soepom

just to add, since the gene is sex-linked, compare the normative attitudes towards male balding vs female balding. eg.would a man in his 40s with a receding hairline be still more likely to land a date than a woman with same physical criteria ceteris paribus? how does genetic predisposition affect social norms?

*crashed*

thesnow - the purpose of the outline is to inform the reader succinctly what you intend to communicate/achieve with your paper. all i've read so far is an explanation of inheritable male pattern balding which is well and good, but what you probably need to do, is to state what it is about male pattern balding that you intend to address.

since it is a genetics and society module, where is the sociological interest in your topic?

social discrimination based on biological factors? are bald men stigmatised because balding is deemed physically unattractive? how is such stigmatisation effected? (eg. men who are uncomfortable with their hair loss and therefore wear wigs/ toupees etc. inherently indicates that they perceive it to be an undesirable state, or interviews/statistics that women reject balding men - contrast it to subcultures where heads are deliberately shaven and considered "cool" eg skinheads. what is the social value in a full head of hair?).

also, since hair loss is determined genetically rather than lifestyle/habits, why is it that it suffers discrimination rather than evoke sympathy like other genetic dysfunctions such as...(i dunno, name some examples here). compare it with acne, why do people tend to dismiss acne as a passing phase in puberty rather than seek medical treatment for it if indeed it is a medical condition? similarly, is medical help sought for male-patterned hair loss as commonly as medical help is sought for other ailments? why or why not?

there are those who believe that balding is also affected by testosterone levels, and argue that men who lose hair earlier tend to have higher libidos and are therefore perhaps more attractive because of the (purported) prowess in the bedroom (please ascertain facts and find credible sources you can cite, i'm just throwing ideas off the top of my inebriated head).

okay that's it for now. the wines are getting to me.

^ i really like how this looks on you su8m3rg3d. good proportions.

dinner at a friend's place:

halfway through the meal: braised beef, fish in asam curry, pan fried prawn, baked chicken with homemade chilli paste

chocolate cake (sans butter and flour, and still tasted good), lemon, macadamia and coconut cake, fruit salad

as well as a shiraz and cabernet sauvignon of unknown origin

love my new shoes, but you can't really see them here. bah.

tis alright. at least you are not impoverished in spirit, style and sensory stimuli.

and you will have company. see you at the end of the road my friend.

whizkit - i don't see how you're going to stick to your expenditure budget at the rate you're eating! haha not even discount art film tickets can save you now. that said, food pics looks sexy so i'm not complaining. keep em comin!

lunch yesterday:

mum bought "famous" sarawak kolo noodles

dinner at work:

guitarist had duck confit (i tried some, it was...salty.)

i had Oosh spaghetti (bacon and scallops in tomato based sauce)

dessert:

drinks:

wolf blass riesling, heineken

mum's sunday lunch:

"Whilst the anonymous nature of the virtual medium provides suitable conditions for creating multiple identities, it is the ease with which virtual text-based interactions can be subject to effective impression management that makes it possible to maintain these newly created multiple identities. [......] Whilst Goffman does acknowledge that the individual plays many roles and some of these roles may be mutually contradictory and hence result in “role conflictâ€, his theory appears to presuppose that the self is one unified entity, albeit one that plays many roles. Goffman defines “performance†as “all the activity of a given participant on a given occasion that serves to influence in any way any of the other participants" (Goffman, 1959:26) and that this performance is put up for a social audience in order to maintain a stable self-image. Ostensibly, this notion of a stable self-image is somewhat contradictory to social psychologist Kenneth Gergen’s description of the postmodern identity as

a pastiche of personalities†in which the test of competence is not so much the integrity of the whole but the apparent correct representation appearing at the right time, in the right context, not to the detriment of the rest of the internal “collectiveâ€.

Turkle, 1995:256"

......

"However, a return to Mead’s theories of Symbolic Interaction and the emergence of the self, from which Goffman’s theoretical conception of self was drawn, shows that although existing theories of self-presentation might perhaps need some adjustment in order to adequately address issues pertaining to evolving notions of self, they certainly are far from obsolete. Mead states that the self “arises in the process of social experience and activity…develops in the given individual as a result of his relations to that process as a whole and to other individuals within that process†(Mead, 1934:135) In applying this to the virtual context, the nature of the medium is such that it makes it possible for the “process of social experience and activity†that takes place online and that “process†which takes place offline to be conceived of as separate and in some cases mutually exclusive. Therefore the self that emerges in each of these separate processes can be construed as separate entities and consequently, self-presentation operates on separate systems (of values, norms and expectations etc.). [/font]"

......

