Practical Project Assignment

Brief Introduction

Notice: Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, this mini project target field site is in Qingdao, China.  

In Qingdao, for the people who living in the residential area own the car, when they drive the car enter residential areas, their car liscense plate need pass the vehicle recongition system and then be allowed in. However, this system applies in the residential area in recent years, it doesn’t widely use 5 years ago. In Pfaffenberger (1992) studies, it indicates one key point for the technology development that is the “Necessity is the mother of invention”. Through the development of technology, it from the stone age to Iron age, the Bronze age, Information age and then we are in the digital age right now. This technology evolution happens because of the human satisfaction level have changed as the result of society. With this regard, the vehicle recognition system as a sociotechnical system (Lansing 1991) would be considered in this project. In this project, through the perspective of the anthropology of technology and material culture (Pfaffenberger 1992), l wants to target the people who live in residential areas and own the car in Qingdao, try to understand the “What kind of cultural/social meaning is embodied in these technological artifacts and how does technological innovation influence people’s life”. These are the key research questions l want to explore in my practical project.  

Notice: In this project, all the participant who engage in, their infromation is anoymous.

Research Method/ orignial material

• Step 1: online ethnographic research – “zhihu” forum

• Step 2: Reflections for online ethnographic

• Step 3: Interview process (1)

• Step4: Interview process (2)

• Step 4: Reflections for individual interview

Conclusion

Reference

Lansing, S., 1991. Priests and Programers: Technologies of power in the Engineered Landscape of Bali. Princeton: Princeton university press.

Leont’ev, A., 1991. The Problem of Activity in Psychology. Soviet Psychology, 13(2), pp.37-71.

Pfaffenberger, B., 1992. Social anthropology of technology. Annu.Rev. Anthropology, 21, pp.491-516.

Shenzhen Shenwufeng Technology Co., Ltd., 2021. The photos of the IC card model. [image] Available at: <http://swfkj.rdhyw.com/sell/itemid-4655.shtml&gt; [Accessed 26 April 2021].