[Themaintainers] Question from a journalist

Mon Jun 10 04:39:43 EDT 2019

Dear All,

Today, my piece on repetition was published:
https://decorrespondent.nl/9581/de-kracht-van-herhaling-herhaling-herhaling/319229339-db761b53

Your many suggestions and remarks really helped me shape and refine my
thinking. Sadly only the tiniest fraction of your recommendations actually
made it into the piece -- a phenomenon that I think also merits a piece on
its own, but what to call it?

Again, thanks a lot!
All best,
Lynn.

On Sun, 21 Apr 2019 at 23:35, Juris Milestone <juris at temple.edu> wrote:

> Lynn,
>
> Thank you for the question!  Something not yet mentioned… though an
> explicit focus on maintenance is slightly new for anthropologists, your
> question has reminded me that repetition is a fundamental concept for
> several sub-disciplines in anthropology - linguistics is one area that has
> explored it extensively (“Repetition” by Penelope Brown, Journal of
> Linguistics).  And the study of ritual has also long relied on examination
> of repetition - but recently, “On the impossibility of invariant
> repetition: ritual, tradition and creativity among Sri Lankan ritual
> specialists” by Bob Simpson in History and Anthropology, or  "Bringing
> Kierkegaard into Anthropology: Repetition, absurdity and curses in Fiji” by
> Matt Tomlinson in American Ethnology (both explore the productivity of the
> illusion of repetition).  There’s also the role of repetition in
> performance (of identities, social roles, ritual, gender) like Judith
> Butler’s "Gender Trouble," or “Performative Acts and Gender Constitution:
> an essay in phenomenology and feminist theory” in Theatre Journal.  Even
> medical anthropologists have utilized it: “Persons, Places and Times: The
> Meanings of Repetition in an STD Clinic” by Lori Leonard, et al.  Perhaps
> more interesting for folks interested in this and maintenance, however, is
> Felicity Aulino’s "Rituals of Care for the Elderly in northern Thailand:
> Merit, mortality, and the everyday of long-term care", in American
> Ethnologist.
>
> I’m sure some of these are leading off into the weeds for you, but there
> is much more and probably better anthropological work on this than I’ve
> suggested.
>
> Best,
> Juris
>
>
>
> Juris Milestone, Ph.D.
> Department of Anthropology
> Temple University
> juris at temple.edu
>
> On Apr 21, 2019, at 3:37 PM, Lynn Berger <lynn at decorrespondent.nl> wrote:
>
> Dear all,
>
> Wow, thanks a lot for all these excellent examples and thoughts! There are
> even more sides to this topic of repetition than I thought :).
> I'm sure I'll have fun exploring the various avenues (and might get back
> to some of you for more information).
>
> Happy Easter!
> Lynn.
>
>
> Lynn Berger
> De Correspondent <http://www.decorrespondent.nl/lynnberger>
> Barentzplein 7BG
> 1013 NJ Amsterdam
> @LynnBerger1984 <https://twitter.com/LynnBerger1984>
> 06 24102193
>
>
>
>
> On Sat, 20 Apr 2019 at 16:05, Shu Changxue <shuchangxue at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi Lynn,
>>
>> My recent work "Towards Modern Ceramics in China" might fit into your
>> scenario. My starting point, more than ten years ago, was to maintain and
>> raise awareness of very inconspicuous architecture built in bricks. As the
>> investigation went on, it has revealed a very "innovative" history about
>> modern ceramics in China:  brick was actually the starting point and motive
>> force of Chinese ceramics shifting to a novel paradigm.
>>
>> The story, in part, is synthesized in a forthcoming article titled "*Towards
>> modern ceramics in China: Engineering sources and the Manufacture céramique
>> de Shanghai.” in: Technology and Culture, v.61, n.2 (accepted on 5 Sep
>> 2018, scheduled in April 2020)* (*ISSN: 0040-165X*, *E-ISSN:1097-3729*).
>>
>> If you need more information please let me know!
>> Changxue
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Apr 19, 2019 at 11:25 AM Lynn Berger <lynn at decorrespondent.nl>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hello Maintainers!
>>>
>>> Short version: I'm a journalist working on a story about the value of
>>> repetition and why we usually overlook it because we're more interested in
>>> novelty. I draw a parallel to how we tend to prefer innovation to
>>> maintenance and want to point out that this is silly, not least because
>>> maintenance is often a condition for innovation. And now I'm wondering: do
>>> the people on this list have some examples of when maintenance work led to
>>> new insights that led to innovation?
>>>
>>> Slightly longer version:
>>> My name is Lynn Berger and I've been on this list for some time. I have
>>> a PhD in communications from Columbia University (I studied 19th century
>>> photography and the law) but for the last six years I've been working as a
>>> journalist at De Correspondent, an online journalism platform based in
>>> Amsterdam. I cover technology and culture there; a few years ago I wrote a
>>> piece about the rediscovery of maintenance, with pride of place for the
>>> maintainers. (Those who read Dutch can find it here
>>> <https://decorrespondent.nl/6816/he-innovators-gamechangers-en-disrupters-vergeten-jullie-het-onderhoud-niet/227102304-f476506a>,
>>> and a short followup I wrote on repair, here
>>> <https://decorrespondent.nl/7414/waarom-het-recht-op-repareren-ons-allemaal-aangaat/247027066-a9e9bbdc>
>>> .)
>>>
>>> Currently I'm working on a story about the value of repetition and how
>>> we tend to overlook it because we're more interested in novelty. I draw a
>>> parallel to how we tend to prefer innovation to maintenance and want to
>>> point out that this is missing the point, not least because maintenance is
>>> often a condition for innovation.
>>>
>>> And now I'm wondering: do the people on this list have some examples of
>>> when maintenance work led to new insights that led to innovation?
>>>
>>> I'd be grateful for a few good and concrete examples. And for your time,
>>> of course!
>>>
>>> Thank you in advance and keep up the good work (!)
>>> Lynn.
>>>
>>> Lynn Berger
>>> De Correspondent <http://www.decorrespondent.nl/lynnberger>
>>> Barentzplein 7BG
>>> 1013 NJ Amsterdam
>>> @LynnBerger1984 <https://twitter.com/LynnBerger1984>
>>> 06 24102193
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Themaintainers mailing list
>>> Themaintainers at lists.stevens.edu
>>> https://lists.stevens.edu/mailman/listinfo/themaintainers
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Dr. *SHU Changxue *舒畅雪
>> FWO Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow (postdoctoral)
>> University of Leuven
>> Faculty of Engineering Science: Department of Architecture (
>> http://www.asro.kuleuven.be)
>> Raymond Lemaire International Centre for Conservation (
>> http://set.kuleuven.be/rlicc)
>> Kasteelpark Arenberg 1
>> B-3001 Heverlee (Leuven) - Belgium
>>
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