This week we discussed two different forms of compression. One makes things physically smaller, like an MP3, the other one effects amplitude or volume.

MP3s are products of compressing music, or removing sounds that are unlikely to be heard from recordings. We discussed the book MP3 by Jonathan Sterne in class. It is important to understand the meaning of the MP3 format because it allows you to rethink the roll of digital technology in the 20th century. From research conducted on hearing throughout the 1910s, to the mid-century creation of perceptual coding, to the controversial life of the MP3 throughout the 1990s. Sterne considers the history of compression throughout his book, while addressing the relationship it has with sound, silence, sense, and noise. He also goes on to discuss the important of understanding the governance in today’s media culture. When considering media it is important to remember the formats, standards, and infrastructures, and the fact that content must fit inside them. These components are as as essential to communication as the actual public media we experience