翻译《ELI7051 - 关于微网志你要知道的七件事》

7 things you should know about...

Microblogging

关于微网志你要知道的七件事

Scenario

场景说明

Every spring, Dr. LeClerc accompanies a class of undergraduates to Paris, where they immerse themselves in Parisian society and study French cinema. This year, he decides to experiment with Twitter as a way to capture student observations and reflections. He assigns a unique hashtag for the class and instructs the students to “tweet” about their impressions of the city. Using a host of third-party Twitter applications, students submit short text posts, upload photos, and post audio or video comments. In particular, Dr. LeClerc encourages the students to create short videos that symbolize their learning experiences and embody the spirit of the city.

每年春天，勒克莱尔博士陪同一个班的本科生去巴黎，他们融入巴黎社会，研究法国电影。今年，他决定尝试用Twitter捕捉学生的观察和反应。他为班级指定一个惟一标签（hashtag），要求学生“推送（tweet）”他们对这座城市的感观。学生使用各种第三方Twitter应用程序，提交短信帖子，上传照片，张贴音频和视频解说。勒克莱尔博士特别鼓励学生制作简短视频，体现他们在这座城市获得的体验，表现这座城市的精神。

As the quarter progresses, students post short reflections about an outing they took to a French movie studio and an intense discussion with a film director. Aside from the group activities, the students work on independent projects, and they follow each other’s posts to see what their classmates are doing in various parts of the city. Each student’s posts represent a unique perspective on Paris and French cinema, and the aggregate of all of the posts with the course hashtag represents the collective experience of the class.

进度过去四分之一时，学生张贴简短推讯，记录对游览一间法国电影工作室的反思，以及与一位电影导演的激烈讨论。除了集体活动，学生还要完成各自的项目，他们彼此跟随（Follow）帖子，看看同学们在这座城市的各个角落干些什么。每一位学生的帖子都代表了对巴黎和法国电影的独一无二的视角，而利用课程标签聚合起来的全部帖子则代表了全班的共同体验。

Back on campus, graduate students in Dr. Shannon’s course Documentary and New Media intently follow the microblog, which serves as raw material for a documentary the class is producing. Through their own Twitter accounts, the graduate students offer suggestions to the students overseas, ask for additional information about specific posts, and request video clips of particular places and events in Paris. The resulting documentary combines audio and video posted by the students in France with commentary and other footage supplied by the graduate students on campus. The video captures not only French cinema but also the unfolding story of the undergraduates’ visit to Paris, their immersion in French culture, and their learning experiences.

而在学校，香农博士《纪录片与新媒体》课上的研究生密切跟随这份微网志，因为它提供的原始素材记录了这个班级的活动过程。通过他们自己的Twitter 帐户，研究生为海外的学生提供建议，询问特定帖子的额外信息，要求巴黎特定地点和活动的视频片段。由此产生的纪录片结合了身处法国的学生张贴的音频视频，以及身处校园的研究生提供的评论和其他镜头。捕捉的视频不仅涉及法国电影，还包括本科生访问巴黎期间的延伸故事，他们对法国文化的着迷，以及他们的学习体验。

The graduate class uses Twitter to promote their documentary to the public, and the Twitter account for the film class collects hundreds of followers. When a first cut of the video is finished and available on the department website, the team announces it on Twitter. Many who watch the documentary use Twitter to post comments and suggest improvements. The team discusses this feedback and makes changes based on what they learn. A new announcement goes out on Twitter for the “final cut,” which is featured prominently on the university website.

研究生班级使用Twitter 向公众宣传他们的纪录片，电影班级的帐户已经收到数百追随者。当第一段视频制作完成并发布到系网站上，小组在Twitter 做了通知。很多人通过Twitter 观看纪录片，发表评论和改进意见。小组讨论反馈，基于所学做出改进。一份“最终版”通知再次出现在Twitter，这份最终版视频在大学网站上特别突出。

What is it?

这是什么？

Microblogging is the practice of posting small pieces of digital content - which could be text, pictures, links, short videos, or other media - on the Internet. Microblogging has become popular among groups of friends and professional colleagues who frequently update content and follow each other’s posts, creating a sense of online community. Twitter is currently the best-known microblogging site, its popularity supported by a growing collection of add-on applications that enable different and often more engaging microblog updates, such as TwitPic for uploading pictures or PollyTrade for buying and selling stocks. Meanwhile, a number of competing microblog applications - some open source, many aimed at specific interest groups - continue to challenge Twitter’s popularity. This resulting profusion of tools is helping to define new possibilities for this type of communication.

微型网志用来在互联网上张贴短小的数码内容——可以是文字、图片、链接、短小视频或者其他媒体。微网志日益流行，朋友圈子以及专业圈子中，大家都经常更新内容，跟随别人的帖子，创造出一种在线社区的感觉。Twitter 是现在最知名的微网志网站，它受欢迎是因为日益增多的插件应用集合，允许不一样的更新和更频繁的更新，比如TwitPic 可以上传图片，PollyTrade 可以买卖股票。同时，许多微网志竞争应用——有些是开源的，有些针对具体的兴趣团体——继续挑战Twitter 的声望。这导致大量工具帮助这类通讯方式确定形式。

Who’s doing it?

