The 70s, BBC Public Broadcast 23rd April 2012

Interesting commentary remembering the 1970s in the UK. This was the decade of my birth and shaped my nurture into the 1980s (although I was probably little aware of this at the time), where Britain broke from its conservative past and found itself in a period where it was “edgier, more anxious, and more ambitious.”

Censorship relaxed following the influence of continental europe, where Mary Whitehouse became incited at the ‘moral depravity’ engulfing the country; this was met with cries that the UK was a country of free-speech and open democracy which amounted to a debate between an ‘old Britain based on conservative moral values, faith and tradition and so on, and a new Britain based on the individual exercise of personal choice.’

Watch it here.

“Class Dismissed” – Public TV Broadcast BBC Two, 10:00PM Wednesday, 14th Dec 2011

I’m not sure whether this BBC 2 programme set out to miss the point or whether my own point-of-view clouded the ability to who;;y appreciate this as a serious discussion about the state of “class” in Britain today.

Programme information (from BBC webpages): “It’s official; class is back! Riots on the street, old-Etonians in government, a workforce on strike, Downton Abbey, The King’s Speech, the royal wedding and vajazzling…

In this one-off special, Frank Skinner is joined by comedians Micky Flanagan, Roisin Conaty and Miles Jupp to assess whether class is still relevant in the 21st century. Probing analysis meets comedy chat, as our comics become intrepid reporters, examining the subject through their own unorthodox reports.

The well-heeled Miles attempts to turn himself into a working-class hero. Newly bourgeois Micky asks why he still hates modern art. Salt-of-the-earth Roisin seeks love across the class divide. Frank and the team dissect their findings in front of a studio audience as they explore the funny side of class.”

It seemed entirely based on a middle-class standpoint, where the panel, although possessing different regional or ‘class’ accents, were not working-class even though they might well have been in their pasts.

Aside from the programmes apparent shortcomings, it was interesting to note that the word CLASS which provided the graphic backdrop for the programme used a very traditional serif type, with the traditional suggestion that the notion of class itself hints at hierarchy associated visually with the higher classes in the UK. I will be adding some anectodotal quotes which were I feel, relevant and insightful as well as providing notions which seem to have fed into general perceptions so as to permeate mainstream media.

Do you see what I see?

BBC 2, Public Broadcast (UK) – Horizon – Monday 8th August 21.00 GMT – 2011 – edition entitled, “Do you see what I see?” A really interesting look at how colour can be (is) seen as well as the influence which seems to be bestowed on the colour red. According to the latest understanding, colours are really an illusion – one that we create ourselves. This was illustrated by neuroscientist Beau Lotto. It seems that the colours you see may not always be the same as the colours I see. In addition, age, sex and even mood can affect how we experience colours. Beau noted, “In thinking about ‘do you see what I see’, the answer depends on what it is we’re looking at. If it’s something that’s shaped by our own individual experiences, then we can see the world very differently.” This resonated with me and my own research, as experience could prove to be a determining factor in response type to variations in typography.

“We really do perceive colours differently depending on experience, age and state of mind” -

Dr Beau Lotto

Can language influence the way we perceive colour? Could the number of words you have for colour affect the way you perceive it?

The Himba of northern Namibia – who had never even set foot in a local town – call the sky black and water white, and for them, blue and green share the same word.

In having fewer words than us for colour, it seems that their perception of the world is different to ours – it takes them longer to differentiate between certain colours, and so we can determine from this that they see the world differently.

And what about the effects colours might have on us?

Scientists Russell Hill and Iain Greenlees looked into the ‘winning effect’ of the colour red. They organised an experiment to see if wearing red might have an impact in sport.

They set up a penalty shoot out with 48 footballers looking at whether it was wearing red or seeing red that made the difference.

They found that the men wearing red had lower levels of cortisol, the hormone for stress, than those in blue or white. This in turn makes them more confident in their game.

Another ingredient to consider perhaps when effective communication is key.

Cashing In on Degrees – Dispatches – Public Broadcast

On Monday 4th April, Channel 4′s (UK) broadcast set itself against a background where (UK) students face massive increases in their fees. Dispatches investigated the pay, perks and privileges enjoyed by universities’ top earners. It also highlighted how universities (higher education) are marketing themselves to overseas / international students. During the course of the programme, questions were raised over whether UK qualifications and education in general was “dumbing down” as part of its bid to attract international business.

It was interesting to hear the phrase “dumbing-down” used in reference to education (aside from the ongoing A-level issue). There were some insightful or should that be revealing (?) observations in the programme; I was hoping that this would be available on the net but I haven’t (yet) found any trace. If this remains the case I will contact the programme makers. . .This page remains though. . .

