Convergence

Participation – In what? Radio, convergence and the corporate logic of audience input through new media in Zambia

by Wendy Willems

Forthcoming in: Telematics and Informatics, 2012.

Recent literature has pointed to the way in which new media such as the internet and mobile phones have the capacity... more Recent literature has pointed to the way in which new media such as the internet and mobile phones have the capacity to enable more participatory and interactive communication, either through user-generated content or through a broader participation of audiences in mainstream media’s content production. This potential is celebrated even more in contexts in which there is deemed to be a lack of political accountability or limited consultation of citizens by government. This article investigates the extent to which new technologies have changed the quality of audience participation in radio content production in Zambia. Engaging with literature on participation in media studies as well as development studies and based on interviews with station managers, producers and presenters of six radio stations in Zambia, the article examines both the opportunities and limits of the use of internet and mobile phones in audience participation. It argues that there is a need to situate these practices within a broader corporate logic in which participation is not merely about adding more voices but also feeds into radio stations’ commercial strategies of increasing revenue and accessing personal data of listeners through SMS and social media.

The Two Faces of R&D and Human Capital: Evidence from Western European Regions

by Johanna Vogel

Come together, right now: We know somethingʼs happening, but we donʼt know what it is.

by Aram Sinnreich

Review of Henry Jenkins' "Convergence Culture." International Journal of Communication, 2007.

Ironically, given its title and theme, Henry Jenkins’ newest book, Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media... more Ironically, given its title and theme, Henry Jenkins’ newest book, Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, offers a maddeningly divergent range of ideas, arguments and anecdotes, without ever converging on a single point or conclusion. The book aspires at various junctures to cultural theory, techno-futurism, media criticism, subcultural anthropology, sociopolitical advocacy, and (perhaps most effectively, if most surprisingly) 21st century marketing manifesto. Unfortunately, the whole amounts to something less than the sum of its parts; despite many engaging passages, presented in Jenkins’ typically accessible and entertaining prose style, not one of these many germs of an idea comes to full fruition.

Emerging Technologies-in-Practice: A Communication Framework of Convergence of Technologies-in-Use

by William Barley

Co-authored with Alan Clark and Paul M. Leonardi for ICA 2011, currently re-working for journal submission.

Collective agreement on technology use within a group is an important precondition for organizational change.... more Collective agreement on technology use within a group is an important precondition for organizational change. Theorists, however, have not substantively examined how such agreement is achieved. Our goal in this paper is to explore the processes by which members of a group come to appropriate the features of a technology in the same way and use those features to achieve similar goals. We begin by claiming that, upon implementation, people are more likely to appropriate the features of novel technologies in divergent as opposed to convergent ways. We suggest that various personal, organizational, and technological factors promote divergence in appropriations. We term these person-specific uses technologies-in-use. Next we draw upon communication research to theorize the processes by which various technologies-in-use become a shared technology-in-practice. Our exploration of these processes suggests that different social mechanisms result in different technologies-in-practice and thus hold explanatory power for organizational change.

Regional convergence in Italy, 1891–2001: testing human and social capital

by Emanuele Felice

forthcoming in Cliometrica (already available on-line)

this in a highly incomplete draft. Please see the published copy (from the link) for the final and complete version, as well as for quotation

La copia in pdf è solo un abbozzo, incompleto. Per la versione definitiva e completa (e per eventuali citazioni) si veda l'articolo pubblicato, dal link

The article aims to present and discuss estimates of levels of human and social capital in Italy’s regions over the... more The article aims to present and discuss estimates of levels of human and social capital in Italy’s regions over the long term, i.e., roughly from the second half of the nineteenth century up to the present day. The results are linked to newly available evidence for regional value added in order to begin to form an explanatory hypothesis of long-term regional inequality in Italy: convergence in value added per capita is tested in light of the neoclassical exogenous growth approach, which incorporates human capital and social capital as conditioning variables into a long-term production function. In contrast with conventional wisdom (e.g. Putnam 1993), we find that social capital was not a significant predictor of economic growth in post-Unification Italy: It grew in importance only in the last decades. Conversely, human capital was more important in the first half of the twentieth century. Results suggest that there was not one single conditioning variable over the long run, thus supporting the view that, in different periods, conditioning variables can be determined by technological regimes.

Mobile Multimedia/Image Processing, Security, and Applications 2009 (Proceedings Volume)

by Ali Al-Sherbaz

Globalization's Convergence Effect on Human Quality of Life (QOL) in Asia: Evidence from the KOF Index of Globalization1

by Jeet Sapkota

published in 'Asian Regional Integration Review' Vol. 2: pp. 1-28.

