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DESIGN RESEARCH NEWS Volume 8 Number 10, Oct 2003 ISSN 1473-3862
DRS Digital Newsletter http://www.designresearchsociety.org
________________________________________________________________
CONTENTS
o Editorial
o Expressions of interest - DRS biennial conferences
o Calls
o Announcements
o Books
o Web
o The Design Research Society: information
o Electronic Services of the DRS
o Contributing to Design Research News
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
EDITOR'S SPACE
This month, we welcome over four hundred new subscribers to
Design Research News. Every year, the editors of Design Research
News launch an outreach campaign to inform colleagues about the
newsletter. Expanding DRN is one way to serve the field of
design research by providing news, services, and information to
a large and growing constituency. With over 7,700 subscribers,
DRN is has largest subscriber base of any regularly published
design periodical, and the widest global circulation. Our
mission is what makes us different to the others.
We are sponsored by the Design Research Society. Our goal is to
provide service and information on a not-for-profit basis. DRN -
and the news we provide - is accessible to new research students
as well as to senior professors, to well-funded design
consultancies and to young designers working alone, to wealthy
universities and to under funded institutions. Our goal is to
expand and improve the field.
This year, we are asking colleagues who value this service to
share it with friends and students. At some point over the next
two months, you will receive a letter from books editor Ken
Friedman asking you to invite colleagues and students to sign up
for a free subscription. If you find DRN useful and informative,
we hope you will join us in making this service even more useful
by sharing it with more people.
Over the past month, we have been focusing on Australia and New
Zealand and we welcome new subscribers from the Pacific region.
See you in Melbourne next November at Futureground!
---
There was an interesting response to last month's call for
institutions to send initial exprssions of interest to host one
of the DRS biennial conferences. Expressions of interest may be
sent by any academic or commercial institution. This call is
not confined to the university sector. The call is being
repeated this month, so if you are interested in being
considered, and receiving more information, please let us know.
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
DRS BIENNIAL CONFERENCES - EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
The Design Research Society has established a biennial
international conference for the presentation of high quality
design research. The last event was the Society's conference
'Common Ground' which was held at Brunel University, UK in
September 2002. The next event, titled 'Futureground', will be
hosted by the Faculty of Art and Design at Monash University,
Melbourne, Australia, and will be held in November 2004.
The DRS conferences are intended to set the benchmark for the
presentation of high quality general design research through
fully peer reviewed submissions. DRS has considerable expertise
in the running of conferences of this kind over many years.
Advice will be made available to intending organisers, and the
Society will promote the event and work closely with organisers
in making the event a success.
DRS now invites expressions of interest from any university,
company or research institute that is interested in hosting one
of these major events, to be held every two years from and
including 2006.
Please write confidentially to Rachael Luck
<[log in to unmask]> with a very brief outline of:
- venue
- intended year and month
- audience capacity
- any experience of organising similar events
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
CALLS
* 8-10 October 2004: Programme of EIA'9 to be held in
Istanbul
EIA9: E-Activities and Intelligent Support in Design and the
Built Environment. 9th EuropIA International Conference
http://europia.org/eia9 http://www.europia.fr/eia9
* Special Issue Transportation Textiles Call for Papers:
Journal of Textile and Apparel Technology and Management
Forthcoming Issue on "The Way Ahead: Transportation
Materials for the Future"
The forthcoming issue of the Journal of Textile and Apparel,
Technology and Management (JTATM; targeted launch January
15, 2004) will focus on "The Way Ahead: Transportation
Materials for the Future. "This issue of JTATM will provide
a collection of articles on new transportation textile
products, including product research as well as process
information (product design, product development) and
automotive supply chain issues. These articles will bring
together the current thrusts of academic and industry
inquiry to provide information for future product needs and
directions.
Manuscripts, conceptual and empirical, which broaden and
deepen understanding of new transportation textile product
development, process, and supply chain are invited. Papers
that significantly contribute to the development of new
textiles by emphasizing managerial implications and/or
highlighting avenues of future research are also welcome.
Papers should be submitted on or before November 15, 2003.
