Unit 8 An Interactive Life

from Newsweek

---It will put the world at your fingertips, changing the ways you shop, play and learn. But when will the future arrive?

Teaching ObjectivesTo understand the textTo learn the words and phrases about the

interactive lifeTo be familiar with the interactive life

Teaching Points

I. Background informationII. Structual analysisIII. Text analysisIV. Rhetorical devicesV. Questions for discussion

I. Background Information

The text is taken from American Newsweek. Newsweek is American news weekly established in Dayton, Ohio in 1933. In it domestic and international news is summarized, analyzed and categorized according to topics each week. It also has special sections devoted to arts, science, medicine, sports, etc. it is one of the three largest newsweeklies of America and has a wide domestic and international circulation.

Background Information Broadway: New York City thoroughfare that traverses the le

ngth of Manhattan, near the middle of which are clustered the theatres that have long

made it the foremost showcase of commercial stage entertainment in the United St

ates. The term Broadway is virtually theatrical activity. Broadway gained its name as

the axis of synonymous with American an important theatre district.

II. Structure analysis Paragraphs 1-2: Introduction of interactive life a huge amount of information available to anyone at the touch of a b

utton

Paragraphs 3-18: description of interactive life A. difficult to understand because it’s still a long way B. four phases: fake interactive, true interactive, complete viewer co

ntrol, and final frontier C. possible dreams because of large capacity chip, fibre optic cables

and digitalization D. dark side: no privacy, wide gap, considerable debate

Paragraph 19: Suggestion hanging on for the ride

II. Structure analysis

The authors describe an interactive life of the future from three aspects.

First they introduce many imaginative images about an interactive life to readers;

then they go on to describe many possible features of this future life.

At last they analyze the dark side of these dreams.

III. Text analysis

What’s the meaning of the title? An Interactive Life: a life which acts reciprocally,

mutually, receives and gives in return “An Interactive Life” refers to the future life,

meaning a life which acts reciprocally, mutually, receives and gives in return. This interactive life is the life with Internet, and this life will familiarize you with the world, change the ways you shop, play and learn.

What does the essay try to describe to us?

The essay describes to us an interactive life—the future life that will fully involves us all interactively, and suggest us that we should hang on for a ride even though we do not know when this life will come.

Para. 1 Stepping into the past so as to understand the future

Why do people have to step back to see the future?

Because the past indicates the development of the human history. We learn from history that every invention in history brings about great development. Techniques have marked different eras over the centuries: from the primitive tools of the Stone Age, to the Industrial Age marked by steam and electrical power and the discovery of turbines, and engines. Today, we have entered a new era: the computer age and Information Age.

Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931)

--American inventor

--began to work at an early

age and continued to work right up until his death

--well known for his focus and determination.

--more than 1,000 inventions, ( the electric light, the phonograph, and the motion-picture camera).

--electric utilities, phonograph and record companies, and the film industry

Edison National Historical Site

For more than forty years, the laboratory created by Thomas Alva Edison in West Orange, New Jersey, had enormous impact on the lives of millions of people worldwide.

Out of the West Orange laboratories came the motion picture camera, vastly improved phonographs, sound recordings, silent and sound movies and the nickel-iron alkaline electric storage battery.

Why do the authors say “Where he saw internal memos, someone else saw Beethoven”?

Because by saying this, he means to gives an example how Edison’s invention brought about the development.

What do you think is the latest breakthrough—interactivity?

The Internet is the latest breakthrough—interactivity in particular, because it has created a brand new environment. A new culture has been born – free, rapid, and universal – where people share their knowledge and expertise. Information and communication techniques have been turned upside down, distance has been eliminated, frontiers abolished. A tremendous interactive potential is burgeoning on our planet Earth today. Like it or lump it – none can stop it!

What is called “fake interactive”?

Channel-surfing with the remotes, ordering pay-for-view movies and running up the credit-card bills on the Home Shopping Network can be called “fake interactive,” because it is just one step past passive viewing, pure couch-potato mode.

couch-potato:  a person who spends most of his time on a couch watching TV

Why does Caruso call this “fake interactive”?

It is not considered genuine interactivity because it is not revolutionary enough and is just one step beyond passive viewing. It is still the traditional form of sitting on the couch watching. 

What is called “true interactive”?

The major changes in the technological and regulatory infrastructure can be called “true interactive”, for example, the use of the multimedia and World Wide Web,

What is called “complete viewer control”?

When people have access to thousands of channels delivered through some combination of cable, telephone, satellite and cellular networks, which provide data from computer-based archives and information services, “complete viewer control” is reached.

Para. 10. “final frontier”

What is called “final frontier”?A complete two-way link of video, audio and data

is called “final frontier”. According to Red Burns, chair of the interactive Telecommunications Program at New York University, “Interactive means we are all involved. There is no viewer. Interactive is like a conversation.”

Para. 13 electronic highway clogged

these electronic highways have become clogged: the wires, cables or air can no longer carry the increased number of signalsbecome clogged: become stopped up; become jammed, blockedclog: become blocked or filled so that movement or activity is very difficult

Para. 17 gap between the haves and the have-nots

Why may interactivity widen the gap? Because those who have access to the

information may have better opportunities since information and the speed of acquiring information are decisive in today’s competition.

Para. 18 considerable debate

In the next few years there’s likely to be considerable debate over the realistic presentation of violence in the new generation of video games, which will include viewer-directed movies:

In the next few years there may be quite a lot of discussion over whether it is good or bad, whether it should be allowed to have display of actual violence in the new stage of video games, including movies planned and controlled by viewers. 

IV . Rhetorical Devices

metaphor simile

V. Questions for Discussion

What will an interactive life of the future be like? Describe some of its possible features.

Why should a person step into the past to get an idea of

what the future might bring?

How would Peter Jennings become obsolete?

What is called “fake interactive”?

Why would video telephony mean an end of anonymous phone calls?