Some forty fifty years ago, networking solutions were only beginning to take form. Decades later, successful researchers merged networks to create the now, almost indispensible Internet. Since then, many Internet-related IT tools, businesses (like the dot-com bubble), or even terms sprung up and became part of our lives.
With inventions like the Internet, where the whole world is virtually linked together, communication increased with ease as well. Perhaps thats how Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) is coined. It refers to human communication via computers. Popular CMCs include emails, video, audio or text chats and weblogs etc.
Personally, I very often use Email, MSN and SMS, up to few times daily! And not forgetting the oh-so-famous social networking site Facebook as well. I keep myself updated about how my friends are doing, along with sharing with others what im doing lately in life.
These tools are brilliant inventions that keep people connected!
It is good, however, that while we celebrate such excellences in technologies, we are aware of some disadvantages of CMCs.
There may be frustration or stress as a result of data overload; lack of self-discipline to manage time/life (happens to gamers or even students nowadays who neglect studies/health); confidentiality/privacy and trust issues etc.
*
Into the second half of lesson, we discussed more about new terms and the teenage lingo; as well as compared IM styles between the two genders. My brothers and I tried to explain some of the terms youngsters like us use nowadays to our parents! Haha. As expected, they were confused. However, they were receptive to abbrieviations we use! I guess that's because they own handphones as well and wish to send text messages in the shortest possible time. Well that could be achieved through abbrieviations.
I've found an interesting video from Youtube.com!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
GIRLS V.S BOYS !
This week's lesson was interesting and closer to our hearts I must say :) More like, this topic is much more talked about in our daily lives than the previous ones. Something we can relate to better and contribute since we form at least one of the two subjects in topic! Haha.
Yes. Cross-gender interaction is our topic for the week. Learning objectives include how English can be considered as sexist, understanding how men and women talk differently, and also getting to know possible explanations why men and women talk differently.
The most interesting fact that i took away from this lesson would probably be the symmetrical terms used to name a horse! I swear i never knew a young female horse is called a Filly, and a young male one is called a Colt. Hmm... but actually, I also didnt know that a female horse is a Mare, while a male one is a Stallion. Haha. Shows my pathetic knowledge..
Coming to how the two gender can talk differently, i have found this website that talks about this it too: http://www.learnbodylanguage.org/flirting_talk.html
I shall just pull out some points from there and relate it back to our lesson. I do not know how reliable, but according to the website, it says that actually our communication style dates back to hundreds and thousands of years ago! And it did not evolve much since then either. It was said that men, being the hunters, only concentrated on ways to feed the fanily. Hunting was serious business and required creativity, cleverness and physical endurance -- but it did not require much talking. And while at home, the women tended the children and worked in groups for safety while gathering roots, berries, nuts etc. They talked much of the time while doing their chores and improved their relationship within the group of women.
And these are the points of comparison for the two gender in terms of communicating from the website as well, but i've bolded my inputs below some points:
- Women speak and listen faster than men. Women in a group can even all talk at the same time and make it work!
(Sounds familiar? Yeah we've learnt this in class today, that its very likely for women to overlap talk, have more frequent interruptions because we value cooperation and collaboration)
-Women speak in a softer voice and use pitch and inflection to emphasize points. Men speak in a louder voice and use volume to emphasize a point.
-Women sound more emotional in normal conversation because they normally use 5 tones. Men sound more monotonous when speaking because they normally use only 3 tones.
-Women stick to one topic for a long time until all present have added their comments and feelings on that subject before moving to the next subject. Men want to express their own opinion and not hear the opinion of others. Men want to have the final word, especially with women.
(Thats where the dominance in men come into play. What with having the final say and power and what-not superiority that men value. CHEY?)
In decision making, women seek the input of all the other women present and make decisions based on the consensus of all present. Men try to make the final ruling, no matter what others think.
-In decision making, women prefer a group decision. Men want to show their high status by making their own decisions without input from others.
(Here goes the big male ego again...)
-Women reveal their feelings, private lives and relationships easily. Men hardly ever do! That would show their weaknesses and lower their status as a dominate male (in their mind).
-Men don't spend as much time and interest on anything not physical, especially abstract concepts dealing with 'feelings' and emotions.
-Women want to talk about their feelings to improve their relationship with the listener. Men talk to emphasize their high status and dominance to all present.
-Women want to discuss and explore all aspects of a topic and spend more time on it than men like.
-Women try to strengthen relationships with others by discussing their problems.
-Women ask more questions about what others think.
-Women make indirect accusations, i.e. "Why do you often do that?" Men make direct accusations, i.e. "You always do that!"
-Women like to relate but men rather debate.
-Women are more cooperative when talking. Men are more competitive with talk and try to raise their status and establish dominance.
(It's always about the male chauvinism huh..)
-Women show concern and try to establish empathy and support for others. Men try to fix things and give advice to others.
-Men are opinionated and want to resolve problems quickly, often not studying the situation.
-Men try to be an authority on everything and therefore ask fewer questions.
I, myself, love to talk, chit-chat, and yeah of course, GOSSIP! I enjoy heart-to-heart-talks especially. And one of my favourite pastimes is actually to just sit at a cosy cafe with a group of girlfriends and chatter the afternoon away. We can talk about simply anything under the sun, i dont know if guys will ever understand that. We always take comfort in having listening ears whenever we pour our hearts and sorrows. And we really do feel much better even if the problem persists :)
Perhaps one day a group of guyfriends can actually try that out? It helps :)
Yes. Cross-gender interaction is our topic for the week. Learning objectives include how English can be considered as sexist, understanding how men and women talk differently, and also getting to know possible explanations why men and women talk differently.
The most interesting fact that i took away from this lesson would probably be the symmetrical terms used to name a horse! I swear i never knew a young female horse is called a Filly, and a young male one is called a Colt. Hmm... but actually, I also didnt know that a female horse is a Mare, while a male one is a Stallion. Haha. Shows my pathetic knowledge..
Coming to how the two gender can talk differently, i have found this website that talks about this it too: http://www.learnbodylanguage.org/flirting_talk.html
I shall just pull out some points from there and relate it back to our lesson. I do not know how reliable, but according to the website, it says that actually our communication style dates back to hundreds and thousands of years ago! And it did not evolve much since then either. It was said that men, being the hunters, only concentrated on ways to feed the fanily. Hunting was serious business and required creativity, cleverness and physical endurance -- but it did not require much talking. And while at home, the women tended the children and worked in groups for safety while gathering roots, berries, nuts etc. They talked much of the time while doing their chores and improved their relationship within the group of women.
And these are the points of comparison for the two gender in terms of communicating from the website as well, but i've bolded my inputs below some points:
- Women speak and listen faster than men. Women in a group can even all talk at the same time and make it work!
(Sounds familiar? Yeah we've learnt this in class today, that its very likely for women to overlap talk, have more frequent interruptions because we value cooperation and collaboration)
-Women speak in a softer voice and use pitch and inflection to emphasize points. Men speak in a louder voice and use volume to emphasize a point.
-Women sound more emotional in normal conversation because they normally use 5 tones. Men sound more monotonous when speaking because they normally use only 3 tones.
-Women stick to one topic for a long time until all present have added their comments and feelings on that subject before moving to the next subject. Men want to express their own opinion and not hear the opinion of others. Men want to have the final word, especially with women.
(Thats where the dominance in men come into play. What with having the final say and power and what-not superiority that men value. CHEY?)
In decision making, women seek the input of all the other women present and make decisions based on the consensus of all present. Men try to make the final ruling, no matter what others think.
-In decision making, women prefer a group decision. Men want to show their high status by making their own decisions without input from others.
(Here goes the big male ego again...)
-Women reveal their feelings, private lives and relationships easily. Men hardly ever do! That would show their weaknesses and lower their status as a dominate male (in their mind).
