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The Digital Divide
by Mark BauerleinThis definitive work on the perils and promise of the social- media revolution collects writings by today's best thinkers and cultural commentators, with an all-new introduction by Bauerlein. Twitter, Facebook, e-publishing, blogs, distance-learning and other social media raise some of the most divisive cultural questions of our time. Some see the technological breakthroughs we live with as hopeful and democratic new steps in education, information gathering, and human progress. But others are deeply concerned by the eroding of civility online, declining reading habits, withering attention spans, and the treacherous effects of 24/7 peer pressure on our young. With The Dumbest Generation, Mark Bauerlein emerged as the foremost voice against the development of an overwhelming digital social culture. But The Digital Divide doesn't take sides. Framing the discussion so that leading voices from across the spectrum, supporters and detractors alike, have the opportunity to weigh in on the profound issues raised by the new media-from questions of reading skills and attention span, to cyber-bullying and the digital playground- Bauerlein's new book takes the debate to a higher ground. The book includes essays by Steven Johnson, Nicholas Carr, Don Tapscott, Douglas Rushkoff, Maggie Jackson, Clay Shirky, Todd Gitlin, and many more. Though these pieces have been previously published, the organization of The Digital Divide gives them freshness and new relevancy, making them part of a single document readers can use to truly get a handle on online privacy, the perils of a plugged-in childhood, and other technology-related hot topics. Rather than dividing the book into "pro" and "con" sections, the essays are arranged by subject-"The Brain, the Senses," "Learning in and out of the Classroom," "Social and Personal Life," "The Millennials," "The Fate of Culture," and "The Human (and Political) Impact. " Bauerlein incorporates a short headnote and a capsule bio about each contributor, as well as relevant contextual information about the source of the selection. Bauerlein also provides a new introduction that traces the development of the debate, from the initial Digital Age zeal, to a wave of skepticism, and to a third stage of reflection that wavers between criticism and endorsement. Enthusiasms for the Digital Age has cooled with the passage of time and the piling up of real-life examples that prove the risks of an online-focused culture. However, there is still much debate, comprising thousands of commentaries and hundreds of books, about how these technologies are rewriting our futures. Now, with this timely and definitive volume, readers can finally cut through the clamor, read the the very best writings from each side of The Digital Divide, and make more informed decisions about the presence and place of technology in their lives. .
The Digital Divide: Facing a Crisis or Creating a Myth?
by Benjamin M. CompaineThe Digital Divide refers to the perceived gap between those who have access to the latest information technologies and those who do not. If we are indeed in an Information Age, then not having access to this information is an economic and social handicap. Some people consider the Digital Divide to be a national crisis, while others consider it an over-hyped nonissue. This book presents data supporting the existence of such a divide in the 1990s along racial, economic, ethnic, and education lines. But it also presents evidence that by 2000 the gaps are rapidly closing without substantive public policy initiatives and spending. Together, the contributions serve as a sourcebook on this controversial issue.
The Digital Divide: The Internet and Social Inequality in International Perspective (Routledge Advances in Sociology)
by Massimo Ragnedda Glenn W. MuschertThis book provides an in-depth comparative analysis of inequality and the stratification of the digital sphere. Grounded in classical sociological theories of inequality, as well as empirical evidence, this book defines ‘the digital divide’ as the unequal access and utility of internet communications technologies and explores how it has the potential to replicate existing social inequalities, as well as create new forms of stratification. The Digital Divide examines how various demographic and socio-economic factors including income, education, age and gender, as well as infrastructure, products and services affect how the internet is used and accessed. Comprised of six parts, the first section examines theories of the digital divide, and then looks in turn at: Highly developed nations and regions (including the USA, the EU and Japan); Emerging large powers (Brazil, China, India, Russia); Eastern European countries (Estonia, Romania, Serbia); Arab and Middle Eastern nations (Egypt, Iran, Israel); Under-studied areas (East and Central Asia, Latin America, and sub-Saharan Africa). Providing an interwoven analysis of the international inequalities in internet usage and access, this important work offers a comprehensive approach to studying the digital divide around the globe. It is an important resource for academic and students in sociology, social policy, communication studies, media studies and all those interested in the questions and issues around social inequality.
