I was a guest speaker for the University of Toronto / Sheridan College Web Culture and Design program in March 2015. My presentation looks at web design through the lens of this new web culture and proposes that technology consumption has a direct impact on culture. The hypothesis is that consumption, especially among youth, tweens and teens has created a cultural dysfunction. As a guest speaker for the Web Culture and Design classes, my intention was to provide new insights that will challenge their existing design paradigms and foster new ways of thinking and approaching design.
WordPress by the numbers - Jan Loeffler, CTO WebPros, CloudFest 2024
Technology Consumption and Cultural Dysfunction
1. UNIVERSITY
OF
TORONTO|SHERIDAN
COLLEGE|
WEB
CULTURE
AND
DESIGN
|
CCT260H5S
Winter
2015
Technology
ConsumpJon
&
Cultural
DysfuncJon
GUEST
SPEAKER:
Corinne
Schmid,
MBA,
ECMM
Founder
&
President
Propellerhead
MarkeJng
corinne@propellerheadmarke/ng.com
26
March
2015
Warning:
this
presenta/on
contains
images
and
content
that
some
viewers
may
find
disturbing.
The
subject
maEer
is
intended
for
educa/onal
and
instruc/onal
purposes
per
the
curriculum
and
course
mandate.
Sources
for
images,
data
and
graphics
are
cited
as
accessed
online
17-‐25th
March
2015.
Neither
Corinne
Schmid,
Propellerhead
Marke/ng,
University
of
Toronto,
Sheridan
College
nor
any
of
its
employees,
students
and
staff
is
claiming
authorship,
ownership
or
copyright
–
nor
intends
for
this
to
be
perceived
as
such.
2. 3
reasons
why
this
session
will
change
your
thinking:
1. You
will
be
introduced
to
the
dark
side
of
technology.
2. You
will
compare
your
technology
consumpJon
with
this
dark
side
3. You
will
evaluate
if
your
usage
is
fueling
a
cultural
dysfuncJon
What
is
the
impact
of
technology
consumpJon
and
the
ongoing
technology-‐driven
cultural
dysfuncJon?
4. Tradi/onal
web
design.
Meh.
Reality:
web
design
is
expected
to
be
cross-‐plaVorm
and
device
agnos/c.
5. The
Next
Killer
App
No
really,
this
will
–
literally
-‐
kill
your
app
Reality:
you
may
program
on
a
super
awesome,
high
performing,
Intel
5th
Genera/on,
32GB
RAM,
7,200-‐rpm
hard
drive,
32
GB
flash
cache…
that’s
great
for
you.
Meanwhile,
your
user
runs
Windows
2008
which
means
your
killer
design
just
killed
your
app
because
no
one
could
use
it–
or
at
least,
gave
up
a_er
10
seconds
of
wai/ng
for
the
applica/on
to
launch.
#Fail.
8. Technology
ConsumpJon
|
Cultural
DysfuncJon
AGENDA
ü Presenta/on
overview
ü Corinne’s
biography
puzzle
ü Basic
web
design
standards
q Let’s
talk
about
web
culture
–
is
this
a
thing?
q Technology
consump/on
q The
poten/al
for
cultural
dysfunc/on
q Where
do
you
go
from
here?
9. First:
what
does
‘culture’
mean
to
you?
Google
search
returned
434,000,000
results
for
the
word
CULTURE
10. First:
what
does
‘culture’
mean
to
you?
…are
the
434m
results
more
or
less
than
if
you
googled
Kardashian?
Speaking of culture:
11. Culture/humanity
is
saved:
Kardashian
only
had
221,000,000
search
results.
Source:
December
8,
2011,
accessed
20
March
2015:
hEp://thefix.ninemsn.com.au/2014/12/09/05/31/make-‐it-‐stop-‐up-‐to-‐four-‐more-‐kardashian-‐tv-‐shows-‐in-‐the-‐pipeline
12. But
wait,
from
le_
to
right,
Who
can
name
each
Kardashian?
Source:
December
8,
2011,
accessed
20
March
2015:
hEp://thefix.ninemsn.com.au/2014/12/09/05/31/make-‐it-‐stop-‐up-‐to-‐four-‐more-‐kardashian-‐tv-‐shows-‐in-‐the-‐pipeline
13. But
wait,
from
le_
to
right,
Who
can
name
each
Kardashian?
Source:
December
8,
2011,
accessed
20
March
2015:
hEp://thefix.ninemsn.com.au/2014/12/09/05/31/make-‐it-‐stop-‐up-‐to-‐four-‐more-‐kardashian-‐tv-‐shows-‐in-‐the-‐pipeline
BONUS
POINTS:
Which
Kardashian
sibling
is
missing
from
this
picture?
