Materiality is discussed in a large variety of fields, ranging from archival science to sociology. Indeed, the constant use of the term demonstrates how important it is that we engage with materiality and the issues that relate to it. Indeed, whilst its importance is acknowledged by the majority of archivists, Ala Rekrut argues that there has been little discussion of the importance of materiality in physical records and Johanna Drucker argues that the theorization of materiality also remains unsuccessful. Firstly, the definition of the term and the impact materiality has on record-ness shall be discussed, followed by an analysis of the literature pertaining to the materiality of digital records. The last topic of discussion shall be new materialism …show more content…
Indeed, Matthew Kirschbaum describes two types of materiality: forensic and formal. Forensic being evidential, the physical traces on the record (i.e. ink, finger prints etc.) and formal being structures of human expression such as the layout or design. Both contribute to the context of a record, be it digital or paper. As time passes forensic materiality can indeed change, ink or finger prints may be added, for example. Rekrut calls for an improvement to existing archival description structures as they do not currently explicitly support recording physical characteristics as evidence. She goes on to argue that this information would contribute to “the understanding the records, their creators and custodians, or explain the relationships between the physical information and the other information present, such as text and images.” Mike Savage goes as far as to argue that it is the form, rather than the content, which serves as indications of what society was like. It is, therefore, evident that materiality is subject to change and is of utmost value to recordkeeping. It does not only provide context regarding the records creation and society, it also serves as an indication of how the record evolves and how following societies interpret (and indeed maintain)
Many works of art can be considered artifacts that hold volumes of information regarding the culture of the people that created them and the historical context in which they lived.
This new technology is not without its shortcomings. First, the printing press used limited materials. Next, as Mumford notes, the advent of print led calligraphers and manuscript copyists out of work. Furthermore, as Graff finds, it created “typographical fixity”—material once printed cannot be changed. Finally, mass production was dependent and limited to large markets (Mumford, 95)....
As the tour of the museum began, it was easily noticed that all of the objects on display were placed behind thick glass cases. Many plaques inside of the case provide the visitor with information about the specific case that is being looked at. In most cases the plaques didn’t so much provide an elaboration on the pieces, but rather expand upon the historical context of the pieces. Also, the plaques shed light onto muc...
The last type of evidence I will discuss are documents. Everyone has a different handwriting and different characteristics that make it unique. Computers are also unique in the way they type and print out things. Document examiners can look over these and establish the similarities in the handwriting and computer forensic specialists can extract logs and other data from most devices.
Evidence essentially comes in two forms: verbal or physical. For instance, verbal evidence could be spoken evidence acquired from a wiretap. Physical evidence could include DNA, blood, or bodily samples. Another reliable origin evidence is digital documentation. “As technology has become more portable and powerful, greater amounts of information are created, stored, and accessed” (GEDJ). Over the past few decades, technology has advanced to extreme levels! The most common technology used to find digital evidence are cell phones, computers, tablets, external storage devices, GPS locators, and various other devices (GEDJ). Text messages, social media posts, pictures, etc. are becoming more common data in investigations of the modern era. “Digital evidence can come from both suspects and victims, as all involved parties may have their own personal devices that are relevant to the investigation” (GEDJ). If they are available, computers, phones, social media and much more are very useful sources of gathering data for a criminal case. For instance, both the suspect and the victim may have text messages on their cell phones that could add to the search. “In some criminal cases, digital evidence can be useful if the suspect had associated with it. In some cases it can lead you in the wrong direction or to the wrong people. Or it could simply be useless if the suspect didn 't use anything
Most successful musicians know a hidden art carried out by the work of a good sound engineer; it is essential for a magnificent album. For the rest of us novice listeners and fans, we believe what we hear through our speakers or played over the radio are the true skilled professional musicians, soaring at their craft. Most contemporary music, from pop to R&B and acid jazz to the sophisticated realm of orchestral film scores, has been modernized by several inventions encased within the studio. The art of audio engineering has taken on new forms, from the nuts and bolts, "plug it in, and see if it works" era into the digital world, because of these wonderfully tragic solutions to a higher pace of life. A musician's art have been made solely because of it, and others have been destroyed and humiliated by it. The complex new inventions of technology shape the adaptive method of studio recording and production however caused a drastic negative musical degrading of our beloved art.