The Digital Dividend of Terrestrial Broadcasting
by Roland BeutlerThe "digital revolution" of the last two decades has pervaded innumerable aspects of our daily lives and changed our planet irreversibly. The shift from analog to digital broadcasting has facilitated a seemingly infinite variety of new applications--audience interactivity being but one example. The greater efficiency and compression of digital media have endowed broadcasters with a "digital dividend" of spare transmission capacity over and above the requirements of terrestrial broadcasting. The question is, who will use it, and how? Comparing the European experience with that of broadcasters elsewhere in the world, the author sketches the current status of international frequency management, quantifies the value of the "dividend" itself, analyzes the details of the analog-to-digital switchovers already completed, and posits what the future holds for the sector. As we grapple with new devices, inconceivable a mere generation ago, that allow us to access digital media instantly, anywhere and at any time of day, this book is a potent reminder that what we have witnessed so far may be just the first wavering steps along a road whose destination we can only guess at.
The Digital Economy: Business Organization, Production Processes and Regional Developments
by Edward J. Malecki Bruno MorisetInformation technologies (IT) shape economic space, but we have no clear map of the cyber economy since the "digital revolution" began in the early 1970s. The Digital Economy offers an up-to-date, critical synthesis that links the various aspects of the digital or cyber economy from the perspective of real firms. A geographic approach emphasizes how IT has made businesses less dependent on locational constraints, and the tangible effects on places and regions are placed at the core of the analysis. Case studies of companies, including Amazon, Dell, Li & Fung, and Volvo, demonstrate that the geography of digitally-driven production is the outcome of both dispersion and agglomeration dynamics. Global corporations are shown to have footprints that ignore – to some degree – distance and time, yet creative and coordinating activities remain anchored in urban innovative ecosystems such as Silicon Valley and Bangalore. These trends have been made possible by the development of a worldwide and integrated telecommunications network, whose unequal presence dictates the capabilities of places and communities to be connected to the global economy. However, the threat of the digital divide must not be overstated. In cities, rural areas, and emerging countries, local development is wrapped up in human capital, rather than technology. This engaging and accessible text describes and explains the patterns and dynamics of today’s digital economic space. The effects on places and regions and the people in them are at the core of the authors’ analysis, illustrated by many real examples. This book will be useful to anyone studying business and management, geography and information and communication studies.
The Digital Environment: How We Live, Learn, Work, and Play Now
by Pablo J. Boczkowski Eugenia MitchelsteinUnderstanding digital technology in daily life: why we should think holistically in terms of a digital environment instead of discrete devices and apps.Increasingly we live through our personal screens; we work, play, socialize, and learn digitally. The shift to remote everything during the pandemic was another step in a decades-long march toward the digitization of everyday life made possible by innovations in media, information, and communication technology. In The Digital Environment, Pablo Boczkowski and Eugenia Mitchelstein offer a new way to understand the role of the digital in our daily lives, calling on us to turn our attention from our discrete devices and apps to the array of artifacts and practices that make up the digital environment that envelops every aspect of our social experience. Boczkowski and Mitchelstein explore a series of issues raised by the digital takeover of everyday life, drawing on interviews with a variety of experts. They show how existing inequities of gender, race, ethnicity, education, and class are baked into the design and deployment of technology, and describe emancipatory practices that counter this--including the use of Twitter as a platform for activism through such hashtags as #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo. They discuss the digitization of parenting, schooling, and dating--noting, among other things, that today we can both begin and end relationships online. They describe how digital media shape our consumption of sports, entertainment, and news, and consider the dynamics of political campaigns, disinformation, and social activism. Finally, they report on developments in three areas that will be key to our digital future: data science, virtual reality, and space exploration.
The Digital Era 1: Big Data Stakes
by Jean-Pierre ChamouxFor 200 years, industry mastered iron, fire, strength and energy. Today, electronics shapes our everyday objects, integrating chips: computers, phones, keys, games, household appliances, etc. Data, software and calculation frame the conduct of humankind, and everything is translated into data. The first volume in this series analyzes the stakes of the massive data which accumulate on the Internet, keeping track of our actions and gestures, the state of the world and our knowledge.
The Digital Filmmaking Handbook
by Chris Jones Mark BrindlePart of the perennially best-selling Quercus Digital Photography series, this comprehensive guide features everything you need to know to make a digital film, from conception to finished product. Using clear, step-by-step instruction, The Digital Filmmaking Handbook concisely illustrates the technical and creative challenges of digital filmmaking for novices and professionals alike, spanning topics from conception to execution: - Planning a shoot: how to make a storyboard - Set preparation: dressing and lighting a set - Principal photography: filming with HD and DSLR cameras--including the latest advice on equipment, accessories, and software - Advanced editing: software and practices - Post-production: digital effects and Packed with tips and tricks to develop both your creative vision and your technical know-how, The Digital Filmmaking Handbook is the ultimate resource for all your filmmaking needs. From the Trade Paperback edition.
The Digital Frontier: How Consumer Companies Can Create Massive Value Through Digital Transformation
by Ajay SohoniDiscover how to move forward with your own company’s digital transformation with this accessible new resource from a global leader in his field In The Digital Frontier, experienced executive and distinguished author Ajay Sohoni delivers a relatable and readable reference for corporate executives who need the knowledge and confidence to build lasting digital change within their enterprise. From marketing to commercial, supply chain, and finance, the book offers actionable insights in an accessible format, full of anecdotes, humor, and case examples. You’ll learn which areas to focus on and which not to worry about as you craft your own custom transformation journey. In the book, you’ll also find: A demystification of the startup world for executives and an explanation of why unicorns exist (and so often ultimately fail) A detailed description of the digital transformation gripping companies across a variety of industries in functional areas including advertising, engagement, commerce, product development, manufacturing, and corporate functions A simplified 4-stage framework for companies to start from scratch and build valuable use cases Perfect for executives in consumer-facing companies, corporate managers and leaders, business unit heads and management teams, The Digital Frontier is also an indispensable guide for digital non-natives trying to make sense of, and keep up with, the rapidly changing world around them.
The Digital Frontier: Infrastructures of Control on the Global Web (Framing the Global)
by Sangeet KumarThe global web and its digital ecosystem can be seen as tools of emancipation, communication, and spreading knowledge or as means of control, fueled by capitalism, surveillance, and geopolitics.The Digital Frontier interrogates the world wide web and the digital ecosystem it has spawned to reveal how their conventions, protocols, standards, and algorithmic regulations represent a novel form of global power. Sangeet Kumar shows the operation of this power through the web's "infrastructures of control" visible at sites where the universalizing imperatives of the web run up against local values, norms, and cultures. These include how the idea of the "global common good" is used as a ruse by digital oligopolies to expand their private enclosures, how seemingly collaborative spaces can simultaneously be exclusionary as they regulate legitimate knowledge, how selfhood is being redefined online along Eurocentric ideals, and how the web's political challenge is felt differentially by sovereign nation states. In analyzing this new modality of cultural power in the global digital ecosystem, The Digital Frontier is an important read for scholars, activists, academics and students inspired by the utopian dream of a truly representative global digital network.
The Digital Gaming Handbook
by Roberto DillonThe Digital Gaming Handbook covers the state-of-the-art in video and digital game research and development, from traditional to emerging elements of gaming across multiple disciplines. Chapters are presented with applicability across all gaming platforms over a broad range of topics, from game content creation through gameplay at a level accessible for the professional game developer while being deep enough to provide a valuable reference of the state-of-the-art research in this field. Key Features: International experts share their research and experience in game development and design Provides readers with inside perspectives on the cross-disciplinary aspects of the industry Includes retrospective and forward-looking examinations of gaming Editor: Dr. Roberto Dillon is a leading game studies educator with more than 15 years of experience in the field of game design and development.
