Hi folks – for Monday, Nov. 10th: Those of you who did not bring in your annotated bibliography last Friday need to do so on Monday. We’ll be breaking up into similar groups to discuss and share ideas on essays.
For Wednesday, Nov. 12th, please read: “Our Cell Phones, Ourselves” (pp 351-371) in Common Culture. Also, be prepared to discuss your progress on Essay # 3 with me and/or other students and come with any questions you might have about the research process or writing.
For the blog response this week, please choose one set of questions from the reading above (at the back of the article) to respond to and post here by Friday, November 14th.
Friday, November 14th, instead of meeting in class, please use that time to continue doing research on your last essay.
Check back for updates for next week . . .
14 responses so far ↓
kcrumb // November 13, 2008 at 3:14 pm |
In response to question 1:
People have mainly use phones for three reasons according to Rosen. To have convience, to feel safe, and to be social. With the convience of bieng able to call anyone anywhere you can do things in places you couldn’t do before. For example, Rosen explained how people in Slovakia will use thier phones to turn their heaters on in thier house before they are home while peolple i nNorway will use their phone to check on thier tax returns. Also, Rosen uses the example of someone forgetting their list for the greocery store at home and call at the store to get what they need. With phones that can go anywhere, we it makes life much more convienent.
Rosen also explains how phones are used to make people feel safe. For example, people feel more safe at night when they have a cell phone so if someone tries to attact them they can reach for help easily. Also, phones make us feel more safe on the road and if people get in a car accident or their car breaks down they can call for help. Being easily accesible, people get a sense of safety and feel they can always be in contact with other people that can help them.
Finaly, Rosen expalins that people use phones to be more social, at least to people they already know. With cell phones, people can call thier friends and family almost anywhere at anytime. We can be in constant communication with our love ones so we feel we are bieng social. Also, Rosen uses points form sociologist and pyschologist like Gooffman to explain that people pick up the phone even when they don’t know who is calling. They explain that people feel they are not being included in society if they don’t alsways answer the phone so people who want to feel social will always answer their cell phone, to feel accepted and social.
Rosen explains many dangers of the use of cell phones. One bieng the most obvious is cell phones and thier links to car accidents. She explains that by using a study that say that cell phones are results of thousands of car accidents. She also points studies that say it is possible cell phone radiation harms people minds and reproductive organs. She also points out that phones are breaking the social norms. People use to keep thier private conversations in thier homes and private areas but now people are sharing thier personel life with strangers around them that can’t help but over hear thier conversations. People are losing their ablity to socialize with strangers. Now, many people, espically the younger genration are on their cell phones everywhere and breaking the normal ettiquete of bieng quite and now being loud and annoying on their cell phones.
mikeb89 // November 13, 2008 at 4:48 pm |
Question 2
Rosen explains how the way you are suppose to act in public with a cell phone is still evolving today, with cell phones still being adapted to. She explains how behavior with the cell phones is changing the way people act, especially in public, and it changes our views of the world around us. People talking on the cell phone can be totally oblivious of what is around them, and they do not pay attention to what is going on at the time. Also, even carrying around a cell phone can change the expected behavior; people can act scared or nervous without a cell phone. She uses an example of one girl who thought she was going to be raped because she didn’t have a cell phone on her person. This is not a natural reaction and is not expected at any time, and the cell phone age changed her view on safety.
Rosen uses other various examples, such as cell phones during buying things in the checkout line, and during a trip to China. She said in the story that they immediately thought of using a cell phone to contact someone during their time of a great wonder on the great wall. This shows that cell phones can be a distraction and can ruin other people’s time or your own time. Cell phone use is supposed to be a private conversation with another person, and not barge into another’s day. When that bubble is broken, it is being rude and can be loud, obnoxious, and many other things. Cell phone use can also limit the social actions between others in your immediate vicinity, and people use their cell phones as an excuse to ignore those around them.
mxwilchek // November 13, 2008 at 5:43 pm |
Answer to Question 3:
Erving Goffman is a renoun sociologist and communicational theorist.
His forte is studying how people behave around strangers and how they “preform.” Through social interaction, we are suppose to have aspects of ourselves that are picked up by others around.