"Virtual reality has made it possible for the individual to create an interactive persona (which may or may not be considered as “selfâ€) on a tabula rasa. The physical self that results through the processes of interactions in real life often has roles or identities ascribed to it (e.g. ethnic group, kinship ties etc.) and part of impression management of the physical self is to be convincing in the performance of these ascribed roles/identities. How convincing the performance is depends on how well the expectations are met. The virtual, created, persona in the case of a MUD character for example, is however a completely ‘achieved’ (in contrast to ‘ascribed’) identity. In short, “in this [context] the self is constructed and the rules of social interaction are built, not received.†(Turkle, 1995: 10) As such, impression management of the persona appears to be a much easier task since there are no existing expectations of the new persona and therefore no expectations to fail to meet up to. However, it is precisely this lack of a common “stock knowledge†(Schutz, 1967) that defines reality for the personas (involved in inter-persona rather than interpersonal relationships) that might make impression management a challenging task since the rules of interaction and expectations of a what is a “successful†performance are constantly being negotiated and therefore highly volatile and unpredictable. Impression management in the context of a completely new persona is therefore less of a reflex action (conditioned by familiarity), but is instead highly reflexive and conscious of itself. An analogy can be drawn to when one walks into one’s living room, the familiarity of the place and the inhabitants allows it to be taken for granted, as compared to when one enters a room full of strangers, one tends to be more aware of oneself. Thus the virtual arena might well be a good place to test and hone the art of impression management given that it takes a prominent place in certain virtual interactions. "

......

"Goffman suggests that “any social establishment may be studied profitably from the point of view of impression management†where such “social establishment†is “any place surrounded by fixed barriers to perception in which a particular kind of activity regularly takes place†(1959:238). In a day and age where space is no longer conceived of as necessarily one that is physical (with reference to the metaphor of Cyberspaceâ€), it is certainly not unthinkable for the virtual space created by technology to qualify for “social establishment†as Goffman intended. Goffman’s theories of Impression Management can be appropriated in the understanding Computer-mediated Communications (albeit not always neatly), and I would boldly suggest that in the very nature of CMCs (especially that of ICQ and IRC), being one that is dyadic with communication saturated in a singular sign-vehicle, is a distilled form of the communication context that Goffman founded his early theories upon."

J. Dong, 2002

"Whilst the anonymous nature of the virtual medium provides suitable conditions for creating multiple identities, it is the ease with which virtual text-based interactions can be subject to effective impression management that makes it possible to maintain these newly created multiple identities. [......] Whilst Goffman does acknowledge that the individual plays many roles and some of these roles may be mutually contradictory and hence result in “role conflictâ€, his theory appears to presuppose that the self is one unified entity, albeit one that plays many roles. Goffman defines “performance†as “all the activity of a given participant on a given occasion that serves to influence in any way any of the other participants" (Goffman, 1959:26) and that this performance is put up for a social audience in order to maintain a stable self-image. Ostensibly, this notion of a stable self-image is somewhat contradictory to social psychologist Kenneth Gergen’s description of the postmodern identity as

a pastiche of personalities†in which the test of competence is not so much the integrity of the whole but the apparent correct representation appearing at the right time, in the right context, not to the detriment of the rest of the internal “collectiveâ€.

Turkle, 1995:256"

......

"However, a return to Mead’s theories of Symbolic Interaction and the emergence of the self, from which Goffman’s theoretical conception of self was drawn, shows that although existing theories of self-presentation might perhaps need some adjustment in order to adequately address issues pertaining to evolving notions of self, they certainly are far from obsolete. Mead states that the self “arises in the process of social experience and activity…develops in the given individual as a result of his relations to that process as a whole and to other individuals within that process†(Mead, 1934:135) In applying this to the virtual context, the nature of the medium is such that it makes it possible for the “process of social experience and activity†that takes place online and that “process†which takes place offline to be conceived of as separate and in some cases mutually exclusive. Therefore the self that emerges in each of these separate processes can be construed as separate entities and consequently, self-presentation operates on separate systems (of values, norms and expectations etc.). [/font]"

......