To collect is to bring things together. However there is an art to collecting, as it is not simply just bringing miscellaneous things together. There is a common theme for the objects and together they serve as a special meaning to their collector. In both texts “The Museum and the Public” by Stephen Weil and Walter Benjamin “Unpacking My Library” by Walter Benjamin, and in the film “Mardi Gras: Made in China”, the purpose of collecting is to tell a story and to showcase the significance of the objects in the collection.
In this paper I used outside sources such as Hurley’s book, Gawthrop’s, Jacobson and Moakley articles to clarify and develop deeper thinking about Coles’ ideas in “The Tradition: Fact and Fiction,” with focal points being: human actuality, the interiority of a photograph, and the emotional impact of cropping. Throughout Coles’ essay he portrays a documentarian as one who creates their work to meet their own standards based on personal opinion, values, interest and their audience. He also shows, in correlation to the title, that there is no line between fact or fiction in documentary work; they are loosely mingled, overlapping and only seen separately from a biased standpoint.
Aware of the lack of research on the topic, the introduction sets the footing to begin to understand how artistic practice and other methods of object making attend to issues related to collective memory. That said, what sorts of impact or influence does individual memory have on collective memory and its relationship with objects?
Forensic evidence is “evidence obtained by scientific methods …. and used in court.” Most evidence collected can be classified as either transient evidence or tangible evidence. Common types of transient evidence includes hair, fibers and glass, fingerprints, shoe prints, bare foot impressions and tire impressions, bodily fluids and skin cells, as well as gunshot residue. Some forms of tangible evidence would be firearms, fired and unfired bullets and cartridges, tool marks, drugs and drug paraphernalia, physical documents such as checks and receipts, and computers, cell phones and other devices.
Technology: “the body of knowledge available to a society that is of use in fashioning implements, practicing manual arts and skills, and extracting or collecting materials”.
An imperative aspect of the collection of physical evidence is the legal considerations involved with obtaining evidence, the law sets out strict guidelines which describe when evidence can be collected, who it can be obtained fr...
Physical evidence is any physical object that contains reliable information that supports a hypothesis about the incident. Digital evidence is physical or electronic information (such as a written or electronic documentation, computer log files, data, reports, physical hardware, software, disk images, objects and so on) are collected during the investigation conducted computer. Evidence includes, but is not limited to, computer files (such as log files or generated reports) and human-generated files (such as spreadsheets, documents, or eail
Among so many other mediums, it is of particular interest to note that the practice of photography is not simply bound to one side of the spectrum of creative expression. As much as it can be perceived as an emotional piece of art, a photo can also very well be seen as a showcase of the current social world through an objective lens. What it is that truly defines a photo as being either an artistic endeavor or a means for documentation, however, is the context in which it is meant to be viewed by a particular audience. One single picture, after all, could appear drastically different alongside an article in a newspaper than it would if it were to be framed and hung alongside other photos on a museum wall. This idea is especially prevalent in the pieces shown in the exhibition Freedom Now! Forgotten Photographs of the Civil Rights Struggle, wherein several photos are both seen as a standalone piece, as well as how they appeared in magazines or journals on the Civil Rights movement. Through comparing and contrasting several sets of these pictures, each displaying two vastly different ways in which they can be observed, the importance of context in regards to photography comes into full view, giving a larger perspective on what it is that gives a specific piece a certain meaning.
According to Pew Research Center's Journalism Project, the overall drop in newspaper circulation began in 1989 and has been at a gradual decline of 1% a year since (Pew Research Center's Journalism Project, 2007). 1989 is also the year of the birth of the World Wide Web(Home.web.cern.ch, 2014).