John Dyer, PhD

Writing

Using Technology without Technology Using You: Got Any Tips?

By John Dyer on June 29, 2009March 5, 2020

Conference Info Next month, I’ll be doing a session at the ECHO Church Media Conference (July 29-31, 2009, Dallas) called “Using Technology without Technology Using You.” (Q&A at the ECHO blog)Continue readingUsing Technology without Technology Using You: Got Any Tips?

Learning about Reality and Information from a Coldplay Concert

By John Dyer on June 25, 2009March 5, 2020

What Is Information? My (awesome) brother recently took me to a Coldplay concert, and we had a blast together. But before we get to Coldplay (and Snow Patrol), let’s introduceContinue readingLearning about Reality and Information from a Coldplay Concert

Stop Bringing Your Bible to Church! (and don’t look at the screen either)

By John Dyer on June 15, 2009March 5, 2020

This post is the first in a series of “Media Ecology Experiments” which is about using media and technology in a different way to help understand how it affects usContinue readingStop Bringing Your Bible to Church! (and don’t look at the screen either)

Internet Fatigue

By John Dyer on June 11, 2009March 5, 2020

CNN has a report on the phenomenon of internet fatigue. I wish they would have spent more time on giving suggestions for how to understand why this happens and howContinue readingInternet Fatigue

Dostoevsky’s 1984 Saved Him from Our Brave New World

By John Dyer on June 2, 2009March 5, 2020

1984 vs. Brave New World In the introduction to Amusing Ourselves to Death, Neil Postman contrasts the worries about future technology by Aldous Huxley in Brave New World (1932) and George OrwellContinue readingDostoevsky’s 1984 Saved Him from Our Brave New World

Articles and Tools on Texting

By John Dyer on May 27, 2009March 5, 2020

The NYTimes has a new article on the effects of texting on youth which include anxiety, sleep deprivation, and hand injuries. Interestingly, as Andy Crouch points out, the article alsoContinue readingArticles and Tools on Texting

Should Sunday Morning Be ‘Hot’ or ‘Cool’?

By John Dyer on May 20, 2009March 5, 2020

Who’s Watching the Watchmen? This spring, the movie version of Alan Moore’s critically acclaimed 1986 graphic novel Watchmen was released. In the world of comic nerdom, there were outcries that the change of mediumContinue readingShould Sunday Morning Be ‘Hot’ or ‘Cool’?

How to Become a “Technological Idiot” in One Easy Step: Think Like a Christian

By John Dyer on May 1, 2009March 5, 2020

The Right/Wrong Dichotomy One of Christianity’s greatest strengths is that it is deeply concerned with morality. However, when it comes to thinking about technology, this strength often turns into aContinue readingHow to Become a “Technological Idiot” in One Easy Step: Think Like a Christian

Happy Birthday Napster, Gameboy, and Walkman! Thanks for Changing Music Forever.

By John Dyer on April 23, 2009March 5, 2020

As Apple celebrates its billionth app download, its predecessors also celebrate anniversaries of when they shaped our world in ways we might not have expected. Some Big Birthdays On JuneContinue readingHappy Birthday Napster, Gameboy, and Walkman! Thanks for Changing Music Forever.

Course Syllabus: Writing for Nonreaders in the Postprint Era

By John Dyer on April 20, 2009March 5, 2020

A humorous, but enlightening syllabus for a class on writing in the “postprint” era. Writing for nonreaders in the postprint era: “Students will examine why former generations carried around heavy clumpsContinue readingCourse Syllabus: Writing for Nonreaders in the Postprint Era