"Virtual reality has made it possible for the individual to create an interactive persona (which may or may not be considered as “selfâ€) on a tabula rasa. The physical self that results through the processes of interactions in real life often has roles or identities ascribed to it (e.g. ethnic group, kinship ties etc.) and part of impression management of the physical self is to be convincing in the performance of these ascribed roles/identities. How convincing the performance is depends on how well the expectations are met. The virtual, created, persona in the case of a MUD character for example, is however a completely ‘achieved’ (in contrast to ‘ascribed’) identity. In short, “in this [context] the self is constructed and the rules of social interaction are built, not received.†(Turkle, 1995: 10) As such, impression management of the persona appears to be a much easier task since there are no existing expectations of the new persona and therefore no expectations to fail to meet up to. However, it is precisely this lack of a common “stock knowledge†(Schutz, 1967) that defines reality for the personas (involved in inter-persona rather than interpersonal relationships) that might make impression management a challenging task since the rules of interaction and expectations of a what is a “successful†performance are constantly being negotiated and therefore highly volatile and unpredictable. Impression management in the context of a completely new persona is therefore less of a reflex action (conditioned by familiarity), but is instead highly reflexive and conscious of itself. An analogy can be drawn to when one walks into one’s living room, the familiarity of the place and the inhabitants allows it to be taken for granted, as compared to when one enters a room full of strangers, one tends to be more aware of oneself. Thus the virtual arena might well be a good place to test and hone the art of impression management given that it takes a prominent place in certain virtual interactions. "

......

"Goffman suggests that “any social establishment may be studied profitably from the point of view of impression management†where such “social establishment†is “any place surrounded by fixed barriers to perception in which a particular kind of activity regularly takes place†(1959:238). In a day and age where space is no longer conceived of as necessarily one that is physical (with reference to the metaphor of Cyberspaceâ€), it is certainly not unthinkable for the virtual space created by technology to qualify for “social establishment†as Goffman intended. Goffman’s theories of Impression Management can be appropriated in the understanding Computer-mediated Communications (albeit not always neatly), and I would boldly suggest that in the very nature of CMCs (especially that of ICQ and IRC), being one that is dyadic with communication saturated in a singular sign-vehicle, is a distilled form of the communication context that Goffman founded his early theories upon."

J. Dong, 2002

a paper i wrote back in a time when virtual communication was almost wholly textual (ie. pre-wawyt era)

(excerpts)

"When Goffman wrote The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life in 1959, he employed the metaphor of “theatrical performance†in his analysis of social interaction, coining the term “dramaturgy†to describe the processes of “impression management†(1959: 226). Whilst the usage of a the stage metaphor to describe social life was not novel (I refer of course to the all too famous quote from Shakespeare’s As You Like It – “All the world’s a stage/ And all the men and women merely playersâ€), it was probably unprecedented for a collection of sociological theories to be represented by a single metaphor, in particular that of the theatre. Almost a decade after his death, the popularisation of the Internet saw the emergence of another metaphor (in fact several metaphors) that soon became a dominant if not definitive aspect of the modern experience of social interaction – that which we call “Virtual Reality†(and a whole host of metaphorical relatives such as “Cyberspaceâ€, “World Wide Web†etc.). The advent of the Internet and the myriad communication tools associated with it have opened up a whole world (or perhaps even worlds) of possibilities in the area of social interaction that Goffman had no access to, and possibly no anticipation of. According to the social psychological theories that deal with human communication and the concept of self (represented by Mead, 1934, and later by Goffman, 1959, 1974), meaning is “created, recreated, and assigned to objects in a continuous interaction. In this interaction, also the self is created and recreated.†(Alvehus and Lindstrom, 1998:396). Arguably, the creation, expression and maintenance of social identities are primary processes in human interaction, whether offline or online, real or virtual. In this paper, I will elucidate the modus operandi of social interaction in the virtual context, through which I hope to examine the relevance and inadequacies of Goffman’s concepts of Self-Presentation, specifically, that of Impression Management."

......

