Bulletpoints and ideas for discussion
This week, we are going to read three short pieces related to the transportation of commodities.
1. The first piece is an excerpt from Anna Tsing's article «The global situation» published in Cultural anthropology 15, n.3 (2000): 327-60. Here please look for the section called "circulation" (about two pages). You can also read the first couple of pages as an introduction to know what the general picture of the paper is (of course if you prefer you can read all of it!). This text will give us some ideas and theory about globalization to helps us think about "moving" commodities.
2. The text "the pipeline revolution" written in 1962 by Gerald Manners. Here, we are interested in pipes as a mode of transport, the material characteristics of the infrastructure and of the commodities that can be transported with it. Also, the reasons why pipelines began to be used, the advantages they present and their relation to other types of transport (tankers). It is pretty easy to read, but you can just skim through the article since many details can be overlooked. I left my highlighting text to facilitate the reading.
3. The magazine article by Charmaine Chua called «The Container. Stacking, Packing, And Moving The World» published in The Funambulist. Here we will read about the container as an innovation that revolutionized logistics.
For each of the documents write 3 to 5 bullet points that summarize the main ideas or arguments of the text. They should be very short and concise. Think of them as the elevator pitch of the article. If you prefer, you can write a paragraph that articulates the bullet points and summarizes the text. Do what helps you most to remember the ideas of the text.
Additionally, write three subjects or questions that you would like to discuss during the zoom session. Be specific enough so a good conversation can emerge from your idea. I will select some of these for our discussion on Tuesday.