What you Hear: In one recording, you hear the hum of the air conditioning, the chirping of Durham birds, and the clicking of a computer mouse. In the next recording, you hear a zoom recording of a lecture at 2x speed.
What you see: Two desktop computers, one laptop, a window that looks into a forest, a desk with a coffee mug
What is captured: These sounds were captured on a Sunday afternoon during my study time with a friend in their apartment. For college students, Sundays start slow (especially depending on what you did the previous Saturday night). These Sundays usually end with prepping for the week: completing readings, problem sets, etc. While usually this would happen in Perkins Library, Lily Library, or other study places on campus, these desktops show that this all now occurs parked from home.
What is out of place for a pre-COVID era? The lecture zoom recording at 2x the speed. In a COVID era, Sundays are not only days to catch up on homework assignments, but they may also be instructional days – a day used to watch lectures missed during the week. Thanks to the remote nature of classes and the necessity of recording lectures for students in different time zones, all students now have control of when and how they consume information.
What is absent: The sound of papers for note taking, our small conversations
