physical manifestations
1. Autonomous Manufacturing
This includes driverless cars, trucks, drones, aircrafts and boats. At the moment these items are not heavily or cheaply available on market but as sensors continue to improve and grow, Schwab argues that they will grow to become affordable and popular.
2. 3.D Printing
(Also known as additive manufacturing)
Creates a physical object by printing layer upon layer from a digital 3D drawing or model, until the desired item or product is achieved. 3D printing is limited to applications in the automative, aerospace and medical industries (however, it is becoming increasingly popular in design and manufacturing).
3. Advanced Robotics
Used in a range of sectors from agurculture to nursing. As it continues to grow it will allow collaboration between humans and machines simpler and more effective, and ecentually a part of day to day life.
4. New Materials
As technology has grown and become readily available to the market the unimaginable has become possible in the span of a few years. Applications are now lighter, stronger, recyclable and adaptive. It is hard to know how far developments in new materials will lead but Schwab understands while there will be incredible benifits there will be significant risks to emerge that we may not be aware of during these developing stages.
Digital
Physical and digital applications are enabled by the Internet. These developments, aided by the Internet and the connection of digital technologies and various platforms, allow a relation between people and products, services, places and so on. This will also grow as sensors improve, Schwab argues that they will allow people and businesses to remain connected with their produce or items every step of their transit and possibly be able to assess and monitor their quality and a range of other information. This can be implemented in a range of industries. (Page 18) This type of technology and the platforms that have evolved have created ‘on-demand economy’ (page 19). An on-demand economy can be recognised through the following points: (pages 19-20)
– Accessible and easy to use on a smart phone
– Connects people, assets and data
– Contributes to a new way of consuming goods, helping to create the Fourth Industrial Revolution
– Lowers barriers for business and independents to create wealth
– Alters the personal and professional environment
– Dramatically reduced transaction costs

Biological
Leap in progress over recent years had reduced costs and increased the ease of genetic sequencing and will likely lead to editing genetics. Scientists and medical staff are now able to test specific genes, and while there is no clear link between genes and disease (yet) they are able to find accurate and specific treatments, rather than using a system of trial and error on a patient. Synthetic biology is the next step, which could eventually allow us to customise organisms by writing DNA, not just human DNA, but vertically any cell type including plants and animals! While this could have great reward and benefit it will raise many ethical issues and it continues to develop.

Over the last 6 weeks we managed to build a website and app-while we are focusing on the story of John Mitchell Christie, we chose to title our project ‘Pocket Museum.’ These platforms are home to videos, including 2 trailers (in total, one trailer to promote John Mitchell Christies story on the app, the other is on the home page of the website to draw a users attention to his section on the website) and a webisode. We also have audio files, telling the selected stories from the perspective of Christies wife. We did think about using the same actor who played Christie in the webisodes, however, we wanted to include a female in our project- Christie was a man who worked in a male dominated industry in a world where men tended to have more of a control, and most of our resources were also written by men, so it was good to have a female presence. By including his wife I believe it also helps to ground Christies story and encourage a sense of realism. It breaks down the fantasy element his life had, it reminds the audience that h was a real person, with a family, these stories actually took place in Melbourne. I was responsible for managing the app. To create the app we used ‘Goodbarber,’ it offered full online support and allowed me to build an app with out any knowledge in the area (and most importantly no coding). This task was incredibly daunting at first, it took hours to try and upload a video, which didn’t work half the time, but after just trying to build the app and not worrying about messing it up it began fairly easy to use. I quickly learnt that to tell this story successfully over multiple platforms I would have to work closely with Amy creating the website. We ensured that the designs and layouts were similar and we encouraged agency between the platforms. There was a point that we worried that the story may have gotten lost in the app and website, that it had become so broken up into different segments that it had simply disappeared, but once we had added the videos and audio files and put the final map points in it all came together and you could see the stories expand and flow between platforms. Unfortunately our vision of having an augmented reality component on the app did not happen. As far as we know the feature wasn’t available on goodbarber and we didn’t have the knowledge to do it ourselves, or the time to learn how to do it ourselves. Despite this, the interactive map is still very effective and does most of what we wanted- there are some geofences, alerting users to a pin near by, the pins also support a substantial amount of information and images, and encourage users to use all of the apps components (audio artifacts) and explore the website. I’m proud of what our group achieved, especially since it was the first app and website any of us had built. I believe that we tell the story of John Mitchell Christie successfully over multiple platforms, in an engaging and effective way that I hope to continue to grow in the future.