This paper examines whether human QOL in Asia-Pacific countries is converging and assesses the impact of globalization... more This paper examines whether human QOL in Asia-Pacific countries is converging and assesses the impact of globalization on the converging (or diverging) process. Using panel data from selected 19 countries from 1975 to 2005 over five-year intervals, and applying the dynamic panel data model, it is evident that overall QOL, measured by the Human Development Index (HDI), of most countries in the region is moving closer to that of Japan (the benchmark country) and that globalization has a significant impact on this convergence process.

Konwergencja jako strategia. Charakterystyka konstytutywnych elementów komunikacji skonwergowanej na przykładzie mobloga

by Katarzyna Kopecka-Piech

Media i społeczeństwo. Nowe strategie komunikacyjne, red. M. Sokołowski, Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek, Toruń 2008.

Combination of mesoscale and synoptic mechanisms for triggering of an isolated thunderstorm: a case study of CSIP IOP 1

by Andrew Russell

Morcrette, C. J., Lean, H., Browning, K. A., Nicol, J., Roberts, N., Clark, P. A., Russell, A. and Blyth, A. M. (2007)
Monthly Weather Review, 135, 3728-3749.

An isolated thunderstorm formed in the southern United Kingdom on 15 June 2005 and moved through the area where a... more An isolated thunderstorm formed in the southern United Kingdom on 15 June 2005 and moved through the area where a large number of observational instruments were deployed as part of the Convective Storm Initiation Project. Earlier, a convergence line had formed downstream of Devon in the southwest of the United Kingdom in a southwesterly airflow, along which a series of light showers had formed. The depth of these showers was limited by a capping inversion, or lid, at around 2.5 km. The deep thunderstorm convection developed from one of these showers when the convection broke through the lid and ascended up to the next inversion, associated with a tropopause fold at around 6 km. A series of clear-air reflectivity RHIs are used to map the height of the capping inversion and its lifting resulting from the ascent along the convergence line. The origins of the lid are tracked back to some descent from the midtroposphere along dry adiabats. The strength of the lid was weaker along a northwest-to-southeast-oriented region located behind an overrunning upper cold front. The transition from shallow to deep convection occurred where this region with a weaker lid intersected the region with a raised lid, oriented southwest to northeast, downstream of Devon. A very high resolution forecast model that is being developed by the Met Office predicted the isolated thunderstorm successfully. This success depended on the accurate representation of the following two scales: the synoptic-scale and the surface-forced mesoscale convergence line. The interaction between these scales localized the convection sufficiently in space and time for the initiation and subsequent development to be highly predictable despite the relatively poor representation in the model of processes at the cloud scale.

«Du solide et du concret»: concentration de la propriété et convergence journalistique au sein du groupe Quebecor Média

by Renaud Carbasse

VALLS, E. (2008): "La desdialectalització del català nord-occidental: cap a una convergència total amb l'estàndard?". In "De Lingua Aragonensi", n.4, pp. 55-89.

by Esteve Valls

Paper in Catalan.

Aquest article és una primera aproximació al procés de canvi lingüístic que ha afectat sis poblacions de parla... more Aquest article és una primera aproximació al procés de canvi lingüístic que ha afectat sis poblacions de parla catalana nord-occidental en els darrers 80 anys. L'estudi segueix el mètode dialectomètric desenvolupat arran de l'explotació del "Corpus Oral Dialectal" de la Universitat de Barcelona, consistent a calcular la distància lingüística entre les varietats estudiades a partir de la discriminació dels elements impredictibles i predictibles de la llengua des d'una perspectiva generativa clàssica. Els resultats permeten detectar un procés divergent en el si d’aquestes varietats: d’anivellament dialectal entre els parlars del Principat i de divergència entre aquests parlars i els dialectes nord-occidentals de l’Aragó. L’efecte-frontera entre Catalunya i l’Aragó està contribuint, doncs, a crear una falla dialectal en el tradicional contínuum del català nord-occidental.

VALLS, E. (2008): "Actualització dels estudis sobre la pronúncia xipella: estat de la qüestió, nova delimitació geogràfica i perspectives de futur”. In: "Interlingüística", n. XIX.

by Esteve Valls

Paper in Catalan.

The xipella pronunciation of Catalan language is far disappearing from the last area where it has traditionally been... more The xipella pronunciation of Catalan language is far disappearing from the last area where it has traditionally been spoken, as a consequence of a linguistic convergence process caused by the influence of Standard Catalan. In this paper, we analyse the speed of linguistic change among speakers of different ages paying attention to the main features of xipella, and we come to the conclusion that nowadays it only remains alive in two little villages, although it is no longer used by people under 20. This situation leads us to state that no trace of xipella will be found among the inhabitants of the area in the not too distant future.

WIELING, M.; VALLS, E.; BAAYEN, H.; and NERBONNE, J. (2011): "The effects of language policies on the standardization of Catalan dialects: A sociolinguistic analysis using mixed effects regression modelling".

by Esteve Valls

Paper in English.

In this study, we attempt to determine the important factors involved in determining the distance of Catalan dialectal... more In this study, we attempt to determine the important factors involved in determining the distance of Catalan dialectal pronunciations from standard Catalan. We use dialectal pronunciations of 320 speakers of varying age in 40 places located in three regions where the Catalan language is spoken (the autonomous communities Catalonia and Aragon in Spain, and the state of Andorra). In contrast to Aragon, Catalan has an official status in both Catalonia and Andorra, which is likely to have a different effect on the standardization of dialects in these regions. For both groups separately, we combined linear mixed-effects modeling with generalized additive modeling to predict the distance of 357 words from standard Catalan. While both models shared the importance of geography and several word-related factors, we observed a clear distinction with respect to speaker age in both groups. Speakers in Catalonia and Andorra showed a clear standardization pattern (which was also strongly present in Catalonian speakers living close to the Aragon border), with younger speakers having dialectal pronunciations closer to the standard than older speakers. In contrast, this age effect was not observed in speakers from Aragon. These results clearly show the important effect of language policies on standardization patterns and border effects in dialects of a single language. In addition, this study illustrates the usefulness of mixed-effects regression techniques together with generalized additive modeling for analyzing dialect data.

VALLS, E,; WIELING, M.; and NERBONNE, J. (2011): "Linguistic advergence and divergence in north-western Catalan: A dialectometric investigation of dialect leveling and border effects". Submitted to "Language in society".

by Esteve Valls

Paper in English.

This paper investigates several ongoing linguistic changes which are taking place in north-western Catalan using a... more This paper investigates several ongoing linguistic changes which are taking place in north-western Catalan using a contemporary corpus, designed in particular for this purpose. We take advantage of a range of dialectometric methods that allow us to calculate and analyze the linguistic distance between varieties in apparent time from an aggregate perspective. Specifically, we pay attention to the process of structural dialect loss due to linguistic advergence to standard Catalan in many north-western Catalan dialects located in Catalonia (Spain) and Andorra. We also provide evidence that the dialect leveling taking place in these two areas strongly contrasts with the relative stability of the Catalan dialects on the other side of the Catalan-Aragonese border in Spain, where Catalan is not an official language. These opposite sociolinguistic situations (Catalonia and Andorra have strong language policies to support Catalan, whereas Aragon does not) have triggered a process of linguistic divergence which has notably strengthened the border differences between Aragon and Catalonia during the last 80 years. This paper is one of the first attempts to study the border effect not only between regions belonging to different states, but also between different administrative regions within the same country. Furthermore, we focus on the different roles of urban versus rural areas in the process of linguistic change, providing support that urban populations in Catalonia and Andorra have pronunciations closer to standard Catalan than rural populations.

Valls, E. (2011): "L’excepcionalitat de la cruïlla catalanoaragonesa a les Terres de l’Ebre: un cas de dissidència respecte a les dinàmiques evolutives dels parlars nord-occidentals". To appear in "Actes del III Congrés de Cultura i Territori a les comarques de la diòcesi de Tortosa".

by Esteve Valls

Paper in Catalan.

Darrerament (Valls 2011 a, b) hem presentat els resultats d’investigar diversos aspectes del canvi lingüístic en curs... more Darrerament (Valls 2011 a, b) hem presentat els resultats d’investigar diversos aspectes del canvi lingüístic en curs a l’àrea del català nord-occidental en base a un corpus contemporani dissenyat especialment per a aquest objectiu. En aquests treballs, ens hem valgut de diversos mètodes dialectomètrics (basats en la distància de Levenshtein i la interfície Gabmap) que ens han permès de calcular i analitzar la distància lingüística entre aquestes varietats en temps aparent i des d’una perspectiva global. En concret, parem esment en el procés de pèrdua estructural que afecta diverses varietats nord-occidentals de Catalunya i d’Andorra com a conseqüència d’una progressiva advergència amb els parlars orientals centrals i l’estàndard, i constatem que el procés d’anivellament dialectal que pateixen aquestes varietats contrasta amb la relativa estabilitat del dialectes situats a les comarques d’administració aragonesa.
El propòsit d’aquest article és argumentar, tanmateix, que l’efecte-frontera que ha anat eixamplant la falla lingüística entre Catalunya i l’Aragó té una incidència mínima a les Terres de l’Ebre. Diversos estudiosos (Virgili 1992; Pradilla 2008 a, b) ja han advertit que el contínuum que s’estén a banda i banda del riu de la Sénia és, encara avui, el “garant irrefutable de la unitat de la llengua”, un estatus que podria veure’s modificat si prosperen les incipients tendències anivelladores entre aquests parlars i els diferents models de llengua estàndard difosos al Principat i al País Valencià. No tenim constància, però, de treballs recents que s’hagin ocupat d’investigar el paper de la frontera política entre el Principat i l’Aragó en les tendències evolutives dels parlars tortosins de banda i banda dels límits administratius. Analitzar els hipotètics processos de convergència o divergència lingüística entre aquests parlars des d’una òptica quantitativa i assajar una caracterització dels factors sociopolítics que donin compte de les tendències detectades són, doncs, els principals objectius d’aquest treball.

