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tech & society course outline
by Barry Wellman 21 Jul '05

21 Jul '05

Re the inquiry about course outlines for AoIR stuff: Tracy Kennedy and I taught an advanced undergrad Sept > April course in Technology and Society 2004-2005. The syllabus is at: http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman/courses/soc356-04.html We're doing it again this year, but haven't finished revised syllabus. Barry _____________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________

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Antw: Air-l-aoir.org Digest, Vol 12, Issue 18
by Carl-Markus Piswanger 21 Jul '05

21 Jul '05

I am out of office - for urgent requests please call +43 (0)664 8340264 (Mailbox and Callback). I will be back on August 1. Carl-Markus Piswanger

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Roommate finder
by Suely Fragoso 21 Jul '05

21 Jul '05

Dear colleagues Do you intend to set up a 'room mate finder' service as in 2003? It was a great idea and I am certain that it would help AoIR to meet the minimum occupancy in the Marriot this time. Thanks Sue Dra. Suely Fragoso Coordenadora Executiva PPG Ciências da Comunicação UNISINOS <suely(a)unisinos.br> >>> sjones(a)uic.edu 07/21/05 12:17 PM >>> I write to remind you that online registration is now open for the sixth annual conference of the Association of Internet Researchers to be held in Chicago October 6 - 9, 2005 (with pre-conference workshops held on October 5, 2005) at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile hotel. To register for the conference and workshops go to: https://www.conted.vt.edu/ssl/aoir/index.lasso You will be able to pay the registration fees by credit card or by check. You can also at this time register for the conference banquet (taking place on Friday, October 7, at the Mid-America Club, on the 80th (top) floor of the Aon Center, Chicago's second tallest building, and the conference brunch (taking place on Sunday, October 9). [Vegetarian options will be available at both meals.] You may also register for a historical tour of Chicago's "L" elevated train (taking place on Saturday morning, October 8). Join others in an AoIR-only L car for a tour of some of the L system's oldest routes with the Chicago Transit Authority's historian. A link to online hotel registration is provided on the site after you have clicked the "submit" button and sent in your registration. We have negotiated the best possible rate from the hotel and encourage you to book a room early. As is the case with most all hotel-based conferences we have to meet the minimum occupancy with which we are able to use the hotel's meeting rooms and if we do not meet that occupancy rate then we'll have to increase the registration fees, to cover the additional meeting room cost. The direct link is: http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/chidt? groupCode=airaira&app=resvlink By using that url you should receive the AoIR group rate of $155 USD per night for accommodations during the conference. I am also delighted to be able to announce our keynote speakers for this year's conference and to share information about their presentations. Sonia Livingstone, Professor of Social Psychology and a member of the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics will give a speech titled "Youthful experts? A critical appraisal of children and young peoples' emerging internet literacy." Saskia Sassen, Ralph Lewis Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago, and Centennial Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics, is another keynote speaker. Her speech is titled "Digital formations: The intersection of technical and social logics in electronic space." And our third keynote speaker is Ang, Peng Hwa, Professor of Media Management and Law at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, who will give a speech titled "The UN and Internet Governance: Fears, Hopes and Possibilities." I appreciate everyone's support of the conference and of AoIR and look forward to seeing you in Chicago in October! Sj _______________________________________________ The Air-l-aoir.org(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/

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AoIR 6.0 Chicago 2005 Keynote Information & Registration Reminder
by Steve Jones 21 Jul '05