According to Erving’s major theory we “preform” in two regions. The first region is known as the frontal region. This theory basically means how the individual acts around others through visual or aural proximity, does not mean the individual has to be talking with others. Overall the frontal region mainly includes how polite they are around others.
The other region is known as the back region. The back region is the exact opposite of the front region, according to Goffman. Bascially our back region “performs” actions that contradict our frontal region actions in public places, not face to face.
The main point Rosen is trying to make in paragrah 33, by refrencing Erving Goffman is when we, the people are around other strangers/people and are talking on our cellphones which to Rosen is our back region acting up against our frontal region. By talking on our cellphones in front of random people to listen to us we are being immpolite and inconsiderate to the other people around forced to listen/overhear the meaningless conversation to them.
Overall I think Rosen makes a good point refrencing to Erving Goffman, and could definelty see where Goffman and Rosen are coming from.
main source: Rosen’s article
and
http://socserv2.mcmaster.ca/soc/courses/soc4j3/stuweb/cyber9/erv.htm
ncicalese // November 13, 2008 at 8:05 pm |
Question 2:
Society is still adapting to new technological advancements, especially cell phones. As we are adapting, cell phone etiquette is still evolving. Rosen explains how cell phone talkers don’t interact with the world around them. The challenges of cell phone etiquette are happening worldwide, although different countries are reacting in different ways. Some examples that Rosen uses to show that people are breaking expected rules of behavior with their cell phone use include standing in a grocery store checkout line and riding on a train. The last thing you would have expected to happen during these events is to have to hear the specific details of a complete stranger’s life, but now this is common. You don’t hear the short, “I’ll tell you all about it when I get home” conversations, but instead you listen to arguments, the latest gossip, and probably some things that are better left unsaid. Other common places where cell phones should be turned off are in movie theaters, at concerts, and during performances. We should respect that the public area is a shared space, and being considerate of others is important.
apiccioni // November 13, 2008 at 9:11 pm |
Question 2
Since technology has been advancing rapidly, etiquette rules have not been able to keep up with the modern age. One example Rosen gives us is that due to cell phone usage, people are now able to speak about private matters in very public places like grocery stores and shopping malls; we don’t care who hears our conversation or where we are. Rosen states that we have no problem going into great detail about our personal problems and issues because cell phones make us oblivious to the people and things around us. Rosen also points out that because we have a constant need to use cell phones, it is causing outbreaks of rudeness and violence. We seem to think it is okay for us to speak in public places like the movie theaters, but when someone else tries to do the same thing, we freak out and cause a scene. Cell phone users also have no problem holding up checkout lines as they carry on their conversations. Cell phones and technology in general have made the need for new etiquette rules to be made due to our rudeness and obliviousness to the environment we are in.
namatirai // November 13, 2008 at 10:09 pm |
Response to Question 1
According to Rosen the primary reasons why people use cell phones is because they are convenient and cellphones make them feel safe.Cellphones are convient in the sense that you can use them to communicate anywhere and at anytime,like when paramedics use camera phones to send ahead to hospitals pictures of the incoming injuries.
Cellphones make people feel safe because in case of emergency they can call for help.Rosen gave a good example of how individuals use cellphones to call for assistance when a car breaks down or plans go awry.
Another primary reason pointed out by Rosen is the use of cellphones for personal security.Parents now check up on there kids use cellphone tho Rosen says this is not a good way too check up on your kids.People also use cellphones to communicate.
The primary dangers of using cellphone is that they change people’s behaviours and also they make people talk about there private lives in public.cellphone also reduce the level of socialising people tend to speak to the people they know and don’t make new friends.
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chkimi2 // November 13, 2008 at 10:45 pm |
Why do people use cell phones? According to Rosen, the most chosen answer is convenience. Many people in many different countries have their own reasons on why their cell phone is convenient. Mostly it is used as shortcuts. From heating up homes to confirming taxes through text messages, cell phones have been letting us know and do things faster and easier. Cell phones also help many people in all kinds of occupations. From paramedics to construction workers, it makes their job a little bit easier and faster. Why bother to even buy a camera? Now-a-days every phone basically has a camera. It’s also helpful because they can send it to others right away. There’s no need to upload and send. For the everyday person, cell phones just simply make life much easier. As Rosen says, you can appointments whenever you have the time or to find out where a friend may be.
