Human needs plants, Plants need human!
From what I learnt in secondary school, human needs plants, plants need human. Human needs plants to provide us oxygen and plants need us to provide them carbon dioxide. Same goes to Node and Flows.
Flows without elements of structure would be noise and nodes without flows would be dead.
(Stadler, F.)
From this statement of Stadler, it shows how flows and nodes are important to each other. Every information have to send through flows to nodes. After nodes received the information, it will distribute to other media. Basically, the function of flows are to send the information to communicate with the World, checking existing information and also controlling the process. It is like custom in airport, it checks and evaluates the information before the send it out to nodes, like how customs check tourists' passport.
However, nodes is like a luggage carousel in airport. Node distribute the information to the destination after they received the information from flows. For me, it is like luggage carousel, letting tourists' to receive their luggage after received from the airplane.
While the nodes stabilize the flows of information and endow a certain consistency and continuity to the environment, they are themselves subject to the dynamics of the environment.
(Stadler, F.)
From what I understand from this statement, Node is the one who maintain the quality and consistency of the information from flows. Both node and flows are the important subject to maintain the balance of the environment, without one of them, no one will be maintaining the information and it may cause information goes to the wrong destination, no updates on information, slow speed of processing the information and etc.
There are four basic dimensions:
1. Interdependency
There are many different nodes in the network, but they are connected through communicative processes. Through this connection, it has created a large shared environment which allows people to share their information and ideas. It is amazing that how they actually connected the people in the World. Nodes connect with each other to connect people together. This is why we can communicate with each other through Internet, sharing resources, sharing culture and more.
2. Change
The flow of information are infinitely malleable.
(Stadler, F.)
There is a large space for the flow of information to expand and change. The original information can be change or update to a better quality. With this changes, audiences can get a better quality information and we can always see the updated information. According to Stadler, new flows of information can change everything (Postman, 1992). I am agree with this statement. The changes of the flows of information can change a person's perception, behavior and even own point of views on something. This is the power of changes; changes of a thing can cause the changes of many things. However, they change unconsciously and it is unpredictable. They can change every time, every where.
3. Time-boundness
Fast speed is the normal word to describe network. It can also use to describe the information flow. As the growth of the fast-speed internet, information flow faster compare to the old days. With the fast speed of information flow, we can communicate with people in fast speed. It is really useful when you need a prompt reply. People now will not affect by the time when they are sharing information, sending e-mail or instant message to people from other country which have time differences. Time is gold, and fast speed information flow has helped people in the World to save gold. :)
4. Differentiation
"Information is difference and the nodes survive as long as they can make a difference, which is for as long as they can produce information that is valid for others." (Stadler, F.) From what I understand from this sentence, every information that are sent from the nodes are different, they have their own ideas to convey to the audiences. When a node find their own unique things which can differentiate them from other nodes, it can consider as the survivor in the network. Why do I say so? Because there are a lot of nodes, if a node has a unique point to differentiate it to the others.
To conclude everything, nodes and flows need each other very much, they are interdependence. Both of them changing themselves in order to sending better quality information to the audiences. Nodes and Flows work day and night and they know time is gold, this is why the word Time-Boundness occur. However, they know that they have to be different from other nodes in order to become the survivor in the network.
Hi Pei Jie :)
ReplyDeleteI really like it when you relate your statement of human needs plants and plants need human with the relationship between nodes and the flow. I've never thought of it and I'm really glad I came across this statement.
Your example of the custom also helped me in getting a clearer picture of the process of information transmission by the nodes. Great! :)
I would suggest the node vs flow relationship to be something like human vs air relationship? Not much difference with your statement on human vs plants. The only difference is that if humans do not have the supply of enough oxygen, they will die. Your opinion? :P
Enjoyed reading your writing. Write more! :D
I like the last part where you try to relate everything together! You just made node and flow sounded like human! And it directly made me relate it to news agencies. They worked day and night and know everything must be timely and different in order to survive =) This is very very nice example :D
ReplyDeleteAnd wow, long post you have here! =D cool
Hi Su Wern! Thanks for reading. :) I am happy that you understand what am I trying to say.
ReplyDeleteI have thought of Human vs Air before. :))
I agree with Human will dies if they got enough supply of oxygen. Because nodes die if they do not have flows.
But air will not disappear or distracted even if human doesnt occur in the world. So maybe Human vs Air can only use on describing nodes but not flows? Heh! This is my opinion. :))
JiaXin, Thanks for liking! :) I like to make them more lively to let my self understand them more. :P
I like human vs plant. Personally, I think it is a great way to take as example to imitate the interdependence of node and flow. And I like your way to elaborate those points, it has given me a better view on the 4 factors. :D
ReplyDeleteHey Pei Jie, great post! I enjoyed its straight-to-the point explanations and easy to understand examples! I never really realized the relationship of nodes and flow till you pointed it out, and I'm glad you did. Imagine if we were on a one-sided relationship with digital media - we would not be able to grow and contribute! :)
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend!
hey pei jie...
ReplyDeletevery well written...i like the plant vs human as it gave me a deep thought where plants supplies oxygen for us and we human supplies carbon dioxide to plants as they require carbon dioxide....oh yea and even the picture attracts me too... however..instead of plant vs human...why not replace it with air vs human..as it more closer to relate... good job =)
the way u describe the nodes and flow is so cute and interesting and makes me have a clearer picture of the relationship between nodes and flow.
ReplyDeletei like it when u used human vs plant to explain the relationship between nodes and flow. It is interesting when you describe the functions of flows as the custom in airport and the functions of nodes as the luggage. It relate well. I really can imagine the flow and make it easier for me to understand it!! =))
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ReplyDeletegood description on "Human needs plants, Plants need human",Just like the nodes made flow become perfect and flow made nodes become completed,they can't become perfect without each other. As information ecology consists of the numerous interacting and interdependent social, cultural, and political subsystems that shape the creation, flow and use of information.
ReplyDeleteSo,information ecology will influence the content of the information produce and stored,the available of the information and receiver,and the require of information and also the valued for the task performance.After reading your posting,it make me more understand about the journal.
Nice example of the airport and luggage. I think of the ticket and the train. Well, everything are depending to each other in the world. Your example are very clear and also easier to understand.The picture had make the post come into imagine! Nice post! Keep it up!
ReplyDeleteFrom what I learnt in secondary school, human needs plants, plants need human. Human needs plants to provide us oxygen and plants need us to provide them carbon dioxide. Same goes to Node and Flows.
ReplyDeleteI like you take this example to talk about the relationship of node and flows in networking, both of them can't live without each others.
very good description on the nodes and flows theory, it makes me understand easier about the theory as you use the airport to describe it. It is about the deliver and receive process about information and you state is clearly about the importance and processes.
ReplyDelete