Welcoming guest bloggers Beth and Claire

In the next few weeks we'll hear from two fantastic guest bloggers; Beth and Claire, who are undergraduate students in communication and women's and gender studies, among other subjects. They'll be reflecting on their experiences with online communication and social media.  Each will provide a young adult perspective, yet the 10 year difference in their ages may lead to a range of experiences.

We know that unlike us, they're digital natives, having grown up with the internet, interactive screens and social media. We're especially interested in how they know when to turn off phones and their online access -- even to take down a Facebook page in order to protect privacy or to save time.

We just read the most beautiful graphic novel called Everywhere Antennas by Julie Delporte  Critics on the site promote it as "A poetic novel that plumbs the depths of self-doubt and technological fatigue." The author never answers the question of whether the girl hero is suffering and struggling with too much radiation and technology or if she merely images this is the source of her trouble and finds a target for blame. Swedes see this as a legitimate disease according to the text in the novel. One of the beautiful features of the book is Delporte's refusal to reveal either what causes the narrators anxiety nor whether she's eventually able to get it in check. It's a beautiful study in blues.