Writing Knowledge

“Writing Knowledge” is a “sketchbook” / “public notebook” that I worked on a few years ago – I am continuing to add to occasionally…

Blombos Cave South Africa

“…paleontologists discovered two pieces of ochre rock decorated with geometric patterns. The site, called Blombos Cave, is near the southern Cape shore of the Indian Ocean, nearly 200 miles of Cape Town, South Africa. Sophisticated dating techniques led the researchers to conclude that the artifacts date back more than 70,000 years. That is more than 35,000 years older than any other 'stone age' art. “

http://www.accessexcellence.org/WN/SU/caveart.php [clipped 10 23 2009 941am PST ]

Rock Art Ranch near Winslow Arizona (September, 2006)

“This "oracle bone" dates from the reign of King Wu Ding in the Shang Dynasty. It is approximately three thousand years old.”

“A partial translation of the left-hand side of this oracle bone: [Preface:] Crack making on gui-si day, Que divined:[Charge:] In the next ten days there will be no disaster.[Prognostication:] The king, reading the cracks, said, "There will be no harm; there will perhaps be the coming of alarming news."[Verification:] When it came to the fifth day, ding-you, there really was the coming of alarming news from the west. Zhi Guo, reporting, said, "The Du Fang [a border people] are besieging in our eastern borders and have harmed two settlements." The Gong-fang also raided the fields of our western borders.

“This translation follows (with slight modifications) David N. Keightley, Sources of Shang History (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1978), p. 44. The oracle bone being cited is Ching-hua 2.”

http://faculty.vassar.edu/brvannor/translation.html [June 2, 2007]

 “Most  Chinese paintings have small red impressions in a stylized script, placed either inconspicuously at the painting's outer boundaries, or scattered liberally through the image area itself.  These seals (or "chops")  can indicate either who executed the painting or who owned it.  Carved in a soft stone and impressed with a waxy, oil-based ink paste in vermilion red, the seals use an ancient script type that was in use mainly during the Zhou and Qin dynasties; this gives the characters an archaic quality that is often highly abstract.  Most seals are square; some are round or gourd shaped.  The names inscribed on the seal stone are typically the literary or personal name of the owner.  Historians use seals to trace the later history of  a painting, to see who owned and viewed the painting and which later artists may have been influenced by it.  The seal is one tool art historians and connoisseurs have used to authenticate paintings, but like signatures and the paintings themselves, these seals can be copied or forged and therefore may prove to be less than reliable evidence.

“The design or layout of words by the seal carver evolved into an art form in itself, the challenge being fitting the relatively predictable forms of characters into an interesting composition where there was very little leeway for bold experimentation.  The characters can be carved in relief (resulting in red figures on a white ground as you see here at left) or engraved (with characters appearing in white on a solid red background).  The characters in the seal at left belong to a publisher, the Renmin meishu chubanshe of Beijing.  The simplest character, ren, is in the upper right

hand corner. ”  

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgtech.htm [June 2, 2007]

“Seals”

“Inscriptions   “Colophons, or inscriptions, are one of the more striking features of Chinese paintings that are unfamiliar to western audiences.  In the west, not until the twentieth century do we see text and art image interact to the same degree on the surface of the art work.  Early narrative paintings in the Chinese tradition often displayed text in banners next to the figures depicted; portions of the associated narrative text were also frequently found interspersed with sections of the painting.   Beginning around the 11th century, however, poems and painted images were designed to share the same image space.     “Although this practice was common at court, it was with the scholar painters that the practice of writing on the painting surface became firmly established.  Literati painters also appended notes concerning the circumstances of creation of  particular paintings.  These writings, added after the painting was completed, could be mounted together with the painting but on another piece of paper or silk (as was the case with handscrolls) or even invaded the picture surface itself (as in the case of the album leaf or the hanging scroll).  The content of these inscriptions typically included the appreciative comments of later viewers and collectors and constituted a major source of enjoyment for connoisseurs, who felt a connection to art aficionados and scholars of the past through their writings.”

Wang Mian (1287?-1359), Plum Blossoms, in Gen jidai no kaiga (Tokyo/Nara: Yamato bunkakan, 1998), pl. 25, p. 55. Collection of Masame bijutsukan.Hanging scroll, ink on paper,

155.3 x 57.3 cm

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/painting/4ptgtech.htm [June 2,2007]

Yang Renkai, ed., Zhongguo meishu quanji, Shufa juanke pian 3: Sui Tang Wudai shufa (Beijing: Renming meishu chubanshe, 1986), plate 52, pg. 112.

Collection of the Liaoning Provincial Museum.

Zhang Xu (active 710-750), Four Letters on ancient poems, written in wild cursive script, detail  

“Zhang Xu (active 710-750 AD) was said to be the originator of the wild cursive script.  He enjoyed considerable fame in his own day, and is counted among the Tang poet Du Fu’s "Eight Drunken Immortals." “Although wild cursive seems to break radically from all past traditions, Zhang Xu did base his writing style on one of the more prominent earlier calligraphers.  It is believed that he was further influenced by the Daoist practice of automatic writing in sand. “Zhang Xu's calligraphic style is widely praised, especially by later scholars, yet one of the by-products of his style is a pronounced deformation of word structures. ”

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/callig/7calindv.htm [June 2, 2007]

“The monk Huaisu (735?-800? AD, example shown below) was a man of letters; also known as the "Drunken Monk," he followed Zhang Xu's wild cursive mode of writing. In one of the extant examples of his calligraphy, Huaisu complains about eating bitter bamboo shoots, and also admits his unbounded passion for liquor and fish. [This] sample of Huaisu's writing...is an autobiographical essay that includes comments on his own study of calligraphy.”

Huaisu (735? - 800? AD), Autobiographical Essay     Yang Renkai, ed., Zhongguo meishu quanji, Shufa juanke bian 3: Sui Tang Wudai shufa (Beijing Renming meishu chubanshe, 1986), plate 76, pg. 167. Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei.

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/callig/7calindv.htm [June 2, 2007]

Yan Zhenqing (709-785 AD), Lament for a nephew (letter), detail   

“The content of the letter written by Yan Zhenqing, left, recounts the political  circumstances under which his nephew was executed. Although it is riddled with mistakes and corrections, this example of Yan Zhenqing's writing has been especially

valued by connoisseurs.” 

Yang Renkai, ed., Zhongguo meishu quanji, Shufa juanke bian 3: Sui Tang Wudai shufa (Beijing: Renming meishu chubanshe, 1986), plate 69, pg. 154. Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei.

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/callig/7calindv.htm [June 2, 2007]

“Workshop decorated with banner proclaiming:

‘Under no conditions forget class struggle!’ “   China Pictorial 2.260 (1970):35.

“During the twentieth century, the social and political uses of calligraphy have been radically changed.  Calligraphy is no longer an art associated primarily with the traditional scholarly elite.  Not only has calligraphy been employed as a tool of revolution, but it has become a popular amateur art practiced by people of all walks of life, and artists have found ways to use it to challenge traditions rather than perpetuate them.  

“Under Mao, words were frequently seen on the street displayed on banners or signs with revolutionary slogans.  Most of the time, the style used for revolutionary slogans was bold and  block-like, with no resemblance to calligraphy produced through use of the brush.  “At workplaces, as seen below, prominent signs urged workers  to sustain their revolutionary ardor. ”

http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/callig/7calmodn.htm [June 2, 2007]

“Here is the first page of the Babylonian Talmud, as it appears in the standard Vilna edition. The standardized pagination follows that of the third Bomberg edition, Venice, 1548. Pages are numbered by folio. This page is Berakhoth 2a (that is, the first side of folio 2 in the tractate Berakhoth, "Blessings").

“Considered from the standpoint of typography alone, the printed page of the Talmud is an amazingly complex text with many intertextual connections representing fifteen centuries of discussion.”

http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rs/2/Judaism/talmud.html

“Talmud and its Shape”

Let's color-code the layout so that we can distinguish the various layers more easily.

     Mishnah (Palestine, about 220 CE)

     Gemara (Babylonia, about 500 CE)

     Comments of Rashi (Northern France, 1040-1105 CE)

     Comments of the Tosafists (France and Germany, 12th-13th centuries)

     Comments of R. Nissim ben Jacob (Tunisia, 11th century)

     Notes by R. Aqiva Eger (Prussia, 1761-1837)

     Anonymous comment (printers?)

     Key to scriptural quotations

     Cross-references to medieval codes of Jewish law

     Cross-references to other passages in Talmud

     A textual emendation from the Proofs of Joel Sirkes (Poland, 1561-1640)

http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rs/2/Judaism/talmud.html

http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/file_download.php/40ccadf3ed6e2b181b3a8e5fead40c9d0005V.jpg [June 2,2007 ]

Hashiyat 'ala sharh Muhammad Bin Mubarakshah al-Bukhari 'alaHikmat al-'ayn li-'Ali Bin 'UmarAuthor: 'Ibn Mubarakshah al-Bukharakshah al-Bukhari, Shams-al-dinLibrary: National Library of the Czech RepublicOwner: Czech Republic

http://ddc.aub.edu.lb/projects/jafet/manuscripts/MS160/640/003A.jpg [June 2, 2007]

http://www.thefar.com/Mardini.gif [June 2, 2007]