14. You
can
name
all
the
Kardashians,
can
you
name
all
your
classmates?
15. But
wait,
from
le_
to
right,
Who
can
name
each
Kardashian?
Source:
December
8,
2011,
accessed
20
March
2015:
hEp://thefix.ninemsn.com.au/2014/12/09/05/31/make-‐it-‐stop-‐up-‐to-‐four-‐more-‐kardashian-‐tv-‐shows-‐in-‐the-‐pipeline
CLASS
RESULTS:
1. Both
classes
could
name
each
Kardashian–
in
less
than
30
seconds.
2. Both
classes
iden/fied
the
‘missing’
Kardashian
-‐
within
5
seconds.
3. No
one,
in
either
class,
could
name
all
fellow
classmates
–
approximately
30
people
-‐
despite
being
in
the
same
program
and
sharing
the
same
class
room
for
over
3
months.
16. The
reality
(no
pun
intended):
You
know
(more)
names
of
a
reality
TV
show
family
–
the
Kardashians
–
than
the
names
of
your
~30,
‘real
world’,
classmates
whom
you’ve
been
sinng
with,
in
the
same
classroom,
for
over
three
months.
Lesson
Point:
Humans
are
social
creatures
and
yet
we
are
increasingly
dependent
on
technology
-‐
hardware
devices
and
so7ware
programs-‐
to
communicate
and
socialize
with
others.
Is
that
a
cultural
dysfunc9on?
17. WEB
CULTURE
IS
A
THING
Virtual
World
|
YouTubers
|
e-‐LebriJes
|
Vloggers
19. Web
culture
has
a
new
language:
what
do
the
following
numbers
mean?
• 121
• 143
• 1432
• 182
• 4
• 411
• 404
• 420
• 459
• 511
• 555
• 831
• 86
• 88
• 9
20. Web
culture
has
its
own
language:
• 121
–
one
to
one
• 143
–
I
love
you
• 1432
–
I
love
you
too
• 182
–
I
hate
you
• 4
–
‘for’
in
SMS
• 411
-‐
Informa/on
• 404
–
I
don’t
know
• 420
-‐
marijuana
• 459
–
I
love
you
• 511
-‐
TMI
• 555
–
sobbing
,
crying
• 831
–
I
love
you
• 86
-‐
Over
• 88
–
bye-‐bye
• 88
Hugs
and
kisses
• 9
–
Parents
is
watching
21. The
new
e-‐lebri;es:
Coming
to
a
dorm
room
near
you.
• PewDiePie
-‐
Swedish
vlogger,
notable
for
being
a
video
game
commentator
• Tyler
Oakley
-‐
American
vlogger,
advocates
for
LGBT
youth
• Grace
Helbig
-‐
American
vlogger,
set
to
star
in
a
upcoming
E!
comedy
series
• Miranda
Sings
-‐
Internet
character,
created
by
YouTube
vlogger
Colleen
Ballinger
• Fleur
DeForce
-‐
American
beauty
guru,
specialises
in
beauty-‐related
tutorials
• Joey
Graceffa
-‐
American
vlogger,
starred
in
The
Amazing
Race
22
• Elle
Flower
-‐
American
beauty
guru,
specialises
in
beauty-‐related
tutorials
• Sawyer
Hartman
-‐
American
vlogger,
directs
indie
films
backed
by
Ron
Howard
• Kandee
Johnson
-‐
American
beauty
guru,
works
as
a
celebrity
makeup
ar/st
• MichellePhan
-‐
American
beauty
guru,
launched
a
L'Oreal
line
called
EM
• Jenna
Marbles
-‐
American
vlogger,
launched
dog
toys
called
Kermie
Worm
&
Mr.
Marbles
• EssiebuEon
-‐
American
beauty
guru,
specialises
in
beauty-‐related
videos
• Zoella
-‐
Bri/sh
beauty
vlogger,
launched
a
makeup
line
called
Zoella
Beauty
• Thatcher
Joe
-‐
Bri/sh
vlogger,
the
brother
of
YouTube
vlogger
Zoella
• Pointless
Blog
-‐
Bri/sh
vlogger,
also
dates
YouTube
vlogger
Zoella
• Tanya
Burr
-‐
Bri/sh
beauty
vlogger,
launched
a
makeup
line
called
Tanya
Burr
Cosme/cs
• Jim
Chapman
-‐
Bri/sh
vlogger,
also
dates
YouTube
vlogger
Tanya
Burr
• Caspar
Lee
-‐
English-‐born
South
African
vlogger,
starred
in
the
comedy
film
Spud
3
• Marcus
Butler
-‐
Bri/sh
vlogger,
also
part
of
Comic
Relief's
"YouTube
Boyband”
Sampling:
how
many
to
you
know?