Another reason why people use cell phones is because it makes them feel safe. Cell phones are there with us whenever we need it, even in an emergency. People can call for help right away in any situation. A good situation would be car problems. If you’re in an accident or have car problems, you can call someone right away for help. Rosen speaks of cell phones during 9-11. It’s very sad, but because of cell phones, dying people were able to say good bye to their family and loved ones. *crycry* Same thing applied to the hijackings. Cell phones have become such a big part of our lives that we can’t live without it. It makes people feel unsafe and lost without their cell phones. Because cell phones help ensure safety, many parents have been giving kids cell phones. If they ever need to contact or tell their kids something, they can just call and find out. Many parents are paranoid, which results to monitoring their children with cell phones. Cell phone usage is different for each sex. According to Rosen, she says that men are more talkative on cell phones, but they mostly use it for business talk while for the women its more social talk. Many men also use their phones to show off their status in front of women.
Last but not least, Rosen says cell phones are creating new forms of social and political networking. Because most phones now have internet access, people can update their works. The cell phone is becoming more and more apart of us as time goes on. Soon all wired phones will be gone. Cell phones also help you locate friends that are near you. Or according to Rosen, you can meet new people that you’re near. Cell phones are also good for political organizers. It’s been used to send news around and to even protest.
Although cell phones can be a positive thing, it can also be a negative thing. A major concern that we still deal with today is driving while talking on cell phones. In a reading we did earlier this semester, we learned about how the language part of brain should only do one thing at a time. When we drive and talk on the phone, that part of our brain is forced to split which outputs weaker results. This caused bills to be passed and some states even made it necessary to use headsets. Viruses are also a big problem with cell phones. They can be virtual viruses…and real viruses. Some doctors in an Israeli hospital had phones that were contaminated with bacteria. Phones have also become vulnerable to viruses through the web. Now that many phones can access the internet, they can also access the viruses that come with it. People use cell phones so much that people have become addicted to it. Many students who owns phones constantly use their phone wherever they are. Whenever they don’t have their phones, they can’t stand it. Unfortunately, cell phones also help wives and husbands commit adultery. It also causes the spread of porn shot by people with their cell phones. There was a big problem where people were taking pictures of others in locker rooms, bathrooms, and dressing rooms. With cell phones becoming more and more advanced, we’re bound to face more and new dangers of cell phones.
ssinghq // November 14, 2008 at 12:05 am |
According to Rosen, cell phones have both advantages and disadvantages. People usually use their cell phones for convenience, safety, and to have better social life. Rosen describes in her article how in Slovakia, people are using cell phones to remotely switch on the heat before they get back home. Paramedics use camera phones to send ahead to hospitals pictures of the incoming injuries.
According to the article, more than ninety percent of cell phone users also report that owning a cell phone makes them feel safer. For example, CTIA reports that in 2001 nearly 156,000 wireless emergency calls were made every day. Individuals use their cell phone to call for assistance when their car breaks down or plans go awry.
Rosen believes that people socialize better with the increasing use of cell phone. In one way this increasing use of cell phone is good because people talk to people they already know; hence, making their social bonds stronger. Sociologist and psychologist explain that people feel they are not being included in society if they don’t always answer the phone. Therefore, people always answer their cell phone because they feel more socially accepted in the contemporary society. It can be said that this extensive use of cell phones in the society to socialize has become a vital part of modern culture.
Where cell phones have all these uses and advantages, Rosen also brings up a lot of disadvantages of the use of cell phones. She says that phones are weakening the traditional bonds of authority. Use of cell phones is also coming up with unintended consequences such as declaring divorce on cell phone which is considered as shame in some countries where marriage is religious, holy, and may be irreversible process. Obsessive text messaging and talking on phone has lead to numerous car accidents. It is also violating our everyday sense of normal behavior. People use cell phones and get engaged in their personal conversations in public place.
sohaiba // November 14, 2008 at 12:34 am |
In response to question 5, Rosen uses the anecdote in paragraph 46 to demonstrate the ability that modern technology gives us in order to overcome common predicaments such as locating a lost member of a group. She strengthens that sentiment with the last sentence of the next paragraph “Or perhaps it is simply because cellphones have become everyday wonders – as unremarkable to us as the Great Wall is to those who see it everyday.” This statement could be interpreted as, we take our cell phones for granted, and we don’t contemplate on the aide we receive from our phones on a day-to-day basis. It is made in reference to one of her main arguments, that cell phone use is changing our behavior.
