University Logos and Semiotics

The importance of semiotics can be illustrated by looking at the logos that companies and institutions spend tens of thousands of dollars creating and millions of dollars promoting. Below are example of two university logos and a short semiotic analysis of what they communicate.

The University of Northern Iowa:

UNI
Originally uploaded by mcgregor68.

Most colleges and universities choose logos that convey the message of academia and prestige. One of the easiest ways for a university to do this is to feature a building that is easily associated with their campus. UNI uses two architectural elements in their logo, the campanile (the most recognizable building on campus) and one of the uniquely-designed windows of the Rod Student Library. A deeper analysis shows that the viewer is looking at the campanile from inside the library which connotes learning and studying. The fact that the campanile is a clock tower connotes time, as if the message is saying “spend your time in college with us.” The tree next to the campanile is an evergreen, perhaps chosen to convey the idea gaining something (an education) that is lasting. The fact that the sun is either setting or rising presents the idea of change, either a new beginning or an end.

The University of North Carolina-Charlotte:

UNCC_logo
Originally uploaded by mcgregor68.

This logo would have different meanings to different people. For a person unfamiliar with Charlotte, the graphic would seem to represent a tree or a leaf, possibly symbolizing life or growth. People who are familiar with the area know that Charlotte is the Queen City, and that the graphic is an abstract crown. The fact that the crown is leveled and branching out connotes multiculturalism and different paths coming from a single source. The jewel at the top of the crown could represent the student or the goal of achieving a degree. The fact that the C in Charlotte is emphasized but still attached to the UNC in the text illustrates a separation from the main campus, while remaining connected.

I’m sure that a different person looking at these logos could come up with different meanings than me, but I think there are some core messages being conveyed that are universal. These two small case studies show the importance of semiotics and how deep the messages of seemingly simple objects can go.

Editing a print article for online publication

Tasmania: Australia's Best Kept Secret
by Richard Busch
from National Geographic Traveler magazine, October 2004

The original article can be found at: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/articles/

Article abstract: The article presents a brief history of the Australian island state of Tasmania, whose history was shaped by the presence of numerous penal colonies created by the British in the early 1800s. The reader is taken on a clockwise journey around the perimeter of the island and given an overview of the major cosmopolitan and wilderness destinations in Tasmania.

Tasmania Facts (from the Busch article):

• Small, heart-shaped island 150 miles south of the Australian mainland
• Famous for the Tasmanian Devil, a high-strung marsupial made popular by the cartoon
• Population of 470,000
• Capital city is Hobart
• Land area about the size of West Virginia
• Landscape is made up of mountains, gorges, lakes, rivers, dense rain forests, beaches,grassy moorlands, and plateaus
• Nearly 1/3 of Tasmania is protected within 14 national parks and reserves
• Named for Abel Tasman who landed on the island in 1642 while working for the Dutch East Indian Company
• Site of numerous British penal colonies established in the early 1800s
• Remains of Aboriginal sites date back 35,000 years

Suggested hyperlinks: http://www.discovertasmania.com.au/ and http://www.tas.gov.au/

Penal History:

• Port Arthur was the largest of the British penal colonies on the island
• England shipped prisoners to colonies like Port Arthur in response to rampant crime and prison overpopulation in the mid 1800s, this practice was called "transportation"
• Transportation saw prisoners taken on overcrowded, disease-ridden 15,000 mile ship voyages that left many dead
• Port Arthur in Hobart operated as a penal colony for 47 years and housed 13,000 prisoners
• Prisoners built ships by day and slept in stone cells
• Punishments for infractions at the colonies were severe, public floggings were commonplace
• Long stretches of solitary confinement caused some prisoners to go insane
• Port Arthur is now a National Historic Site and is one of the most visited destinations in Australia

Suggested hyperlinks: http://amol.org.au/guide/instn.asp?ID=T022 and http://www.dramaticphotographic.com/images/australia/
p_ausTas01.htm

City and Town Destinations Explored:

• Capital city of Hobart, population 185,000
• Founded in 1804 on the banks of the Derwent River
• Hobart has a large town feel, rather than city--very little traffic
• Hobart has over 90 historic buildings, including the Theatre Royal, the oldest in Australia
• Large harbor area with a multitude of vessels
• Hobart's Salamanca Place houses stylish shops, galleries, restaurants, and a bustling open-air market
• Hobart has a mellow, welcoming atmosphere

Suggested hyperlink: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/australasia/hobart/

• Frontier village of Strahan (pronounced Strawn), population 600
• Founded in 1883 as a shipping port for a copper mine
• Tour boats available to Sarah Island penal colony--a hard to access island used to house the most hardened criminals
• Home of huon pines, which can live up to 4,000 years
• Melancholy atmosphere made up of dilapidated buildings

Suggested hyperlink: http://www.westcoasttourism.com.au/strahan.htm

• Colonial town of Ross, population 300
• Founded in the 1820s as an outpost for convicts engaged in building the countries
• infrastructure
• Ross Bridge, built by a convict, is one of the most famous in Australia
• Sleepy, small town atmosphere

Suggested hyperlink: www.rosstasmania.com/

Wilderness Destinations Explored:

• Mount Field National Park is made up of several ecosystems from swamps
  to mountains
  Park is 46 miles west of Hobart
• Some activities include hiking, white-water rafting, and camping
• Russel Falls, a steep rock-faced waterfall
• Lake Dobson, a 3,363 elevation glacier-carved lake
• Swamp gum, sphagnum moss, tea trees, eucalyptus, pencil pines, King Billy pines, and wallabies are some of the plants and animals that can be seen in the park
  

Suggested hyperlink: http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/natparks/mtfield/

• Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park
• Home of the island's tallest peak, Mount Ossa elevation 5,305 feet
• Hiker's paradise, consists of rain forests, grasslands, high plateaus, and mountains
• Brush-tailed possums can be spotted here
  

Suggested hyperlink: http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/natparks/cradle/map1.html

• The Great Western Tiers, a wilderness area made up of moorlands, rain forests, and an alpine plateau
• Guided hiking tours can be booked in the village of Meander
• Caves inhabited by Aborigines thousands of years ago can be explored
• Trowunna Wildlife Park, an animal rehabilitation center can be visited in the village of Mole Creek
• Kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, pademelons, quolls, and Tasmanian devils can be seen
  

Suggested hyperlinks: http://www.greatwesterntiers.com/ and http://www.greatwesterntiers.com/molec/mc.htm

The central multimedia element that I would use to improve the user's experience is a photographic slide show of the destinations. For each of the four sections I would have a link under the heading that would launch a slide show of relevant photographs for that section. For the Tasmania Facts section, the photos could include a map of the island, a Tasmanian devil, and some architecture photos. For the Penal History section, photos of the various remains of the prisons and work houses could be shown. For the City and Town Destinations and the Wilderness Destinations sections, photos from the cities and towns, wilderness areas, plants, and animals could be used. This would give visitors to the site more of a visual representation of the topics that are covered.

After editing down the original article, my presentation became a more focused overview of the history of Tasmania and some good places to visit. The original author's work was more geared toward his firsthand experiences and was more of a blow-by-blow description of his trip. The author also focused on details of his experiences that are not necessary to the reader that is planning a trip to experience Tasmania themselves, i.e. feeding time with the devils and finding the Aboriginal stone. This presentation of the material gives the reader a good starting point and good links to visit in planning a trip for themselves.