(NOTE: this page is nolonger updated, to visit the latest version click here or go to the projects new home at www.ThetaThema.org
James Linden wrote:
Your CyberText idea is quite interesting. I am curious to
know more about it (besides what is in the abstract). - I
spent around 20 hrs per week working with ETexts (mostly
in the context of XML) - so your concept has some special
appeal to me.
Why, exactly, do you think this visual perception +
auditory stimulus will improve reading and or memory?
James,
Let me start by telling you how happy it makes me to see so much interest in the idea, and to thank you for taking the time to write me back.
And now in response to your question; I will tell you that I firmly believe that we can actually improve both the "rate of reading" (words per minute) and "absorption of read material" (how well we can recall the material read). But your question is not "what" can we do but more "how do we plan to do it."
How it is today...
In order for us to understand "how" we can make reading faster we must first understand why reading is "slow" (to the extent that it is) in the first place and then try to improve upon it. With the current "conventional" system that we have today "small words" (relitave to the size of the display area) are displayed on a 2 dimentional plane in horizontal lines presented from left to right. Upon reaching the end of a line of text the words start over on the left margin, and each character in the Alphabet is represented by an even smaller set of (Black) squiggly lines that we call "individual letters" or "fonts" displayed on a white background.
Problems with how it is today...
"Resistance to the natural flow of information."
1."Where to start": When you first glance at a document very little if any information about what the document is actually saying is understood. Instead you find yourself looking at as many as 250 words and have to figure out where to start (try the upper left corner).
2. "Tracking" While reading a line of words on a page such as this one it eventually reaches the right margin at which point the eye must "reset" on the next line on the left margin. In text where the lines are longer than the average newspaper column, sometimes it is easy for the eye to "jump" off track while trying to "reset" on the next line over on the left. sometimes the eye skips down (suddenly you are lost because the sentance doesn't make sence and you are forced to back up or the eye fails to move down as it should and you find yourself re-reading what you have already read (sometimes twice). Forcing you to once again "retrack" your eye to the correct line and resume reading (pretending that it didn't happen.) not only do these "tracking" problems slow you down but the distract you from the thought being conveyed in the message.
3. "Charicter recognition": In a relitvly successful attempt to record (and remember)spoken language in the form of stories and perhaps laws. Our ancestors created the written language. Eventually each and every sound made vocally was represented by its own unique symbol. These symbols like language its self has evolved over a period of time into what we now consider to be modern written language. The problem here is charicter recognition. the only thing that says "A" is "A" (and "a") is because your Teacher said so and with a few years practice you figured out that she was right. and really, how much difference is there (on a second glance) between an "P" and "R" ? ok how about a "l" or an "I" ? Not much differance at all. (the first one is lower case "L" the second is an uppercase "i") I can understand that "in context" its easier to see which is which. but "context" implies an underlying thought doesnt it? If we are trying to understand exactly what a text is trying to say its a shame to have to "subconciously" be think about the relitive context of one lettershape as compared to another similar lettershape as related to the context of the underlying meaning as it relates to what the paper is trying to tell us, isnt it? sounds like an awful waste of brain power and resources. Not to mention the eyes having to move and focus move and focus etc.etc. back and forth viewing all of this as the brain is analizing the data.
I read a study once about how many times the eye refocuses on each letter viewed before the brain can recognize its shape, I have since lost the precise information, but it was several times per letter (on average).
4. "Black and White" I was tought in high school by a very special teacher (you know who you are) who said in a manner of speeking that "In war, tradition rules over effeciency untill forced to adapt by a more effecient and apposing tradition." While considering this lesson as it applies it to our "war of words" I can easily see why that until now text is most commonly written in black "ink" on white "paper." I would imagine whit ink and black paper would have been hard to come by even 50 years ago. let alone a color coded solution.
Now considering our recent technological advances with the Pc almost as common as the TV and with the recent "explosion" of internet traffic creating higher still demands for more effecient means of communication, it is simply time for change.
How it will be tomorrow...
In tomowwow's world of communication there will be dramatic improvements in all of the problems mentioned and discussed above. The Cybertext Communication Project offers to virtually eliminate most of them in a way that will allow each and every existing reader the chance to adapt comfortably to a higher standard in communication, by reducing these certain points of resistance allong the natural flow of information.
