I was really nervous to attend this lecture for no reason other than it being my first one ever! 15 months work free and  3 incredible summer’s later, I found myself saying goodbye to the freedom of spontaneity, long summer nights and travel by walking through those doors and into a room full of 100 nameless faces I didn’t know.  The lecture began with a random song that left everyone uncomfortably waiting and suspending the small talk conversations with people they had just met. Luckily I had found a girl I had met during orientation to sit with (Unaware she would be in nearly everyone of my classes and that we would actually share lots in common, she’s pretty awesome). I nervously sat there awaiting what would proceed me for the next couple of hours and In saying that a projection of what the next few months would entail. As the lecture drew on I found myself becoming more comfortable entertaining the idea of Uni. The lecture was based around the theme of Ecologies (the study of media environments, the idea that technology and techniques, modes of information and codes of communication play a leading role in human affairs-Lance Strate, “Understanding MEA,” In Medias Res 1 (1), Fall 1999). And the major idea of attention was introduced, the reading “Hyper and Deep Attention: The Generational Divid in Cognitive Models” (N.Katherine Hayles 2007), explored the ideas of hyper attention and deep attention. deep attention meaning sole and unwavering concentration on one particular task, and hyper referring to the ability to float between tasks within the same time frame. The text hypothesized the “generational shift in cognitive styles” that is taking place. This refers to the contrast between hyper and deep attention and how children have a a shift in their style of attention, as a result of institutions using deep attention methods for teaching. The article was written in the year 2007 which is interesting because I would have been at the age that the article speaks about when it was written. In a way it made me think if I had a shift in my own style of attention growing up as a result of school teaching, or if I had maintained a certain style throughout my lifetime. Does that say something about my personality? I think all in all the lecture exceeded my expectations and has braced me for what I believe will be a challenging and thought provoking semester, one that I now feel ready to tackle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *