Page 1. LANGUAGE 189 In Reflections on Language, Chomsky does a good job of presenting some initi... more Page 1. LANGUAGE 189 In Reflections on Language, Chomsky does a good job of presenting some initial empiri-cal (not empiricist) support for the rationalist position. He notes, for example, that we use some reasonably complex ...
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2011
The paper reviews a set of research projects intended to plan for the future. It uses an actor-ne... more The paper reviews a set of research projects intended to plan for the future. It uses an actor-network construct from Latour"s work on science practice, translation. The paper contrasts normal science practice with science in a corporate context. Both situations occur in actor-networks, require translation and contain arbitrary decisions. The corporate context can be more problematic because of the greater diversity of actors and agendas. The longer the work goes on, the more actors there are. Research per se is a sustained effort towards emergent goals; in the context of fluid corporate networks these goals can become lost in mistranslation from one phase to the next. Results that would otherwise build up science findings miss their mark, are delayed or are overtaken by other developments. The findings exist, but the outcomes for which they were intended may not materialize.
Proceedings of the 18th annual meeting on Association for Computational Linguistics -, 1980
It is very interesting as a social observer to track the development of computer scientists invol... more It is very interesting as a social observer to track the development of computer scientists involved in AI and natural language-related research in theoretical issues of mutual concern to computer science and the social study of language use. The necessity of writing programs that demonstrate the validity or invalidity of conceptualizations and assumptions has caused computer scientists to cover a lot of theoretical ground in a very short time, or at least to arrive at a problem area, and to see the problem fairly clearly, that is very contemporary in social theory. There is in fact a discrepancy between the level of sophistication exhibited in locating the problem area (forced by the specific constraints of programming work) and in the theorizations concocted to solve the problem. Thus we find computer scientists and students of language use from several disciplines converging in their interest in the mechanics and metaphysics of social interaction and specifically its linguistic realization. Attempts to write natural language programs delivered the realization that even so basic a feature as nominal reference is no simple thing. In order to give an "understander" the wherewithal ~o answer simple questions about a text, one had to provide it with an organized world in which assumptions are inferred, in which exchanges are treated as part of a coherent and minim-fly redundant text, in which things allow for certain actions and relations and not others, and for which it is unclear how to store the information about the world in such a way that it is accessible for all its possible purposes and delivered up in an appropriate way. Some of these were providahle and some weren't. Some AI workers have already moved into the phenomenological perspective, Just from confronting these problems --a long way to go from the assumptions of m~thematics, science, and engineering that they originally brought to the task.
... These formative contexts within which IT is conceived and deployed have become more ... quant... more ... These formative contexts within which IT is conceived and deployed have become more ... quantitative research with empiricism and consider qualitative research as not empirical (Lee and ... research may actually link qualitative meth-ods back to mathematical models, now that the ...
International Journal of Information Technologies and Systems Approach, 2000
This article addresses complexity in information systems. It defines how complexity can be used t... more This article addresses complexity in information systems. It defines how complexity can be used to inform information systems research, and how some individuals and organizations are using notions of complexity. Some organizations are dealing with technical and physical infrastructure complexity, as well as the application of complexity in specific areas such as supply chain management and network management. Their approaches can be used to address more general organizational issues. The concepts and ideas in this article are relevant to the integration of complexity into information systems research. However, the ideas and concepts in this article are not a litmus test for complexity. We hope only to provide a starting point for information systems researchers to push the boundaries of our understanding of complexity. The article also contains a number of suggested research questions that could be pursued in this area.
Clerical workers in an office scheduled for the installation of an office information system were... more Clerical workers in an office scheduled for the installation of an office information system were interviewed regarding the social and technical organization of their work. The inter-views were designed to disclose some of the actual practices involved in accomplishing procedural ...
Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 2006
In many corporations today, it is common to have teams with members located in dzfferent geograph... more In many corporations today, it is common to have teams with members located in dzfferent geographic locations, d~flerent time zones, and even diflerent countries. These virtual teams are strategically important to organizations as they adapt to constantly changing market and political conditions such as global outsourcing. Despite the research and investment in technologies supporting virtual work, it remains unclear how virtuality, or the conditions under which virtual teams work, affects performance. Prior research suggests performance of virtual teams runs the gamete from failure to success. A global understanding of the specific impacts of virtual work on peformance, positive or negative, remains elusive because researchers have not yet ascertained which aspects of virtuality are especially relevant in a given setting.
Page 1. LANGUAGE 189 In Reflections on Language, Chomsky does a good job of presenting some initi... more Page 1. LANGUAGE 189 In Reflections on Language, Chomsky does a good job of presenting some initial empiri-cal (not empiricist) support for the rationalist position. He notes, for example, that we use some reasonably complex ...
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2011
The paper reviews a set of research projects intended to plan for the future. It uses an actor-ne... more The paper reviews a set of research projects intended to plan for the future. It uses an actor-network construct from Latour"s work on science practice, translation. The paper contrasts normal science practice with science in a corporate context. Both situations occur in actor-networks, require translation and contain arbitrary decisions. The corporate context can be more problematic because of the greater diversity of actors and agendas. The longer the work goes on, the more actors there are. Research per se is a sustained effort towards emergent goals; in the context of fluid corporate networks these goals can become lost in mistranslation from one phase to the next. Results that would otherwise build up science findings miss their mark, are delayed or are overtaken by other developments. The findings exist, but the outcomes for which they were intended may not materialize.
Proceedings of the 18th annual meeting on Association for Computational Linguistics -, 1980
It is very interesting as a social observer to track the development of computer scientists invol... more It is very interesting as a social observer to track the development of computer scientists involved in AI and natural language-related research in theoretical issues of mutual concern to computer science and the social study of language use. The necessity of writing programs that demonstrate the validity or invalidity of conceptualizations and assumptions has caused computer scientists to cover a lot of theoretical ground in a very short time, or at least to arrive at a problem area, and to see the problem fairly clearly, that is very contemporary in social theory. There is in fact a discrepancy between the level of sophistication exhibited in locating the problem area (forced by the specific constraints of programming work) and in the theorizations concocted to solve the problem. Thus we find computer scientists and students of language use from several disciplines converging in their interest in the mechanics and metaphysics of social interaction and specifically its linguistic realization. Attempts to write natural language programs delivered the realization that even so basic a feature as nominal reference is no simple thing. In order to give an "understander" the wherewithal ~o answer simple questions about a text, one had to provide it with an organized world in which assumptions are inferred, in which exchanges are treated as part of a coherent and minim-fly redundant text, in which things allow for certain actions and relations and not others, and for which it is unclear how to store the information about the world in such a way that it is accessible for all its possible purposes and delivered up in an appropriate way. Some of these were providahle and some weren't. Some AI workers have already moved into the phenomenological perspective, Just from confronting these problems --a long way to go from the assumptions of m~thematics, science, and engineering that they originally brought to the task.
... These formative contexts within which IT is conceived and deployed have become more ... quant... more ... These formative contexts within which IT is conceived and deployed have become more ... quantitative research with empiricism and consider qualitative research as not empirical (Lee and ... research may actually link qualitative meth-ods back to mathematical models, now that the ...
International Journal of Information Technologies and Systems Approach, 2000
This article addresses complexity in information systems. It defines how complexity can be used t... more This article addresses complexity in information systems. It defines how complexity can be used to inform information systems research, and how some individuals and organizations are using notions of complexity. Some organizations are dealing with technical and physical infrastructure complexity, as well as the application of complexity in specific areas such as supply chain management and network management. Their approaches can be used to address more general organizational issues. The concepts and ideas in this article are relevant to the integration of complexity into information systems research. However, the ideas and concepts in this article are not a litmus test for complexity. We hope only to provide a starting point for information systems researchers to push the boundaries of our understanding of complexity. The article also contains a number of suggested research questions that could be pursued in this area.
Clerical workers in an office scheduled for the installation of an office information system were... more Clerical workers in an office scheduled for the installation of an office information system were interviewed regarding the social and technical organization of their work. The inter-views were designed to disclose some of the actual practices involved in accomplishing procedural ...
Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 2006
In many corporations today, it is common to have teams with members located in dzfferent geograph... more In many corporations today, it is common to have teams with members located in dzfferent geographic locations, d~flerent time zones, and even diflerent countries. These virtual teams are strategically important to organizations as they adapt to constantly changing market and political conditions such as global outsourcing. Despite the research and investment in technologies supporting virtual work, it remains unclear how virtuality, or the conditions under which virtual teams work, affects performance. Prior research suggests performance of virtual teams runs the gamete from failure to success. A global understanding of the specific impacts of virtual work on peformance, positive or negative, remains elusive because researchers have not yet ascertained which aspects of virtuality are especially relevant in a given setting.
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Papers by Eleanor Wynn