Pocket Museum…

The Website: http://pocketmuseumjmc.wix.com/pocketmuseum

The App: Pocket Museum is currently accessible on GooglePlay- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.goodbarber.pocketmuseum&hl=en

For iOS it can be accessed through the ‘my goodbarber’ app (select Pocket Museum, native preview, a screen will pop up telling you to pinch the screen to minimize the app, just tap this and you will se the start up screen/home page- explore from there!)
Username: pocketmuseumjmc@gmail.com
Password: JMCthestorylab

The videos and audio files are accessible through the app and website

The app and website are the two biggest components of our project as they hold all of the content the user is going to use to engage with John Mitchell Christie’s story. To encourage an easy transition between the website and the app, Amy and I worked to make sure the designs were similar. We used similar colours and fonts so that a user knows they are connected. We also ensured the actually layout was similar. Each platform has a home page with generic information- a section on John Mitchell Christie- which holds all of the relevant components, for easy access and a neat platform- a ‘contact us’ section which links the user to our Facebook page and provides an email address, and a ‘how to use the app’ section. This section allows the user to understand what the app is about, hopefully encouraging them to not only download the app, but actually use it and not feel overwhelmed when they open it and give up. We wanted the user to benefit from having the story told across multiple platforms, we want them to be engaged and excited, and not find it a nuisance. To try and make this possible, we carefully selected ways to present components of the story. We put a section titled ‘The story of John Mitchell Christie’ on both platforms so that the user can read the story in completion, and chose elements they may wish to continue to explore. Different videos were also includes; on the app the only John Mitchell Christie video acts as a trailer, so a user can watch it and decide if they want to explore the story, there is another trailer on the homepage of the website, to draw the users attention to John Mitchell Christie. There is also a webisode, which tells the story in a more dramatic way, the webisode may tie all of the story elements together for a user, or make them more engaged and eager to use the app and explore the historical setting. The language over the platforms is quite similar, we made sure that we planned the content together and then had one another read it to make sure it was similar. Some pieces were written with both platforms in mind and then adjusted slightly to suit a platform more. We also used language to encourage a sense of agency between the platforms, for example; on the app after you explore a point it states that you can read a more in depth case file on the website, just like a map on the website encourages users to look at the interactive map, as they can gage the environment they would be exploring if and when they use the app. Agency is also prompted with in the platforms, at the end of each map point the user is encouraged to listen to the audio pieces while in the environment. These artifacts are also on the website, while they were created so that the user listens to it in the setting of the story (hopefully immersing them in the story deeper) they can listen to it in the comfort of their own home. Both platforms have been created so that the user can have fun and learn about John Mitchell Christie, in a way that they maybe haven’t interacted with a story or history before, for this to be possible the app and website had to flow and had to encourage the user to engage with the content over both platforms (which I believe we have done).

While working towards creating this app, it dawned on me the other day that I wasn’t achieving exactly what I set out to do. This did make me panic a little, I cared a lot about this element of the app and let it slip behind. While I had built an augmented reality component, with pins that carried images and information, and even a few geofences, I realised that I hadn’t created a component that allowed the past, buildings and events and people, to rebuild through your phone. However, after a while I realised that it wasn’t that it had been forgotten or viewed to be insignificant (we still hope to get a function like that on the app one day!), it was a matter of being realistic with our (limited) knowledge on creating apps and the restricted time frame that we had (to not only build an app but to tell a coherent and interesting story). In April I found this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCm9PZfT-YY which has inspired me to be excited about the app, even if it isn’t exactly like I had planned it to be at this stage. This video demonstrates an app that uses geolocation and links the user to wiki pages about their surrounding locations. While this app is great, it reminds me of all the work it took to get our project to this point, all of the research and time spent on learning how to place a pin (and then moving it a few dozen times to ensure the location is accessible, safe and correct). Last week I was able to preview the app on my phone, components were still missing and I wasn’t near any pins to test them yet, but it was still an incredibly exciting, and even proud, moment, all of our work was beginning to take shape, John Mitchell Christie’s story was coming to life around Melbourne once more.