22. Are
they
real
celebri/es?
How
many
views
do
they
have….?
Many
YouTuber
have
more
views
than
so-‐called
‘real
world’
celebs
like
Lady
Gaga,
Taylor
Swi_
and
Jus/n
Bieber:
• PewDiePie
–
6.65
billion
total
views
• Smosh
–
6.18
billion
• DisneyCollectorBR
–
3.69
billion
views
• RayWilliamJohnson
–
2.76
billion
views
• Michelle
Phan
–
first
woman
to
reach
over
1
billion
views
on
YouTube
–
over
Rihanna,
Lady
Gaga,
Madonna,
et
al….
This
is
definitely
a
thing.
To
the
point
that
Ray
William
Johnson
announce
his
reJrement
from
e-‐lebrity
because
it
had
become
unfulfilling…..at
more
views
that
some
prime/me
TV
shows.
24. Technology
ConsumpJon
|
Cultural
DysfuncJon
ü Presenta/on
overview
ü Corinne’s
biography
puzzle
ü Basic
web
design
standards
ü Let’s
talk
about
web
culture
–
is
this
a
thing?
q Technology
consump/on
q The
poten/al
for
cultural
dysfunc/on
q Where
do
you
go
from
here?
25. TECHNOLOGY
CONSUMPTION
Let’s
get
personal:
you
will
assess
your
own
Get
out
a
pen
and
paper
so
you
can
take
inventory
of
your
true
technology
consump/on
26. T E C H N O L O G Y
I N V E N T O R Y
Check
all
the
devices
/
electronics
that
you
use
daily
or
are
exposed
to
each
evening.
q Telephone
q Mobile
/
Smartphone
q Cordless
/
Home
or
Landline
q
Music
player
(MP3,
iPod)
q Wireless
speakers
q
Tablet
/
iPad
q Electronic
Book
Reader
(examples:
Kindle
/
Kobo)
q Gaming
(ie:
PS3,
WII)
q
Standalone
console
(DS3)
q Wearables:
q Fitbit
or
other
fitness
device
(usually
worn
on
wrist)
q Samsung
Galaxy,
Apple
or
other
watch
q Television
/
Projector
q
SmartTV
(connects
to
internet)
q
Digital
TV
box
(ie
Netbox
from
Rogers)
q TV
in
bedroom
q Computer
q
PC
/
Mac
Computer
–
at
HOME
q PC
/
Mac
Computer
–
in
BEDROOM
q Dual
monitors
for
home/personal
use
computer
(ie:
in
bedroom)
q Wireless
keyboard
q TV
or
Monitor
in
your
bedroom
q External
storage
or
hardware
back-‐up
q Printer
–
wireless
or
connected
q Router
/
modem
q Other
electronic
device(s),
specify:
____________________________
____________________________
27. Here’s
an
example
of
a
technology
inventory:
Phone:
ü Mobile:
smartphone
-‐
with
wifi
and
bluetooth
–
always
on
me,
never
out
of
reach.
ü Home:
cordless
phone,
land
line
access
–
cordless
handset
in
my
room.
Computer:
ü Home
computer
–
my
parents
have
a
desktop
in
the
living
room.
ü Notebook
computer
–
I
have
my
own
computer
in
my
room
with
an
external
monitor
on
my
desk.
I
use
a
wireless
keyboard
and
mouse.
ü Tablet
(iPad)
–
my
dad
has
an
iPad
and
I
use
it
for
a
couple
hours
a_er
dinner.
ü The
printer
is
next
to
the
home
computer
in
the
living
room,
next
to
the
router.
Fun
ü Music
Player
–
I
use
an
iPod
because
it’s
easier
than
my
phone
at
the
gym.
ü At
home,
I
some/mes
wear
my
Beats
by
Dre
wireless
headphones
or
connect
to
my
Jambox
speaker.
.
ü Gaming
–
we
play
GTA5
on
the
PS3;
we
also
have
a
WII.
Both
are
connected
to
a
Samsung
Smart
TV.
ü Wearables
–
can’t
afford
the
Samsung
or
Apple
watch,
but
I
wear
the
FitBit
to
track
my
ac/vity
and
monitor
my
sleep.
