Text Technologies: The Changing Spaces of Reading and Writing
My prompt: “Describe or narrate a scenario about a game found a millenium into a future in which society as we know it has come apart. Your description should address issues related to the brain and elicit feelings of dread.”
Click here to view my submission for task 12.
Please click on the interactive elements to view the screenshots of data visualization.
Among the other 21 participants, Didy Huang and Garth von Buchholz had the most similar choices as me: seven same songs out of the ten pieces.
Didy Huang: Track 3, 6, 7, 9, 14, 18, 24.
Garth von Buchholz: Track 3, 7, 14, 18, 20, 23, 24.
Songs we all chose: Track 3, 7, 14, 18, 24.
On the other hand, Richard Payne had the most different choices than me. We only have one same song out of the ten pieces we selected: track 9.
I was curious about the rationale behind our choices, so I looked into their task 8 posts and summarized our criteria. I noticed that Richard’s selections of songs in task 8 were highly different from his choices in the dataset; therefore, I chose to compare Michaelle Haughian’s criteria instead since her list was the second most different from mine (we only had three same songs).
According to the comparison table, it is evident that I had more similar parameters as Didy and Garth than Michaelle, which explained at least part of the reason why we had similar or different choices.
Reasons behind the similar responses
Similar parameters: As discussed above, the similar criteria we made in task 8 were one of the reasons why we chose many similar songs in our lists.
Cultural influences: People who grow up in the same geographical area may have similar music preferences because of early exposure to similar musical influences.
Emotional resonance: People may connect with music on an emotional level. If the genre, melody, rhythm, or lyrics resonate with their emotions and experiences, they may choose similar music. For example, Michaelle emphasized her “own emotional relations to the sounds” when choosing the pieces (Haughian, 2023).
Personal preference: Music choices are undoubtedly influenced by personal preferences due to personality, values, and other factors. For example, Laura mentioned in her post that she chose “songs familiar and upbeat” based on her bias (Orlowski, 2023).
Network visualization
One of the advantages of network visualization is that it can explicitly reveal patterns and clusters within data. Networks represent relationships and connections in a visually comprehensible manner, making it intuitional to analyze complex data. Also, Network visualization allows users to explore data interactively (zooming in/out, changing node positions, and filtering data), fostering a deeper understanding of the network.
However, in large and densely connected networks (like the one we have here), overlapping edges can hinder readability and create confusion. Also, network visualization tends to emphasize the structural aspects (connections, patterns, relationships, etc.) of a network, therefore overlooking other attributes (e.g., reasons behind the choices) that could be important for understanding the data. Regarding null choices, network visualization may not accurately represent the full scope of the dataset when null choices are not addressed, leading to incomplete or misleading conclusions. Even if creating a new data visualization with input data of “songs you didn’t choose,” the reasons behind these null choices cannot be shown explicitly.
References
Haughian, M. (2023, October 29). Task 8: Golden Record Curation | Text Technologies: The Changing Spaces of Reading and Writing. https://blogs.ubc.ca/auntiesocial/2023/10/29/task-8-golden-record-curation/
Huang, D. (2023, October 25). Task 8: Golden Record Curation – Didy’s Webspace. https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540ddhng/2023/10/25/task-8-golden-record-curation/
Orlowski, L. (2023, October 29). Task 8: Golden Record Curation | ETEC 540 Blog by Laura Orlowski. https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540lauraorlowski/2023/10/29/task-8-golden-record-curation/
Von Buchholz, G. (2023, October 28). Task 8: Golden Record curation assignment | ConText | Garth von Buchholz. https://blogs.ubc.ca/garthvb/2023/10/28/task-8-golden-record-curation-assignment/
Wang, B. (2023, October 18). Task 8: Golden Record curation – Bingying (Iris) Wang-ETEC540. https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540bingyingwang/2023/10/18/task-8-golden-record-curation/
Screenshot
Reflection
“Deception appears in various guises in user interfaces on the web today” (Brignull, 2011, para.1). I did not realize how disastrous a user interface with many deceptions could be before playing User Inyerface. Now, I have a greater appreciation for well-designed user interfaces.