Valls, E. (2011): "Direccionalitat i abast del canvi lingüístic en curs en el català nord-occidental". To appear in "Actes del VII Col·loqui Internacional 'Problemes i mètodes d'Història de la Llengua'. Paris: L'Harmattan.

by Esteve Valls

Catalan version of the original paper in French.

El propòsit d’aquest article és investigar diversos aspectes del canvi lingüístic en curs a l’àrea del català... more El propòsit d’aquest article és investigar diversos aspectes del canvi lingüístic en curs a l’àrea del català nord-occidental utilitzant un corpus contemporani dissenyat específicament per a aquest objectiu. Per fer-ho, ens valem de diversos mètodes dialectomètrics –basats en la distància de Levenshtein i la interfície Gabmap– per calcular i analitzar la distància lingüística entre aquestes varietats en temps aparent i des d’una perspectiva quantitativa global. En concret, parem esment en el procés de pèrdua estructural que afecta diverses varietats nord-occidentals de Catalunya i d’Andorra com a conseqüència d’una progressiva advergència amb les varietats orientals i l’estàndard, una situació que contrasta amb la relativa estabilitat dels dialectes situats a les comarques d’administració aragonesa. Considerem, doncs que s’ha produït un doble procés d’advergència vertical de les varietats de Catalunya i Andorra amb les varietats de prestigi i de divergència horitzontal d’aquestes varietats amb les de la Franja; el resultat és una major incidència de l’efecte-frontera. En segon lloc, constatem que el canvi lingüístic que afecta el nord-occidental és un fenomen complex en el qual el procés secular d’orientalització sembla estar deixant pas a un procés més recent d’estandardització. Finalment, analitzem quin és el patró de difusió espacial de les innovacions amb més pes en el canvi lingüístic i assenyalem la complementarietat dels patrons de difusió jeràrquica i per contagi.

Convergence, Divergence and Non Efficiency of Public Infrastructure Spatial Allocation

by raphael bar-el

Hipermedialne? Skonwergowane? Role uczestników komunikacji zapośredniczonej sieciowo

by Katarzyna Kopecka-Piech

Tekst w sieci. Literatura, społeczeństwo, komunikacja, red. A. Gumkowska, Wydawnictwo Akademickie i Profesjonalne, Warszawa 2009.
http://www.losgraf.pl/s/karta/id/312

Zjawiska dynamicznie rozwijającej się konwergencji mediów i kultury partycypacji przemieniają role uczestników procesu... more Zjawiska dynamicznie rozwijającej się konwergencji mediów i kultury partycypacji przemieniają role uczestników procesu komunikacji. Za sprawą nowych mediów stają się oni prosumentami, prodbiorcami, współkreatorami (co-creators) mediów. Do zmian statusu użytkowników przyczyniają się strategie przedsiębiorstw przynależnych to tzw. branż (przemysłów) kreatywnych. W „kulturze konwergencji" użytkownik nowych mediów nie tylko tworzy media, które są wyrazem jego aktywności (we media), lecz także, jako konstytutywny element środowiska medialnego, przeobraża je i integruje. Przedmiotem poniższej analizy będą role uczestników komunikacji pełnione w sposób intermedialny dzięki interaktywności nowych mediów. Przyjęta perspektywa analityczna zakłada analizę środowisk uwzględniającą sieciową strukturę współczesnych mediów. W centrum zainteresowania znajdą się typowe i nietypowe role pełnione przez użytkowników. Obiektem studium jest środowisko medialne programu You Can Dance. Po Prostu Tańcz! emitowanego w stacji TVN.

Nowe media z perspektywy konwergencji. Wzajemne determinacje struktury, treści i typów uczestnictwa

by Katarzyna Kopecka-Piech

Nowe media i komunikacja wizualna, red. S. Jędrzejewski, P. Francuz, Wydawnictwo Katolickiego Uniwersytetu Lubelskiego, Lublin 2010.

Uwaga: w wydaniu książkowym nie uwzględniono zmian naniesionych podczas korekty autorskiej.

Zapośredniczone zapośredniczenie. Pakiet transmedialny w działaniu

by Katarzyna Kopecka-Piech

Nowe media we współczesnym społeczeństwie, red. M. Jeziński, A. Seklecka, Ł. Wojtkowski, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu im. Mikołaja Kopernika, Toruń 2011.