28. You’ve
taken
inventory
of
WHAT
you
have
Now
evaluate
your
USAGE
and
EXPOSURE
FIRST
let’s
define
USAGE:
Any
electronic
device
that
you
interact
with,
examples:
• Tex/ng
from
your
mobile
phone
• Using
a
remote
control
to
change
the
channel
on
TV
• Watching
a
YouTube
video
on
your
iPad
• Doing
homework
on
a
computer
–
desktop
or
notebook.
• Watching
videos
on
either
your
phone,
tablet,
smart
TV,
or
computer.
SECOND,
let’s
define
EXPOSURE
–
simply:
the
distance
between
you
and
the
device,
examples:
• Tex/ng
from
your
mobile
phone
–
the
device
is
in
your
hands:
very
close
exposure
to
your
body.
• The
TV
remote
is
in
your
hands
and
you’re
in
the
same
room
as
the
TV:
moderate
exposure
if
TV
is
6-‐8
feet
away
from
you.
Increased
exposure
if
less
than
6
feet.
• Watching
a
video
on
your
iPad
-‐
you’re
holding
the
device
or
within
a
few
feet
of
it:
close
proximity.
• Using
the
family
computer
–
you
are
close
proximity
to
the
keyboard,
mouse
and
looking
at
a
monitor.
• Doing
homework
on
a
computer,
while
watching
TV
and
occasionally
returning
text
messages
on
your
mobile
phone:
mul/-‐device
usage
and
mul/-‐device
exposure.
29. Technology
Consump/on:
assess
your
usage
from
6pm
–
midnight,
Monday
to
Friday.
1. How
much
computer
/
tablet
/
monitor
screen
/me
do
you
have
each
night?
__less
than
2
hours
___
between
2-‐4
hours
___5-‐6
hours
__
>6
2. How
much
television
/
gaming
screen
/me
do
you
have
each
night?
This
includes
if
the
TV
is
on
while
you’re
doing
homework
on
another
device,
ie:
computer.
__
less
than
2
hours
___
between
2-‐4
hours
__
5-‐6
hours
__
>6
hours.
3. On
average,
how
much
talk
Jme
(on
a
mobile
phone
or
landline)
do
you
have
each
night?
___less
than
2
hours
___
2-‐4
hours
___
5-‐6
hours
__
>6
hours.
4. On
average,
how
much
/me
do
you
spend
TEXTING
/
MESSAGING
each
night?
__less
than
2
hours
___
between
2-‐4
hours
___5-‐6
hours
__
>6
hours.
30. Technology
consump/on:
assess
your
usage
from
6pm
–
midnight,
Monday
to
Friday.
5.
Do
you
have
a
wearable
aEached
to
your
wrist,
clothing
or
body
in
the
evening?
____YES
____NO.
6.
Is
your
mobile
phone
also
your
alarm
clock?
____YES
____NO.
7.
Do
you
turn
off
your
ringer
when
you
go
to
bed?
____YES
____NO.
8.
If
you
have
a
computer
or
a
TV
in
your
room,
do
you
turn
it
off
when
you
go
to
bed
at
night?
____YES
____NO.
9.
Do
you
have
a
technology
curfew?
____YES
____NO
31. The
reality:
Technology
and
electronics
are
pervasive
in
our
daily
lives.
From
waking
up
to
the
alarm
on
our
smartphone,
to
carrying
that
same
device
in
a
pocket
all
day
and
then
interac/ng
with
other
electronics
such
as
computers,
tablets,
printers,
modems,
televisions,
game
consoles,
etc.
Both
CCT
classes
indicated
being
exposed
to
and
using
mul/ple
technology
devices
in
the
hours
a_er
school.
No
one
indicated
having
a
‘media
curfew’
or
spending
an
hour
offline
before
going
to
bed.
Lesson
Point:
Which
came
first:
the
chicken
or
the
egg.
Likewise,
which
came
first:
our
dependence
on
technology,
or
our
insa;able
techonlogy
consump;on.
With
all
the
;me
spent
online
–
how
much
;me
are
you
spending
offline?
Where
is
your
balance
in
the
real-‐
world?
Is
that
a
cultural
dysfunc9on?
32. Technology
ConsumpJon
|
Cultural
DysfuncJon
ü Presenta/on
overview
ü Corinne’s
biography
puzzle
ü Basic
web
design
standards
ü Let’s
talk
about
web
culture
–
is
this
a
thing?
ü Technology
consump/on
q The
poten/al
for
cultural
dysfunc/on
q Where
do
you
go
from
here?
33. Children
have
thinner
skulls
and
absorb
up
to
60%
more
radia/on
than
an
adult.