谁在用它？

In mainstream culture, microblogging has become an extremely popular channel for both professional and personal pursuits. Friends use it to keep in touch, business associates use it to coordinate meetings or share useful resources, and celebrities and politicians (or their publicists) microblog about concert dates, lectures, book releases, or tour schedules. For higher education, microblogging is an increasingly important tool for communities of practice, enabling scholars to communicate informally on subjects of shared interest and to open windows into their own projects, sparking interest and discovery among peers. Some universities are considering using microblogging in the curriculum to emphasize timeliness, student engagement, and aggregation of artifacts relevant to course content and experience. At some institutions, faculty offer course-centric microblogging streams to create a back channel among students in the classroom. Stephen Prothero, professor of religion at Boston University, has set himself the challenge of using Twitter to sum up eight major religions, in a maximum of 140 characters per post. The microblogs he offers will feed into a book that he is writing on the same topic.

在主流文化，无论是职业领域还是个人工作，微网志都非常流行。朋友们用来保持接触，商业伙伴用来协调会议或分享有用资源，名流与政客（或其公关）用微网志协商约会、报告、图书发行、参观日程。在高校，微网志是一款日益重要的社区实践工具，允许学者可以非正式交流感兴趣的课题，打开窗户进入自己的研究项目，引发同伴之间的兴趣和发现。一些大学考虑在课程中使用微网志，强调实时性、学生参与、课程内容课程体验相关资源的聚合。在某些研究机构，教师提供以课程为中心的微网志，创建课堂上学生之间的反向渠道。斯蒂芬·普罗塞洛，波士顿大学宗教教授，挑战自我，使用Twitter 总结八门主要宗教，每份帖子最多一百四十个字。他提供的微网志将为他一本同样主题的书籍提供素材。

How does it work?

是如何工作的？

To post a microblog or to read those posted by others, subscribers must typically create accounts, which are linked with cell phones, e-mail accounts, instant messaging, web pages - any medium they will use to send updates. Users can then post updates or “follow” the posts of other people. These posts might consist of short text snippets (maximum number of characters specified by the application), a photo, an audio clip, or a few seconds of video, any of which can be shared publicly or with a selected group of subscribers. As updates are added, they are aggregated into a personal stream of information, sometimes fused with updates from other users they have chosen to follow. Users tag posts with keywords so that others can search topics and follow comments and conversations. Those who have accounts at multiple services might use an aggregator such as FriendFeed or Socialthing!, which deliver streams from several social networking sites to a single location and also allow customization of filters and streams.

张贴微网志或者阅读这些帖子，订阅者通常必须创建帐户，并关联到移动电弧、电子邮件帐户，即时通讯、网页——任何他们用来发送更新的媒体。然后用户就可以张贴更新，或者跟随他人的更新。这些贴子可能有若干文字片断（文字数量上限由应用程序决定）、照片、音频片断、几秒钟的视频、任何可以公开分享或与指定订阅小组分享的媒体组成。一旦添加更新，更新就聚合到个人信息流，有时候也会融合他们选择跟随的人的更新。用户使用关键字标记帖子，这样别人可以搜索主题、跟随评论和谈话。拥有多个服务帐号的人，可以使用FriendFeed 或 Socialthing 作为聚合器，这些聚合器可以把多个社交网站的信息流递送到单一地点，同时允许使用过滤器和信息流进行定制。

Why is it significant?

为什么重要？

Microblogging offers a portable communication mode that feels organic and spontaneous to many and has captured the public imagination. The promise of instant publication with few restrictions on content means that microblogging services can offer instant news coverage from individuals witnessing or directly involved in events as they unfold, something that can be especially valuable for issues not covered by traditional news sources. In the aftermath of the disputed recent presidential election in Iran, for example, official news outlets found access and communication restricted, but the microblogging world went into hyperdrive as onlookers posted up-to-the-minute personal accounts from inside the country and followers elsewhere offered commentary. In such a context, microblogs may give voice to a segment of society that is otherwise not heard. Marketers follow posts on microblogging sites to track trends and mine data about the success of products, performances, or services. On a smaller scale, when used by work groups as a collaborative tool, a microblogging application can invite colleagues to share information while providing an easy means for them to stay connected through a project life cycle - from brainstorming to troubleshooting to evaluation.

微网志提供了一种方便的通讯模式，许多人感到自然舒畅，并且这种看法已经形成共识。实时发布内容，很少限制，这意味着微网志服务可以提供来自一线证人的实时新闻报导，或者紧跟事件的发展。这对传统新闻来源覆盖不到的内容，特别有用。比如，在伊朗最近有争议的总统选举当中，伊朗官方新闻媒体发现访问与通讯受限，但是微网志却极度繁荣，因为伊朗国内的旁观者个人账户每分钟都在张贴信息，世界各地的跟随者则提供评论。在此背景下，微网志能够为社会上某些人提供通过其他途径听不到的声音。商人跟随微网志网站上的信息，跟踪流行趋势，挖掘资料，了解产品、表演、服务是否成功。规模较小时，比如作为工作小组的协作工具，微网志应用可以促使同伴分享信息，同时为他们提供简易方法在整个项目期间保持联系——从头脑风暴到问题解决到评估。

What are the downsides?

有什么不足？

The conversational world of microblogging is not to everyone’s taste. Some see it as ephemeral, self-indulgent, or a waste of time, and posts or applications that indicate where microbloggers are and when they will be away from home pose a potential risk to users. Stweet, a mashup of Twitter and Google maps, for example, enables followers to watch a street-level image that indicates where individuals are when they post to Twitter. Such applications, when added to the day-in-the-life character of what is being recorded and the ubiquity of technology, could enable stalker-like behavior and put the famous and the vulnerable at risk - from citizen paparazzi or those with criminal intent. Moreover, the casual nature of microblogging and its immediacy continue to be a concern with regard to the release of sensitive information, which would be much less likely to be made public through the more deliberate, vetted processes of traditional publishing.

喋喋不休的微网志世界并不是每个人都喜欢。有人认为这是过眼云烟，自我放纵，浪费时间，显示微博客现在在哪里、什么时候离开家，这些应用或帖子会给用户带来潜在威胁。比如Stweet，Twitter 和谷歌地图的混搭，使得跟随者可以观看街道一级的画面，显示发帖人在哪里，他们是什么时候发帖子的。这样的应用程序，一旦成为日常生活被记录的元素，成为普遍技术，就会引发跟踪行为，令名人和老弱妇孺处于危险之中——从狗仔队到潜在罪犯。此外，微网志的随意性和直接性，使得继续受到关注，关注敏感信息的释放。不大可能因为流行，就变得更加严谨，使用传统出版过程的审查手段。

Where is it going?

用在什么地方？

The posting of microblogs has enjoyed a popular upsurge this year, with add-ons appearing regularly that enable more sophisticated updates and interaction with other applications. By enabling or simplifying a variety of communication channels, these add-on tools are making subtle changes to the character of microblogs, whether allowing users to conduct informal polling among followers or allowing them to set up several blog posts to be sent at specified times. As the range of such tools grows, users might be able to send appointment reminders and project deadlines or, for example, to poll a study group before deciding to rewrite the conclusion of a joint paper. The introduction of new tools, and in particular the increasing ease with which multimedia can be posted, will determine where microblogging goes in the near term. Use of microblogging may reintroduce the epigram or aphorism as a literary form - supported this time by visuals - while scholars can include supporting media as they comment or consult on ongoing projects. Applications that invite users to update with video, voice clips, and photos or to mark up content sent by another with editing or art tools may move collaboration on art projects to the speed of conversation.

张贴微网志今年引发热潮，通过插件，可以有规律的显示更复杂的更新，以及和其他应用发生互动。通过启用或简化各种通讯渠道，无论是允许用户在跟随者中间举行非正式投票，还是允许用户安排在特定时间发布若干网志帖子，这些插件工具使得微网志的性质发生了微妙的变化。随着这类工具的使用范围不断延伸，用户能够发送约会提醒和项目最后期限，或者，在某研究小组决定重写共同论文的结论之前投票表决。引入新工具，特别是更能轻松发布媒体，将会决定微网志近期的走向。使用微网志会让格言警句重新成为一种文学形式——这次得到了视觉化的支持——尽管学者在他们当前项目的评论和咨询中也可以包含媒体。促使用户更新视频、音频片断、照片、标记其他用户发送的内容以供编辑的应用程序，会加快艺术项目的合作速度。

What are the implications for teaching and learning?

对教育学习的影响？

In academe, microblogging is used to offer a backchannel forum during live classes, to send reminders of test dates and project deadlines, to build online community, and to offer notification of class cancellations due to bad weather. As with many communication modes enabled by electronic tools, care must be taken to separate signal from noise. For large classes, filters might be advisable to keep from overwhelming a microblog conversation, but learning teams, smaller seminar classes, and project-based activities could all benefit from the collaborative opportunities offered by these tools. Study groups can offer multiple points of view on a topic, conduct research from different library locations, or send a virtual shout-out to colleagues about a discovery or the results of an experiment so that all members can discuss what that means to the project at hand. By offering a variety of media and increasingly sophisticated tools, microblogging fosters communication for students that seems more natural and enjoyable and could inspire them in new genres of performances or art.

在学术界，微网志用于在上课期间提供反向渠道论坛，发送考试日期提醒和项目最后期限，建立在线社区，在坏天气的时候提供取消上课的通知。跟许多使用电子工具的交流方式一样，需要注意从背景噪音中区分信号。对于很大的班级，使用过滤器，可以避免被微网志交谈的口水淹没，但是学习小组、小型研讨班、基于项目的活动，可以从这些工具提供的合作机会中受益。研究小组可以为同一主题提供多种视角，从不同的图书馆进行研究，在实验有结果或发现时，向同事发送虚拟呼叫，这样所有成员都可以讨论这对手头项目的意义。通过提供各种媒体，以及日渐复杂的工具，微网志在培养学生的交流，使之更自然更享受，激励他们发明新的表演或艺术。

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Microblogging

微网志

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July 2009

二〇〇九年七月