"Consequently, virtual impression management is mostly about self-monitoring through the management of the textual only. Monitoring and manipulating may be considered easier for virtual communication as such because instead of meanings being “given off†(Goffman (1959:229) makes a distinction between signals that we “give†and we “give offâ€, the first being more deliberate and conscious and the latter non-deliberate and less conscious, though not necessarily always so) through multi-channels (e.g. verbal, body language) that the individual is unaware of and has arguably little concern and control over, there is now only one channel (the text) for communication. Thus, there is presumably greater focus and control over what is being “given†in the interaction. Also, because of the asynchronous nature of most computer-mediated communications, there can be greater deliberation and contemplation in the messages sent. Before an email or an ICQ message is sent, it can be read, re-read, thought through and carefully calculated to produce anticipated responses. Also, the nature of typing on the computer is such that editing is easy and does not leave any visible trace, therefore making vetting highly convenient – an ICQ message may be typed, deleted and re-typed a hundred times without the recipient being aware of it. Therefore “performance disruptions†(Goffman, 1959:239) such as “unmeant gestures, inopportune intrusions, faux pas, and scenes†can be more easily avoided or prevented."

......

"Because whatever impression formed is predicated on the interpretation of expression and since we have heightened control our expression in asynchronous, purely text-based communication, the term “expression management†has been suggested (Alvehus and Lindstrom, 1998:400) as a more appropriate term to describe the monitoring of the self in these contexts. Certainly, Computer-mediated Communication technologies are not the first of such asynchronous, text-based communications- older forms such as conventional letters and telegraphs etc. are its predecessors. However, it is only in recent times that such media have become so pervasive and widely used as supplements, or even substitutes to face-to-face communication. "

......

"Given that there is considerably greater control over one’s virtual self-presentation as well as greater efficiency in managing impressions (or expressions for that matter), it is not difficult to understand why the virtual environment is so conducive for the proliferation of the notion of multiple selves. The anonymous nature of some forms of virtual communication (such as IRC where anyone can join a chat session under a pseudonym or what is more commonly referred to as a “nickâ€- abbreviation of ‘nickname’) allows for the creation of multiple identities (and arguably multiple selves) since anonymity liberates the online individual from existing expectations about the real-life (offline) self and “gives people the chance to express multiple and often unexplored aspects of the self, to play with their identity and to try out new ones†(Turkle, 1995:12). "

......

a paper i wrote back in a time when virtual communication was almost wholly textual (ie. pre-wawyt era)

(excerpts)

"When Goffman wrote The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life in 1959, he employed the metaphor of “theatrical performance†in his analysis of social interaction, coining the term “dramaturgy†to describe the processes of “impression management†(1959: 226). Whilst the usage of a the stage metaphor to describe social life was not novel (I refer of course to the all too famous quote from Shakespeare’s As You Like It – “All the world’s a stage/ And all the men and women merely playersâ€), it was probably unprecedented for a collection of sociological theories to be represented by a single metaphor, in particular that of the theatre. Almost a decade after his death, the popularisation of the Internet saw the emergence of another metaphor (in fact several metaphors) that soon became a dominant if not definitive aspect of the modern experience of social interaction – that which we call “Virtual Reality†(and a whole host of metaphorical relatives such as “Cyberspaceâ€, “World Wide Web†etc.). The advent of the Internet and the myriad communication tools associated with it have opened up a whole world (or perhaps even worlds) of possibilities in the area of social interaction that Goffman had no access to, and possibly no anticipation of. According to the social psychological theories that deal with human communication and the concept of self (represented by Mead, 1934, and later by Goffman, 1959, 1974), meaning is “created, recreated, and assigned to objects in a continuous interaction. In this interaction, also the self is created and recreated.†(Alvehus and Lindstrom, 1998:396). Arguably, the creation, expression and maintenance of social identities are primary processes in human interaction, whether offline or online, real or virtual. In this paper, I will elucidate the modus operandi of social interaction in the virtual context, through which I hope to examine the relevance and inadequacies of Goffman’s concepts of Self-Presentation, specifically, that of Impression Management."

......

"Consequently, virtual impression management is mostly about self-monitoring through the management of the textual only. Monitoring and manipulating may be considered easier for virtual communication as such because instead of meanings being “given off†(Goffman (1959:229) makes a distinction between signals that we “give†and we “give offâ€, the first being more deliberate and conscious and the latter non-deliberate and less conscious, though not necessarily always so) through multi-channels (e.g. verbal, body language) that the individual is unaware of and has arguably little concern and control over, there is now only one channel (the text) for communication. Thus, there is presumably greater focus and control over what is being “given†in the interaction. Also, because of the asynchronous nature of most computer-mediated communications, there can be greater deliberation and contemplation in the messages sent. Before an email or an ICQ message is sent, it can be read, re-read, thought through and carefully calculated to produce anticipated responses. Also, the nature of typing on the computer is such that editing is easy and does not leave any visible trace, therefore making vetting highly convenient – an ICQ message may be typed, deleted and re-typed a hundred times without the recipient being aware of it. Therefore “performance disruptions†(Goffman, 1959:239) such as “unmeant gestures, inopportune intrusions, faux pas, and scenes†can be more easily avoided or prevented."

......

"Because whatever impression formed is predicated on the interpretation of expression and since we have heightened control our expression in asynchronous, purely text-based communication, the term “expression management†has been suggested (Alvehus and Lindstrom, 1998:400) as a more appropriate term to describe the monitoring of the self in these contexts. Certainly, Computer-mediated Communication technologies are not the first of such asynchronous, text-based communications- older forms such as conventional letters and telegraphs etc. are its predecessors. However, it is only in recent times that such media have become so pervasive and widely used as supplements, or even substitutes to face-to-face communication. "

......

"Given that there is considerably greater control over one’s virtual self-presentation as well as greater efficiency in managing impressions (or expressions for that matter), it is not difficult to understand why the virtual environment is so conducive for the proliferation of the notion of multiple selves. The anonymous nature of some forms of virtual communication (such as IRC where anyone can join a chat session under a pseudonym or what is more commonly referred to as a “nickâ€- abbreviation of ‘nickname’) allows for the creation of multiple identities (and arguably multiple selves) since anonymity liberates the online individual from existing expectations about the real-life (offline) self and “gives people the chance to express multiple and often unexplored aspects of the self, to play with their identity and to try out new ones†(Turkle, 1995:12). "

......

potato masala thosai with daal and curries; fruits on bed of light caramel

yeah... i'm not too sure why... gotta ask him. maybe he's not all that big a denimhead after all. *gasp*

...you gotta try harder to stimulate! or is that big for singapore standards?

nah. that's just the bulge in his pants when they are zipped up tight. forgot to post the photo when his fly was unzipped:

and here's the one when he started to fantasize about denim:

i feel bad for the singaporean ladies.

i know. it get's a little painful sometimes you know, 'cos we're so nice and tight...

dear aunt sufu, can you tell me if that bulge in his shadow is his shirt, or was he just happy to see me?

actually, tweeds is dating whizkit. they've been spotted shopping for raf simons together 4 days in a row now.

carl - someone said i have a "carl smile"... user search.

mike lowrey - said i was his favourite new poster

bizzy - magazine worthy photos, beauty in androgyny

hap - those eyes; surprised by how he sounds over skype

tweedlesinpink - is that a violin in his waywt background? sent pm: haven't we jammed together before?

rirawin - fascinating english accent

cheep - huh why did he abandon his cheapmuthafuckr account?

begs - who is he? what does he do? why is he so amazing? enigma.

superBobo - ooh swedish!

canice - cool chick, edwins, bicycle

seenmy - jesus.

poliopoliopolio - black rim specs, thick lips, shelf of leather bound library books

whizkit - topographic wawyt prop

sidneylo - brick wall, looks like a shaolin monk in white tee and jeans

wEstSidE - my first and only neg rep ever received... (it's okay i <3 you anyways )

tg and beatle - got the two mixed up at first

icarus - off white bathroom tiles

plongin - wah so many shoes ah

jmatsu - likes nicola conte as well

thai dinner after singaporean concert of finnish music:

chicken soup, basil beef and rice, crispy sweet spicy squid.

i know this should go in the what are you drinking todai thread, but i'm lazy. and this thread has always welcomed liquid diets anyways!

our poison of preference: whisky dry (ginger ale + macallan)

whilst on the topic of long coats and top hats...

i was actually going to order a top hat not too long ago... just because i like collecting hats. then i realised i couldn't fuckin ever wear it, not with this current hair cut. i'd just look like depp's willy wonka.

arent you worried about the leeches?

nice toes btw,

thanks. toes are the new tits.

leeches are uncommon here.

i was more worried about breaking the glass beneath the water, and crashing 3 storeys down into the mrt station below.

mum made lunch:

grilled brinjal/aubergine with creamy mushroom penne

what are you drinking todai:

soybean milk with grass jelly

local supper feast:

orh luah (oyster omelette), bbq chicken wing, hokkien prawn mee

still felt peckish so ordered: