Thinking Otherwise: Philosophy, Communication, Technology
Thinking Otherwise is a unique and revealing look at the philosophical dimensions of information and communication technology (ICT). Among thinkers, the importance of what transpires within the virtual world is the effect these activities have on real human beings who exist outside of and beyond the computer-generated virtual environment. Obviously, the result of ICT interactions can lead to good or bad outcomes.
Gunkel, however, is not concerned about deciding which argument is more compelling, but how these arguments are organized, articulated, and configured. This approach entails challenging, criticizing and even changing the terms and conditions of the discourse itself. For example, the binary nature of computer logic tends to color debate about subsequent moral issues by portraying each side as the antithesis of the other. That is, the switch is either turned on or off.
Thinking Otherwise investigates the unique quandaries, com… More >>
Thinking Otherwise: Philosophy, Communication, Technology
Tagged with: Communication • Otherwise • Philosophy • Technology • Thinking
If you are at all interested in understanding how and why we blog, twitter, post in discussion forums, write product reviews on Amazon, or submit scholarly papers to classroom professors then you need to read this book. It is a work that engages on many levels. On the surface, it is accessible and easily understood. Even if you have no formal background in communications studies, Greek philosophers, or postmodern semiotics studies, Gunkel makes all of these accessible in a way that sheds new light on old (sometimes ancient) topics.
If you want to engage the work on a deeper level, Gunkel does not disappoint. He opens many doors to questions and invites you to think through, re-position, and reflexively question the answers as well as the presuppositions to the original questions.
My only complaint is the lack of margin space in which to jot my own notes. I am not in the education field. I am not a professional scholar. I am a software developer, and this is a work to which I will go back many times. Slashdotters, Gizmodo-heads, Derrida fans, and anyone who uses the internet will like this book.