User Inyerface is an intentionally frustrating and challenging online game that put me through counterintuitive tasks, leading to helplessness and irritation. After playing the game, I could not agree more with Brignull’s claim that it is pretty easy to “take our understanding of human psychology and flip it over to the dark side” (para.4). Humans use top-down processing a lot to perceive things by utilizing existing knowledge, experiences, and expectations (Cherry, 2023). User Inyerface takes advantage of human’s top-down processing to design tasks that go entirely against common design principles to get players in trouble.
However, I indeed found this game amusing precisely because of its intentional absurdity. Also, this game encouraged my critical thinking and pushed me to think outside the box, preventing me from relying on a single method or metric to solve problems.
Analysis of User Inyerface
User Inyerface is filled with traps or challenges that subvert common user interface conventions. These traps are meant to confuse players and test their patience. Here are some of the “annoying” designs I found in the game:
(Please click on all the interactive elements for full text, images, and GIFs.)
References
Brignull, H. (2011). Dark patterns: Deception vs. honesty in UI design. A List Apart, 338.
Cherry, K. (2023). What is Top-Down Processing? Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-top-down-processing-2795975#:~:text=Top%2Ddown%20processing%20involves%20perceiving,to%20interpret%20new%20sensory%20information
The 10 pieces of music I chose:
Please click on the red interactive icon (left of the title) to view the full music list, and click on the country flags to watch individual videos.
Human voices
Human speech and the human voice are primary forms of communication on earth. If extraterrestrial life forms have the capacity for vocal communication, including human voices could serve as a point of connection. Also, human voices can express a wide range of emotions and intentions, potentially helping more efficient message passing. Therefore, I included pieces 1, 2, 4, 5, and 7.
Universality
Universally understood music may have a better chance of being comprehensible to a wide range of potential recipients. This means choosing relatively simple and intuitive music unrelated to specific linguistic contexts. So I added pieces 2, 3, 6, 8, and 10 to my list. Additionally, adding music with universal mathematical foundations enables communication with creatures who don’t have hearing or live in different time scales (Taylor, 2019). Since mathematics was highly incorporated into Beethoven’s music (Chang, 2007), I included the number 9.
Human diversity
In order to present a more comprehensive representation of human creativity and culture, I chose to add songs with different types and backgrounds. My list included Jazz & Blues (number 3), Rock and Roll (number 4), popular music (number 4 and number 5), and classical music (number 9). Moreover, I added pieces tied to specific cultural contexts, emphasizing our cultural diversity. For example, the second song shows the culture of Navaja Indians, and piece 6 represents Chinese culture.
Human values
Incorporating aspects of human values, such as love, cooperation, and empathy, can help represent the best aspects of humanity and convey the idea that we aspire to live by these principles. Expressing peaceful intent may serve as a foundation for building a positive and cooperative relationship. Therefore, I selected songs that beautifully depict highly abstract terms. In detail, pieces 1 and 7 tell about marriage, love, and memory; number 2 is about healing; and pieces 6 and 10 depict the nature of the earth.
References
Chang, C. C. (2007). Fundamentals of piano practice. https://fundamentals-of-piano-practice.readthedocs.io/about.html
Taylor, D. (Host). (2019, April). Voyager golden record. [Audio podcast episode]. In Twenty thousand hertz. Defacto Sound.
This is my original task 1: What’s in your bag?
Here is the new version:
Process
My initial idea was to create a Twine game with audio, sound effects, and images since I had just learned to use Twine for the previous task and enjoyed the game-making process. Also, I believed that this Twine game would align with the New London Group’s (1996) emphasis on multimodal representation by including text, audio, and images. However, I realized that a Twine game was still mainly a visual design supplemented by audio elements. Therefore, I changed my mind and decided to create a production that was primarily audio and supported by visual elements if needed.
According to The New London Group (1996), all meaning-making is multimodal. To align with this claim as much as possible, I decided to add my native language (Mandarin) in my work as “spoken language is a matter of audio design as much as it is a matter of linguistic design” (The New London Group, 1996, p.81).
