Graduate Studies

Interdisciplinary Master's in Art, Media and Design (MA, MDes and MFA)

Alex Perlin

Social Studies Book

This series of notebooks is designed to deliver direct, concise information about digital media use, through a series of illustrations and infographics. In an effort to bring clarity to issues that span across so many disciplines and influence our lives in so many ways, the books categorize information by school subject. These categories also serve as references to a school experience and connect to the larger sculptural installation. The Social Studies notebook speaks to the impacts of digital media on our decision making abilities and mental health. Other books in the series include a Science notebook and a Health and Wellness notebook. The Science notebook breaks down the anatomy and subspecies of trolls, bots, and malicious actors offering a set of “formulas” that can be used to identify bots and fake accounts. The Health and Wellness notebook presents information about the health and stability of democracies, likening a balanced diet to democratic balance and physical activity to active citizenship. Each of the books presents information through infographics, illustration, data visualizations, and information design. Each book concludes with practical tips to help improve media literacy in the area that it describes. According to leading researchers and political scientists, this type of practical information is not being taught in schools, resulting in low levels of "civic online reasoning" among young adults (Breakstone et al.; Diamond). Works Cited:Breakstone, J. et al. “Students’ Civic Online Reasoning: A National Portrait.”. Stanford History Education Group & Gibson Consulting, 2019, https://purl.stanford.edu/gf151tb4868. Accessed 20 Oct. 2020. Diamond, Larry. Ill Winds, Saving Democracy From Russian Rage, Chinese Ambition, and American Complacency. Penguin Press, New York, 2019

“The Social Studies notebook speaks to the impacts of digital media on our decision making abilities and mental health. ”