Week 3 - Tutorial Task

 Task 1:

• What was Stephen Stockwell's first article in an academic journal? What year? Provide a full citation. What database did you use? 

The first academic journal by Stephen Stockwell was published in 1981.
 I used this database located on the Griffith library website: Australian Public Affairs Full Text (APA-FT) (via Informit)        

Stockwell, Stephen, R 1981, 'Kuranda police shooting', Legal Service Bulletin, vol.6, pp. 48-49

• In which comic did Governor Slugwell appear? Which Issues? Give their full citation for the earliest. Where did you find this information? What database did you use? (Check the trial databases)

Governor Slugwell appeared in the comic named Flaming Carrot Comics, in the following issues: 7, 10 and 11. The citation for the earliest number is:

Burden, B 1985, “When the Shoes Aren’t Worth the Shine” in Flaming Carrot Comics no.7, Renegade Press, pp. 3-31

I found this information in the Underground and Independent Comics database, which I found by searching for comics in the trial database.

• What is the latest medical thinking on the dangers of mobile phones? Provide a full citation.

Schüz, J 2011, American Journal of Epidemiology: Long-Term Mobile Phone Use and the Risk of Vestibular Schwannoma: A Danish Nationwide Cohort Study, vol. 174, no. 4, pp. 416-422, viewed 26 August 2011 in the American Journal of Epidemiology database.

• In Bladerunner, what is Leon's reaction when Holden asks him about his mother? Quote the 1982 draft script and provide a full reference. (Check the trial databases)

Holden: Describe in single words. Only the good things that come into your mind. About your mother.

Leon: My ...

Leon looks shocked, surprised. But the needles in the computer barely move. Holden goes for the inside of his coat. But big Leon is faster. His laser burns a hole the size of a nickel through Holden's stomach. Unlike a bullet, a laser causes no impact. It goes through Holden's shoulder and comes out of his back, clean as a whistle. Like a rag doll he falls back into the seat. Big slow Leon is already walking away, but he stops, turns, and with a little smile of satisfaction fires through the back of the seat.

As Leon walks out of the room the Voight-Kampff begins to blink, faint but steady

I used the trial database where I found a database called American Film Scripts Online. Here I searched in the scripts for Blade runner 1982.

Hampton, F, Peoples, D. W, Roland, K. 1982, Blade Runner(1982): Draft script, Electronic edition by Alexander Street Press L.L.C. in 2007

• What does Paul Soukup say Walter Ong saw as the main paradox in 20th century communication? Cite your source.

Soukup says that Ong saw the main paradox of the 20th century communication being that human communication works, not only in the sense of its success but in the sense of its expending energy.

Soukup, P. A 2006, Contexts of Faith: The Religious Foundation of Walter Ong's Literacy and Orality, vol. 5 no. 3, pp. 175-188

Found in the Taylor & Francis database through Griffith Library Search.

 

Task 2:

Friendster was launched in 2002 and is recognized as one of the world’s first social networks. It is a social network that is similar to MySpace and Facebook, where you can create an account, set your page up the way you want it, add widgets and add friends to your profile. When it started it was used by different kinds of people all over the world, but today it’s focused on young Asians across the world. On Friendster you could communicate with other members, share online content and media, and discover events and hobbies. Through Friendster Games and Friendster Music you could play games, join groups, discuss and share pictures and videos. It was a good source to use to stay in touch with friends or meet new people. At its peak, between September 2003 and March 2004, Friendster attracted more than 1 million unique visitors per month and had 115 million users. When Facebook and MySpace came, Friendster stated to fade away. These new competitors offered a lot more features, like instant status updates and tagging. Friendster tried to make their site better by changing it in many different ways, but their members got more and more unsatisfied and left them in advantage for Facebook. Facebook was new, interesting and had more features, and Friendster did not manage to get to the same level, so it started to fade away. In an attempt to survive they changed their concept and went from being a social communication site to an entertainment site.

Even though it could not keep up with its competitors, Friendster still made an influence on the way we use technology. They introduced the social network and got people interested, some even addicted, to it. So when Facebook came, people were already aware of what it was and how it worked. All Facebook had to do was offering the features people wanted and that the competitors didn’t have.

Research:

Friendster, viewed 26 August 2011,
http://www.molglobal.net/?page_id=1321

Hahn, J, Friendster Seeking New Friends, With Little Success, viewed 26 August 2011,
http://www.dmconfidential.com/blogs/category/Web/608/

Internet Archaeologists Find Ruins Of 'Frindster' Civilization, Youtube.com, viewed 29 August 2011 at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mFJdOsjJ0k

Pachal, P 2011, Why Friendster Died: Social Media Isn't a Game, viewed 26 August 2011,
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2384588,00.asp

Presley, A 2010, What is Friendster?, viewed 26 August 2011,
http://www.brighthub.com/internet/web-development/articles/28522.aspx

Stern, R & Berryhill, A, Friendster Deletes All User Profiles Today, viewed 26 August 2011,
http://www.socialnetworkingwatch.com/2011/05/friendster-deletes-all-user-profiles-today.html