The Digital Humanities
by Gardiner, Eileen and Musto, Ronald G. Eileen Gardiner Ronald G. MustoThe Digital Humanities is a comprehensive introduction and practical guide to how humanists use the digital to conduct research, organize materials, analyze, and publish findings. It summarizes the turn toward the digital that is reinventing every aspect of the humanities among scholars, libraries, publishers, administrators, and the public. Beginning with some definitions and a brief historical survey of the humanities, the book examines how humanists work, what they study, and how humanists and their research have been impacted by the digital and how, in turn, they shape it. It surveys digital humanities tools and their functions, the digital humanists' environments, and the outcomes and reception of their work. The book pays particular attention to both theoretical underpinnings and practical considerations for embarking on digital humanities projects. It places the digital humanities firmly within the historical traditions of the humanities and in the contexts of current academic and scholarly life.
The Digital Humanities Coursebook: An Introduction to Digital Methods for Research and Scholarship
by Johanna DruckerThe Digital Humanities Coursebook provides critical frameworks for the application of digital humanities tools and platforms, which have become an integral part of work across a wide range of disciplines. Written by an expert with twenty years of experience in this field, the book is focused on the principles and fundamental concepts for application, rather than on specific tools or platforms. Each chapter contains examples of projects, tools, or platforms that demonstrate these principles in action. The book is structured to complement courses on digital humanities and provides a series of modules, each of which is organized around a set of concerns and topics, thought experiments and questions, as well as specific discussions of the ways in which tools and platforms work. The book covers a wide range of topics and clearly details how to integrate the acquisition of expertise in data, metadata, classification, interface, visualization, network analysis, topic modeling, data mining, mapping, and web presentation with issues in intellectual property, sustainability, privacy, and the ethical use of information. Written in an accessible and engaging manner, The Digital Humanities Coursebook will be a useful guide for anyone teaching or studying a course in the areas of digital humanities, library and information science, English, or computer science. The book will provide a framework for direct engagement with digital humanities and, as such, should be of interest to others working across the humanities as well.
The Digital Interface and New Media Art Installations (Routledge Advances in Art and Visual Studies)
by Phaedra ShanbaumThis book is about the digital interface and its use in interactive new media art installations. It examines the aesthetic aspects of the interface through a theoretical exploration of new media artists, who create, and tactically deploy, digital interfaces in their work in order to question the socio-cultural stakes of a technology that shapes and reshapes relationships between humans and non-humans. In this way, it shows how use of the digital interface provides us with a critical framework for understanding our relationship with technology.
The Digital Invasion: How Technology Is Shaping You and Your Relationships
by Archibald D. Hart Sylvia Hart FrejdIn the world of technology, there are just two kinds of people: digital natives and digital immigrants. Digital natives are those born after the advent of the internet. They are comfortable with swift technological change and take the presence of technology in their lives almost completely for granted. They have "digital DNA" flowing through their bodies. On the other hand, digital immigrants are those born before the advent of the internet. Their comfort level with our technology-soaked world is more variable. But they are affected by the digital invasion just as much as their native children. With the latest research supporting them, Dr. Archibald Hart and Dr. Sylvia Hart Frejd uncover both the subtle and the dramatic ways digital technology is changing us from within, focusing their exposé on the impact on the spiritual life of individuals. Through insights from neuroscience and psychology, they offer readers therapeutic and biblical strategies for handling the digital invasion in order to become good stewards of their digital lives. Parents, educators, students, counselors, and pastors will especially appreciate this cultural wake-up call. Much of the focus is from a Christianity perspective, but a lot of good information about what use of technology (especially excessive addictive) does to the brain and our ability to function
