The fundamental limits of the functional approach to the study of mass communication are embodied in two of its criticisms. The first weakness is in its logical structure and the second involves the limits that are set by known methods. Functional analysis has difficulties as a meaningful research perspective because the process of mass…

The paper describes the combination of a computer assisted instructional system, a cable television system, and multi-media equipment to provide interactive instructional sessions for the handicapped child at school or at home. The Human Resources Interactive Television Program is reported to demonstrate the futuristic functional utility for…

This analysis attempts to consolidate frequency studies done by public broadcasting, to compile some important characteristics of potentially available bands, and to prioritize the frequency options of public service users of satellite communications. Those bands are emphasized which facilitate the transfer of public service activities to…

Eight essays prepared for the Aspen Conference of August 1974 are collected, with comments from the discussions of the leading humanists who attended the conference and reviewed the preliminary drafts. Included are essays on the medium as a social and cultural force, criticism from the viewer's position, a comparison of newspaper and television…

A review discusses the background of the experimental electronic blackboard and its role as an audiovisual aid in instruction. Brief details of several systems are given: the Victor System, Electrowriter Remote Blackboard (VERB); Carbon County Wyoming Project; University of Tennessee Project; the Quebec Project in Canada; New York Institute of…

The diligent use of two-way voice links via satellites substantially improves the quality and the availability of health care and educational services in remote areas. This improvement was demonstrated in several experiments that were sponsored by the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and the National Aeronautics and Space…

The direct broadcast satellite is the latest in a series of developments in international communication techniques that have radically altered the role of information in the global society. Though now technically feasible, the direct broadcast satellite may never be widely employed because it challenges traditional international political concepts…

The document presents a description of the Central Police Dispatch (PCD) system of Muskegon County, Michigan. The CPD, a civilian-staffed organization, is concerned with the regionalization of police services and improved police communications. The development of the CPD is traced from the Muskegon Interlocal Public Agency (1969-72) to the present…

The web of relations among present and prospective changes in information systems provides a background against which public policy on information and telecommunication can be assessed. Telecommunication networks, broadcast regulation, and private line services all provide resources for news dissemination to the public. The costs, prices, and…

A demonstration project explored the potential of satellite video consulation to improve the quality of rural health care in Alaska. Satellite ground stations permitting both transmission and reception of black and white television were installed at clinics in Fairbanks, Fort Yukon, Galena, and Tanana. Receive-only television capability was…

Because many of the Veterans Administration hospitals in Appalachia are located great distances from medical teaching facilities, high powered communication satellites have been employed to facilitate quality two-way communication between medical personnel scattered throughout the region. To achieve diagnostic, therapeutic, and educational…

Advances in communications technology could have allowed the United States to develop an integrated telecommunication distribution system, but the manipulation of regulatory precedents prevented the development and marketing of new facilities. The potential of cable television and broad band broadcasters have been thwarted by such restrictions.…

Actions taken in 1970 by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are reviewed and discussed in this paper. These actions include amendment of educational broadcast rules for the first time in 17 years, decisions in the area of educational programing, a decision regarding the ultra high frequency (UHF)-land mobile dilemma, and a promise to…

The role of the media ecologist is to interpret the effect of electric technology upon mankind and to ask long-range questions about the communication explosion. At present, great gaps exist between technology and man's ability to grasp it. Communication media not only act as channels of communication, but also have become an integral part of the…

Summaries are provided of the papers presented and the discussions held during the symposium "Improving Productivity of School Systems Through Educational Technology." The meeting was sponsored by the National Institute of Education's Technology and Productivity Task Force and ran August 20-22, 1973. Its purpose was to explore indepth…