Details from <[log in to unmask]>
http://www.tx.ncsu.edu/jtatm
* 22-24 March, 2004: 2nd Cambridge Workshop on Universal
Access and Assistive Technology Fitzwilliam College,
Cambridge, UK.
http://rehab-www.eng.cam.ac.uk/cwuaat/cwuaat04.htm
* IA Summit '04 -- Breaking New Ground IA Summit 2004 Hilton
Austin, Austin, Texas February 27-29, 2004
Scope of the Conference: Some of us in the IA field are
solidifying the IA foundation, digging deeper, while others
are pushing the boundaries working with other fields and
platforms. In both cases, we are "breaking new ground". The
ASIS&T IA Summit 2004 is seeking submissions from
information architecture practitioners and researchers that
support this theme. If you are developing the IA practice in
your organisation by documenting methods, applying IA
principles to new platforms and devices like interactive TV
or handheld devices, using techniques from related
disciplines in your day-to day work or researching the
latest ways to connect people and content, we want to hear
from you.
http://www.asis.org/Conferences/IA04/index.html
* 8-12 August 2004: SIGGRAPH'04, the 31st International
Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques,
to be held at the Los Angeles Convention Centre.
The internationally recognized ACM SIGGRAPH Conference Art
Gallery presents: Synaesthesia
The annual SIGGRAPH Art Gallery has achieved world-wide
recognition for excellence in showing digital and electronic
art. The SIGGRAPH 2004 Art Gallery: Synaesthesia will
showcase original digital art that explores new connections
between the senses - the technological, the aesthetic, and
the critical - and emerges from the conjunction of
cybernetics and human vision, inner as well as outer.
http://www.siggraph.org/s2004/
* 10-11 May 2004: Creativity: Designer Meets Technology.
Keynote Speaker: Jack Lenor Larsen Philadelphia University,
along with CITDA (Computer Integrated Textile Design
Association), will host a conference on its campus in
Philadelphia. Creativity: Designer Meets Technology will
focus on creativity and how the designer is influenced by an
expanding technology. Technology means digital and CAD
driven areas as well as creative products utilizing high
tech fiber and finishing. Philadelphia University and CITDA
encourage papers that touch on the design concept, design
process, presentation, communication, production and/or
information gathering.
Possible topics include:
- Innovation and implementation
- Direction of future developments
- Creativity a cure for industry woes
- Bridging the gap: design to manufacturing
- Demands for a global business
- Intellectual property
- What is creative textile design
To submit, send a 200-word abstract and a short bio by
December 15, 2003 to one of the following professors. The
abstract and short bio may be submitted by email or postal
mail to one of the following addresses: Professor Peggy
Goutmann ([log in to unmask]) or Professor Hitoshi Ujiie,
([log in to unmask])
* Call for Papers: 'Text': An upcoming issue of M/C Journal
Recent issues include 'Fight'; 'Share' and 'Logo' Other
upcoming issues: 'Fibre' and 'Joke'
Co-editors: Catriona Mills (School of English, Media
Studies, and Art History, University of Queensland) Matt
Soar (Dept of Communication Studies, Concordia University)
Deadline for submissions: 13 October 2003 All inquiries and
submissions should be emailed to the editors:
<[log in to unmask]>
M/C Journal is an online, blind peer-reviewed journal of
media and culture
http://www.media-culture.org.au/about.html
* Call for Papers IEEE Pervasive Computing Pervasive
Computing for Successful Aging
IEEE Pervasive Computing magazine invites articles relating
to the application of pervasive computing to the successful
aging of the elderly population. We especially welcome
papers reporting on original research and assessment of
assistive environments, assistive devices, middleware, elder
user models and applications in support of:
- Aging independently
- Aging with or into disabilities
- Coping with Dementia
- Coping with Cognitive impairment (e.g., Alzheimer's
Disease)
- Safe elder driving
- Remote monitoring and lifeline-like services of the future
- Medicine compliance
- Security and safety at home
- Coping with depression and loneliness
- Tele-healthcare and tele-rehabilitation
- Entertainment and social aspects of elders
Submissions should be 4,000 to 6,000 words long. All
submissions will be anonymously reviewed in accordance with
normal practice for scientific publications. Electronic
submissions via the Manuscript Central should be received by
December 15, 2003. Instructions on the submission process
and the magazine guidelines on style and presentation can be
found on the Author Guidelines page
(http://computer.org/pervasive/author.htm)
In addition to full-length submissions, we also invite
work-in-progress submissions of 250 words or less. These
will not be peer-reviewed, but will be edited by the staff
into a feature for the issue. The deadline for
work-in-progress submissions is February 15, 2004.
If you have any questions, please contact the Lead Editor,
Crystal Shif <[log in to unmask]> or the Editor-in-Chief, M.
