1. Discuss the cultural context of something in your blog
https://www.facebook.com/531pi/videos/tautai-artist-naawie-tutugoro/311196266669187/
In this art installation from the Moana Legacy exhibition labelled âcome make my dreamsâ, The artist, Naawie Tutugoro, has displayed a strong message through a fairly minimalistic set up. This installation is based around the idea of hair discrimination as the artist is a woman of colour and has, what most people would describe as, âafro-likeâ hair. She aimed to subvert the message âwhere have your hands been?â speaking from personal experience where strangers have touched her hair without permission and âdecolonise certain materials that are used to mimic her hairâ which can be seen in the image above as she has created a chain through the use of repurposed hair curlers or âheatless hair curlersâ. This installation is a great example of cultural assimilation because it displays the idea of certain people trying to resemble the people of the Pasifika community who have this afro-like hair.
2. What are intrinsic vs instrumental notions of technology? Use an example from your blog.
Instrumental technology: a means to an end, technology that helps you do something specific, valued for the end results that come from it. An example of this from my blog I think would be the indoor sensory lights that I had talked about in my blog post about IoT products. They were indoor ceiling lights that would automatically turn on and off depending on how dark it was outside (obviously also with a switch so the user still has some control). Iâm not entirely sure if these actually exist, however, I thought it served as a good example for instrumental technology as it would be valued for its end result; the end result being beneficial to the user as they would not have to turn the lights on and off everyday.
Intrinsic technology: mediates our perception of the world, has something that makes it stand out therefore making the tendency to use it inevitable, valued for its own sake. An example of this would be virtual reality systems. VR tech is seen as the shiny new toy that everyone wants to get their hands on. This tech is valued more for the experience it gives you rather than having some kind of beneficial end result. However, it can be argued that VR systems can also be seen as instrumental technology because, depending on the VR system, there could be beneficial outcomes for some. For example, VR tech can be used to help athletes âas they are able to watch and experience certain situations repeatedly and improve each time.â So personally, I would say that VR systems are both intrinsic and instrumental notions of technology.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1161505.pdf
https://www.fdmgroup.com/5-exciting-uses-for-virtual-reality/#:~:text=Virtual%20reality%20can%20be%20used,athletic%20performance%20and%20analyse%20technique.
3. In regards to your engagement in your course of study, what sort of technologies are you interested in developing? (one example if you have multiple)
This isnât something that I would say I am interested in developing as I donât exactly have the skillset; however, I do have a strong interest in e-textiles in health care. I have a general interest in textiles as my groups project in studio is based around textiles and I find it fascinating that, with the tech we have today, you can take something as simple as clothes and make it into an advanced e-textile garment that is beneficial to patients who require medical care.
4. What systems does your tech example rely on or engage with?
- materials, both textiles and electronics â need to work together to make the medical e-textile as efficient as possible
- mechanical work prior to creation, a plan
- People with backgrounds in various disciplines such as medics, engineers,
5. What ethical âissuesâ might be relevant to your example?
- e-textiles may not be reliable: could end up with inaccurate patient data
- patient/doctor approval: some patients or doctors may be against the use of medical e-textiles