[Reader-list] spatial technologies - hi muthatha

[ritika at sarai.net]

Dear Muthatha, Hi! Sorry for not being able to mail earlier. Just got
caught up!! ANyways, thanks for the proposal and the attached bibliography.
The articles have been easy to locate, so I have downloaded some. But for
books - I have not been able to go to the library ... so...But, I haven't
read anything yet.

I was going through your postings in continuation and found lots of
interesting entry points. I am just jotting them down as of now. If you're
already dabbling with those question, then maybe these might help you. Also
perhaps for the final sarai presentation - u may just wish to pusue only
few of the aspects that are emerging out of your work.

1) I was curious about your expression, "You were frustrated with hype
about GIS and the "shallow manner" in which technology is understood". It
seems to me that u feel that apart from the storage and retreival ability
of a GIS software (that we all are aware of), there is lot more that one
can do with it. No I am not talking of GIS's applicability...
Maybe a clarity here (perhaps for you as well) will help you to strength
your own argument of how spatial knowledge is being produced.

2) In your last posting to the list - while you were discussing the work of
soil scientisit - he talked about 'his style'. While his statement sounded
extremelly 'scientific' in aptitide and encouraging people to think..etc;
is it also possible that he does not wish to divulge his knowledge and is
seeing his knowledge as his right to 'intellectual property'? In fact,this
point also goes well with an argument that your were trying to make on
'knowledge production' and use of memory.

3) As you've mentioned in 2nd component of your research proposal - it
might be worthwhile to see how the 'knowledge producers' are seeing
'changes'. Is it change in nature of queries/ project demands that they are
facing - or changes in the methods...how are they updating themselves?

It might be nice for you to make a set of tentative questions that u wish
to probe and then follow the life of a person. This might help you to stay
anchored, yet float around!

your work is exciting me.........
looking forward
ritika