Misinformation, miscommunication, or fear of asking for clarification disconnects you from knowledge; thus, we must learn the meaning.
“Digital”. What does that mean to you? Has its definition changed throughout the years? Have you even thought about it through the years?
For myself, I can sincerely say… no. That was until last week’s class discussion and reflecting during the reading of Eyman’s deeply educational article.
Digital vs. Analog Discussion
The word “digital” has only ever brought up computer technologies in the past. Other than digital clock, nothing like a vacuum or hairdryer ever yelled “digital!” to me.
Something that helped simplify the meaning was the analog vs. digital clock conversation. Usually, the way an analog clock runs is obvious to the majority of people. It is an obvious and simple-featured tool. If you were to inquire about more answers regarding its underlying functionality, they would be easy to comprehend.
On the other hand, a digital clock has immensely contrast functionality. More complex set of underlying features. As Eyman suggested, it is made up of “discrete values” (Eyman, 18). Therefore, you may need more than common sense to fully grasp what the name of each part is, how it works, and how they work together. Overall, it takes more work.
I rememeber scarmbling to grab my pen to write this down. As if it was some definition that would surely appear on an imaginary exam. This, a quote from last week’s class discussion, futhered the meaning’s clarification.
“If it can be boiled down to 1’s and 0’s, it’s digital.”.
Coding consists of numbers. The english language does too. So does our fingers. Meaning digital systems are expansive and have been around for much longer then I have.
Wrapping it Up!
I always enjoy a Latin reference in whatever text I’m reading that makes me feel silly. It’s funny to see the root of a word and the path that it has taken. I mean, the Latin word “digitalis” literally refers to its relation to fingers and toes. The gravity of the word and what it relates to has been nothing but a shortcoming.
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