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A Media Archaeology Research Project.docx
1. A Media Archaeology Research Project
A Media Archaeology Research ProjectA 3500 words Media Archaeology Research
Project.In order to be able to make sense of what is happening now in our culture of moving
images, we need to understand its past – not in the sense ofteleological development but in
terms of how untimely sensibilities and ideas embodied in obsolete images and
technologies keep on reappearing,inadvertently perhaps, in the present.Conduct and write
up a small research project on an issue in media archaeology. This may take the form of(a)
researching and analysing a specific aspect of a technology or practice analysed in the
course (moving panoramas, magic lanterns in scienceeducation, back-projection screens,
analog video synthesisers etc);(b) researching and analysing the media archaeological
significance of ONE local, national or regional technology or practice on the development
ofmedia in a particular country or region (shadow puppets, theatrical traditions, folk arts,
popular musical forms, national or religious epics etc);or(c) the media archaeological
formation of a specific contemporary media practice (YouTube archives, LOL cats, OpenSSL,
computer viruses etc) ordevice (vocoder, personal stereo, keyboard, calculator etc).It is
advisable to pick a topic which is small enough for you to get interesting detail without
over-running the available word-count. Much of yourresearch will be online but you should
use the library and any LONDON-BASED archives. You may be able to contact archivists,
curators, museum staffand others who may give guidance. Sometimes information will not
be easily available. This can be regarded as a finding in its own right, and you maywish to
interpret the non-existence of records as part of your data. There are points for successful
research but also for the research methods,including those that do not reveal historical data
but reasons why it may not be possible to access it, at least in the time available, for
examplein the case of media that began as military technologies. Remember that media
forms have been highly mobile over history: an technique fromindigenous Australians may
turn up in a media technology on the other side of the world.• select a significant and
interesting topic, for example one that challenges dominant ideas about the history of
media, or one that shows apotential way of doing things that remains to be explored• use
all available sources (print, online, video, email interview etc) and assess their level of
expertise and trustworthiness• demonstrate an ability to design and carry out a small
research project and write it up clearly• show how a particular technique or practice has
developed or failed to develop• give historical reasons for its success or failure (social,
cultural, legal, political, economic etc)• assess the potential impact of the topic on historical
2. or contemporary media as appropriate.• take account of ideas discussed in the course such
as critiques of technological determinism and progress models