Satyanarayanan <[log in to unmask]>.
Submission Deadline: December 15, 2003 WIP Deadline:
February 15, 2004 Author guidelines:
http://computer.org/pervasive/author.htm
* 30 June - 1 July 2004: 2nd International Meeting, PRIDE
AND PRE-DESIGN, The Cultural Heritage and the Science of
Design, Lisbon - Portugal
It's the moment to announce the 2nd International Meeting,
PRIDE AND PRE-DESIGN, The Cultural Heritage and the Science
of Design will be a part of Cumulus General Assembly, Lisbon
2005, hosted by ESD/IADE and UNIDCOM/IADE.
The scope of the conference is to evaluate the links between
the cultural heritage and the projectual culture. It will be
focused on rewriting the idea of Material Culture. This
concept, discharged from its materialist stigmata, is useful
to understand broad frameworks that links Science, Art and
Design.
One of the major results of 'Senses & Sensibility' meeting
was that people using different methodologies from sciences,
engineering and design found numerous platforms in which
they could talk about related issues. With P&P we aim to
gather, also, artists and historians to this group. Although
this is a fact, we are interested, mostly, on the
contemporary use of cultural heritage. Findings about what
was the real author of a particular sculpture the mausoleum
of an obscure rich man from Braga in the XVIII Century or
what was Caravaggio last meal are not recommended.
The scope of the meeting is to show and discuss how the
design sciences are linked (directly or indirectly) to each
one's cultural heritage, from artefacts or science knowledge
to works of art. We also remind you that cultural heritage
starts yesterday and discussions on relations between
contemporary art and design are welcome.
In short, we are focused in culture, material culture, or
even e-material culture for which the cultural heritage is
the knowledgeable starting point.
http://www.iade.pt/pp2005/
* 10-12 May 2004: A Conference on Development. Gregynog
Hall Gregynog Newtown Powys UK.
Development studies is a hybrid discipline that draws upon a
wide spectrum of academic interests: economics, sociology,
planning, social policy, geography, health, education,
product design and manufacture, human rights, child welfare,
culture, the environment, tourism, labour and employment
etc. Consequently, there are interested academic staff,
postgraduates and practitioners working across a range of
departments.
The proposed colloquium will, therefore, provide an
important focus for researchers and practitioners with
diverse backgrounds and interests. The themes of this first
development colloquium will not be restricted. However we
are particularly interested in promoting links between
international development issues and the post-devolution
agenda in Wales.
Abstracts Abstracts of not more than 250 words should be
sent to: <[log in to unmask]> or <[log in to unmask]> not later
than 28th November 2003.
* Journal of Design Research special issue on architecture and
design
The Journal [of Design Research] is currently launching its
fourth theme issue: Architecture and Design: Chicken-and-Egg
in Professional Practice and Research? Guest Editors for
this issue are Halina Dunin-Woyseth, Ann Heylighen and
Michel Leglise. Deadline for submissions: 1st January 2004.
The Journal of Design Research is an electronic journal,
allowing pictures, videos and other multimedia components to
be published. Each month the journal is visited well over
2.000 times by people of at least 370 different institutes,
world-wide.
Design is an interdisciplinary and integrative process
constituting an intellectual field of thinking and research
and a professional field of practice and applied research.
From this perspective, the Journal of Design Research offers
a platform for high-quality research, theory making,
analysis, education, and practice. I hope that the journal
provides many of you with a useful communication tool.
http://jdr.tudelft.nl
* The Graduate Journal of Social Science announces its second
call for papers. We are looking for papers by graduate
students (Masters to Post-Doc) with a focus on
interdisciplinary methodology in the social sciences (see
below and http://www.gjss.org for details). Discussion
papers, book reviews, conference reviews are also welcome.
Deadline for submission is the 24th of November, 2003. All
details on the modalities of submission are to be found at
www.gjss.org
http://www.gjss.org
* 9-15 November 2003: The 7th Nordic Interactive Research
School - Call for Participation Interface: from the desktop
to interactive spaces - Challenging aesthetics, architecture
and computer science - Aarhus, Denmark
http://www.nordic-interactive.org/researchschool/nires/
nires7.shtml
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
ANNOUNCEMENTS
* Challis Hodge writes: Forgive me for the blanket email but
I wanted to invite you to participate in an important
discussion regarding a future home for professionals
practicing in the area of interaction design. There are many
of us out there that find our center of gravity is in this
area yet no organization or group adequately provides us
with a home. To that end we're looking for a home. The
answer may be working within an existing organization,
starting a new one or perhaps something yet unknown to us
all. This is an important discussion. At the writing of this
email we have almost 700 subscribers. I hope you'll weigh
in.
