Revise Research Statment: Mint

As a continuation from Tuesday I came up with a few ideas that I found interesting and worth investigating in further. The paragraphs below are more like ideas for the research statement rather than the statement itself.

The probability of effectively relocating the “virtual presence” of one party with physical presence, particularly from the form of teleconference, distance-learning, peer-to-peer communication and social networking to public spaces, which could lead to a change in relationship between users generating a closer bond for these with different geographical locations, age groups and/or interests.

In favour of John Urry’s conclusion in “Social Networks and Mobile Lives” paper stating that the state of co-presence (virtual presence) could never replace embodied conversations that “involves food, drink, music and a shared physical place, places temporarily full of life and affect.” Knowing this, we could increase the intimacy in communication by creating a hybrid between the two-presence state integrating teleconference technologies with a physical space.

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As Information and communication technologies (ITC) advances, dematerialisation start to take place within our work environment and our everyday life resulting in a new pattern of territorial use with the possibility to work from home. This could potentially increase physical interaction in the neighbourhood as people spend more time around home.

By using social interaction via cell phones, PCs and other digital multimedia devices we could attempt to shape group interaction within settlements towards public spaces such as entertainment spaces, leisure areas, parks to increase urban quality and transform community engagement.

I think these ideas could be linked and possibly refined into one research statement. I am also fascinated by the idea of dematerialisation and its future growth and limitations but have yet found a detailed source on it.

Bibliography

Fusero, P. (2008). E-City: Digital Networks and Cities of the Future. Spain: ListLab Internation Lab of Publishing Strategies

Farkas, M.G. (2007). Social Software in Libraries: Building Collaboration, Communication, and Community Online. U.S.: Information Today, Inc.

Castalls, M. "The Network Society: A Cross-Cultural Perspective" Geof. 2005
< http://www.geof.net/research/2005/castells-network-society >

Urry, J. "Social Networks and Mobile Lives" UK Transport Research Centre.
< http://www.uktrc.ac.uk/documents/se1/JohnUrry_presentation.pdf >

Fistola, R. and La Rocca, R.A. "The Virtualization of Urban Functions" La recherche, Université Paul-Valéry. 2001 < http://recherche.univ-montp3.fr/netcom_labs/volumes/articlesV151/Netcom39-48.pdf >

Aurigi, A. and De Cindio, F. (2008) Augmented Urban Spaces (Design and the Built Environment). England:Ashgate Publishing Limited.