Questions for the article "Digital McLuhan"

1) What are the differences between the pre-literate acoustic world and the alphabetical visual world? How does the media of television become a part of the acoustic world?

The difference between the pre-literate acoustic world and the alphabetical visual world is that according to the text “is the world viewed through pre-literate eyes is a world of no boundaries in which information emerges not from fixed positions but anywhere and everywhere. It is the world of music, myth, and total immersion”, while the alphabetical visual world is in the form of television and lacks perspective or distance from it's subjects. Television becomes a part part of the acoustic world because it is also a musical, mythic, and immersive form.   

2) Why does the alphabet have the segregating tendencies? How exactly does the printing press reverse the segregating tendencies?

The alphabet had segregating tendencies because of it's origin as a solitary medium, texts that were usually readable by no more then one set of eyes at one time, and capable of being copied only by dint of someone transcribing page per page as the text says. The printing press reverses the segregating tendencies by having more then one copy of alphabetical texts available to many more then one person and to public’s rather then to disparate people as the text explains.

3) How does the alphabetic communication in online communication make cyberspace acoustic? How is the online acoustic world different from the television, radio, or print acoustic world?

The alphabetic communication in online communication make cyberspace acoustic because of the instant communication people can have around the world no matter where they are, through live chats that are available all the time.

The online acoustic world is different from the television, radio, or print acoustic world because in the text it says that radio and television, and products of the printing press are cases of “closed” acoustic space while in online communication approximates at least part of the openness of the in-person conversation.    

4) Not only do we invent media and media technologies but also we select their uses in different contexts. What are the two selection criteria? According to the selection criteria, please discuss what will happen to our online communication in 20 years?

 

The two selection criteria are wanting media to extend to there communications beyond the biological boundaries of naked seeing and hearing and wanting media to recapture elements that of that biological communication which early artificial extensions may have lost as the text says. According to the selection criteria in 20 years our online communication is that the alphabet may disappear which would be a bad thing for everyone for many reasons.