Thinking further about the audio design, I decided to add sounds made by my items to make my task more creative. After deciding things to include in my work, I recorded audio clips of me describing the Mandarin names and functions of my items, then recorded how these items sound when I use them. After that, I combined the audio clips (using Veed and Jianying). In addition, I added corresponding images and visual effects to supplement my audio design. To abide by my initial decision that this product is primarily audio, I did not add any captions (visual elements).
Potential benefits of engaging in mode-changing
1. Multimodal content is more engaging.
Multimedia presentations that combine text, images, and audio can create a more immersive and appealing communication experience than text-only ones.
2. Multimodal content aids in comprehension and memory.
Different people absorb information in distinct ways. Combining multiple modes can increase the chances of people understanding and retaining the information. For example, using visual aids alongside spoken explanations in presentations can help clarify and reinforce key points. Moreover, Li (2020) claimed that multimodal content helps information and deepen content knowledge.
3. Mode-changing enables better contextual adaptation.
Certain information is better suited for different modes. For instance, statistical data is better illustrated by visual tables or graphs, while audio explanations convey abstract concepts better. I believe that combining spoken pronunciation and visual text is a better way to show my audience a new language.
4. Mode-changing facilitates multimodal literacies.
Multimodal literacies, the inevitable forward trajectory of literacy, are the main focus of 21st-century literacy (Albers & Sanders, 2010). The New London Group (1996) also claimed that “multimodal literacies … are increasingly important to all communication, particularly the mass media” (p.62). According to Kress (2005), various modes available for delivering information, yet provide specific potentials for communication, have different limitations. Therefore, mode-changing enables better cooperation between various modes; as a result, facilitating multimodal literacies.
Potential challenges of engaging in mode-changing
1. Complexity and efficiency
Converting content between different modes can be time-consuming and complicated, requiring additional software or skill. For instance, making a creative audio-based presentation (recording and editing audio clips) takes more time than just typing the text.
2. Inconsistent user experience
People absorb information in various ways. Some individuals are more visual learners, while others prefer auditory learning. Content delivered using different modes may result in inconsistent user experience. For example, visual learners might find my audio-based work hard to follow and remember, leading to confusion or frustration.
References
Albers, P., & Sanders, J. (2010). Multimodal literacies : An introduction. Literacies, the Arts, and Multimodality, 3, 1–25. https://secure.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Books/Sample/32142Intro_x.pdf
Kress, G. (2005), Gains and losses: New forms of texts, knowledge, and learning. Computers and Composition, 2(1), 5-22.
Li, M. (2020). Multimodal pedagogy in TESOL teacher education: Students’ perspectives. System, 94, 102337. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2020.102337
The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. (Links to an external site.) Harvard Educational Review 66(1), 60-92.
According to Kress (2005), “words are highly conventionalised entities, and only exist in that manner” (p.15). Therefore, words are limited and nearly empty of meaning, and the meanings must be filled with readers. On the other hand, “there is an infinitely large potential of depictions — precise, specific, and full of meaning” (Kress, 2005, p.16).
Before completing this task, I thought using emoji to represent plots would be more similar to using depictions than words. However, I found a limited number of emojis to use, and most of them convey specific meanings. Therefore, emojis are more like an intersection between words and image depictions, possessing the upsides and downsides of both.
As Bolter (2001) claimed, different people may interpret the same image message in different words, and people who speak different languages may have similar picture writing. Emojis, as an intersection of words and images, might evoke mixed reactions among readers. I expect that my peers might explain my emoji task in various but similar words since most emojis express particular meanings. Moreover, due to the cultural, linguistic, and experience differences, my peers might have very different emoji writing than mine for the same story.
I relied mainly on words and ideas
After deciding on the storyline, I broke the story into its essential elements, such as characters, settings, and emotions. To ensure that my peers could follow the storyline, I focused on the most critical aspects of the story and kept emojis concise.
For concrete words, such as movie, love, and castle, I directly searched the word using the Emoji Keyboard. Words with no linked emojis pushed me to think out of the box and convey the meaning using easily recognizable emojis. For words with multiple emojis, I chose the most straightforward one to maintain clarity.
Order and position
For each chunk of my emoji story, the first symbol represents the actor of particular movements, aligning with Kress (2005)’s claim that “being first may means … being [the] cause of an action” (p.12).
I also used left-to-right and top-to-down sequencing for my emoji story, the same as my writing sequences. I believe this unconscious decision for writing order was influenced by my language (English and Mandarin), aligning with Boroditsky (2011)’s claim that languages affect people’s direction of writing. Moreover, the passage of time in my emoji story follows my writing direction. Therefore, I started with the title and completed the task following the ongoing plots.
How did I choose the theme?
Honestly, I chose the work based on how easy it would be to visualize and its popularity. I initially tried to work on Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which I watched most recently, but I couldn’t figure out a way to represent all the different versions of Spider-Man. As I mentioned before, there are limited numbers of emojis to use, restricting my ability to describe the storyline. Therefore, I chose a famous story that most people know, minimizing the possibility that my peers get confused when reading my emoji story.
References
Bolter, J. D. (2001). Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Boroditsky, L. (2011). How language shapes thought. Scientific American, 304(2), 62-65.
???? Emoji Keyboard Online ???? ???? ???? ???? – Click to copy emojis. (n.d.). https://emojikeyboard.io/
Kress, G. (2005), Gains and losses: New forms of texts, knowledge, and learning. Computers and Composition, 2(1), 5-22.
This was my first time using Twine to make a text-based game; I have to mention that Twine is a very user-friendly tool for creating interactive, nonlinear stories! I thoroughly enjoyed developing this story that features two classic learning types.
Hypertext’s multiplicity gives readers a changed experience when communicating with the text (Bolter, 2001). Compared to traditional books with single orders of sections and pages, hypertext provides a story network (Bolter, 2001). Even though I determined the paths of the story, I still tried to give readers “the illusion of control” by letting them choose their preferred links (Bolter, 2001, p.43). For example, I set out choices such as “Are you a cat person/a dog person?”
Creation process
1. Main Topic & Ideas
After deciding on the main topic, I started by brainstorming and laying out a network of ideas in a less formal way. In this “prewriting” activity, I was overwhelmed with ideas, as Bolter (2001) mentioned, and had to organize and summarize the text at the end (p.33).
2. Draft document
When writing the draft document, I tried to find matched pictures simultaneously. Additionally, I decided which specific words or phrases to use as hide/show text or to change the page.
3. Build on Twine
Then I just copied text in my draft and pasted it in the passage windows on Twine. Testing every passage after finishing was essential during this stage to ensure the story paths were connected through the textual space.
4. Adjust details
Ultimately, I adjusted the text color to match the associated images on a specific page. Also, I learned from an online Twine tutorial to make the size of images adjustable along with that of the browser window.
Twine Game
I hope you enjoy! Click here for playing online: What is Learning?
Here is the zip file link: learning.html
References
Bolter, J. D. (2001). Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Here is my handwritten reflection. Please click on the interactive elements below for full image and typed text.
Do you normally write by hand or type? Did you find this task difficult or easy? Explain.
I do not normally write by hand these days. I used to be a handwriting person; I took notes by hand during university even though my laptop was with me all the time. Choosing and buying lovely notebooks and colorful pens for the incoming semester was exciting and enjoyable. Nowadays, it is hard to even find a piece of paper in my apartment, but I still sometimes write by hand using my iPad. I did not find this task too difficult because of the muscle memory I developed when learning to write. Even though I have not written by hand for a while, my finger muscles can quickly recall the writing movements when I start writing again. Also, I practiced Italian handwriting during high school, so I am confident and motivated to write this task by hand.
What did you do when you made a mistake or wanted to change your writing? How did you edit your work? Did your choice of media play a part in how you edited your work?
When I made the first mistake, I got confused for a second because I did not find the “delete” key. I am so used to being able to go back and delete after making mistakes when typing on laptops, making editing a handwriting note challenging for me. I could only cross out the mistake and rewrite it correctly for this handwritten text. Also, it is not easy to produce error-free text when writing by hand since I do not have the aid of editing and auto-correction tools. So, I decided to write a draft, edit it by fixing grammatical or structural mistakes, and rewrite it on another paper. My choice of media played a part in how I edited my work. Paper and pen made editing more troublesome than an iPad, which provides convenient functions such as selecting and moving, copying and pasting, and erasing.
What do you feel is the most significant difference between writing by hand and using mechanized forms of writing? Which do you prefer and why?
I feel the most significant difference is the editing and corrections. Making edits in handwritten text is more cumbersome because it often involves crossing out words or starting over. Directly producing an error-free work seems impossible. In comparison, mechanized forms of writing can be easily produced using digital tools, which allows users to delete, cut, copy, and paste text with ease. Also, I had to think more about spelling when writing by hand and still made spelling mistakes, which can easily be auto-corrected when typing.
Bolter (2001) claimed that “when in the history of writing a new technology appears, it may supplement an established technology or replace it” (p.22). From my observation, phones, laptops, computers, and other developing technological products are gradually replacing paper and pen. I personally prefer typing on a keyboard because it provides various advantages. Typing is less physically demanding than handwriting, which leads to hand fatigue after writing for a while. Also, typing allows for faster and more efficient writing, assisting me to finish tasks with speed and accuracy. Digital documents can be stored and retrieved quickly, making information management more efficient. Moreover, as Bolter (2001) mentioned, web spaces contain multimedia features (audio, video, interactive elements, etc.) that paper does not.
References
Bolter, J. D. (2001). Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print (2nd ed). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
[06:30] Dr. Boroditsky claims that speakers of different languages have to think differently because speakers must pay attention to such different information just to be able to speak (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
Kuuk Thaayorre language speakers must pay attention to absolute cardinal directions all the time to be able to have normal daily conversations because they do not use any relative spatial terms (Boroditsky, 2011). Even just for greetings, they may need to give accurate responses regarding directions.
In my own experience, Chinese speakers need to focus on the relationships among family members and relatives all the time to call them properly. The reason is that there are different words for all types of relatives. For example, Boroditsky (2011) said, “I would have to specify whether a titular uncle is maternal or paternal and whether he is related by blood or marriage because there are different words for all these different types of uncles” (p.64).
[13:25] Dr. Boroditsky mentions that times don’t just have to be on the horizontal axis (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017). For example, in Mandarin, the past is up, and the future is down, indicating a vertical axis in addition to the horizontal one.
According to Boroditsky (2011), the direction of writing in a language affects how people organize time. For example, in accordance with their respective writing directions, English speakers arrange a series of events from left to right and Hebrew speakers tend to arrange events from right to left.
For Chinese speakers, the overwhelming majority of writing follows the same direction as English speakers today. Vertical writing (from top to bottom in columns) is another standard format for written Chinese, especially for classical texts and calligraphy (Holdenje, 2023). The vertical format is still commonly used in traditional settings. I think this is one of the reasons why Chinese speakers use an additional vertical axis (up for past and down for future) for times.
[18:37] Dr. Boroditsky claims that changing how people talk can change how people think (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
As a multilingual learner (Chinese and English), I think my thinking has changed after speaking English daily. For example, I began to value autonomy, personal achievement, and self-independence more during my university life. Being dependent upon my parents is considered embarrassing for me. Also, I place a greater emphasis on being competent and unique. My current way of thinking is more aligned with individualism, which emphasizes personal identity and is valued more by Western cultures (Kendra, 2022).
[29:31] Dr. Boroditsky claims that English speakers don’t strongly distinguish between accidents and things that are intentional (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
Similar to English, there is no grammatical difference in Mandarin to distinguish between accidents and intentionality. We primarily rely on context, verb usage, and additional words. For example, the most straightforward way is to add the adjective “故意的” (means intentionally or on purpose) or “意外的” (means unexpected or accidental) before the verb.
According to Boroditsky (2011), the differences in how people describe events influence the following eyewitness memory. In my own experience, I remember “who did things” better than “whether the thing is intentional or accidental.”
