Preston Social: Hyperconnectivity
by
Tom Stables
The sixteenth Preston Social was all about hyperconnectivity (defined by Quan-Haase & Wellman, 2005 as ‘the availability of people for communication anywhere and anytime’), and the age of being always-on. Being a staunch advocate of social media and having studied its impact on graphic designers, it made sense for me to take the lead on this one.
In preparation, I made a bold attempt to document all my social network interactions throughout a 24 hour period: from Instagram likes and comments to tweets, conversations and emails, it was screenshots galore. It transpired that this was an ambitious task and of course, not every interaction was captured but nonetheless, the amount of contact and screen time was staggering.
The talk touched on global consumption of social media before exposing my 24 hour social media interactions in a video. The implications of technology and software design (including improved and more attractive user interface design) were covered, as were studies that indicated the mental repercussions of social networking (including studies that linked depression to it).
Audience contribution is key to the success and attraction of the Preston Social and this was certainly no exception. The following were points raised, questioned and discussed as the evening progressed.
Our brains are changing as a result of ever on communication: thoughts of @Neilsimpson #prestonsocial
— Nathaniel Cassidy (@nwcassidy) October 30, 2012
#prestonsocial – conclusion 1 – there is no such thing as multitasking!!
— Neilsimpson (@Neilsimpson) October 30, 2012
#prestonsocial – can attention through social media become addictive or damaging?
— Neilsimpson (@Neilsimpson) October 30, 2012
#prestonsocial – how can you ensure signal rather than noise?
— Neilsimpson (@Neilsimpson) October 30, 2012
If you’re interested in attending future Preston Socials, we aim to hold them on the last Tuesday of each month. To keep up to date with updates and announcements, you can follow Preston Social on Twitter or Like the Facebook page. We also have the Preston Social site which lists speaker bios and event details (past and present).
