1. 269111 – Communication Technology in a Changing World
Week 6
Dr. Ken Cosh

2. Recap Introduction to Semiotics Saussure Peirce Dyadic Model
Triadic Model

3. This Week A little more on Semiotics
Communication and Collaboration Models
Human Computer Interaction (Dix – Chapter 14)

4. But First Remember “Layers” TCP/IP
Application Layer
Transport Layer
Internet Layer
Link Layer
Today we’ll look at a different set of layers
The Semiotic Ladder

5. The Semiotic Ladder Social World Pragmatics Semantics Syntactics
Empirics
Physical World

6. The Semiotic Ladder
Physical World

7. The Semiotic Ladder
Empirics
Physical World

8. The Semiotic Ladder
Syntactics
Empirics
Physical World

9. The Semiotic Ladder
Semantics
Syntactics
Empirics
Physical World

10. The Semiotic Ladder Pragmatics Semantics Syntactics Empirics
Physical World

11. The Semiotic Ladder Social World Pragmatics Semantics Syntactics
Emprirics
Physical World

12. Communicating via signs
If all communication is carried by signs
For communication to succeed we need to consider all the rungs on the Semiotic Ladder

13. Face to Face Communication
Primitive
In terms of technology
Sophisticated
In terms of complex interplay between different channels
Not just speech and hearing
Also body language & eye gaze

14. Personal Space How much space do you need?
Different cultures allow different distances
Environmental factors (such as noise) affect space
But can you be comfortable?
What does this have to do with technology?

15. Video Conferencing #1

16. Video Conferencing #2

17. Video Conferencing #3

18. Solution?
Can I control the zoom on Tom’s camera, and he control mine?

19. Eye Gaze What’s it for? How about on video conferences? Lovers
Checking attention
Conveying interest / confusion / boredom
Authority / Power
Building a bond
How about on video conferences?

20. Video Conferencing #4

21. Gestures “Lets move this one there…” Technological Assistance
Group Pointer
Shared Work Surface

22. The Power of “Um”
Aha!
Erm!
Hmmm…!
Er!
Um!
Uhh!

23. “Back Channels” For Confirmation / Interruption
Electronic communication reduces the channels available;
Sight
Sound
Gesture
As we lose channels, we lose back channel responses

24. Context
Context helps us understand, and back channels provide context;
Internal context
Depending on previous utterances
External context
Depending on the environment

25. “Do you want one?”

26. “Do you want one?”

27. “Do you want one?”

28. Turn taking A conversation is a series of turns…
I could request a ‘turn’ with “well, uh…”
You could offer a ‘turn’ with “what do you think?”
Often turns are signified with a pause or gap in conversation.
We live in a physical world, and physics says communication can not be instant…
Quick(er), but not instant
Given these pauses are short, often the pauses are lost during telecommunication
Leading to confused conversations

29. Breakdown A: Isn’t that beautiful? B: The symmetry of the branches
A: How some people can dislike them I can’t understand.
B: Yes, the rangers should cull those deer, they strip the bark terribly in winter…

30. Repair We are efficient at repairing communication breakdowns
However with electronic communication
Lack of redundant channels
Reduced turn taking frequency
Reduced back channels
In reality it isn’t the breakdowns that cause problems, but the inability to recover from them.

31. Constructing a shared understanding
What is different between reading a book, and sitting in class?
Here we can build a common ground
Much of communication is concerned with building common ground
Utterances should be relevant & helpful
Relevant – continuing the current topic
Helpful – considering the listeners knowledge & understanding

32. Where is it? “Just passed the pub…”
Assuming we know which pub, this is relevant and helpful
It creates a common ground within the conversation
It doesn’t matter that “A” thinks of the pub with memories of a great party, while “B” has never been, but has seen the sign.
i.e. we don’t necessarily need the same sense of individual signifiers if the conversation leads us to the same global sense.

33. Text Based Communication
Common & Familiar
From letters to Google wave
Very different style from face-to-face communication
Discrete: directed messages such as , with no explicit connection between messages
Linear: Participants messages added in temporal order to a single transcript
Non-linear: messages are linked together in hypertext fashion
Spatial: Messages arranged across 2D surface

34. Back Channels Text based communication loses channels
Gesture, Body Language, Facial Expressions
Loss of Affective State of speaker
Happy, Sad, Angry, Humorous
Loss of Illocutionary Force of the message
Importance, Urgency

35. Emoticons
Emoticons are often used to convey this
:-)
;-)

36. Netspeak LOL BRB BBL IDK WTF GTG ASL RL ROFLMAO 555 PRW NIFOC
2BH FOOBAR
GNOC IMHO
J/K L8R
NOOB

37. Emotion
Text based communication is often more heated, by calmer conversants
Stronger language, as message has to be explicit
Emotionally distanced, often time to calm down between messages

38. Email culture Becoming more or less important?
Originally was unreliable
“I didn’t get it” ;)
No guilt felt
Originally we wouldn’t react the same way to an as a formal letter
But different cultures treat differently

39. Turn Taking Different environments
Cotemporality?
Message is seen as soon as it is typed
Simultaneity?
Participants send and receive at the same time
Sequential?
Utterances are ordered
How often have you misunderstood an online chat conversation due to sequential issues?

40. Overlapping A: How many should be in the group?
B: Maybe this could be one of the four strongest reasons?
A: What do you mean?
B: I agree
A: Hang on?
B: What did you mean?

41. Group discussions
When multiple users chat simultaneously, these issues grow:
Alison: Brian’s got some lovely roses
Brian: I’m afraid they are covered in greenfly
Clarise: I’ve seen them, they’re beautiful
Google Wave?

42. Group Project How did the Google Docs project go?
How did you work as a group?
In what ways was Google Docs useful?
In what ways was Google Docs unhelpful?
What alternative collaboration means would be useful?