21 Jul '05

I write to remind you that online registration is now open for the sixth annual conference of the Association of Internet Researchers to be held in Chicago October 6 - 9, 2005 (with pre-conference workshops held on October 5, 2005) at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile hotel. To register for the conference and workshops go to: https://www.conted.vt.edu/ssl/aoir/index.lasso You will be able to pay the registration fees by credit card or by check. You can also at this time register for the conference banquet (taking place on Friday, October 7, at the Mid-America Club, on the 80th (top) floor of the Aon Center, Chicago's second tallest building, and the conference brunch (taking place on Sunday, October 9). [Vegetarian options will be available at both meals.] You may also register for a historical tour of Chicago's "L" elevated train (taking place on Saturday morning, October 8). Join others in an AoIR-only L car for a tour of some of the L system's oldest routes with the Chicago Transit Authority's historian. A link to online hotel registration is provided on the site after you have clicked the "submit" button and sent in your registration. We have negotiated the best possible rate from the hotel and encourage you to book a room early. As is the case with most all hotel-based conferences we have to meet the minimum occupancy with which we are able to use the hotel's meeting rooms and if we do not meet that occupancy rate then we'll have to increase the registration fees, to cover the additional meeting room cost. The direct link is: http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/chidt? groupCode=airaira&app=resvlink By using that url you should receive the AoIR group rate of $155 USD per night for accommodations during the conference. I am also delighted to be able to announce our keynote speakers for this year's conference and to share information about their presentations. Sonia Livingstone, Professor of Social Psychology and a member of the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics will give a speech titled "Youthful experts? A critical appraisal of children and young peoples' emerging internet literacy." Saskia Sassen, Ralph Lewis Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago, and Centennial Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics, is another keynote speaker. Her speech is titled "Digital formations: The intersection of technical and social logics in electronic space." And our third keynote speaker is Ang, Peng Hwa, Professor of Media Management and Law at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, who will give a speech titled "The UN and Internet Governance: Fears, Hopes and Possibilities." I appreciate everyone's support of the conference and of AoIR and look forward to seeing you in Chicago in October! Sj

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Gianluca Miscione's book (in Italian) Sui limiti della rete
by Michel J. Menou 21 Jul '05

21 Jul '05

A new book by doctoral candidate Gianluca Miscione, is available at http://www.kszm.org/dadalo/ Below is a summary in English by the author MY WORK draws an analytical trajectory through some of the main topics related to the Internet. The guiding line of the work is discursive, but not speculative. Indeed the relation with empirical reality is based on theoretical sampling (all main positions are supported by addressing cases). The overall sensibility for this matter is rooted in readings of French post-structuralists, in research activities in sociology of communication, in a work as a journalist, and in a "culture" lived personally. Being skeptical about the reclaimed autonomy/independence of the 'cyberspace', I focused my attention on its relations with existing communicative, social and power relations. My aim was to highlight how infosphere is mutually interweaved with 'offline' world. In order to do that, each chapter is focused on a specific aspect and related boundaries are addressed. HOW THE WORK IS ORGANIZED Chapter 1 Technocratic reductionism is criticized for the impossibility to create a perfect language to represent reality or to communicate universally. The irrationality of any language does not permit to automate it, and then embed it into technologies. Chapter 2 Semiotics show that signs do not mirror reality but construct it on the social level, characterized by own rules (different from physical ones). Then, the discussion of net.art (§ 2.1.1), hypertexts (§ 2.2.1), intertextuality (§ 2.2.2), interfaces (§ 2.2.3) and 'cybergeographies' (§ 2.3) is relevant to describe main characteristics of this space made up of signs. Chapter 3 Paying attention to real uses of the Internet allows to reflect on the fact that many projects and ideas theoretically possible failed because of unexpected social inertia (misleading perceptions, divergent routines, lack of trust). Scarce success of city-networks (§ 3.1) and Semantic Web (§ 3.2) are two examples of the risk to assume a rational conception of ICT implementations, forgetting social construction of reality. Based on those three chapters, the second part arguments the centralità of social aspects in understanding communication and power on the Internet. Chapter 4 How is a place where communication is content and place of social relations? How is experience organized there? Why are those social phenomena rather than produced by an aggregation of individuals? Assuming that if people believe something is real, it will be real in its consequences (Thomas' theorem, § 4.4), it is possible (and actual) to construct imagined and shared places. Intersubjectivity of meanings and weak context in CMC, emphasize the social construction of virtual spaces, of any kind. The need of constructed and shared social contexts brings together constructivism and pragmatism (§ 4.4.3). Chapter 5 On the political level, are we in a distributed situation in which nobody and nothing is fundamental for the system to work? Does the lack of political frontiers -that bond people to political decisions- pulverize a legitimated debate and decision place? Contemporary social fragmentation is represented and supported by the Internet. Indeed many issues arisen from the Internet go towards wider individual independence and group autonomy. Consequently, the Internet is more like an arena than an agora. Chapter 6 The conclusion is that the Internet is an extension of reality -not a representation- with particular rules and dynamics. Exclusion from it has the paradoxical effect to produce silence, usually unperceived. MAIN POINTS About power and policies on the Internet, I accept a relational conception of power which is based on the attention to how actions are affected, not only commanded (§ 5). Indeed the ease to create groups and to escare national boundaries, and laws (§ 5.1) do not allow to apply power categories which rely on a sovereign power (Locke, § 5.4). Autonomy and privacy claims deal with that reality (§ 5.1). On the other hand, fluidity of social phenomena on the Internet does not mean that power is not applicable: servers, data organizations, controls embedded into technologies, laws that only expert users can go around are ways to control users. Public sphere (§ 5.1.1), free speech (§ 5.1.2.), and copyright (§ 5.2) have to deal with the described reality, which does not fit with usual dichotomy private/public. More generally autonomy claims tend to weaken a public and homogeneous public sphere. Democracy is interpreted more as liberty than as distribution of power (§ 5.3). Another relevant dualism is nomos/techné. Since Industrial Revolution laws and technology prospect diverse futures: (in continental philosophy) laws are expression and support for politics as "volonté générale", technologies promote social automation and technocracy. About this particular intersection, it is proposed an analysis of the hackers' phenomenon (§ 5.3.2. this part has been published on a academic journal). Opensources and freesoftware (§ 5.2.2.1) cases are addressed for their relevance in circulation of information on the Internet (or in the digital age). Those movements, which generated similar activities for contents in general (§ 5.2.2.2 <http://5.2.2.2>), propose a conception of knowledge which can be produce profit without reducing its public utility. WITH THIS WORK I WANT TO highlight the boundaries of information society, as far as it assumes the autonomy of cyberspace without dealing with existing social and power relations. I find this understanding needed to analyze further and design future activities and policies about the infosphere. Finally this trajectory explains my interest and perspective on development issues, where basic and common assumption about knowledge society cannot be taken for granted -- ================================================================= Dr. Michel J. Menou Consultant in ICT policies and Knowledge & Information Management Adviser of Somos@Telecentros board http://www.tele-centros.org Member of the funding steering committee of Telecenters of the Americas Partnership http://www.tele-centers.net/ B.P. 15 49350 Les Rosiers sur Loire, France Email: Michel.Menou(a)wanadoo.fr Phone: +33 (0)2 41518165 Fax: +33 (0)2 41511043 http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ciber/peoplemenou.php ================================================================== -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.323 / Virus Database: 267.9.2/54 - Release Date: 21/07/2005

