Ebook How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer
Making certain, many people likewise have actually downloaded the soft documents of How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer though this website. Just by clicking web link that is provided, you could go straight to the book. Once again, this publication will certainly be really crucial for you to read, also they are straightforward, and also they will lead you to be the better life. So, what do you think of this updated book collection? Let's inspect it now and prepare yourself to earn this publication as definitely your collection as well as reading materials. Believe it!
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer
Ebook How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer
Don't you think that reading publications will give you much more benefits? For all sessions as well as sorts of publications, this is taken into consideration as one manner in which will certainly lead you to obtain finest. Each publication will certainly have various declaration and also various diction. Is that so? Exactly what about guide qualified How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer Have you found out about this publication? Begin; do not be so lazy to recognize more concerning a book.
Obtain the interesting offer from this publication to check out. You will not obtain only the impression yet likewise experience to give up every situation. Obtain likewise the assurance of how this book is supplied. You will certainly be conveniently locating this soft documents of guide in the link that we provide. Unlike the others, we constantly serve the very expert publication from specialist authors. As How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer, it will offer you proportional system of how a book should require.
Downloading and install the book How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer in this internet site listings could make you a lot more benefits. It will reveal you the best book collections as well as completed compilations. Plenty books can be found in this site. So, this is not only this How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer Nevertheless, this book is referred to read because it is an inspiring publication to give you a lot more chance to obtain encounters and thoughts. This is straightforward, check out the soft data of the book How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer as well as you get it.
In fact, this is not a pressure for you to like this book and review until surface this book. We reveal you the excellent book. It will certainly be so pity if you miss it. This is not the right time for you to miss out on the How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, And Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, By Franck Frommer not to check out. It could aid you not just meeting this holiday times. After holidays, you will obtain something brand-new. Yeah, this publication will really lead you to life much better. This is why; this recommended publication is much uttered for you that wish to move on constantly.
Review
An original and brilliant study . . . Frommer’s call to resist the “powerpointization” of our souls carries in it the lucidity of a new social critique.—Les Inrockuptibles To the executive who never dozed off after lunch in an atmosphere subdued by a PowerPoint meeting, who never experienced the desperation of trying to summarizean entire year’s work in ten slides and fifty bullet points: throw the first projector atFranck Frommer.—Le Monde In an in-depth study, Franck Frommer has unearthed a new killer of brain cells.—Télérama
Read more
About the Author
Franck Frommer worked as a journalist for a dozen years before joining an international company where he worked in the area of communications and the web. The author of a biography of Jean-Patrick Manchette, he lives in Paris. George Holoch has translated more than twenty books, including Eric Hazan's Notes on the Occupation and Alain Deneault's Offshore (both from The New Press). He lives in Hinesburg, Vermont.
Read more
Product details
Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: The New Press (February 28, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9781595587022
ISBN-13: 978-1595587022
ASIN: 1595587020
Product Dimensions:
6.2 x 1 x 9.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review:
3.3 out of 5 stars
13 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#869,141 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
This is a good book, but it's not what the title implies. I think it certainly "helps" people who are so inclined, but it doesn't "make" people stupid. As a military officer, I appreciated the examples of higher level over-usage. I also liked the numerous examples of PowerPoint's weaknesses.I think the real message is that -- in the end -- PowerPoint is a tool, and a very powerful one. Depending on the content you want to convey, the nature of the presentation, and the intent of the speaker, it can gloss over some very serious logical flaws. In the worst situations, it panders to the superficial, oversimplifies the complex, and distracts with the same leger-de-main as a magician. I think the book conveys this very well.Because this book was originally targeted to a French readership (and translated from French), a good number of the examples are from France. It's not a big issue, though.
I am a teacher and really good with a piece of chalk so maybe I am a bit prejudiced, but I teach with the lights on and try to make sure all the brains are "on" and remembering what we are trying to learn. Interaction, everyone owning the classroom, the teacher guiding as well as directly instructing, students working together figuring something out, accurately predicting a result based on what they have learned ---that is a classroom. The arguments describing the stultifying effects of innovative but banal technology utilized by novice or simply ineffective teachers to replace true expertise is especially eye opening. Every teacher, professor, administrator, and of course, student should read this book.
Despite its acerbic title and long subtitle, this book is not the product of an idiosyncratic Luddite, who is hotly airing his pet peeves. Rather, the French Frommer, a journalist and author, has meticulously researched the nature of PowerPoint and its application and results across various fields, particular business, the military, and education. In so doing, he brings what is increasingly becoming part of the background of contemporary life--as a "universal medium," as he puts it--into the foreground. Although the author does not put it this way, he is exegeting the nature or form of PowerPoint against its cultural backdrop and in light of certain standards for knowledge and wisdom. Anyone who wants to acquire knowledge and avoid error will be well-served by his trenchant, well-documented, and in-depth analysis. PowerPoint began, innocently enough, as a multi-media device to present written and graphic material, particularly in the business world. But it quickly hypertrophied into a template for all manner of information presentation. When any medium of communication attains this much influence, the changes wrought in culture are not merely episodic or additive, but, rather, ecological. That is, following Neil Postman, the widespread acceptance of and dependence upon any communication technology not only adds something to a culture (like as another piece of furniture in one's home), but transforms culture at a deep (and usually unnoticed) epistemological level. It affects our habits of attending and thinking and feeling. It also subtly subtracts many previously valued aspects of life. Technology gives and takes away, usually under the cloak of ubiquity. For example, it gives the voice (or other sounds, such as music) a far greater reach into the ears of those far away. However, it eliminates the personal presence, as does the telephone.The adoption of new a technology is usually seen as a novelty, and as such, stands out from the rest of accepted culture. For example, the first portable adding machines (now called calculators) were remarkable because of their miniaturized capacities (as were the first personal computers). At the beginning, calculators were rare and expensive. I bought one for about $70 in the early 1980s. Now (in 2013) they are everywhere and inexpensive. As such, they become part of the background of our culture. Few people consider them worthy of analysis or interpretation. So it now is with PowerPoint. Frommer understands the power of PowerPoint--and that its power is not always in service of the good, the true, or the beautiful. Under the cloak of ubiquity PowerPoint often robs us of knowledge by encouraging poor cognitive habits, given its very nature. As Marshall McLuhan said (and most people forgot), "the medium is the message." This overstatement emphasizes the rhetorical nature of all communication. Every message is shaped by its medium. As Frommer says, "a medium is never neutral" (xv). A text message has a different form, and therefore a different effect, than a face-to-face conversation. A written card differs from an email message, even if the propositional content is identical. Rhetoric, the art of persuasion, not only applies to spoken and written language, but to the objects and systems of communications themselves. It is no wonder that the greatest technological analyst of the last century (quirky, though he was), Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980), was, by training, a rhetorician and not a technology expert or sociologist. McLuhan did not live long enough to sniff out the significance of PowerPoint, but Frommer continues his great tradition of principled suspicion. (The book mentions McLuhan only once in passing, on page 226, but his spirit is everywhere.) Frommer writes that PowerPoint "has invented a comprehensive rhetorical apparatus in which all the classical techniques of argument have been cleverly absorbed or transformed" (xii). That is a strong claim, and one that Frommer amply defends in 261 pages. What, then, are the distinguishing features of PowerPoint as a medium now that it has installed itself everywhere? PowerPoint will always reflect the intensions of its individual presenters, but those users are constrained by the form of the medium, just as a painter is constrained by the kinds of brushed, knives, or paints that she uses. But this enterprise is far different from painting. Consider the idea of a "point," as in the bullet points so prominent in PowerPoint. Arranging information in pointed lists tends to decontextualize that information. There need be no logical association between points, as in premises leading to a conclusion through some argument form (induction or deduction). A student once asked me in 2000 if she could write her quiz in bullet points. I said, "No. I am old school. Use sentences and paragraphs." PowerPoint, then, favors lists over linear, logical progressions. As Frommer says, "the logic of the list thus fits into a more general cognitive ecosystem. It has become so preeminent that it has replaced the traditional methods of organizing information" (65). The phrase "cognitive ecosystem," is apt, since, as Postman noted, communication media quickly form tacit systems of cognition. Books like Frommers's help us crack the hidden codes so that we can attain a wider perspective on ourselves and our culture (see 1 Chronicles 12:32). PowerPoint favors a style of presentation that is, of course, graphically engaging. That is the point of PowerPoint. Thus, it emphasizes special effects over intelligible intellectual content. The entertainment element easily overrides or nullifies the pedagogic value. But this entertainment is usually couched in the model of selling things. PowerPoint was developed for the business world. As such, it emphasizes one of the three genres of oratory: the epideictic, which targets the common person as a consumer. "It prefers to charm through description to induce action, create reaction, or incite the audience. It thus creates utterances [or images] that do not need to be established, argued, demonstrated" (67). In other words, it casts a cognitive spell. I read of one professor who did not adopt a certain text for a class simply because it could not be "powerpointed." Perhaps that serves as a good reason to use the text. To cite a personal example, after taking over a course from another professor midway through a semester, I noticed that my questions regarding the textbooks were greeted with eerie silence and puzzled expressions. I soon learned that the students were not bringing their textbooks to class because the professor used PowerPoint. Bringing books was unnecessary. This omission was rectified very quickly under my tutelage. In discipline after discipline, with examples after example, Frommer makes his case against PowerPoint as "a universal medium." He does not view it as evil in itself. But like any widespread tool, it does some things well and other things badly. Just as a screwdriver makes a poor hammer (and vice versa), PowerPoint cannot virtuously bear the weight of all it now carries. Frommer sums up nicely some of the salient weakness of PowerPoint as a medium of meaning:A presentation tool should in principle facilitate the exchange of information. Through its graphic prolixity, however, Power Point gives rise to obscurity, confusion and cognitive fatigue. Moreover, the worldwide use of unreliable or doctored graphs and diagrams engenders doubt and the validity of discourse that has been given a layout intended to ensure a form of legitimacy. Finally, the proliferation of images responding to an `esthetic' demand pollutes the argument. Emotion takes primacy over reason, exhibition over speech, spectacle over logic (99).Rather than relying on general observations, Frommer carefully analyzes influential PowerPoint presentations such as those of Steve Jobs in revealing new Apple epiphanies, of Colin Powell before the United Nations making a case for the US to invade Iraq, and of Al Gore's film, "An Inconvenient Truth," which was modeled on PowerPoint sensibilities. His close reading of these events adds great cogency to Frommers's analysis of the structure and intrinsic limits, weakness, and deceptions of PowerPoint.A few other points deserve mention. PowerPoint tends to eclipse the speaker as the center of attention, diverting it to the screen. It leaves the audience literally in the dark before the flickering screen, thus isolating people from one another. It also tends to diminish the need for note-taking, a highly intellectual skill of listening, analyzing, and recording important ideas taken from a lecture. One simply relies on "the slides" instead. The epidemic of PowerPoint also sets a rhetorical tone that resonates far beyond PowerPoint in our very language. People once lectured, now they present. But these two terms are not synonymous. A presentation involves far more than the speaker: electronic props are required. But in a lecture-discussion, there are no props (excluding the no-tech whiteboard or blackboard) and nothing to present to the audience beyond the speech of teacher and students. When teaching becomes presentation-oriented, the personality of the teacher is occluded by the technology. The teacher qua technologist dwarfs the teacher qua learned speaker and intellectual provocateur. Moreover, time spent preparing PowerPoint is time taken away from the rigors of actual study (Ecclesiastes 12:9-14). This ought not to be--if we care for the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge.I cannot do justice to the insightful analysis of this book. I was madly underlining and taking notes as I read it, particularly on the last hundred pages. It demands reading and pondering. It should not be put on PowerPoint slides. If one agrees with Frommer's theses, one will become a sign of contradiction to much of the contemporary world.. Near the end of this cogent work of social criticism, Frommer writes:Although it may not makes us stupid, there is no doubt that PowerPoint, like many other media, helps to make the world illiterate and contributes to the abandonment of critical thinking, to blind acceptance, to a new form of voluntary servitude (228).All those who seek to be literate, think critically, and have virtuous habits of knowing should pay heed to this book. Christians in particular should always ask what medium can best communicate knowledge about the things that matter most. We should not let the technological world automatically squeeze us into its mold (Romans 12:1-2). Frommer, who gives no indication of Christian conviction, gives a particularly egregious example of technological ignorance and abuse in the church. He cites a church service that used a PowerPoint presentation called, "The Death of Jesus Christ." It consisted entirely of bullet points.Jesus is brought before the court.The soldiers clothe him in purple.They crown him with thorns.They put a reed in his hand.They kneel mockingly before him. "And begin to salute him, Hail King of the Jews!" Mark 15:18.They spit upon him.They strike him on the head with a reed (59-60).This "bullet point narrative," as Frommer puts it, comes close to taking the Lord's name in vain:You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name (Exodus 20:7).Martin Luther exposited the meaning of this commandment this way:We are to fear and love God so that we do not use His name superstitiously, or use it to curse, swear, lie, or deceive, but call on Him in prayer, praise, and thanksgiving.The "powerpointing" the death of Christ does not directly denigrate Christ or use God's name in a curse. However, I submit that this "PowerPoint narrative" (which may be a contradiction in terms) does not honor the realities experienced by the Lord Jesus Christ through his passion. In fact, PowerPoint works in a sense to "deceive" (as Luther puts it) the congregation into thinking that the Lamb of God's final hours before the Cross were comprised of pointillist moments, essentially unrelated to each other. If so, much meaning is mislaid--at the very least. When the public reading of Scripture--long an essential aspect of divine liturgy--is given over to bullet points, much has been lost--and for no good reason. Technology may deceive, even as it promises to serve (2 Corinthians 11:14). How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid will anger, even outrage, and flummox many who have become habituated to and saturated in a medium they may not comprehend. But the truth often hurts before it heals. This important book it will also confirm the suspicions and hesitations of those less than dazzled by PowerPoint and its ubiquitous "presentation
Criticism about Power Point is only at the beginning of the book. The author discusses weaknesses of presentations given with the use of the software. There are interesting references to McLuhan theory of media. As the story continues it turns into an accusation of neo-liberalism, modern management theories, commercialization of the public sector. The arguments are similar to ones Naomi Klein gives in her books. Power Point is regarded as one of the weapons used by ones imposing criticized theories. I recommend reading this book because even if I do not always agree with the argumentation, it is worth reading and considering. Interesting examples and long list of references used to illustrate reasoning are additional advantages. Figures with ppt slides are difficult to read Kindle E-ink display. I recommend looking at them on PC or iPad.
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer PDF
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer EPub
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer Doc
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer iBooks
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer rtf
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer Mobipocket
How PowerPoint Makes You Stupid: The Faulty Causality, Sloppy Logic, Decontextualized Data, and Seductive Showmanship That Have Taken Over Our Thinking, by Franck Frommer Kindle
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar