Call for papers
Thick Space - Surface/Interface, Perception, and Cosmology
Humankind in front of the mirror. A perspective of our own planet thanks to space missions. Cultural impact
- Name: M. Blassnigg, N. Czegledy, M. Punt
- Country: UK
- E-mail: martha.blassnigg@gmail.com
- University: University of Plymouth, Concordia University
Abstract: The contention of this joint paper is that maps (including star maps) are cognitive surfaces where both knowledge and experiences become inscribed. Scientific instruments and methodologies of celestial mapping have combined to shape as they also fossilise our knowledge of the cosmos at any given moment. As such they provide evidence of more mythological or metaphysical enquiries. This suggests that the mapping of deep space may be regarded as an imaginative expression of cultural perceptions of the self as at the same time it is a data driven scientific statement about the cosmos.
From an introspective point of view, Blassnigg will show how maps can be seen as inscribed surfaces entangling the scientific and the imaginary aspirations of the moment: As such they can be read as complex archaeological traces of perception. By taking an anthropological approach to the concept of mapping knowledge she will revisit the discussion of representations of the \'other\' in cultural anthropology and propose a correlation between the perception of the self and the mapping of Space.
Following this Czegledy will offer a comparison between historical and contemporary perception of space including celestial mapping drawing on historical references from the 16th century contrasting these with contemporary cartography such as the use of cosmic X-rays and the Hipparcos satellite (ESA). Celestial maps, also carry a symbolic social and political significance beyond the craft of cartography. For example the Astronomers Bazaar provides access to thousands of online astronomical catalogues, including ALADIN, accessible on a home computer and renders a democratic worldwide (web) cosmos.
Finally Punt will draw attention to contemporary technologies of representation and scientific imaging. He will use examples from the cinema in which science and technology are intimately entwined with entertainment to show that however absolute our knowledge may appear at a given moment, in its representation it will always be provisional since it is subject to a thick cultural and historical context.
By opening up an understanding of the mapping of space as a rhetoric of history, culture and representation we draw attention to the contemporary understanding of the cosmos as no more than a moment in the flight of history. In so doing we argue that the arts and the sciences as products of the historical moment are jointly responsible for the state of contemporary knowledge.
