Notes   /   28 January 2019

(this is not a quiz)

For each prompt listed below, read the prompt and write a brief response. You may write by hand or type. You are welcome to consult the PDF. You will not be turning this in.

Here's a quote

"Why does it matter? It matters because we live in media, as fish live in water. ... today, at this moment, we can and must design the media, design the molecules of our new water, and I believe the details of this design matter very deeply."

Obviously, this is a metaphor, but what does it mean? How does a fish live in water? What does it mean to "design the molecules" of our new water?

Here's a provocation:

"Everything is interesting, until ruined for us. Nothing in the universe is intrinsically uninteresting. Schooling systematically ruins things for us, wiping out these interests; the last thing to be ruined determines your profession."

What has school ruined for you? How? According to Nelson, what should we be doing differently?

Here's a term:

"Hypertext"

Find one of Nelson's definitions of this term in these essays. Is it complete and accurate? How closely does the contemporary implementation of links on the web follow Nelson's definitions?