Scholarly record

DISINTEGRATION OF "LINEAR CODE" IN COMMUNICATION ON THE INTERNET

Slavomir Galik, Viktoria Lancosova

Abstract

Communication on the Internet has brought a great number of changes in perception, imagination, thinking and learning in man. These changes are still spreading in the culture and society. One of the most important ones is surely disintegration of the so-called “linear code”. By the term “linear code” we mean structure of thinking and learning that is driven by succession of signs in thinking, in both learning and understanding of time and space. This sort of thinking and learning was shaped in the epoch of phonetic writing, but especially printing in Modern Times Europe. Writing and printing promoted perspective vision, psychological distance and abstract thinking, sequence of thinking, i.e. concentrated and continual development of ideas, and, apart of others, also the idea of linear time. Communication on the Internet needs to adapt itself to the “fluid-like” and “plastic-like” nature of the new medium. No more the Internet is a typical “solid” medium, but as S. Harnad notices, “the sky” to write on. Communication takes place in the so-called cyberspace, in which individual bits of information mix with each other, tie to each other and link to each other. Thus a net-like and non-linear array of information is created, which we also know under the term of hypertext. Our mind and language need to be modified for this form of communication, and the whole structure of thinking needs to be re-organised, succession of ideas to their non-linear composition. This promotes the so-called rhizomatic learning, which is individual and net-like structure of knowledge. In this kind of thinking and learning is a hidden risk of subjective and even virtual structure of knowledge. Disintegration of linear code in communication on the Internet manifests itself for example in change of comprehending time, which can be characterised as simultaneous (present) and which also affects change of understanding tradition as a part of culture. Disintegration of linear code in communication on the Internet brings some new possibilities, but also risks. The possibilities are represented by, for example, using the so-called “collective intelligence” and the risks by creation of subjective and virtual knowledge and loss of sense of the past and tradition. It is therefore necessary to realise positives and negatives of communication on the Internet and learn to apply psychological distance and critical thinking.

Publication Impact Profile

No metrics available.

PLUMX see details

DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgemsocial2014/B12/S2.033

Publication details

Back to publication list