The Digital Is Kid Stuff: Making Creative Laborers for a Precarious Economy
by Josef NguyenHow popular debates about the so-called digital generation mediate anxieties about labor and life in twenty-first-century America &“The children are our future&” goes the adage, a proclamation that simultaneously declares both anxiety as well as hope about youth as the next generation. In The Digital Is Kid Stuff, Josef Nguyen interrogates this ambivalence within discussions about today&’s &“digital generation&” and the future of creativity, an ambivalence that toggles between the techno-pessimism that warns against the harm to children of too much screen time and a techno-utopianism that foresees these &“digital natives&” leading the way to innovation, economic growth, increased democratization, and national prosperity. Nguyen engages cultural histories of childhood, youth, and creativity through chapters that are each anchored to a particular digital media object or practice. Nguyen narrates the developmental arc of a future creative laborer: from a young kid playing the island fictions of Minecraft, to an older child learning do-it-yourself skills while reading Make magazine, to a teenager posting selfies on Instagram, to a young adult creative laborer imagining technological innovations using design fiction. Focusing on the constructions and valorizations of creativity, entrepreneurialism, and technological savvy, Nguyen argues that contemporary culture operates to assuage profound anxieties about—and to defuse valid critiques of—both emerging digital technologies and the precarity of employment for &“creative laborers&” in twenty-first-century neoliberal America.
The Digital Journalist's Handbook
by Mark S. LuckieThe Digital Journalist's Handbook is your guide to the tools you need to know to thrive in today's digital newsroom. This unique how-to book provides simple explanations of complex technologies and provides examples of how journalists can incorporate them into their stories and reporting. The Handbook is composed of 12 chapters, each dedicated to a different tool in the digital journalist's toolbox. Chapters include "Writing for the Web," "Blogging," "Photography," "Audio," "Audio Slideshows," "Video," "Web Design," "Social Networking," "Data Visualization," and "Flash," as well as a glossary with definitions of more than 130 technical terms and phrases commonly used in digital journalism. The Handbook is also fully illustrated and contains diagrams and guidelines of everything from the layout of a typical blog to the features found on a digital audio recorder. In addition, each chapter includes links to online resources, tutorials, and examples of every technology mentioned in the book. The Digital Journalist's Handbook is a must-read for both novice digital journalists and tech-savvy experts.
The Digital Literary Sphere: Reading, Writing, and Selling Books in the Internet Era
by Simone MurrayHow has the Internet changed literary culture?2nd Place, N. Katherine Hayles Award for Criticism of Electronic Literature by The Electronic Literature OrganizationReports of the book’s death have been greatly exaggerated. Books are flourishing in the Internet era—widely discussed and reviewed in online readers’ forums and publicized through book trailers and author blog tours. But over the past twenty-five years, digital media platforms have undeniably transformed book culture. Since Amazon’s founding in 1994, the whole way in which books are created, marketed, publicized, sold, reviewed, showcased, consumed, and commented upon has changed dramatically. The digital literary sphere is no mere appendage to the world of print—it is where literary reputations are made, movements are born, and readers passionately engage with their favorite works and authors.In The Digital Literary Sphere, Simone Murray considers the contemporary book world from multiple viewpoints. By examining reader engagement with the online personas of Margaret Atwood, John Green, Gary Shteyngart, David Foster Wallace, Karl Ove Knausgaard, and even Jonathan Franzen, among others, Murray reveals the dynamic interrelationship of print and digital technologies. Drawing on approaches from literary studies, media and cultural studies, book history, cultural policy, and the digital humanities, this book asks: What is the significance of authors communicating directly to readers via social media? How does digital media reframe the "live" author-reader encounter? And does the growing army of reader-reviewers signal an overdue democratizing of literary culture or the atomizing of cultural authority? In exploring these questions, The Digital Literary Sphere takes stock of epochal changes in the book industry while probing books’ and digital media’s complex contemporary coexistence.