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RE: [Air-l] Course Prep Assistance Request
by Heidelberg, Chris 20 Jul '05

20 Jul '05

Ted: I am interested in knowing what is the name of the text book that you plan on using for the course. I am a Phd student doing a dissertation on "Edutainment and Convergence." -----Original Message----- From: air-l-aoir.org-bounces(a)listserv.aoir.org [mailto:air-l-aoir.org-bounces@listserv.aoir.org] On Behalf Of Ted M Coopman Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2005 4:02 PM To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org Subject: [Air-l] Course Prep Assistance Request Hello All, I am a Ph.D. candidate who has been assigned to teach an upper-division course titled “New Media as Virtual Communities” for this fall. Here is the catalog description: “Technologically-mediated virtual communities considered through analysis of historical precedents and influences and through an exploration of the concept of community. Issues include a focus on social interactions; the social, political, economic, and technological contexts of virtual communities and the limits for their sustenance.” I know many of you have done research in this area and have also likely taught classes on the subject. I was hoping that some of you would pass along some tips and ideas for the course, including but not limited to literature and syllabi. I am not completely unschooled on the topic, having taken a graduate seminar on computer mediated communities, but would like to have the benefit of a variety of approaches. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated! Please respond off the list to coopman(a)u.washington.edu. If anyone else would like access to the material I wind up collecting, shoot me an email and I will forward any material sent to me. Thanks! -TED Ted M. Coopman Department of Communication University of Washington _______________________________________________ The Air-l-aoir.org(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/

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election reminders
by Jeremy Hunsinger 20 Jul '05

20 Jul '05

I just sent out the election reminders to members. If you think you should have received one because you are a paid member, and have not received a reminder, then send me an email at buridan(a)aoir.org and I'll look into it, probably by working with the treasurer:) jeremy hunsinger jhuns(a)vt.edu www.cddc.vt.edu jeremy.tmttlt.com www.tmttlt.com () ascii ribbon campaign - against html mail /\ - against microsoft attachments http://www.aoir.org The Associatiion of Internet Researchers

