Phifer Lecture Series At UA To Feature Internet Seminar Series

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Phifer Lecture Series in the College of Communication and Information Sciences at The University of Alabama is bringing in cutting-edge researchers to discuss multiple Internet-related topics during this semester.

Each lecture, which is free and open to the public, will be in 216 Phifer Hall on the UA campus beginning at 3 p.m. Dates, speakers and topics are as follows:

Sept. 15 — Johanna Drucker

Drucker heads the new media studies program at the University of Virginia, where she holds an endowed chair. She is a practicing artist, art historian, critic and theorist who has authored numerous books on a variety of media. She will discuss visuality on the Web.

Oct. 6 — Jorge Schement

Schement heads a center at Pennsylvania State University that researches the types of social and economic inequities that can result from the use of new information technologies. He is the author of some of the most influential works on universal access to the Internet, and he will discuss the Digital Divide.

Oct. 20 — Matthew Lombard

Lombard’s work focuses on the nature of “presence” in the electronic environment. He will discuss what presence is in virtual reality.

Nov. 3 — Frank Biocca

Biocca’s mind lab at Michigan State University is one of the premiere centers in the world for the study of human-computer interaction. He will discuss recent developments in understanding how we relate to computers and the Web.

Nov. 10 — Ron Rice

Rice has been doing work on computer-mediated communications, particularly within organizations, for decades. He researches how organizations and their communication practices are changing.

Nov. 17 — Michael Joyce

Joyce invented the hypertext novel and has been a leading thinker about content creation in the Web environment and how to teach it. He will discuss the nature of stories in the electronic media.

For more information on topics or the lecture series, contact the UA telecommunication and film department at 205/348-6350.