1. "where to start" Upon running the "cyberface" text viewer as described in the "abstract" documentation, "where to start" is solved by clicking the start button, at that point the words from the selected text document begin to "fly at you"at a rate of speed determined by you as indicated by the position of your mouse, from the begining of the story to the end. at which point a "text box" would appear displaying a couple of choices of action that could be followed next (perhaps shortcuts to related documents or maybe the next chapter could be linked here) upon making your selection the following text would appear in the same manner. Links could even (slowly) fly by allong with the text giving you opprotunities for interaction "on the fly" never once needing to stop to turn the page or scroll up or down untill your "reading is complete"
2. Tracking: As described in the "Cybertext Communication Project Proposal" the need to track lines of text is eliminated by the fact that the text will be tracking you. Starting small in the center of the background and growing steadily to fill the page by the time the first "letter" (color) gets to you it will literally be the size of your screen. a relaxed glance in the general direction of the text should be sufficent to read the message. (perhaps we should include a "epaleptic seazure" disclamer)
3. Charicter Recognition: I mentioned above in section 3 of the "problems" Charicter recognition is baised only on teaching. (and tradition) the symbol " A " doesn't "look" like the sound it is associated with nore does any other charicter for that matter, and in fact there is no scientific evidence to support the association of any symbol to a "letter sound" as assigned in our current conventional system (that is except for tradition) . Only in our trained minds is there any relationship between a symbolic shape and sound we make with our vocal systems. But there is a scientific coralation between light (color) and sound, they both occur at a set frequency, and all frequencies have related "harmonic" frequencies (thus music was born and thats also perhaps why certain colors dont "match" other colors) [sour chord]. In other words for each color there is a harmonic "sound" that would make sence to the mind maybe even "feel" right. Colors would be no harder for a student to learn to make an association with than conventional letters in fact it could be much easier, think about it, no complicated shape to have to learn what if "N" wasn't a line that goes up (straight) and then down (diagonally) and then up again (straight) ,what if it was just GREEN "N" ? now you tell me which would be easier to learn.(in reality existing readers would have to learn with both, during a period of transition as described in phase 2) but If a standard assigned color scheme were attached from the start of the lesson perhaps that learning experience would be easier and more fun as well. they could learn it all at once, color shape and sound.
4. "black and white" I think at this point the advantages are obvious but as reinforcement I added a fourth phase to the proposal, making mention that this color format text could be paired with an audio tone system as well. This is to provide the maximum level sensory "emmersion" and stimulation available and would help the mind reinforce the visual experience and further strenghen the readers ability to read and recall with as little effort as possible, and in the case of the colorblind (for example) where a man sees red and green as the same color, the audio tones would be the differenciating factor. (unless he were also tone deaf) allowing the man to read with little or no handicap.
I have been asked from day 1 to provide "scientific evidence" to support my assertian that colors would be more fitting than "symbol shapes" to represent letters. This is an attempt at providing perhaps not proof but surely compelling evidence. At the point I would like to call upon the greater scientific community to contribute all due consiedration to this project. As this is a "free" and "open source" project my team appriciates any and all support that it receives.
James Linden wrote:
Your CyberText idea is quite interesting. I am curious to
know more about it (besides what is in the abstract). - I
spent around 20 hrs per week working with ETexts (mostly
in the context of XML) - so your concept has some special
appeal to me.
Why, exactly, do you think this visual perception +
auditory stimulus will improve reading and or memory?
James,
Let me start by telling you how happy it makes me to see so much interest in the idea, and to thank you for taking the time to write me back.
And now in response to your question; I will tell you that I firmly believe that we can actually improve both the "rate of reading" (words per minute) and "absorption of read material" (how well we can recall the material read). But your question is not "what" can we do but more "how do we plan to do it."
How it is today...
In order for us to understand "how" we can make reading faster we must first understand why reading is "slow" (to the extent that it is) in the first place and then try to improve upon it. With the current "conventional" system that we have today "small words" (relitave to the size of the display area) are displayed on a 2 dimentional plane in horizontal lines presented from left to right. Upon reaching the end of a line of text the words start over on the left margin, and each character in the Alphabet is represented by an even smaller set of (Black) squiggly lines that we call "individual letters" or "fonts" displayed on a white background.
Problems with how it is today...
"Resistance to the natural flow of information."
1."Where to start": When you first glance at a document very little if any information about what the document is actually saying is understood. Instead you find yourself looking at as many as 250 words and have to figure out where to start (try the upper left corner).
2. "Tracking" While reading a line of words on a page such as this one it eventually reaches the right margin at which point the eye must "reset" on the next line on the left margin. In text where the lines are longer than the average newspaper column, sometimes it is easy for the eye to "jump" off track while trying to "reset" on the next line over on the left. sometimes the eye skips down (suddenly you are lost because the sentance doesn't make sence and you are forced to back up or the eye fails to move down as it should and you find yourself re-reading what you have already read (sometimes twice). Forcing you to once again "retrack" your eye to the correct line and resume reading (pretending that it didn't happen.) not only do these "tracking" problems slow you down but the distract you from the thought being conveyed in the message.
3. "Charicter recognition": In a relitvly successful attempt to record (and remember)spoken language in the form of stories and perhaps laws. Our ancestors created the written language. Eventually each and every sound made vocally was represented by its own unique symbol. These symbols like language its self has evolved over a period of time into what we now consider to be modern written language. The problem here is charicter recognition. the only thing that says "A" is "A" (and "a") is because your Teacher said so and with a few years practice you figured out that she was right. and really, how much difference is there (on a second glance) between an "P" and "R" ? ok how about a "l" or an "I" ? Not much differance at all. (the first one is lower case "L" the second is an uppercase "i") I can understand that "in context" its easier to see which is which. but "context" implies an underlying thought doesnt it? If we are trying to understand exactly what a text is trying to say its a shame to have to "subconciously" be think about the relitive context of one lettershape as compared to another similar lettershape as related to the context of the underlying meaning as it relates to what the paper is trying to tell us, isnt it? sounds like an awful waste of brain power and resources. Not to mention the eyes having to move and focus move and focus etc.etc. back and forth viewing all of this as the brain is analizing the data.
I read a study once about how many times the eye refocuses on each letter viewed before the brain can recognize its shape, I have since lost the precise information, but it was several times per letter (on average).
4. "Black and White" I was tought in high school by a very special teacher (you know who you are) who said in a manner of speeking that "In war, tradition rules over effeciency untill forced to adapt by a more effecient and apposing tradition." While considering this lesson as it applies it to our "war of words" I can easily see why that until now text is most commonly written in black "ink" on white "paper." I would imagine whit ink and black paper would have been hard to come by even 50 years ago. let alone a color coded solution.
Now considering our recent technological advances with the Pc almost as common as the TV and with the recent "explosion" of internet traffic creating higher still demands for more effecient means of communication, it is simply time for change.
How it will be tomorrow...
In tomowwow's world of communication there will be dramatic improvements in all of the problems mentioned and discussed above. The Cybertext Communication Project offers to virtually eliminate most of them in a way that will allow each and every existing reader the chance to adapt comfortably to a higher standard in communication, by reducing these certain points of resistance allong the natural flow of information.
1. "where to start" Upon running the "cyberface" text viewer as described in the "abstract" documentation, "where to start" is solved by clicking the start button, at that point the words from the selected text document begin to "fly at you"at a rate of speed determined by you as indicated by the position of your mouse, from the begining of the story to the end. at which point a "text box" would appear displaying a couple of choices of action that could be followed next (perhaps shortcuts to related documents or maybe the next chapter could be linked here) upon making your selection the following text would appear in the same manner. Links could even (slowly) fly by allong with the text giving you opprotunities for interaction "on the fly" never once needing to stop to turn the page or scroll up or down untill your "reading is complete"
2. Tracking: As described in the "Cybertext Communication Project Proposal" the need to track lines of text is eliminated by the fact that the text will be tracking you. Starting small in the center of the background and growing steadily to fill the page by the time the first "letter" (color) gets to you it will literally be the size of your screen. a relaxed glance in the general direction of the text should be sufficent to read the message. (perhaps we should include a "epaleptic seazure" disclamer)
3. Charicter Recognition: I mentioned above in section 3 of the "problems" Charicter recognition is baised only on teaching. (and tradition) the symbol " A " doesn't "look" like the sound it is associated with nore does any other charicter for that matter, and in fact there is no scientific evidence to support the association of any symbol to a "letter sound" as assigned in our current conventional system (that is except for tradition) . Only in our trained minds is there any relationship between a symbolic shape and sound we make with our vocal systems. But there is a scientific coralation between light (color) and sound, they both occur at a set frequency, and all frequencies have related "harmonic" frequencies (thus music was born and thats also perhaps why certain colors dont "match" other colors) [sour chord]. In other words for each color there is a harmonic "sound" that would make sence to the mind maybe even "feel" right. Colors would be no harder for a student to learn to make an association with than conventional letters in fact it could be much easier, think about it, no complicated shape to have to learn what if "N" wasn't a line that goes up (straight) and then down (diagonally) and then up again (straight) ,what if it was just GREEN "N" ? now you tell me which would be easier to learn.(in reality existing readers would have to learn with both, during a period of transition as described in phase 2) but If a standard assigned color scheme were attached from the start of the lesson perhaps that learning experience would be easier and more fun as well. they could learn it all at once, color shape and sound.
4. "black and white" I think at this point the advantages are obvious but as reinforcement I added a fourth phase to the proposal, making mention that this color format text could be paired with an audio tone system as well. This is to provide the maximum level sensory "emmersion" and stimulation available and would help the mind reinforce the visual experience and further strenghen the readers ability to read and recall with as little effort as possible, and in the case of the colorblind (for example) where a man sees red and green as the same color, the audio tones would be the differenciating factor. (unless he were also tone deaf) allowing the man to read with little or no handicap.
I have been asked from day 1 to provide "scientific evidence" to support my assertian that colors would be more fitting than "symbol shapes" to represent letters. This is an attempt at providing perhaps not proof but surely compelling evidence. At the point I would like to call upon the greater scientific community to contribute all due consiedration to this project. As this is a "free" and "open source" project my team appriciates any and all support that it receives.
posted by Unknown at
2:00 AM