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New Laptop Borne Disease Discovered
by Barry Wellman 19 Jul '05

19 Jul '05

Judging by my own experience, an epidemic may be sweeping the northern world now in hot weather. Etiology: 1. Really hot weather > short shorts. 2. Laptop compuer (in my case a year 2000 HP Omnibook 500). 3. Tour de France > to using the laptop as a laptop so I can watch at the same time. 4. Paper deadline which leads me to press on and focus. Symptoms: 1. A non-trivial burn on my thighs. 2. Still feel it 24 hours later. 3. Medicine: copy of Comm of the ACM inserted between the laptop and my thighs. 4. Side-effects. None. CommACM did not get scorched. Barry _____________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________

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DOCAM '05, Oct. 7-9th. 2005, UC-Berkeley, CFP
by Niels Windfeld Lund 19 Jul '05

19 Jul '05

The Document Academy Invites: PROPOSALS FOR PAPERS, PRESENTATIONS AND DEMONSTRATIONS AT DOCAM '05 October 07-09th, 2005 South Hall School of Information Management and Systems, University of California, Berkeley The third annual meeting of The Document Academy on: Exploring the Nature and Role of Documents An International Conference on Document Research and Development in Sciences, Arts and Business DOCAM '05 is the third Annual meeting of the Document Academy, a loosely coupled international network of scholars, artists, professionals in various fields interested in the exploration of the document as a useful approach, concept and tool in Sciences, Arts, Business and Society in general. The aim of The Document Academy is to create a space for experimental and critical research on documents in a wide sense drawing on traditions and experiences around the world. It is organized and cosponsored by The Program of Documentation Studies, University of Tromsoe, Norway and The School of Information Management and Systems, University of California, Berkeley. A preliminary program is available online on the site of The Document Academy at http://thedocumentacademy.hum.uit.no/ Call for proposals of papers, presentations and demonstrations: Scholars, developers, artists and practitioners working with document research and development are invited to submit proposals for papers or other kinds of presentation for seminars and workshops AS SOON AS POSSIBLE and not later than by August 31 2005. We apologize for the all too late announcement. We welcome especially proposals for three kinds of papers and presentations : I. General papers for plenary sessions on: - DOCUMENT THEORY (Technical, Social and Cultural approaches, multi- and interdisciplinary theoretical work, conceptual problems etc.) - DOCUMENT HISTORY (Documentary traditions, future and emergent kinds of documents) - DOCUMENTS IN SOCIETY(The role of documents in society, documents in Every Day life) Each author or group of authors presenting a paper will have 30 minutes for presentation and 15 minutes for discussion. A full paper of no more than 7000 words should be delivered to the chair no later than November 1st 2005 in a pdf-format. II. Papers (theoretical and empirical) and other kinds of presentations (demonstrations, exhibits or posters) for parallel workshops in: - DOCUMENTS IN THE ARTS (Literature, Visual arts, Music,Dance, Opera, Multi media Art etc.) - DOCUMENTS IN HEALTH CARE (Electronic Health Record, Doc.management in Health sectorCSCW etc.) - DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT (Doc. management in public sector, business, science etc) The workshops will be organized in different ways, but in general there will be given appr. 30 minutes to each presentation including discussions. If special equipment and software is needed to be at disposal, please mention it as specific as possible in the proposal and we will do our best to meet the needs. ( OBS: Proposals for alternative workshops are welcome). Please send a message as soon as possible to niels.windfeld.lund(a)hum.uit.no describing the theme, organisation and practical arrangements and suggestions for a responsible chairperson.) III. Proposals for presentation of Ph.d. or M.A. projects There will be a special session for Ph.d. and MA projects with 15 minutes oral presentation , 5 minutes comment from commentator and 10 minutes open discussion. There is room for 6 projects in total. Ph.d. projects will be given priority. Conference language(-s): The main language of DOCAM is English, but we also invite papers and presentations in French, German and Spanish, if the abstract and the oral presentation are made in English. Proposals for all kinds of presentations should include: - Description: - a short verbal description of the work to be presented at maximum 500-1000 words - description of how the work would be presented (verbal presentation, powerpoint, video, performance, demonstration, exhibit etc. and equipment needs) - names of all contributors, - address, including email contacts and URL - up to 5 keywords. Proposal should be submitted electronically in PDF format to niels.windfeld.lund(a)hum.uit.no as soon as possible and at the latest August 31rd 2005. All reception of proposals will be confirmed within one week. The review process will work continously untill September 15. Accepted contributions will be notified within 2 weeks after receiving a proposal. Publication of presentations: All accepted papers and presentations will be published in a Open Archive on the website of The Document Academy. NOTE: DUE TO THE SLOWLY, BUT STEADILY GROWING INTEREST IN THE DOCAM-MEETINGS,IT IS UNLIKELY THAT ALL PROPOSALS OF ACCEPTABLE QUALITY CAN BE ACCOMODATED. PROPOSALS WILL BE CONSIDERED IN TERMS OF SCHOLARLY AND/OR INNOVATIVE QUALITY, RELEVANCE FOR THE CONFERENCE THEME AND THE NEED FOR A BALANCED PROGRAM. THE NUMBER OF PARALLEL SESSIONS MIGHT BE INCREASED TO ACCOMODATE ADDITIONAL PRESENTATIONS OF HIGH QUALITY. The papers selected for presentation last year is available at the DOCAM '04 program http://thedocumentacademy.hum.uit.no/events/docam/04/program.html. More information can be obtained by contacting the chair of The Document Academy, Niels Windfeld Lund, professor, Documentation Studies Institute of Culture and Literature HUM-FAK, University of Tromsoe Breivika, N-9037 Tromsoe, Norway tlf. +47-77646284, fax + 47-77644239 email: niels.windfeld.lund(a)hum.uit.no -- Niels Windfeld Lund, professor, Dokumentasjonsvitenskap - Documentation Studies Institute of Culture and Literature HUM-FAK, Universitetet i Tromsø/University of Tromsoe Breivika, N-9037 Tromsoe, Norway tlf. +47-77646284, fax + 47-77644239 http://thedocumentacademy.hum.uit.no http://thedocumentacademy.hum.uit.no/ansatte/niels.lund/index.html http://thedocumentacademy.hum.uit.no/ansatte/niels.lund/dokvitnwl/dokkenind…

