Saturday, September 27, 2008

Random Copying

Just came across this blog that references a paper that Jelmer and I did on cultural transmission.:

http://tihane.wordpress.com/2008/09/27/cultural-transmission-theoryalso-for-research-about-web-artifacts/

the blog is by an Estonian researcher in educational technology: Kai Pata. I love the way the web makes these kinds of world-wide, cross-disciplinary connections possible.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

One of the doctoral students of archeology (Mauri Kiudsoo who studies coin treasures and the relations with the social phenomena of that time) is going to analyze that paper in my Research methods course. If you have a paper of the CT that has more methodological aspect (eg. with the real datasets demonstrating the idea, analysis), it would be very nice to get a hint and use it as well.

But i find some ideas of this paper well in line to the ecological approach of learning what we develop.

For me the question of social learning is still unclear.
I think that you use this term, but what is behind it, what is the mechanism?

This 'worldview' thing is also a too broad term, i think what is behind it is very important - how it works? I love the ideas they recently develop in neuroscience about embodied simulation ...toolizising our mind (culture) to the environment in the course of action.

I think it is not so much the question of transfer (one thing is taken to another system), but rather something like translation (Eg. like Stecconi or Eco write) or even semiosis like Juri Lotman understood it. Personally i think it is always a new embodiment/disembodiment and in this act both the environment (with the culture traces in artifacts) and the persons' mind would meet and make something hybrid that can be viewed as a new artifact or practice.

I love the idea of the meaning or activity traces that influence cultures, especially that you suggest to look several at the time. I suggest that you take a look at Odling-Smee, F.J., Laland, K.N., & Feldman, M.W. (2003). Niche Construction: The Neglected Process in Evolution. Monographs in Population Biology, 37, Princeton University Press.
I think what you describe there is a cultural space as a niche in which each style is like a feature, characteristic influencing that culture and is ecologically dependent on other available characteristics and on the culture (people) who live there, their objectives.

:) well..these were the thoughts i did not write to the blog.