I hope you'll take 1-2 minutes to participate in a very
brief survey on the matter. Also please forward this note on
to friends and colleagues that may be interested as well.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=99126279342
After you're finished please consider joining our email
discussion list to further voice your thoughts and opinions.
http://www.interactiondesigners.com
* 2-4 December 2003: Seongnam 2003, World Design Forum.
Emerging Asia and Design Business Strategy. Korea Design
Center
In October 2000, Seongnam City and the Korea Institute of
Design Promotion (KIDP), in collaboration with the
International Council of Societies of Industrial Design
(ICSID), hosted the International Young Designer's Workshop
2000. This meeting was followed by the ICSID Educational
Seminar in 2001, starting off an ongoing collaboration among
the three entities to hold international design events in
Seongnam. With the conference of the following year,
entitled world design forum 2002 Design Policy and Global
Network, it was decided to continue these meetings as an
annual event under the name world design forum (wdf). This
year's wdf2003, which will be the fourth meeting co-hosted
by ICSID, KIDP and Seongnam City, and the second meeting
under the new name, will focus on the theme of Emerging Asia
and Design Business Strategy.
The organizers hope that these annual conferences will
provide a platform for designers around the world to gather
and discuss the most pressing design issues of the moment
and to continue building lasting global networks. Moreover,
the event is now eagerly awaited by the Korean design
community as one of the most important international design
events in the nation.
The focus of this year's conference was determined in
response to the great Asian boom that is being driven by
China's phenomenal growth with the hope that this year's wdf
gathering will provide participants with the opportunity to
exchange ideas and collaborate to make the most of the new
market conditions.
http://www.wdf2003.org (will be operating in mid October)
* 28-30 June 2004: Design & Nature 2004 Second
International Conference: Comparing Design in Nature with
Science and Engineering, Rhodes, Greece
The Design and Nature Conference is to be reconvened in 2004
following the success of the first meeting, held in Udine,
Italy in 2002.
Throughout history, many leading thinkers have been inspired
by the parallels between nature and human design, in
mathematics, engineering and other areas. Today, the huge
increase in biological knowledge, developments in design
engineering systems, together with the virtual revolution in
computer power and simulation modelling, have all made
possible more comprehensive studies of nature.
Scientists and engineers now have at their disposal a vast
array of relationships for materials, mechanisms and
control. The resulting laws have been painstakingly
assembled by observation and analysis and span the cosmic
scale of space down to the molecular level of genetics. In
particular, they have made us aware of the rich diversity of
the natural world around us.
It is these developments which have prompted the reconvening
of this international conference on Design and Nature. It is
intended that the meeting will bring together researchers
from around the world working on a variety of studies
involving nature and their significance for modern
scientific thought and design.
http://www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2004/design2004/1.html
* Porada International Design Award 2003. Porada Arredi
Ltd., with scientific consultancy from Design Faculty,
Politecnico of Milano - Regional Branch of Como - and in
collaboration with Poli.design Consortium, is promoting an
international competition of ideas with the objective of
identifying new design solutions for the production of
furniture and furnishing accessories in which there is a
prevalent use of solid wood, destined for the manufacture
and marketing of products under the Porada brand.
http://www.porada.it
* Serikos Fashion/Textile Design Award 2003. Serikos
Collection and Textile Corp., with scientific consultancy
from Design Faculty, Politecnico of Milano - Regional Branch
of Como - and Poli.design Consortium, is promoting an
international competition of ideas with the objective of
identifying new design solutions for the production of
clothing fabrics in destined for the manufacture and
marketing of products under the Serikos brand.
http://www.design.polimi.it
* Issue no 4 of Design Philosophy Papers has just been posted.
It features:
- Two very different essays on the theme of 'Technology as
Environment' one by an environmental philosopher and another
by a designer researching 'ubiquitous computing';
- Reviews of two books on changing images of the city - one
a photographic project, the other a work of cultural theory;
- Further discussion on Design for Sustainment including
news of major upcoming projects.
Go to http://www.desphilosophy.com and click on 'current
issue'.