-Men don't spend as much time and interest on anything not physical, especially abstract concepts dealing with 'feelings' and emotions.
-Women want to talk about their feelings to improve their relationship with the listener. Men talk to emphasize their high status and dominance to all present.
-Women want to discuss and explore all aspects of a topic and spend more time on it than men like.
-Women try to strengthen relationships with others by discussing their problems.
-Women ask more questions about what others think.
-Women make indirect accusations, i.e. "Why do you often do that?" Men make direct accusations, i.e. "You always do that!"
-Women like to relate but men rather debate.
-Women are more cooperative when talking. Men are more competitive with talk and try to raise their status and establish dominance.
(It's always about the male chauvinism huh..)
-Women show concern and try to establish empathy and support for others. Men try to fix things and give advice to others.
-Men are opinionated and want to resolve problems quickly, often not studying the situation.
-Men try to be an authority on everything and therefore ask fewer questions.
I, myself, love to talk, chit-chat, and yeah of course, GOSSIP! I enjoy heart-to-heart-talks especially. And one of my favourite pastimes is actually to just sit at a cosy cafe with a group of girlfriends and chatter the afternoon away. We can talk about simply anything under the sun, i dont know if guys will ever understand that. We always take comfort in having listening ears whenever we pour our hearts and sorrows. And we really do feel much better even if the problem persists :)
Perhaps one day a group of guyfriends can actually try that out? It helps :)
Saturday, March 6, 2010
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION !
“ Very often the way others do things is not different out of stupidity or carelessness or incompetence or malice … Most people do what seems the right thing to do at the time … And the judgment of what is right is rooted in beliefs, values, attitudes, as well as habit, tradition, and accepted norms.”
Mole (1996)
And yeah, basically what Mole mentioned can be described in one word, and that is CULTURE. We all behave differently because of our culutral differences, which are what sets us apart, or even identifies us.
Just like how Dr Deng made us brainstorm about the 10 most important or unique characteristics true to Singapore's culture, most of us have almost similar answers, maybe only differing in the title we give to them. This shows that we understand what kind of culture we have, as well as how people perceived us to be like. Our learned behaviour. There are no discrepencies about them. Yes, Singaporeans are KIASU, we are governed strictly be the law, we speak Singlish, we're efficiency driven etc etc.
Learning and understanding about cultural variability allows us to 'survive' in the business world especially. We learn to develop a sense of cultural awareness, do away with ethnocentrism, we learn to adapt and be tolerant, we listen carefully, empathise, and look beyond the superficial, WE TAKE RESPONSIBILTY FOR THE COMMUNICATION!
Culture can be fundamentally oriented into how contexting and facesaving affects communication, how an individual is viewed in relation to the group, how time is perceived, how status is accorded, and how decisions are made.
Hmmm..perhaps it will be interesting to describe a little about my style:
I am currently the chairperson of my Hall Promotion Board. I see myself to be more..
- Low Context/ Low face saving
high reliance on verbal communication; direct, precise and explicit
- Collectivist
seen as part of the group; value interdependence; however, i prefer to take any blame myself
- Low power distance
while i command respect as the ringeader, calling the shots.. i usually also tell my members ''i'm not your boss, im your friend''. I really dont rule with an ironfist like Stalin, i welcome inputs from every single member :)
- definitely HIGH uncertainty avoidance
i dont really like adapting to changes and im rather afraid to take risks for fear of failures
Mole (1996)
And yeah, basically what Mole mentioned can be described in one word, and that is CULTURE. We all behave differently because of our culutral differences, which are what sets us apart, or even identifies us.
Just like how Dr Deng made us brainstorm about the 10 most important or unique characteristics true to Singapore's culture, most of us have almost similar answers, maybe only differing in the title we give to them. This shows that we understand what kind of culture we have, as well as how people perceived us to be like. Our learned behaviour. There are no discrepencies about them. Yes, Singaporeans are KIASU, we are governed strictly be the law, we speak Singlish, we're efficiency driven etc etc.
