Monday before class:
Read: Jonathan Sterne, “The mp3 as cultural artifact” AND Karen Collins’s introduction to Game Sound (both on Gauchospace).
Write: Post a response only to the Sterne reading to your personal blog/e-portfolio site (whose URL you should have already entered into the Google Form so we know how to find it: https://forms.gle/JdFuTvdmYsntkYSM6). In just a few sentences, try your best to summarize Sterne’s principal argument in this article. Then focus in on 1-2 passages from the text, giving us the quote if it’s not too long or the page number if it’s a larger chunk, and explain why you found these parts interesting, challenging, or surprising.
Wednesday before class:
Read: Carlo Patrão, “Botanical Rhythms: A Field Guide to Plant Music” and Rachel Carson, “A Fable for Tomorrow” from Silent Spring (on GauchoSpace)
Write: Post a response to Patrão. Don’t forget to articulate 1-2 questions for class discussion!
Friday Writing Assignment
Your second weekly blog post requires that you dip your toes into the world of podcasts (audio shows that are digitally recorded and distributed). Before you write your post, take the time to listen to at least three different podcasts–they can be on any topic, have niche or mass appeal, run long or short. The idea is to get a sense of what’s out there, what different styles people employ in creating podcasts, and what you and your partner(s) might prefer when you start making your own.
In your post, please a) name/link the podcasts that you listened to, b) tell us a little bit about them (“Serial is a true crime podcast about journalist Sarah Koenig’s investigations, one case per season”), and c) identify the things you may or may not want to emulate in your own production and why.