Secrets of the Superbrands, Public TV Broadcast, BBC Three, 31st May 2011

Programme synopsis (from BBC 3): “Alex Riley thinks he’s immune to brands. When it comes to fashion, technology and food brands he just goes for the cheapest and what works for him. He’s convinced he’s not seduced by the advertising, celebrity endorsements and hype which surrounds the big global brands. So how did that pair of Adidas trainers get in his wardrobe? And how did that can of Heinz Baked Beans make it into his shopping trolley? And why does he have a Nokia mobile phone in his pocket rather than any other make?
With the help of marketeers, brain scientists and exclusive access to the world of the superbrands Alex sets out to find out why we buy them, trust them, even idolise them.”

I found the interview footage where Dr Peter Hughes (human behaviourist, managing partner of Cognition, an integrated marketing communications agency) noted that brain reactions to brands (note to self: what parts of the brain determine these reactions?) recognise them as “friendly” as if “part of the family”. I was intrigued by the level of familiarity between product and consumer reminding me that my action research could focus on education perception and visualisation.

Academic Marketing in Libraries

On 16th February, I attended what turned out to be an extremely interesting workshop focusing on marketing and publicity aimed directly at all learners through libraries. Professor Jonathan Deacon (University of Wales Newport – Newport Business School) conducted the session in mid-Wales where he discussed ‘tribes’ and belonging.

SWOT analysis was used to create a framework of the marketing ‘ideal’ from the learners’ perspective. This exercise was repeated twice as we discovered the language was not of the learners but the providers.

I found the discussion about the ‘categorisation of tribes’ particularly interesting and also useful. It gave new insight into potential drivers behind the decision mechanism to be part of a tribe, where a shared commonality is key. Discussion also revealed the term “anchorage space”, and I reflected whether the commonality of education or an education class could be described this way.

Crucially for me, Jonathan Deacon suggested that a tribe is controllable, where a segment is not. This points toward researching the segmented group of those access learners and ensuring that any other groups are excluded providing greater focus for my research.

I hope to speak with the presenter at a later date as part of this ongoing project.

RSC Wales Access Event – Barrier Busters

Today I attended an RSC Wales event today targetted at practitioners within the Adult Education sector (FE, workplace learning, training providers etc). Once again, I noted the direction given by the JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee) and TechDIS that sans serif should always be used in an educational context.

Although much research can support the above, I’m intrigued by the notion that this point made on readability grounds filters through to the providers that sans serif fonts provide a visual style for educators. . .

There was also an extremely interesting (unscientific) exercise of “which version do you prefer?” Two copies of instructions were provided to the group: one version created using a serif font, and one created using a sans serif font. The group was asked to show their support for each style. Serif had 3 out of 15 votes where the remaining votes were bagged by sans serif. I listened to the reasons given for both, and legibility and clarity were given in both cases. It would seem that people have differing versions of visual clarity when it comes to typography. . .

The above was unexpected and perhaps if I’d known that this exercise was going to be performed then I might have been able to follow this up with the events’ organiser (I’ve subsequently liaised with the organisers and learned of their findings). One thing though that I did take on board, was that when it comes to producing my own examples to support any focus group or interview process, the end product needs to be consistent in its overall design where the only aspect that differs is the font use; the examples given at today’s event used a variety of styles and colours which could have distracted the reader which in turn might have influenced any preferred choice outcome.

Have a look here and here, so you can decide. . .  Let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment.

Horizon – The Secret You

With the help of a hammer-wielding scientist, Jennifer Aniston and a general anaesthetic, Professor Marcus du Sautoy goes in search of answers to one of science’s greatest mysteries: how do we know who we are? While the thoughts that make us feel as though we know ourselves are easy to experience, they are perhaps difficult to explain. In order to find out where they come from, Marcus du Sautoy subjects himself to a series of probing experiments, acting as a human guinea pig to find out something: what makes us, us?

He learns at what age our self-awareness emerges and whether other species share this trait. Next, he has his mind scrambled by a cutting-edge experiment in anaesthesia. Having survived that ordeal, he is given an out-of-body experience in a bid to locate his true self. And in Hollywood, he learns how celebrities are helping scientists understand the microscopic activities of the human  brain. Finally, he takes part in a mind-reading experiment that both helps explain and radically alters his understanding of who he is.

Horizon – Why Do We Talk?

Public BBC 2 broadcast. Horizon investigates speech, a phenomenon unique to humans, which remains a mystery.

Micro Broadcasting Seminar

On Wednesday 4th November, I attended the Institute of Advanced Broadcasting – Micro Broadcasting Seminar held at the Celtic Manor Lodge, near Newport South Wales.

It seems to me that with regard to ‘Digital Inclusion’ we are again aiming to communicate to a wider audience so that they are encouraged to participate in all things technologically driven. . .