Engaging with Communications

Today communications technology impacts on every aspect of everyday life. Within the UK, 84% of the population own a mobile phone and these are being used for sending and accessing information as well as making normal voice calls. The internet and digitial television is providing an increasing range of access to information and the concept of working 'on-line' is now commonplace with many technical terms now in common usage. However, the general awareness of the potential of today's communications technologies and their basic operation is much less well understood or appreciated. The story of communications and its impact on society is therefore a fascinating and exciting one that now forms the heart of a new gallery to be opened at the MSIM. Given the clear significance and impact of communications technology it is essential that the young are educated to understand such technology and how to exploit it and that the older generation too are reassured about the influence and operation of the technology. Our project addresses this challenge using a range of activities. On the one hand traditional engagement events such as lectures and schools events, where children gain hands on experience of how communications systems work by constructing small scale projects, are used to raise awareness and generate enthusiasm. However, on the other hand it is our intention to create an innovative application of communications systems within the Museum's Communications Gallery. Here visitors will be provided with portable devices onto which information will be sent that is automatically determined depending on where the visitor is presently located, where they have been and who they are. In this way it is possible to ensure that the information delivered is not only highly relevant to what the visitor is viewing but also what they have seen previously and where they are about to go. This unique environment will prove an extremely powerful educational tool that not only allows for improved multimedia demonstrations and explanations of how communications technology functions but also allows us to demonstrate the true potential of such technology and how EPSRC sponsored research is impacting the future.Using communications technology within the context of a communications gallery, to raise the awareness and understanding of communications technology itself will uniquely reinforce the public engagement messages being delivered.