In general, Rosen uses anecdotes to explain the vague points in her article instead of well organized research data, for example the narration of a scene from the movie Cellular in paragraph 9 in order to show how conceiving a cellphone as a lifeline can encourage irrational behavior. This writing style reenacts the example in a reader’s head giving him/her an idea of the point the author is trying to make.
snguyeng // November 14, 2008 at 12:38 am |
Question 2:
The examples that Rosen gave were: to have a sense of security, convenience, and to improve one’s social status. Some people can’t live without a cell phone, for example, Rosen told a short description of a girl who felt like she was going to be raped if she didn’t have her cell phone. People can also use their cell phones to call for help if they are lost or got into an accident and can’t go to the hospital on their own. Cell phones being convenient is another main reason why people use cell phones. They can use it to call people they don’t see that often to schedule meetings or parties. Adults can call their kids at night to see where they are and what they are doing when they have not come home. Rosen also gave an example of a person going grocery shopping but forgetting what to buy or leave the shopping list at home; that person could call home and ask whoever is at home to tell them what they needed to buy on the grocery list. Rosen says that cell phones help us improve our social status, but it only improves the relationships with the people we already know. It does not really help us meet new people, but instead it sort of isolates us from the “outside world” of strangers we do not know, and brings us to the people we already know and makes the bonds that we have with them stronger.
The primary dangers of cell phones today would be the people who drive and talk on the cell phone at the same time, I mean I have to admit I’ve talked on the cell phone and driven a car at the same time, but I’ve never gotten into an accident. Since I usually drive with one hand anyway I do not think it would make much difference in my driving whether I’m talking on the cell phone or not. Rosen talks about how sometimes when you are talking with a friend someone calls you and you have to briefly “pause” the conversation then continue it “after” the cell phone conversation is over. So sometimes, cell phones can be quite distracting in the daily life of a person.
snguyeng // November 14, 2008 at 12:40 am |
Question 2:
The examples that Rosen gave were: to have a sense of security, convenience, and to improve one’s social status. Some people can’t live without a cell phone, for example, Rosen told a short description of a girl who felt like she was going to be raped if she didn’t have her cell phone. People can also use their cell phones to call for help if they are lost or got into an accident and can’t go to the hospital on their own. Cell phones being convenient is another main reason why people use cell phones. They can use it to call people they don’t see that often to schedule meetings or parties. Adults can call their kids at night to see where they are and what they are doing when they have not come home. Rosen also gave an example of a person going grocery shopping but forgetting what to buy or leave the shopping list at home; that person could call home and ask whoever is at home to tell them what they needed to buy on the grocery list. Rosen says that cell phones help us improve our social status, but it only improves the relationships with the people we already know. It does not really help us meet new people, but instead it sort of isolates us from the “outside world” of strangers we do not know, and brings us to the people we already know and makes the bonds that we have with them stronger.
The primary dangers of cell phones today would be the people who drive and talk on the cell phone at the same time, I mean I have to admit I’ve talked on the cell phone and driven a car at the same time, but I’ve never gotten into an accident. Since I usually drive with one hand anyway I do not think it would make much difference in my driving whether I’m talking on the cell phone or not. Rosen talks about how sometimes when you are talking with a friend someone calls you and you have to briefly “pause” the conversation then continue it “after” the cell phone conversation is over. So sometimes, cell phones can be quite distracting in the daily life of a person.
vixers // November 14, 2008 at 3:24 am |
Question 1.
According to Rosen, what are the primary reasons why people use cell phones? What are the primary dangers of cell phone use?
