Jordan - Weekly Blog

So this week I'm posting a section of assignment 2, along with questions gained while reading Agre since we had no section last week.

The notions of ontology in Manovitch and phenomenology in Agre suggest to me that it is the question of what space is in relation to what necessarily constitutes human existence that is at the root of this substantial shift in how, on a very fundamental level, it is that we are now connected to space beyond our physical bodies; and thus, relate to and navigate within space differently. It seems that although manovitch argues that the concept of prostranstvennaya sreda--an environment in which objects are embedded and the effect of these objects on each other--is missing from computer space in the sense of medium, he overlooks a much more incredible phenomenon that is transpiring in the 'real' world; in that, our computer systems, our information systems, our databases and websites are embedding human existence in space ontologically and epistemologically. In agre, I will interpret capture as the transformation of action into knowledge, and knowledge into space through the use of computers and algorithmic interpretation. It seems that these information technologies mediate a demand for a representation of the relationship between knowledge and space that arises from the continuous human questioning of existence; in turn, it is the interaction between knowledge and existence that demands, or possibly it only entertains the tantalizing idea, of control over the space in which we exist.

Questions from Agre:

How is the trajectory that we select as we navigate through space determined in part by the technology within the space, or not within the space?

Why do most people conceive of space only as physical space, would you agree with me that space unfolds within the mind? There is a mental space and I believe that deserves to be mapped somehow.

How do we change our behaviors for the benefit of the technologies that we use, own, and depend on?

Will increased forms of surveillance/capturing change individual behavior on a macro scale? What is the social impact?

How do we balance capturing, privacy, and transparency in order to improve the systems that we depend on?

Do we want to become space?

Specify a question in the comments that intrigues you, answer it if you want, or ask for a clarification or explanation. These blogs are very un-interactive.