Institute for the Study of Culture and Society

This cluster is an effort to bring together BGSU faculty and graduate students whose research and teaching involves both the "doing" of technology and the theorizing of technology from a variety of perspectives. Across campus, at BGSU, we currently have women and men, faculty and students, from various disciplines who are engaged in examining a wide range of technological environments "old," "new" and emerging. Issues of literacy, access, hierarchies and power-structures that emerge within such technological environments are being examined through diverse theoretical lenses. Many of the cluster participants examine contexts of technology production, reproduction, use and circulation at the intersection of race, gender, geography and class. Therefore this clusters focus, while interdisciplinary, centers around the politics, economics, histories, techno-spatial imaginaries and cultures of technologies as they are encountered within diverse contexts in the world. It is hoped that the cluster will provide a space for its members to benefit from each others' understanding of and involvement with technology and provide a fruitful and engaging exchange across disciplines.

Possible Cluster Activities:

1] Monthly meetings focused on discussion of individual cluster members' research.

2] Bringing guest speaker(s) with expertise that would benefit cluster members.

3] Online presence of cluster (possibly via e-journal, list-proc and website).

4] Planning and proposing of an edited collection based on cluster members' work.

5] Collaboration on projects leading to external grant proposals.

Participants during 2002-2003:

Davin Heckman (ACS); Ellen Berry (English); Jane Rosser (Women's Center); Kris Blair (English); Linda Dobb (Honorary member); Lisa Wolford (ACS/Theatre); Maarja Vigorito (Ethnomusicology and Composition); Michelle Illuminato (Art); Radhika Gajjala (Interpersonal Communication) - Cluster Organizer; Rebecca Vaughan (Art); Qi Tang(Communication Studies); Vicky Patraka (ICS Director); Joshua Palmer (POPC); Chad Stose (POPC); Bonnie Fink (Tech Writing); Melissa Altman (ACS); Denise Menchaca (Theatre/Interpersonal Communication); Christopher Bollinger (Communication Studies); Stephanie Tuszynski (ACS).

Meetings:

1. The inititial cluster meeting was held on April 29th, 2002 at 106 College Park. Members who attended included Josh, Davin, Rebecca, Michelle, Ellen, Lisa, Jane, Maarja, Kris and Radhika.

2. The second meeting was held at Rebecca Vaughan's house on May 22nd, 2002. Rebecca and Michelle presented their work. Members who attended included Davin, Josh, Maarja, Kris, Michelle, Rebecca, Jane and Radhika

3. The third cluster meeting happened September 10th, 2002, 7.15 pm. We discussed future plans for the cluster and decided that Maarja would present her work at the next cluster meeting. People who attended included Josh, Davin, Maarja, Kris, Radhika and Richard Colby (grad student guest brought along by Kris Blair).

4. The fourth meeting of the cluster was held on October 8th and Maarja gave a wonderful and fascinating presentation that raised a lot of good discussion. Members who attended that day - Maarja, Kris Blair, Michelle Illuminato, Linda Dobb, Bonnie Fink and myself (Kris and Bonnie brought along grad student guests).

5. The fifth meeting of the cluster was held on December 10th, 2002, 7.15 pm at the ICS conference room. Davin will present his work.

6. Our next meeting was held January 23rd and Chad Stose presented his work. Time - 3.30 pm to 5.30 pm.

7. The last cluster meeting for the academic year 2002-2003 was held on April 24, 2003. Plans for a virtual conference were discussed. Kris Blair and Davin Heckman presented their co-authored work.

And the cluster was funded to continue for the year 2003-2004.

Click here to see reports of the 2003-2004 cluster activities.

Cultures of Technology Member Projects and Related Activies

1] Digitally Mediating Cultures - Ongoing project coordinated by Radhika Gajjala and funded through CTLT and CITE grants and associated with the National Communication Association's Communicating Common Ground Initiative. Collaborators and guest presenters for this project include Kris Blair (BGSU), Chris Bollinger (BGSU), Theresa Dunn (BGHS), Christine Pease-Hernandez (BGSU), Qi Tang (BGSU), Leesha Thrower (BGSU) and Shawna Woody (BGSU), Natalia Rybas (BGSU).

2] Special issue of Rhizomes - on the topic of Cyberfeminism (see Issue 4). Several cluster members were involved in this production - they included Ellen Berry, Davin Heckman, Kris Blair and Radhika Gajjala.

3]Women, Labor and Technology: An Interdisciplinary Colloquium & subRosa performance as part of a "Bio-power and Cultures of Technology" event. This event was an offshoot of a subrosa visit partly sponsored by the Transnational Research cluster in Spring 2002. Several cluster members were involved in a variety of ways (either through helping with funding, presenting, organizing and so on) - including Rebecca Vaughn, Jane Rosser, Michelle Illuminato, Kris Blair, Linda Dobb, Radhika Gajjala. Sarah Stafford and several members of the Art Dept were responsible for a large part of the organization of the larger event which included Subrosas' participation in the Tech Fair and The New Music and Art Festival.

4] Pillows for Peace - School of Art, BGSU

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