Ever since the cell phone was invented, it has become a popular accessory to every person’s repertoire. The cell phone serves as a symbol of wealth, wherein only those who could afford the phone as well as the plan, but it also represents power, for where there is connection to the world, there is power. We use cell phones today primarily because of practical reasons such as safety and convenience. Rosen mentions the advantages of a cell phone where people could switch on the heat in their houses, confirm tax returns, or take pictures for their jobs. Not only can we easily turn any setting into our homes, work places or psychiatrist offices, we can easily connect to the world around us in a quick and efficient manner.
In reference to the prominence of connection, cell phones serve as a beneficial networking tool. “Moblogging” allows us access to the Internet to check our e-mail or facebook, while some phones have the technology to locate our friends within a ten block radius. It allows us to easily communicate with our long-distance friends or family.
Although cell phones are seemingly essential to our lives, they can be quite dangerous for us as a society. Our cell phones have become so important in our lives they we have begun depending on them to such a large extent that there are some cases of addiction. It pulls us away from society, acting as a noise pollution, where we would could attend a social event but our hearts and mind would be focused on our phones rather than social interaction with tangible persons. It gives us a false sense of privacy with our loss of interaction with the outside world. Rosen mentions that “the person who removes himself from the social situation is sending a clear message to those around him: I don’t need you.” Therefore cell phone use in socials can present a negative image to society. Not only is this behavior bad for our social perceptions, but it presents itself as a method of bad manners that could provoke annoyed or violent reactions from surrounding people.
One of the most popular reasons for cell phone use is safety. Rosen reports that “more than ninety percent of cell phone users also report that owning a cell phone makes them feel safer.” Although having a cell phone could increase chances of safety when in a remote suspicious area or a low populated area, using a cell phone solely for safety increases cell phone dependency. Although most parents approve of cell phones due to personal security, depending on cell phones can actually “weaken the traditional bonds of authority.” Parents who depend solely on their children’s responsibility to answer the phone allow their children to lie more often and bestows more freedom upon the kids.
Using cell phones as a flirting device under the pretense of popularity may seem as a benefit, however, many people use cell phones to commit adultery and invade others’ privacy. In addition, cell phones also act as a median for sicknesses. People also use their cell phones while driving, which is very unsafe. Along with its health and safety risks, cell phones can also be effected by viruses that also effect computers.
Most of all, cell phones now blur distinctions between conversation and talk. It is hard to judge whether cell phones provide a genuine method of communication between two people rather than empty, meaningless gossip.
peterdeutsch // November 14, 2008 at 9:32 am |
Question 1.
According to Rosen, what are the primary reasons why people use cell phones? What are the primary dangers of cell phone use?
Since the invention of the cell phone, and its wide spread use in our society of late it has caused to our society become dependent on it and it’s many availabilities. Rosen argues that the three main reasons for people to use cell phones are: convenience, social life, and personal security. Rosen also mentions that the primary danger of cell phones is our own dependability on them are their many uses.
People use their phones for convenience, that is what has been reported, and what Rosen states. It is convenient because you essentially have full connection to the outside World at the end of your finger tips. Then there comes the argument that cell phones are used more for the use of social life for teenagers, rather than for convenience. For instance, Rosen talks about how many people will be in a social gathering and will put out their phone and look at it then put it back in their pocket. The final argument that Rosen states is that numerous people own cell phones for their own personal security. In case people may be in a bad situation, and need help they have a cell phone there to make the connection.
The primary danger for cell phones that Rosen states is that we, as a people have become dependent on our cell phones and their many uses. That we can not survive in a social setting without our cell phones, because we are so attached to them. It is true, we cannot go a night without using our phones in some way, may that be for convenience, social life, or for our own personal security, and that is a problem.
nmalliar // November 16, 2008 at 5:55 pm |
1) According to Rosen, the primary reasons why people use cell phones is due to convenience and safety. It is convenient for people to be able to come into contact with whomever they want by just reaching in their pocket and dialing a number. This concept also leads to feelings of being safe. If people feel as if they are in danger, then they can easily and quickly call for help. This safety concept has also led parents to provide thier children with cell phones. This allows them the ability to contact their kids very efficiently to find out where they are. In addition to the safety and convenience factors, there is also a social concept with cellular devices. People lacking a cell phone are considered behind the curve and out of the mainstream. Cell phones enable people to communicate across long distances and allow them to enhance social skills.
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