Learning and understanding about cultural variability allows us to 'survive' in the business world especially. We learn to develop a sense of cultural awareness, do away with ethnocentrism, we learn to adapt and be tolerant, we listen carefully, empathise, and look beyond the superficial, WE TAKE RESPONSIBILTY FOR THE COMMUNICATION!
Culture can be fundamentally oriented into how contexting and facesaving affects communication, how an individual is viewed in relation to the group, how time is perceived, how status is accorded, and how decisions are made.
Hmmm..perhaps it will be interesting to describe a little about my style:
I am currently the chairperson of my Hall Promotion Board. I see myself to be more..
- Low Context/ Low face saving
high reliance on verbal communication; direct, precise and explicit
- Collectivist
seen as part of the group; value interdependence; however, i prefer to take any blame myself
- Low power distance
while i command respect as the ringeader, calling the shots.. i usually also tell my members ''i'm not your boss, im your friend''. I really dont rule with an ironfist like Stalin, i welcome inputs from every single member :)
- definitely HIGH uncertainty avoidance
i dont really like adapting to changes and im rather afraid to take risks for fear of failures
Saturday, February 27, 2010
WRITTEN DISCOURSE !
We usually only open our mouths to say something if there is a need to. There is always this illocutionary force behind it, or simply put, a purpose in speech. The purpose can be inferred quite readily with visual and aural clues. These are addressed by the spoken discourse analysts.
How about now we substitute the word 'spoken' with 'written'. Yes we get Written Discourse. Similarly, authors write for a certain reason, a purpose. They dont just publish a book for nothing. Many a times they want to tell a story, and aimed at specific readers. That is a good enough reson to write. However in written discourse i feel, is that it is harder to realise the true meaning of what was relayed. It calls for the understanding of the relations between sentences and punctuations, and the recognition of a text structure. Sometimes without the knowledge of that language, one will find that s/he will find him/herself lost!
So that's basically what we learnt in class on Friday. Had a couple of passages to read, analyse and then critique in our small groups. A pattern was again found! English writers have a more linear style of writing with more straightforward contents to bring the point across. However Chinese writers tend to beat around the bush and they employ the heavy usage of metaphors, flowery words. You just have to read between the lines and infer to understand. Hmm..so is this the main reason why Singaporean students dislike learning the language so much because it is just so tedious to grasp? Well, it could be. But personally I enjoy the Chinese language :) More so in speech perhaps, because I dont have to watch my tenses and grammar.
Anyway a fellow classmate raised up a point in class, isn't English Literature longwinded as well? So can we still say English writings are confirm linear?
MELISSA KHOO
How about now we substitute the word 'spoken' with 'written'. Yes we get Written Discourse. Similarly, authors write for a certain reason, a purpose. They dont just publish a book for nothing. Many a times they want to tell a story, and aimed at specific readers. That is a good enough reson to write. However in written discourse i feel, is that it is harder to realise the true meaning of what was relayed. It calls for the understanding of the relations between sentences and punctuations, and the recognition of a text structure. Sometimes without the knowledge of that language, one will find that s/he will find him/herself lost!
So that's basically what we learnt in class on Friday. Had a couple of passages to read, analyse and then critique in our small groups. A pattern was again found! English writers have a more linear style of writing with more straightforward contents to bring the point across. However Chinese writers tend to beat around the bush and they employ the heavy usage of metaphors, flowery words. You just have to read between the lines and infer to understand. Hmm..so is this the main reason why Singaporean students dislike learning the language so much because it is just so tedious to grasp? Well, it could be. But personally I enjoy the Chinese language :) More so in speech perhaps, because I dont have to watch my tenses and grammar.
Anyway a fellow classmate raised up a point in class, isn't English Literature longwinded as well? So can we still say English writings are confirm linear?
MELISSA KHOO
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
SPOKEN DISCOURSE !