Working across philosophy, design and environmental theory,
our content is developing in interesting directions. Many of
the ideas explored this year will be taken up and further
developed during 2004, along with some completely new themes
(we publish 6 issues a year). To take best advantage of
this, we recommend becoming a subscriber, so you can access
back issues at your convenience (as well as receiving an
annual hard copy/CD collection).
* The Japan Design Foundation has published the Report Design
Practice in the World 2002. It deals with Universal Design,
Ecological Design, and Design Strategy.
http://www.jdf.or.jp <http://www.jdf.or.jp/>
* Art and Design Education (Resource Guide 2004) is a
comprehensive guide to art and design courses in Australia
and New Zealand.
http://www.designgraphics.com.au
* Brochure for Collaboration between Scandinavian Design
Colleges
http://www.icograda.org/web/galeria-current.shtml
* 'Countering design exclusion' is a new course-book for
students of inclusive (universal) design. This book provides
an open and accessible introduction to the theory and
practice of inclusive design. It is also heavily illustrated
with over 400 figures, diagrams and photographs in its 227
pages.
http://rehab-www.eng.cam.ac.uk/cde.htm>http://rehab-www.eng.
cam.ac.uk/cde.htm
* 17-18 October 2003: About, With and For Conference in
Chicago will again be sponsored by students at the
Institute of Design, Illinois Institute of Technology.
This year's conference revolves around the topic of
synthesis. Due to all the great comments and suggestions
offered by attendees of last year's event, we've made some
changes to the conference structure. We've also built in
more opportunities for conference participants to engage in
dialogue about how differing professions practicing user
research can compliment and support one another in achieving
their goals.
http://www.aboutwithandfor.com.
* International Journal of Innovation and Technology
Management
Aims and Scope The objectives of the journal are to develop
and promote the fields of innovation and technology
management by providing a platform for reporting, sharing as
well as the exchange of ideas, research findings, industry
best practice and trends in the selected fields. In
particular, the journal will focus on the managerial issues
and challenges (and ways to address them) brought about by
the increasing pace of technological advancement globally.
This international dimension is emphasized in order to
promote greater exchange between researchers of different
cultural and national background, thus contributing and
enriching our knowledge in the fields of innovation and
technology management.
The journal encompasses all facets of the process of
technological innovation from the conceptualization of new
products and processes to its commercialization and
utilization. The topics include management of innovation,
technology management, new product/process development and
introduction, transfer of technology, management of
entrepreneurial ventures at strategic and operational
levels, in both large organizations as well as small medium
enterprises (SME).
http://www.worldscinet.com/ijitm/ijitm.shtml
* 13 September - 13 October 2003: International Art Blog A
free exhibition by the Centre of Attention presented on
http://www.thecentreofattention.org
* INVITATION From John Thackara. This is an invitation
to join us in Bangalore this coming December for a "working
party" to celebrate the tenth birthday of Doors of
Perception.
We see DoorsEast as a unique and timely opportunity to
re-connect with our friends and associates, in the exciting
context of an emerging innovation city, and to discuss how
we might collectively shape the design of tomorrow's
services in a sustainable information society.
DoorsEast 2003 is a cluster of events on the theme: "Local
knowledge: design and innovation of tomorrow's services".
Our partners in the event are the Centre for Knowledge
Societies (CKS) and the National Institute of Design, in
India, and Interaction Design Institute Ivrea, and Nokia, in
Europe.
The main event in December is a two-day international
encounter - part conference, part open space workshop - on
11 and 12 December. It will address the question: how do we
design new services, enabled by ICT, that are based on local
knowledge, and use local content?
We will compare diverse scenarios from both India and Europe
that use location based information (GIS / GPS), groups,
unit-to-unit broadcast, short audio messaging,
text-to-speech, WiFi networks and other innovative
approaches. Tools and methodologies for mapping local
knowledge will be presented and compared. Speakers will
share lessons learned about the way new business models, and
wireless communications, are changing the ways we design for
mobility, geography, and access.
Since 1993 Doors of Perception has addressed the question:
we have seen what 'tech' can do, but what it is for?
During the last ten years we have also learned that the
world is made of many highly interconnected parts, over many
scales - and that gaps between disciplines, between
researchers and business, and between cultural contexts,
hinder the transition to sustainability.
