Media Archaeology Research

Media Archaeology Research Paper Fall 2020 History of Computational Media
New media might be here and slowly changing our user habits, but old media never left us.
They are continuously remediated, resurfacing and finding new uses, contexts, adaptations. In
the midst of talk of “dead” media by such writers as Bruce Sterling, it was clear that a lot of dead
media were actually zombie media: living deads, that found an afterlife in new contexts, new
hands, new screens and machines.
Jussi Parika 2012, What is Media Archaeology?
Archeology is the study of the history of material objects, things or artifacts.
Media archaeology is a field of study which excavates past media cultures, theory, and material
artifacts to better understand past practices and imagine speculative futures.
Media archaeology is an area of inquiry which also includes artistic interventions in the field
along with storytelling or narratives informed by media histories.

1. Choose a material artifact to study. The artifact you choose must have had a part to play
   in the story of the development of computational media. On the next page there is a list
   of possible artifacts to choose from, but you can also find your own as long as you talk
   about this with your lab instructor.
2. Start your research in Sheridan Library website using the Library guide (in SLATE
   content in mp4 format).
3. In the process of finding information and writing your paper about your artifact think
   about directing your research using these questions:
   What is the artifacts significance in the story of the development of computers or
   computational media?
   What is the broader sociotechnical system the artifact was used in or is still used in?
   Are there specific conceptual ideas or theories which informed its invention?
   Why was it useful?
   How did the use of this object expand knowledge and contribute to other inventions that
   happened after? Was it used only for the purpose it was originally made for?
   Consider how the functionality and materiality of your object has changed over time.
   What inventions or innovations contributed to the obsolescence of the thing you are
   researching? When/why did it become obsolete?
   Is there an alternative future social technical system you could imagine using this
   artifact?
4. Write your research paper. It should be about in word.docx format, 1500 words + a
   reference list.
   This assignment is due December 3, 2020 in SLATE
   List of Suggested Topics for Media Archaeology Research Paper
   enigma relay

Sample Solution