Ruminations on our relationship with technology
To understand how technologies affect our minds and lives, we may ask: How do technologies shape the way we think? That is, what types of tools, machines, or media work best for what kinds of thinking? Media ecology, which makes up part of the Educational Topics on this site, can help shed light on this question.
In short, media ecology studies how technologies—especially media—reshape our environments, including the way we think and live. After all, when you add a technology to an environment, you don’t just get the environment plus the new technology. Rather, you get a whole new environment. To explore ideas from this topic, select any of the articles below.
Every technology entails a Faustian bargain! Ever since I learned about Neil Postman years ago, I’ve found myself continually coming back to his writings and insights. The founder of media ecology, Postman remains one of my main influences when it comes to thinking about technology. For me, one of his most perceptive observations is that … Read more
The media ecology of how social media changed communication One of the key insights of media ecology is that when we add a new technology to our culture, we don’t just have the same culture plus the new technology. Rather, the technology changes the culture. In other words, technological innovation can change our whole way … Read more
What’s the difference between technology training vs. technology education? Let’s talk about the difference between technology training vs. technology education. To illustrate this distinction, imagine you’re with a group of handymen. However, the only tools they have are a bunch of hammers. Unfortunately, you have a pile of screws, not nails, that need to be … Read more
How laptops affect learning—and why the medium is the message! Years have passed since media guru Marshall McLuhan declared “the medium is the message.” Nonetheless, his insights about technology remain relevant to this day. In particular, his ideas about media can shed light on an ongoing debate in education. Does using laptops and computers in … Read more
Media ecology, and the rise of celebrity politics Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election was a shock to many—myself included. Afterward, however, I couldn’t help but notice this electoral upset fit an emerging pattern I’ve seen most of my life. As a child of the 1980s, I grew up in the Reagan … Read more