Doors bridges those gaps. In our second ten years, beginning
with DoorsEast2, we want to accelerate sharply the
development of a design and innovation networking which we
learn how to design services, enabled by ICT, that meet
basic needs in new ways. We will share this knowledge with
citizens, innovators, industry, and professionals.
http://www.doorseast.com/
* MACHINISTA FESTIVAL - artificial intelligence in art -
The Machinista festival celebrates artificial intelligence
in the arts, presenting an international selection of works
where the machine plays an essential role in the creative
process.
Machinista 2003 is at http://www.machinista.ru/en
For more on Machinista Glasgow 2004 keep an eye on
http://www.machinista.org.uk
* Graduate Research and Teaching Assistantships in
Communication and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute
Expanding undergraduate enrollment and an increase in major
funded research projects have generated some very attractive
funding opportunities for outstanding graduate students as
Teaching Assistants (T.A.s) or Research Assistants (R.A.s).
Students interested in studying and researching
computer-mediated communication, human-computer interaction
(HCI), visual communication and digital document design,
technology & culture, and technical communication at one of
the most wired universities in the U.S. are invited to
apply.
Details: Kathy Colman, Recruitment Coordinator
<[log in to unmask]>
http://www.llc.rpi.edu/
* Icograda and the University of Brighton signed a formal
agreement for the Icograda Archive, which adds to the
University of Brighton's development of a major bank of
twentieth century design archives.
http://www.icograda.org/web/feature-current.shtml
* Prof. Dr. Peter Zec, head of the Design Zentrum Nordrhein
Westfalen, has been chosen as President-Elect of ICSID as of
2005.
* 21-22 November 2003: Colour and Design Conference A Joint
Meeting Between The Linnean Society of London and The
Institution of Mechanical Engineering.
Colour in design in the natural and engineered worlds.
Colour plays a vital part in a very wide range of fields of
study and in our day-to-day lives. Yet we tend to keep our
specialist areas to ourselves! The aim of this conference is
to promote cross-fertilisation of ideas, to form new and
potentially productive links and to interest a wider public
than is usual in art, science and technology. This joint
meeting between the IMechE and the Linnean Society is in
London on 21 & 22 November 2003.
http://www.linnean.org/html/news_events/events.htm
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
BOOKS
* Mann, Chris, and Fiona Stewart. 2002. Internet
Communication and Qualitative Research. A Handbook for
Researching Online. London: Sage Publications.
This handbook provides a generous and comprehensive overview
of qualitative research on the Internet.
After defining terms and discussing the general field of
Internet research, the authors take the reader through the
central issues of practical research using computer-mediated
communication.
The third chapter provides an ethical framework for online
research. This is particularly important in two key ways.
One is the thorough and careful discussion of research
ethics specific to the Internet. The other is the larger
question of research ethics in general. Many of these topics
apply to all forms of qualitative research and to some forms
of quantitative research where human beings are involved.
For this reason, this chapter offers a valuable contribution
to any training program in design research.
The core of the book addresses the practical details of
online research. This includes an introduction and overview
of online research methods, a detailed discussion of online
focus groups, and a thoughtful analysis of online
interviews. The authors devote a full chapter to power
issues, including gender, power relations, and privacy. They
give an equally important chapter to language mode and
analysis, with attention to computer-mediated communication
as a hybrid communication medium. This leads to a discussion
of the problems of computer-mediated communication as a
research mode, and a consideration of implications for data
analysis.
The two final chapters will be particularly interesting for
anyone who plans to use on-line research methods in the
design fields. The first involves virtuality. Design
research is now a global enterprise, spanning many cultures
and linking colleagues in dozens of remote locations. The
developments of exciting new research collaborations raise
important issues. One of these is the fact that we must
resolve communication and cultural differences, building on
them and occasionally being separated by them as we work
together. The value of computer-mediated communication
becomes clearer as we are increasingly required to clarify
issues and render tacit knowledge explicit. The problems are
equally great. It is difficult to communicate completely in
text, or even with text and collaborative web sites. This
means that any online research involves a number of
important issues including attention to identity,
disembodiment, and an understanding of how these affect
research.
This leads to a second, important challenge. Design research
often involves working with physical artifacts and physical
engagement with embodied human beings. This is even
sometimes true of digital artifacts: even though these
artifacts can be communicated through computers, the people
who use them inhabit the physical world.
After a fine conclusion on future directions, the book
provides a useful glossary and appendices with online
consent forms, sample email text-based survey forms, and a
web-page-based survey.