The Digital Marketer's Playbook: How to Effectively Collaborate with Agencies, Freelancers, and Digital Marketing Experts
by Diego Adolfo Carrasco GubernatisTransition from traditional marketing to digital marketing and master a comprehensive range of topics within this field. This book offers a practical, step-by-step approach to managing digital marketing (with the help of experts) in the current landscape, making it a timely and valuable resource for marketers, business owners, and students alike. With an emphasis on referential information, you’ll review some of the foundational concepts of digital marketing, including digital assets, advertising channels, formats, and customer awareness. You’ll also delve into targeting methods, audience segmentation, and the use of keywords for display and search ads. Gain insights into key digital marketing metrics like CPC, CPV, CPM, clicks, and CTR, and how they impact campaign performance. Learn about conversion tracking, analytics, and how to interpret digital marketing reports to evaluate campaign success. Explore advanced topics such as the use of artificial intelligence in digital marketing for targeting and content optimization. Understand the landscape of legal, tax, and brand protection in the digital space. The book's relevance stems from the increasing dominance of digital channels in marketing. In today's digital age, understanding and effectively utilizing digital marketing strategies is not just important but essential for businesses and marketers. The shift towards digital has been accelerated by technological advancements and changes in consumer behavior, making digital marketing skills more critical than ever, but not every executive and marketing professional has managed to stay on top of its developments. The Digital Marketer's Playbook is an essential guide for those who have foundational knowledge in marketing but are relatively new to the domain of digital marketing. What You Will Learn See how a digital marketing campaign works (across providers, not provider-specific). Implement campaign optimizations. Explore digital marketing channels, creatives, formats, and advertiser channel providers. Review the wording (jargon) used in the industry (personas, target group, bids, keywords, etc.). Who This Book is For Those who have implemented marketing campaigns, but they are looking to dive deeper into digital marketing, understand it’s particularities and know what to ask for and what to expect from specialists.
The Digital Marketing Handbook: Create a simple strategy and grow your business online
by Alice BenhamGet clarity and take action to grow your business using digital mediaThere's so much marketing expertise out there but how should people know what to listen to? How to implement it? Or where to start? By covering the fundamentals of marketing, this audiobook will act as a north star for small business owners looking to grow. Like Alice herself, the book is honest, practical, engaging and actionable - no fluff or complication allowed - and will help you build a community, get visible and make sales. It is rooted in theory but with real-life experiences, and will leave you with the clarity and systems to take your business to the next level.(P) 2024 Quercus Editions Limited
The Digital Marketing Handbook: Create a simple strategy and grow your business online
by Alice BenhamFrom strategist, speaker and podcaster Alice Benham comes The Digital Marketing Handbook - an expert guide covering the fundamentals of marketing, filled with case studies and interviews with industry insiders.There's so much marketing expertise out there but how should people know what to listen to? How to implement it? Or where to start? By covering the fundamentals of marketing, this book will act as a north star for small business owners looking to grow. Like Alice herself, the book is honest, practical, engaging and actionable - no fluff or complication allowed - and will help you build a community, get visible and make sales. Rooted in theory but with real-life experiences and case studies from entrepreneurs who have made digital marketing work for them, the book will leave you with the clarity and systems to take your business to the next level. An indispensable resource for small business owners, freelancers, entrepreneurs and marketing students.Here's what to expect from the book:Proven and practical expertise Clear definitions (no jargon!) Quick tips Examples and case studies Insights from trusted experts Chapter summaries for easy reminders Action steps for every topic
The Digital Marketing Handbook: Create a simple strategy and grow your business online
by Alice BenhamFrom strategist, speaker and podcaster Alice Benham comes The Digital Marketing Handbook - an expert guide covering the fundamentals of marketing, filled with case studies and interviews with industry insiders.There's so much marketing expertise out there but how should people know what to listen to? How to implement it? Or where to start? By covering the fundamentals of marketing, this book will act as a north star for small business owners looking to grow. Like Alice herself, the book is honest, practical, engaging and actionable - no fluff or complication allowed - and will help you build a community, get visible and make sales. Rooted in theory but with real-life experiences and case studies from entrepreneurs who have made digital marketing work for them, the book will leave you with the clarity and systems to take your business to the next level. An indispensable resource for small business owners, freelancers, entrepreneurs and marketing students.Here's what to expect from the book:Proven and practical expertise Clear definitions (no jargon!) Quick tips Examples and case studies Insights from trusted experts Chapter summaries for easy reminders Action steps for every topic