In this lecture-tutorial, i've learnt for the first time in my 21 years of life that in a telephone conversation, the very first 'Hello' is in response to the ring! I'm sure i wasnt the only one who is ignorant of that. Most of us taking GEK1036 will have been enlightened by this lesson, but i bet many others out there do not know that. That is the wonders of this course. It piques my interest, and teaches me to observe/listen to conversations, because i'll realise that there exist patterns in them. These are discoveries I never knew or never would have bothered with until im enrolled in this module. Little also did i know that phone conversations have a certain framework in which we followed unknowingly, and that different cultural groups direct a different approach to it. I was just thinking about the outnumbering reactive expressions made by Australian English versus that of Mandarin Chinese; perhaps its because in the English language there are a larger variety of words to play with than the Chinese language, thus explains the same old few words to respond, just variations of 'shi' and 'dui'.
I have to admit, this week's topic is rather dry comparative to the previous weeks. BUT! I still did learn new and interesting things, and thats whats most important. I like it that im bringing home with me more facts and knowledge every Friday after 5pm. haha. :)
MELISSA KHOO
I have to admit, this week's topic is rather dry comparative to the previous weeks. BUT! I still did learn new and interesting things, and thats whats most important. I like it that im bringing home with me more facts and knowledge every Friday after 5pm. haha. :)
MELISSA KHOO
Friday, February 5, 2010
SPEECH EVENT!
Speech Event is a very interesting topic, perhaps because i can relate to it easily. Just like speech acts, they are occurances in everyday lives. Examples include canteen talks, service encounters etc. Even if i do not experience such processes myself, i witness them around me, watch similar scenes on TV or even read about them.
In our second lecture-tutorial session, we understood what speech events are and even learnt to analyse them in their components. As can be concluded, there are different ways of doing things in different culture. For e.g. a chinese informal dinner invitation can be totally different from that of an american's. Patterns can be identified.
Halfway through the session i suddenly had an idea. I was thinking of the possibility of doing 'Pre-match Prep Talk' or 'Coaching Words'. I am a sports player and was trained under a few different coaches before. Each coach has different expectations for the team and will tend to say different things to his/her players right before a game or halfway through one. But ultimately the aim is to psych the players up and motivate them to put up a good fight. There are several ways to do this too: s/he may shout at you, s/he may just utter a word or two.
Hmm..how about let me just do a short analysis of this type of speech event:
*
GENRE - Coach's Pre Talk
PURPOSE - To motivate the team players. To emphasize the main strategies for gameplay.
SETTING - At the respective sports game. Players clustered around Coach at bench area.
KEY - Serious. Tense.
PARTICIPANTS - Coach. Players.
MESSAGE FORM - Spoken language of their own. Non-verbal cues such as pointing and drawing.
ACT SEQUENCE - 1)Opening/Gathering 2)Explain Strategies 3)Motivational Talk 4)Closing
RULES FOR INTERACTION - It's minutes away from the start of the game, players should be attentive to the Coach. Players should ask constructive questions to clarify.
NORMS OF INTERPRETATION - Respect should be given to the Coach, someone superior, because you take orders from him/her. Clarification of gameplay is important so as not to be blur during the game.
*
Yeap that's about it. Looks feasible to me. I guess more research has to be done to further confirm the feasibility. Methodology is abit hard though. Aint all that easy hunting for matches to spectate at this time and even be close enough to 'eavesdrop' on the Coaches' commands.
MELISSA KHOO
In our second lecture-tutorial session, we understood what speech events are and even learnt to analyse them in their components. As can be concluded, there are different ways of doing things in different culture. For e.g. a chinese informal dinner invitation can be totally different from that of an american's. Patterns can be identified.
Halfway through the session i suddenly had an idea. I was thinking of the possibility of doing 'Pre-match Prep Talk' or 'Coaching Words'. I am a sports player and was trained under a few different coaches before. Each coach has different expectations for the team and will tend to say different things to his/her players right before a game or halfway through one. But ultimately the aim is to psych the players up and motivate them to put up a good fight. There are several ways to do this too: s/he may shout at you, s/he may just utter a word or two.