Only a few years ago, online research involved so few
scholars that one editor alone was able to publish much of
the best work done in three books (Jones 1995, 1997, 1998).
Within the last few years, Internet research has grown to
the point where there is now an Association of Internet
Researchers (AOIR 2003) and the robust Encyclopedia of New
Media (Jones 2002).
Chris Mann and Fiona Stewart have made an admirable
contribution to the field. Their work will also serve the
needs of the increasing number of design research scholars
and professionals who use online methods in their work-
-- Reviewed by Ken Friedman
References
AOIR 2003. Association of Internet Researchers. AOIR Home
Page. http://aoir.org/ Date accessed 2003 September 30.
Jones, Steven G., editor. Cybersociety. Computer-Mediated
Communication and Community. London: Sage Publications,
1995.
Jones, Steven G., editor. Virtual Culture. Identity and
Communication in Cybersociety. London: Sage Publications,
1997.
Jones, Steven G., editor. Cybersociety 2.0. Revisiting
Computer-Mediated Communication and Community. London: Sage
Publications, 1998.
Jones, Steven G., editor. Encyclopedia of New Media. London:
Sage Publications, 2002.
* Elsevier Science Direct. 2003. The Web Research Guide
of Science Direct. URL:
http://www.webresearch.sciencedirect.com/ Date accessed 2003
October 1.
Elsevier Science Direct has created an interesting,
well-structured guide to research on the web. It is aimed at
scientists, scholars, and researchers with access to the
Science Direct database. While the first goal of the guide
is helping scholars at universities with Elsevier
subscriptions use the database more effectively, the
information it offers will be helpful to anyone conducting
research on the web. This guide is an effective tutorial
that will introduce new researchers to the wide range of
tools and services on the web. It can also supplement
tutorials by research supervisors and research training
teachers.
The guide covers many topics. These are organized in ten
tutorials. Part 1 involves getting better answers through
better questions. This is a lesson in effective use of
search engines. Part 2 covers peer-reviewed resources, as
well as subject-specific directories and newsgroups that
provide expert material that may not be accessible through
search engines. Part 3 covers email alerts and bulletins
that deliver information within specific subject fields.
Part 3 discusses subject-specific email alerts, showing the
reader how to conduct them and coaching guide users through
searches tailored to their own requirements. Part 4 presents
advanced search techniques. Part 5 covers article abstracts
and indexes. Part 6 is titled "tools of the trade,"
featuring useful insights into making best use of available
tools. This section reinforces and builds on lessons learned
earlier, and it helps to pave the way for following
material. Part 7 discusses how to track research using
search history functions. Part 8 addresses how to exploit
the advantages of hypertext to make effective use of links
and navigation tools. Part 9 analyzes the strengths,
sources, and advanced features of different search engines,
discussing how to choose the best engine for any specific
search. Part 10 offers some last pointers on developing
search skills, including specialist links and detailed
suggestions.
At many points, the guide provides direct information and
examples to different forms of information. For example, the
tutorial on email alerts offers information on citation
alerts, journal issue alerts, and Google search alerts.
Click-on features then guide the reader through sample views
selected from the active Elsevier database. A series of
boxes permit any reader to activate a functioning search
alert program in any of twenty-three fields. Using the
on-line guided forms, the reader will set up a working
search that will then deliver search alert data to an email
address on a real-time basis until the subscription is
cancelled. The fields are wide, covering most research
areas. While many cover the physical sciences, many are
obviously useful to design research: arts and humanities,
management and accounting, civil engineering, computer
science, decision sciences, economics, engineering and
technology, environmental science, materials science,
mathematics, psychology, and social science. (Of course,
with nanotechnology and biotechnology, designers and design
researchers may well want to search such fields as physics
or microbiology. These and more are available.)
At other points, the guide offers direct links to useful
services and projects. For example, the tutorial on search
techniques provides a link to the Search Engine Showdown
site developed by Greg R. Notess, with its rich array of
informative reviews and direct links to useful engines and
search systems.
Elsevier Science Direct is an online database offering over
1,800 journals and more than four million full-text
articles. The sophisticated services of the Elsevier package
are well known to most librarians. While often too expensive
for many design school libraries, those with university
library access can - and should - make use of its many
features. The alert services and many other features are
available to anyone with web access. This guide is a useful
way to learn about the web research features of Science
Direct and the other sources covered in this guide.