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Content analysis of the web
by Klaus Bruhn Jensen 19 Jul '05

19 Jul '05

This combined genre and content analysis of websites, coming out next month, develops a typology of functionalities in terms of their discursive forms and anticipated social uses, and may be of interest in the present context, http://modinet.dk/pdf/antologier/InternetDemocracyModinet.pdf Comments appreciated - thanks, Klaus. >Message: 1 >Date: Sun, 17 Jul 2005 21:08:18 -0700 (PDT) >From: "Denise N. Rall" <denrall(a)yahoo.com> >Subject: [Air-l] Re: content analysis of the web >To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org >Message-ID: <20050718040818.5093.qmail(a)web30301.mail.mud.yahoo.com> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 > >My response is the same as Elizabeth's - > >Focusing in on the language (text) means using more >conventional CA methods > >Looking at the website as a whole - well the only >people that have generated tools for this that I know >of are Noral Paul's team at the Institute for New >Media Studies, University of Minnesota. They had a >prototype - an analysis tool for looking specifically >at online newspapers and comparing them. . . this may >be connected to their current project in digital >storytelling. > >Might be worth a look. http://www.inms.umn.edu/ > >POINT HERE is that the comparable units of the >websites were each defined as elements, pulled into a >qualitative database where the comparisons could be >made. So each item on each webpage was selected by >hand, tagged as an "element" type - etc. Then the >elements could be compared from page to page. > >QSR International NVivo 6 is an interesting analysis >tool for text but don't think it will work on .html >unless cut & copy into the database. > >Cheers, Denise -- ____________________________________ Klaus Bruhn Jensen Professor, dr.phil. Department of Media, Cognition, and Communication Film and Media Studies Section University of Copenhagen Njalsgade 80 DK-2300 Copenhagen S Denmark kbj(a)hum.ku.dk http://www.media.ku.dk tel: +45-35328100 fax: +45-35328110 ____________________________________

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