And
so
it
begins:
the
dark
side
of
technology:
34. Did
you
know….
?
You
can
reduce
75%
of
the
electromagne/c
radia/on
by
moving
your
phone
5
cms
(approximately
2
inches)
away
from
your
head.
Reference:
R.
B.
Herberman,
MD,
University
of
PiEsburgh
Cancer
Ins/tute
(2008)
35. Ewwww,
there’s
fecal
maEer
on
1-‐in-‐6
mobile
phones
Upwards
of
75%
of
Americans
take
their
phones
into
the
washroom.
Close
to
17%
of
them
come
out
of
the
washroom
with
feces
on
their
phone.
Gross.
Fecal
maEer
has
been
known
to
spread
E.
coli
bacteria,
which
can
cause
serious
illnesses
like
urinary
tract
infec/ons
and
kidney
failure.
36. Smaller
isn’t
always
bejer.
70%
of
adults
squint
and
strain
their
eyes
looking
at
their
phone
or
tablet
screen.
This
may
cause
computer
vision
syndrome,
condi/on
in
which
you
have
dry
eyes,
difficulty
focusing,
and
some/mes,
even
double
vision.
Source:
Vision
Council
37. Text
neck
is
the
outcome
of
constantly
staring
down
at
your
phone
screen
–
as
one
usually
does
when
tex/ng
or
messaging.
38. Did
you
know….
?
Child
behavior
specialists
are
seeing
a
genera/on
that
is
not
par/cipa/ng
in
ac/ve
engagement
with
others,
but
rather
is
staring
at
a
screen.
KathyH,
HubPages
(2013)
39. Technology
consump/on
driving
dysfunc/on
You
go
to
bed
and
con/nue
to
chat,
text,
message
and
socialize
on
your
mobile
phone.
This
leads
to
later
sleep
/mes
that
result
in
a
shorter
sleep
dura/on
that
could
give
you
social
jetlag.
40. Did
you
know….
?
1
hour
before
bed,
AVOID
use
of
light-‐emikng
screens.
This
specific
light
interferes
with
sleep
pajerns
and
quality
of
sleep.
49. Summary
How
will
you
establish
your
cultural
legacy
that
supports
‘technology
for
good’;
rather
than
feeding
into
to
mass
consump/on
that
triggers
greater
technology
dysfunc/on?
50. UNIVERSITY
OF
TORONTO|SHERIDAN
COLLEGE|
WEB
CULTURE
AND
DESIGN
|
CCT260H5S
Winter
2015
Technology
ConsumpJon
&
Cultural
DysfuncJon
GUEST
SPEAKER:
Corinne
Schmid,
MBA,
ECMM
Founder
&
President
Propellerhead
MarkeJng
corinne@propellerheadmarke/ng.com
26
March
2015
Warning:
this
presenta/on
contains
images
and
content
that
some
viewers
may
find
disturbing.
The
subject
maEer
is
intended
for
educa/onal
and
instruc/onal
purposes
per
the
curriculum
and
course
mandate.
Sources
for
images,
data
and
graphics
are
cited
as
accessed
online
17-‐25th
March
2015.
Neither
Corinne
Schmid,
Propellerhead
Marke/ng,
University
of
Toronto,
Sheridan
College
nor
any
of
its
employees,
students
and
staff
is
claiming
authorship,
ownership
or
copyright
–
nor
intends
for
this
to
be
perceived
as
such.
Ques/ons?
51. UNIVERSITY
OF
TORONTO|SHERIDAN
COLLEGE|
WEB
CULTURE
AND
DESIGN
|
CCT260H5S
Winter
2015
Technology
ConsumpJon
&
Cultural
DysfuncJon
GUEST
SPEAKER:
Corinne
Schmid,
MBA,
ECMM
Founder
&
President
Propellerhead
MarkeJng
corinne@propellerheadmarke/ng.com
26
March
2015
Warning:
this
presenta/on
contains
images
and
content
that
some
viewers
may
find
disturbing.
The
subject
maEer
is
intended
for
educa/onal
and
instruc/onal
purposes
per
the
curriculum
and
course
mandate.
Sources
for
images,
data
and
graphics
are
cited
as
accessed
online
17-‐25th
March
2015.
Neither
Corinne
Schmid,
Propellerhead
Marke/ng,
University
of
Toronto,
Sheridan
College
nor
any
of
its
employees,
students
and
staff
is
claiming
authorship,
ownership
or
copyright
–
nor
intends
for
this
to
be
perceived
as
such.
Thank
you