Many of these services are free and universally available
over the web. Research students and their teachers can make
good use of this tutorial to develop skill and knowledge in
basic and advanced web research.
-- Reviewed by Ken Friedman
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WEB
...and now to segue seamlessly from the review above...
* The Lancet is the respected journal of medical science,
as it says "Illuminating and advancing medical thought and
practice since 1823".
As an example of the ways in which research findings and
opinions are being ever more widely distributed via the
internet, the Lancet has today announced that its backfiles
are available on the web, from volume 1, issue 1.
The Lancet Backfiles contains nearly 400,000 historial
articles that have affected the practice and science of
medicine. Groundbreaking theories and discoveries that
served to inform and reform medical thought and innovation
are now available in electronic format - all fully
searchable and interlinked to today's papers.
The Lancet Backfiles have published top articles which are
now available online for the first time. Researchers will
have instant access to these examples of seminal and
much-cited papers from earlier volumes.
http://www.info.sciencedirect.com/backfiles/collections/
lancet/index.shtml
* The website of the German Design Council has been revised.
http://www.german-design-council.de
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
DESIGN RESEARCH SOCIETY
The Design Research Society is the multi-disciplinary
international learned society for the design research community.
DRS was founded in 1967, and since then has established a
record of significant achievements in contributing to design
knowledge.
DRS has facilitated an international design research network in
40 countries comprising members who maintain contact through the
publications and activities of the Society. Members are drawn
from diverse backgrounds, not only from the traditional areas of
design, ranging from fine art to engineering, but also from
subjects like psychology and computer science.
Our interests include:
o recognising design as a creative act common to many
disciplines
o understanding research and its relationship with education
and practice
o advancing the theory and practice of design
We realise these by:
o encouraging the development of scholarship and knowledge in
design
o contributing to the development of doctoral education and
research training
o sharing knowledge across the boundaries of design disciplines
o facilitating networks to exchange and communicate ideas,
experience and research findings among members
o disseminating research findings
o promoting awareness of design research
o organising and sponsoring conferences, and publishing
proceedings
o encouraging communications between members internationally
o responding to consultative documents
o collaborating with other bodies
o lobbying on behalf of members' research interests
o recognising excellence in design research through awards
o sponsoring email discussion groups and a monthly emailed
newsletter
Membership of DRS provides:
o regular communications about research activities worldwide
o reduced subscription to Design Studies, the international
journal for design research in engineering, architecture,
products and systems. Design Studies is published by
Elsevier in cooperation with DRS
o reduced fees to DRS sponsored events
o representation of the design research community and members'
interests
o a means of identifying and contacting other members
o an opportunity to contribute to the international design
research community
For further details and an application form, contact the
membership secretary:
Professor Robert Jerrard, School of Design Research, Birmingham
Institute of Art and Design, University of Central England,
Corporation Street, Birmingham, UK B4 7DX
email: [log in to unmask]
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
SERVICES OF THE DESIGN RESEARCH SOCIETY
o Design Research News is the digital newsletter of the
Design Research Society. It communicates news about
research throughout the world. It is mailed automatically
at the beginning of each month and is free. You may
subscribe and unsubscribe at the following site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/design-research.html
o PHD-DESIGN is a discussion list open for unmoderated
discussion on all matters related to the PhD in design.
Topics include philosophies and theories of design, research
methods, curriculum development, and relations between
theory and practice. You may subscribe and unsubscribe at
the following site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/phd-design.html
o DRS is a discussion list open for unmoderated discussion
on all matters related to design research. You may
subscribe and unsubscribe at the following site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/drs.html
o Design Studies is the International Journal for Design
Research in Engineering, Architecture, Products and Systems,
which is published in co-operation with the Design Research
Society.
DRS members can subscribe to the journal at special rates.
http://www.elsevier.nl/locate/inca/30409/
o The DRS QCR - quarterly council report is sent via
email to full members of the Design Research Society. It
includes a selection of edited reports from international
Council members and Council Officers received from time to
time.
o Full information about the Design Research Society may
be found at:
http://www.designresearchsociety.org
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
CONTRIBUTIONS
Information to the editor Dr David Durling, Director, Advanced
Research Institute, Staffordshire University, UK.
<[log in to unmask]>
Book information and suggestions for reviews should be
sent to the book review editor Dr Ken Friedman, Norwegian
School of Management, Oslo, and Advanced Research Institute,
Staffordshire University, UK. <[log in to unmask]>
________________________________________________________________
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