Do 1002 Systems/Layers WalkShop Barcelona

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• Why > The network is a fiction; we know there are many, heterogeneous informational networks layered onto the space of a city, owned and used by different parties and intended for different purposes. Nevertheless, for the purposes of this exercise, we'll be treating all of them as one coherent entity. What we’re looking for are appearances of the networked digital in the physical, and vice versa: apertures through which the things that happen in the real world drive the “network weather”, and contexts in which that weather affects what people see, confront and are able to do.

• What > Systems/Layers is a half-day “walkshop,” held in two parts. The first portion of the activity is dedicated to a slow and considered walk through a reasonably dense and built-up section of the city at hand. This portion of the day will take around 90 minutes, after which we gather in a convenient “command post” to map, review and discuss the things we’ve encountered. We allot an hour for this, but since we’re inclined to choose a command post offering reasonably-priced food and drink, discussion can go on as long as participants feel like hanging out. You’ll want to bring seasonally-appropriate clothing, good comfortable shoes, and a camera. We’ll provide maps of “the box,” the area through which we’ll be walking.

• Who > The walkshop will be guided by the 'Do projects' team: Nurri Kim and Adam Greenfield

• When > Friday 18th of June. From 10:00h until lunchtime.

• Where > Barcelona. We're right now defining the best area, which will be near the city centre (more details will be published here soon and sent to registered participants via email).

• Registration > Limited to maximum 30 people! The registration fee is 50€ (to help cover the 'Do projects' team travel and accommodation). Scholarship: there are some scholarships available, if you're interested write us at urbanlabs@citilab.eu about it.

• Things to look for >

• Places where information is being collected by the network.
• Places where networked information is being displayed.
• Places where networked information is being acted upon — either by people directly, or by physical systems that affect the choices people have available to them.

• Questions to ask >

1. Who owns this data? Where and how is it stored?
2. How might I gain access to it? What devices, systems, or services would be involved? What kinds of expenses would be involved? What, if any, other barriers to use would be involved? What kind of interface would I use?
3. What sorts of social interaction might this give rise to? Are the social relations supported likely to be momentary or enduring?
4. Whose interests are/tend to be supported by this appearance of networked information? Whose interests are/tend to be challenged or undermined?
5. Does this intervention materially improve the quality of life? In what why? Conversely, does it complicate something that already works fairly well?
6. What would I do with this data?

Feedback

Thank you very much to all of you who attended the event!! We had an incredible and datafull experience! What do you think? :)

Positive things

• The amount of fresh and exhaustive information Adam gave about so many changes and places in BCN.
• All the things we found in such a short space of the city.
• Cosmo, the final place for meeting was great as always for their staff and atmosphere.
• ...

To improve

• Have some previous settlement on the spot for talking, since some streets were too noisy and could have been more easy to follow the talks at some metres distance.
• The map display at the cosmo wall was too high, if more reachable could have let people to interact with it!
• ...