Yes, I am being ironic (to a degree). In formal research you cannot cite sources from unrecognised authors. Authors have to be identifiable and their work generally peer reviewed. Sources such as the Encyclopedia Brittanica and Wikipedia are not allowed to be used. It does not mean that these sources are poor – just that the information they provide has not been verfied. This restriction can be annoying but is understandable. I often use Wikipedia for initial background data-mining, but when it comes to using references I go to the original texts (which might be mentioned in Wikipedia) and check them prior to citing them. When reading somebody’s research you want to know their sources are reliable. If you can’t trust their sources you can’t trust the research. It could be anything. Same with journalism. If I am reading a piece of investigative journalism and discover the evidence was unverified I would lose trust in the author (unless they have presented the text as an opinion piece).
The reason this thread arrived at this theme was the posting about research opportunities into the creative applications of social technologies at eca. The team undertaking that work is made up of artists, architects, social scientists and informaticians. The methods they will employ will include those familiar to artists and other creative practitioners, but undertaken alongside and contextualised by methods from the social and physical sciences. These methods require that researchers ensure rigorous proof of their evidence and the criteria for their anaylsis. That is no big deal. It just means the work has to be done openly, transparently, everything recorded and all original material retained for peer assessment. This is not foolproof (there are plenty of examples of poor science around) but nobody has proposed a better system yet. It is unusual for artistic work to be undertaken in this context but not novel. Other’s have done it. It often leads to surprising outcomes, especially for the scientists. As for Bruce Sterling, I find his (non-fiction) writing techno-determinist, utopian and evangelical in nature. What I have seen of his work appears to be oriented towards opinion pieces rather than research. However, I have to admit I’ve not read him much so I could be wrong. Regards Simon Simon Biggs Research Professor edinburgh college of art [email protected] www.eca.ac.uk www.eca.ac.uk/circle/ [email protected] www.littlepig.org.uk AIM/Skype: simonbiggsuk From: yann le guennec <[email protected]> Reply-To: NetBehaviour for networked distributed creativity <[email protected]> Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:48:24 +0200 To: NetBehaviour for networked distributed creativity <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [NetBehaviour] Internet of Things....Research OpportunitiesonEPSRC funded Project] Simon Biggs a probablement écrit : > I agree, referencing Bruce Sterling can be annoying. could you explain why? > It shouldn’t be > allowed (like citing Wikipedia). ... is it ironic ? > Simon Biggs Research Professor edinburgh college of art s.biggs@ eca > .ac.uk www. eca .ac.uk www. eca .ac.uk/circle/ > > [email protected] www.littlepig.org.uk AIM/Skype: simonbiggsuk > > > *From: *james morris <[email protected]> *Reply-To: *NetBehaviour for > networked distributed creativity <[email protected]> > *Date: *Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:12:38 +0100 (BST) *To: > *<[email protected]> *Subject: *Re: [NetBehaviour] > Internet of Things....Research OpportunitiesonEPSRC funded Project] > > > I did not mean to bash the project itself, and it did occur to me > that the project might be subversive. Which was why I only selected > the text that I did. > > My main issue was the ridiculous suggestion that people using this > new technology would suddenly be able to "find new uses for old > things"... as if we had not been doing that for the past few > millennia! As if monkeys don't do it with sticks! Etc. And then > annoyance that whatever bruce sterling says is taken as word of god. > > Did not want to bash the project itself, good luck with it. > > James. > > > On 25/6/2009, "Simon Biggs" <[email protected]> wrote: > >> The idea with the project Chris has introduced to the list is to >> enable creative applications of this technology – particularly, >> social scientists and artists’ use of social and geo-spatial >> technologies. The intent is > more >> subversive than anything else and explicitly addresses issues of >> sustainability, a focus of the research and the institutions the >> project members represent. >> >> Note that Apple are already watching us all as red dots and have >> been since the release of iPhone 3G. If you do not want to be >> watched then dump the smart phone, the credit cards, your telecoms >> subscriptions and never accept cookies from strangers (or anybody >> else). Alternatively, function as a set of false identities >> (although many legislatures are making this illegal). The >> information in information technology always travels both ways. >> >> Regards >> >> Simon >> >> Simon Biggs Research Professor edinburgh college of art >> [email protected] www.eca.ac.uk www.eca.ac.uk/circle/ >> >> [email protected] www.littlepig.org.uk AIM/Skype: simonbiggsuk >> >> >> >> >> From: Pall Thayer <[email protected]> Reply-To: NetBehaviour for >> networked distributed creativity <[email protected]> >> Date: Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:49:55 +0000 To: NetBehaviour for >> networked distributed creativity <[email protected]> >> Subject: Re: [NetBehaviour] Internet of Things....Research >> Opportunities onEPSRC funded Project] >> >> I don't usually worry much about surveillance. My life's more or >> less an open book but this story scares me a bit. I can just >> imagine a group of Apple employees, huddled around a bunch of >> screens with a million red dots moving around on a Google map of >> the world: >> >> http://happywaffle.livejournal.com/5890.html >> >> Pall >> >> On Wed, Jun 24, 2009 at 10:15 PM, james morris<[email protected]> >> wrote: >>> >>>> shop, store and share products. The analogue bar code that has >>>> for so long been a dumb encrypted reference to a shop’s >>>> inventory > system, will >>>> be superseded by an open platform in which every object >>>> manufactured will be able to be tracked from cradle to grave, >>>> through manufacturer to distributor, to potentially every >>>> single person who comes into contact >>> >>> great! more surveillance! >>> >>>> with it following its purchase. Further still, every object >>>> that comes close to another object, and is within range of a >>>> reader, could also be logged on a database and used to find >>>> correlations between owners and applications. In a world that >>>> has relied upon a linear chain of supply and demand between >>>> manufacturer and consumer via high street shop, the Internet of >>>> Things has the potential to transform how we will treat >>>> objects, care about their origin and use them to find other >>>> objects. If every new object is within reach of a reader, >>>> everything is searchable and findable, subsequently the >>>> shopping experience may never be the >>> >>> great! even more surveillance! >>> >>>> same, and the concept of throwing away objects may become a >>>> thing of the past as other people find new uses for old things. >>>> >>> >>> Wow man, I'm glad all these technical boffins come up with such >>> fantastic ideas... Just a pity the Wombles[1] beat them to it. >>> >>> [1] http://www.tidybag.co.uk/ >>> >>> _______________________________________________ NetBehaviour >>> mailing list [email protected] >>> http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour >>> >> >> >> >> -- ***************************** Pall Thayer artist >> http://www.this.is/pallit ***************************** >> >> _______________________________________________ NetBehaviour >> mailing list [email protected] >> http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour >> >> >> Edinburgh College of Art (eca) is a charity registered in Scotland, >> > number SC009201 >> -- Yann Le Guennec http://www.yannleguennec.com _______________________________________________ NetBehaviour mailing list [email protected] http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour Edinburgh College of Art (eca) is a charity registered in Scotland, number SC009201
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