Methods & Magazine Covers

Caitlin Light, Ross Smith, Jon Bakos, Becky Adams

© 2005

Presentation Overview

• Some GEP History

• A survey of our methods

• TIME magazine cover research

• Pulp SF magazine cover research

BackgroundFounded in Jan of 1998 by two faculty of the

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Dr. Eric S. Rabkin Dr. Carl P. Simon

Background• We meet weekly in lovely Angell Hall• Undergraduate researchers, working in pairs• Lots of team spirit!

Companion GEP units:

MSU in East Lansing

Texas A&M at College Station

University of Trento at Trento, Italy

The GEP Hypothesis

Cultural phenomena evolve as do biological organisms, that is, as

complex adaptive systems.

Complex Adaptive System

The whole adapts to the parts,

and the parts adapt to the whole.

Studying Cultural Change Through Creative Works

…Masterpiece Works• Known for being

exceptional• Read by specialists• Indicative of specific

views held by a few• Studied by most

humanities scholars

…Popular Works• Known for being

popular/successful• Read by multitudes• Indicative of broad

views held by many• Studied by the GEP!

But what popular works?

…Pulp Science Fiction!

Why Pulp SF?

• We know a lot about science fiction• Begins in ‘26 and matures in the 20th century• Magazines provide contextual material• Story reprints are a way to track “fitness”• Many undergraduates like to read it• We have a lot on microfilm at U-M• …You have to begin somewhere!

Methods of the GEP

What do we need in order to study pulp SF?

– Particular traits to study (Fields & Values)– Agreement when identifying traits (ICR)– Comparison of works en masse (Database)– Ability to revise our approach (Dialectics)

Methods of the GEP

• Fields & Values– Fields: specific traits that we study.– Values: Specific possibilities of those traits.

Primary Colors of Light:

Red, Green, Blue

Values are coded and stored in the database.

Methods of the GEP

• Rigorous Definitions– Agreement on meaning and usage– Also a dialectic process (constantly examined)

Genre Content:The element in the story that would make most readers

recognize the story as Science Fiction and without which the story might not be generally considered to

be science fiction by ordinary readers.

Definitions allow us to select the right values.

Methods of the GEP

• Inter-Coder Reliability (ICR)– Agreement between researchers on codings– The keystone of our credibility– Many of our methods serve to increase ICR

It’s really important!

Methods of the GEP

• Dialectic Database Design– A relational computer database– The dialectic method

+ =

Thesis Antithesis Synthesis

Methods of the GEP

…That’s it for methods!

Time for the good stuff…

Magazine Covers!

Magazine CoversA New Frontier for the GEP

GEP: Magazine Covers (GEPMC)

TIME Covers Project

TIME Covers Project

• Goals– Uncover the patterns / topics of public interest – Give a context for GEP findings in other areas

• Why TIME?– Began in 1923 and reputable– Reports on a broad field of news interest– Weekly issues = “high resolution” data

TIME Covers Project

• What do we examine?– Cover articles

• What are the Fields & Values?– Date. The issue’s week of publication.– Topics. 20+ different categories for articles

(“Int’l Politics,” “Information Technology”, etc.)

– Topics have:• Presence. How important the topic is in the issue.• Value. How positive or negative the topic appears.

Date?

December 15th, 1941

Topic?

International Politics

Value?

Positive

Presence?

High

Date?

May 1st, 1972

Topic?

International Politics

Value?

Neutral

Presence?

High

Date?

January 14th, 2002

Topic?

Value?

Presence?

Information Technology

International Politics

Positive Neutral/ Negative

High Low

TIME Covers Project

• Status– After three years, complete!– ICR: Very high

• Results– …are mostly top secret!– Romanticizing World War II– The rise of digital technology

GEPMC

• What do we examine?– Cover articles

• What are the Fields & Values?– Date. The issue’s week of publication.– Topics. 20+ different categories for articles

(“Int’l Politics,” “Information Technology”, etc.)

– Topics have:• Presence. How important the topic is in the issue.

Value. How positive or negative the topic appears.