Hmm..how about let me just do a short analysis of this type of speech event:
*
GENRE - Coach's Pre Talk
PURPOSE - To motivate the team players. To emphasize the main strategies for gameplay.
SETTING - At the respective sports game. Players clustered around Coach at bench area.
KEY - Serious. Tense.
PARTICIPANTS - Coach. Players.
MESSAGE FORM - Spoken language of their own. Non-verbal cues such as pointing and drawing.
ACT SEQUENCE - 1)Opening/Gathering 2)Explain Strategies 3)Motivational Talk 4)Closing
RULES FOR INTERACTION - It's minutes away from the start of the game, players should be attentive to the Coach. Players should ask constructive questions to clarify.
NORMS OF INTERPRETATION - Respect should be given to the Coach, someone superior, because you take orders from him/her. Clarification of gameplay is important so as not to be blur during the game.
*
Yeap that's about it. Looks feasible to me. I guess more research has to be done to further confirm the feasibility. Methodology is abit hard though. Aint all that easy hunting for matches to spectate at this time and even be close enough to 'eavesdrop' on the Coaches' commands.
MELISSA KHOO
SPEECH ACT!
I never knew what the term in subject really means when i first came across it in this course. The words 'speech' and 'act' are actually very simple English words and when broken up, it helps a little in understanding the meaning by putting two and two together. Something spoken in conjunction with something done?
Well, almost there! Now that the term has been defined there has to be some examples illustrating the meaning of this term.
And yeap, that's what we learnt in our first lecture-tutorial.
I never really gave much thought to the way we speak. I mean, why do we have to think about how we speak? We SIMPLY JUST TALK. But truth is, according to researchers, there is a certain pattern or behaviour governing the way we give our speech. This is actually what this whole course covers: Cross-cultural communication and discourse...the study of such behavioural patterns. So back to speech acts, I learnt from our first lesson that we actually use them all the time, they are familiar with us, but we are not with them. Speech Acts are actions performed via utterances.
"Move out of the way!" -a direct request; an order
"You're standing in front of the TV!" -an indirect approach to get the hearer to move
"You're fired!"
AND WE REALLY USE THEM ALL THE TIME!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Yy3neW-FzA
After watching this video and listening to the number of sentences he spoke, I am wowed by how much speech acts really cover. Haha.
Hmm..i'm considering speech acts as my project option because i feel that it should be easier in terms of methodology to collect data. Questionaires can reach out to many people via the Internet. But im keeping my doors and ideas open to the later topics...who knows I may find something more intriguing along the way.
ta ta for now!
MELISSA KHOO
Well, almost there! Now that the term has been defined there has to be some examples illustrating the meaning of this term.
And yeap, that's what we learnt in our first lecture-tutorial.
I never really gave much thought to the way we speak. I mean, why do we have to think about how we speak? We SIMPLY JUST TALK. But truth is, according to researchers, there is a certain pattern or behaviour governing the way we give our speech. This is actually what this whole course covers: Cross-cultural communication and discourse...the study of such behavioural patterns. So back to speech acts, I learnt from our first lesson that we actually use them all the time, they are familiar with us, but we are not with them. Speech Acts are actions performed via utterances.
"Move out of the way!" -a direct request; an order
"You're standing in front of the TV!" -an indirect approach to get the hearer to move
"You're fired!"
AND WE REALLY USE THEM ALL THE TIME!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Yy3neW-FzA
After watching this video and listening to the number of sentences he spoke, I am wowed by how much speech acts really cover. Haha.
Hmm..i'm considering speech acts as my project option because i feel that it should be easier in terms of methodology to collect data. Questionaires can reach out to many people via the Internet. But im keeping my doors and ideas open to the later topics...who knows I may find something more intriguing along the way.
ta ta for now!
MELISSA KHOO
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