The Digital Marketing Handbook: Deliver Powerful Digital Campaigns
by Simon KingsnorthBuild, implement and optimize your digital marketing campaigns, with this indispensable guide which covers everything from SEO, social media, paid search and display advertising. The Digital Marketing Handbook takes the reader step by step through the various components of B2B and B2C online marketing, making it an essential companion to every marketer's desk. Highly practical in approach, it features tips, platform recommendations and common pitfalls to watch out for, as well as examples from global brands including Google, Amazon and Nissan. Detailed guidance is provided for key areas such as creating content that excites, informs and converts, using marketing automation and analyzing your results to maximize performance. Written by recognized industry expert and bestselling author, Simon Kingsnorth, The Digital Marketing Handbook brings together reliable and actionable insights into one complete resource. Also covering how to manage affiliates and partnerships to deliver highly targeted leads and provide customer service that achieves high review scores and builds loyalty, it is accompanied by online templates and interactive tools to use in practice. This book is an essential blueprint for marketing professionals to deliver the best results from their digital marketing campaigns.
The Digital Matte Painting Handbook
by David B. MattinglyThe only how-to guide dedicated to mastering the technique of digital matte painting! Matte painting affords seamless integration between an artist's painting with live action film footage and allows for greater flexibility and creative input in the appearance of movie settings. This unique book reveals a variety of tools and techniques that are both industry and classroom tested and will enhance your existing skill set. Veteran author and instructor David Mattingly walks you through the process of creating a matte painting, starting with rough concept sketches, working out the perspective drawing, adding light and shadow, and texturing all of the elements in the painting. You'll gradually upgrade to using Adobe After Effects and Autodesk Maya in order to fulfill your matte painting vision. Escorts you through the process of creating a matte painting, starting with the initial concept sketch, adding light and shadow, texturing elements, and incorporating motion and depth Author is an experienced matte artist and teacher and shares a plethora of unique industry- and classroom-tested tools and techniques Features helpful step-by-step instructions accompanied by screen shots and photos to illustrate the process of creating a matte painting Whether you're creating a background for a studio production, independent film, TV commercial, or YouTube video, The Digital Matte Painting Handbook helps you successfully complete your project. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.
The Digital Mind: How Science Is Redefining Humanity (The\mit Press Ser.)
by Arlindo OliveiraHow developments in science and technology may enable the emergence of purely digital minds—intelligent machines equal to or greater in power than the human brain.What do computers, cells, and brains have in common? Computers are electronic devices designed by humans; cells are biological entities crafted by evolution; brains are the containers and creators of our minds. But all are, in one way or another, information-processing devices. The power of the human brain is, so far, unequaled by any existing machine or known living being. Over eons of evolution, the brain has enabled us to develop tools and technology to make our lives easier. Our brains have even allowed us to develop computers that are almost as powerful as the human brain itself. In this book, Arlindo Oliveira describes how advances in science and technology could enable us to create digital minds. Exponential growth is a pattern built deep into the scheme of life, but technological change now promises to outstrip even evolutionary change. Oliveira describes technological and scientific advances that range from the discovery of laws that control the behavior of the electromagnetic fields to the development of computers. He calls natural selection the ultimate algorithm, discusses genetics and the evolution of the central nervous system, and describes the role that computer imaging has played in understanding and modeling the brain. Having considered the behavior of the unique system that creates a mind, he turns to an unavoidable question: Is the human brain the only system that can host a mind? If digital minds come into existence—and, Oliveira says, it is difficult to argue that they will not—what are the social, legal, and ethical implications? Will digital minds be our partners, or our rivals?