[36:32] Dr. Boroditsky mentions that there are no exact number words in the Pirahã language and that Pirahã people have trouble doing even basic numerical tasks (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
Chinese people have a reputation for strong mathematical abilities. For example, China currently ranks first based on the medal count at the International Mathematical Olympiad (Wikipedia contributors, 2023). Except for the growth mindset (the belief in the ability of all students) and the pedagogical approach used in the Chinese education system, language may also contribute to the perception that Chinese people excel in math (Maxwell, 2021). 
For instance, the Chinese number system is relatively straightforward, and the names for numbers are highly regular, making it easier for Chinese learners to grasp basic numerical concepts at an early stage. According to Zhang et al. (2017), “language abilities were able to significantly predict both informal and formal math skills” for Chinese-speaking children (p.9).
[45:27] Dr. Boroditsky mentions that linguistic diversity, derived from the adaptability and flexibility of human intelligence, provides valuable cognitive toolkits for humans (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
Language diversity provides me opportunities to think about things differently and expand my visions of what is possible, allowing me to see more opportunities in the world. Exposed to multiple languages can also have cognitive advantages, including improved problem-solving skills, better multitasking abilities, and increased creativity (Skrypkina, 2022). On a social level, Token (2023) claimed that linguistic diversity is essential for achieving social justice and equality.
[50:40] Dr. Boroditsky claims that it is impossible to achieve exact translation across any two languages (SAR School for Advanced Research, 2017).
I strongly agree with Dr. Boroditsky’s claim. Languages have unique structures, grammatical rules, vocabulary, cultural references, intonation, pragmatics, and context dependency, making it impossible to precisely translate across languages. Some languages have words or expressions that do not exist in other languages. For instance, the Chinese word “撒娇” (an expression of affection; a behavior where a person acts in a sweet way to seek attention, care, or pampering from their partner) has no direct equivalent in English or Japanese (my partner is from Japan).
References
Boroditsky, L. (2011). How language shapes thought. Scientific American, 304(2), 62-65.
Holdenje. (2023, August 15). Right to Left? Left to Right? Decoding Chinese Reading Direction – maayot. maayot • Daily Chinese Reading. https://www.maayot.com/blog/chinese-reading-direction/
Kendra. C. (2022). What is a collectivist culture? Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-are-collectivistic-cultures-2794962#:~:text=Collectivism%20stresses%20the%20importance%20of,are%20promoted%20in%20individualistic%20cultures.
Maxwell, D. (2021, September 30). The Secrets of Chinese mathematics – Domino Chinese. Domino Chinese. https://www.dominochinese.com/posts/the-secrets-of-chinese-mathematics/
SAR School for Advanced Research. (2017, June 7). Lera Boroditsky, how the languages we speak shape the way we think [Video]. YouTube.
Skrypkina, T. (2022, August 31). 6 Powerful Benefits of Embracing Linguistic Diversity – Verbal bridges. Verbal Bridges. https://verbalbridges.com/6-powerful-benefits-of-embracing-linguistic-diversity/
Toke, N. (2023). Linguistic Diversity: What Is It, How To Encourage It, And Why Is It Important [2023 DEI Resources] | Diversity for Social Impact. Diversity for Social ImpactTM. https://diversity.social/linguistic-diversity/
Wikipedia contributors. (2023). List of countries by medal count at International Mathematical Olympiad. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_medal_count_at_International_Mathematical_Olympiad
Zhang, J., Fan, X., Cheung, S. K., Meng, Y., Cai, Z., & Hu, B. Y. (2017). The role of early language abilities on math skills among Chinese children. PLOS ONE, 12(7), e0181074. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181074
Hi everyone! My name is Bingying (Iris) Wang and I live in Vancouver, BC. I have been in the higher education industry for over seven years. This (ETEC 540) is my eighth/ninth course in my MET journey.
What is my daily need for the items in my bag?
Here are the items from a bag I commonly carry. Please click on the items in the interactive image below for details.
These items in my bag act like implicit “texts” and provide cues about who I am, the places I inhabit, the culture I engage in, and the activities I take up.
Identification cards provide the most direct information (name, age, address, and other personal info) about who I am. Carrying pills shows that I have long-term headaches and stomach problems. Still carrying masks after the pandemic suggests that I am cautious; carrying perfume shows that I am sensitive to odours.
The navigation apps and the car keys provide information about the places I inhabit. I live in Richmond, where a car is essential for daily life because of insufficient transit. My fob indicates that I live in an apartment instead of a house.
Both Chinese and Canadian documents show that I engage in multiple cultures. The Costco membership card reveals that I go shopping regularly. Carrying Air pods indicates that I enjoy listening to music a lot.
Some of my items are enabled by technology; they explicitly or implicitly influence how I engage with language and communication.
Phone: I can communicate with other people in various ways, including text messages, instant messages, voice messages, voice calls, video calls, emails, social media, and location sharing. Moreover, I can communicate with systems. For example, Google Home enables me to turn on or off the speakers and lights in my apartment; I can use Eufy Security to check the inside of my home.
Bank cards: Digital communication between the cards and their respective systems granted me access to certain affordances of these technologies.
Key fobs: My apartment key fob works through the REID technology to provide me with access to the entrance, parking lot, garbage room and elevator (Awati & Hwang, 2021). The car key fob communicates with the car system, allowing me to unlock the doors and start the engine.
Current human literacies encompass a wide range of skills and knowledge areas beyond the traditional notion of reading and writing. Items in my bag indirectly indicate the key literacies I have.
Phone:
Digital literacy: Understanding how to use technologies effectively, including information searching, communication, and use of applications (Kapur, 2019).
Media literacy: critically analyze and understand various forms of media, including websites, social media, and news (Kapur, 2019).
Wallet and keys:
Financial literacy: Knowledge of personal finance, including saving, investing, budgeting, and managing debt.
Pills and Mask:
Health literacy: accessing, understanding, and applying health information to make correct health judgements or decisions in one’s daily life (Kapur, 2019).
Perfume and Air pods:
Emotional literacy: the ability to understand and effectively communicate emotions and empathize with others (Kapur, 2019).
Official documents from different countries:
Cultural literacy: knowledge and understanding of cultures with different traditions, beliefs, values, and standards (Kapur, 2019).
Legal literacy: knowledge of the basic legal system in one’s country.
I would say the narrative of the contents of my bag is incomplete; it is only a part of the narrative produced by the image I outwardly project.
There are things I use daily but cannot be carried in a bag; they provide additional information about me. For example, I carry my cue case daily in the car because I am a pool player. I practice pool more than four times weekly in the local pool halls and join large-scale pool tournaments approximately every four months. Also, I use my iPad for painting; Procreate is the app I use the most. All my tattoos were designed by myself, showing my capacity to generate new ideas (creative literacy).
Past
Fifteen years ago, I was an elementary school student. All I had in my bag then were school supplies, such as textbooks, pens, notebooks, etc.
Based on my memory (of my parents’ items), the equivalent of these items in my bag from 15 years ago were way less integrated. For example, the most popular mobile banking product was SMS banking before 2010 (Team, 2023). Most of the time, people needed to go to banks in person for card services due to the limited functions of SMS banking. In contrast, people can now use online banking apps to easily manage accounts, transfer funds, pay bills, check deposits, view transactions, and manage cards. Another example would be the resolution in pixels of the mobile phone camera, which changed from 320 x 480 to 1290 x 2796 (AppMySite, 2023). Except for professional photographers, people no longer need to buy an extra camera.
Future
I imagine an archeologist aiming to understand this temporal period might view my items in a similar way as I view those equivalent things (as I mentioned above) from 15 years ago. The archeologist may think that many of my items have limited functions or can be combined into an integrated product. For example, tangible bank cards might be ousted completely; people only need online banking apps. I believe that as technology develops, items people carry daily in bags will become more integrated.
References
AppMySite. (2023). The complete guide to iPhone screen resolutions and sizes (Updated for 2023). AppMySite. https://www.appmysite.com/blog/the-complete-guide-to-iphone-screen-resolutions-and-sizes/
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