Al Mardini mid-17th century

“MANUSCRIPT, Arabic. al-Durr al-Mukhtâr by Muhammad 'Alâ' al-Dîn b. al-

Shaykh 'Alî, al-imâm bi-jâmi' Banî Umayya thumma al-muftî bi-Dimashq, a

commentary on Tanwîr al-Absâr wa-Jâmi' al-Bihâr, a work on Hanafite jurisprudence by Shams al-Dîn Muhammad al-Timirtâshî (d.1004/1595). The name of the author of this commentary is given in GAL G II 311

as 'Alâ' al-Dîn b. 'Alî b. Muhammad al-Haskafî (d. 1088/1677). GAL S II 432

mentions a Muhammad 'Alâ' al-Dîn b. 'Alî al-'Abbâsî al Hanafî, "Imâm der

Umaiyadenmoschee" and author of a Khulâsat al-Furû' completed in 1071/1660; this certainly refers to the same author and the same work. • Laid paper, 376 fols, 215 x 150 (155 x 82) mm, 29 lines to the page in red frame. Small nasta'lîq script, black and red ink. First opening with gilt frame

and simple decorated 'unwân. A few stains, but on the whole a nice, clean copy. Many

marginal notes up to fol. 68. Dark red leather binding with flap, tooled

decorations and green medallions; edges rubbed, otherwise in good shape.

Colophon on fol. 375v, dated 1178/1764-5, copied by Ismâ'îl tâ'ib al-mudarris Ibn

Mustafâ al-Bashshâr.”

http://www.smitskamp.nl/651-FIQ.HTM [June 2, 2007]

DANTE ALIGHIERI, Inferno e Purgatorio, col commento acefalo di Jacopo della Lana

Sec. XIV, secondo quarto; Bologna, "l'Illustratore" (attr.). Membr.; mm. 380x250; cc. II, 187, II°;littera textualis (copista: maestro Galvano da

Bologna).

http://www.istitutodatini.it/biblio/images/it/riccard/1005/ [clipped 02 / 19 /08 ]

http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/treasure/flip_side_of_history.html

The Flip Side of HistoryBy Lee Ann PotterIn case you were wondering, there is writing on the back of the original, signed Declaration of Independence. But it is not invisible, nor does it include a map, as the recently released Disney feature film, National Treasure, suggests. The writing on the back reads

"Original Declaration of Independencedated 4th July 1776"

and it appears on the bottom of the document, upside down. While no one knows for certain who wrote it, it is known that early in its life, the large parchment document (it measures 29¾ inches by 24½ inches) was rolled up for storage. So, it is likely that the notation was added simply as a label.The Declaration moved from city to city with Congress during the Revolutionary War. In 1789, it was officially transferred to the custody of the secretary of state, then it moved with the capital of the country, first from New York to Philadelphia, then in 1800 to the District of Columbia.As this little-known information about the Declaration suggests, the backside of a historical document can reveal interesting details about the document’s history as an artifact. The details might relate directly to the document’s travels, its owners, or handlers, or they might offer clues to the economic, social, or political conditions at the time of the document’s creation. Eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century letters, for example, were folded and sealed shut with sealing wax because envelopes had not been invented. The address was typically written in the center of the last page of a folded folio so it could be seen when sealed shut. The address can often provide insight into information not necessarily contained in the text of the letter.

http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/treasure/back_of_declaration.html

http://www.nyu.edu/projects/materialworld/images/1_Darwin%20Tree%20B%2036.jpg

http://darwin-online.org.uk/converted/published/1975_NaturalSelection_F1583/1975_NaturalSelection_F1583_fig03.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cartas_Zener.svg [clipped August 20, 2011]

ZENER CARDS

“Zener cards are cards used to conduct experiments for extra-sensory perception (ESP), most often clairvoyance. Perceptual psychologist Karl Zener designed the cards in the early 1930s for experiments conducted with his colleague, parapsychologist J. B. Rhine.[1]”

Symbols / Icons

“Emoticons”?

8-)

;>/

:-0

b-|

Grafitti…

Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day October 23 [2009]

“rebus” \REE-bus\ Noun

Meaning: a representation of syllables or words by means of pictures or symbols; also : a riddle made up of such pictures or symbols Example Sentence: “The answer to yesterday’s rebus, which showed a man on an Ark, a spider web, and a spoon stirring coffee, was ‘Noah Webster.’ “ Did you know?A rebus communicates its message by means of pictures or symbols whose names sound like various parts of a word, phrase, or sentence. For example, a picture of a can of tomatoes, followed by the letters UC and a picture of a well means "Can you see well?" In Latin, the word "rebus" means "by things"; "rebus" is a form of the Latin word "res," which means "thing." English speakers started using the word "rebus" for picture writing in the early 1600s. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

D. Ronfeldt and John Arquilla, The promise of noöpolitik , First Monday Issue 12_8 http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue12_8/ronfeldt/

“Growth of three information–based realms“As information and communication have come to matter more, so have the realms or domains

defined by them. Three that matter most are: cyberspace, the infosphere, and the noosphere. All are about information, and reflect the kinds of technological, organizational, and ideational developments noted above. But each has a different emphasis — and thus significance. They are discussed below in a progression, from the most technological (cyberspace), to the most

ideational (the noosphere). Our point is that diplomats should be thinking in terms of the noosphere as much as the other two.”

“Cyberspace”

“This, the most common of the terms, refers to the global system of Internet–connected computers, communications infrastructures, online conferencing entities, databases, and information utilities generally known as “the Net.” This mostly means the Internet; but the term may also be used to refer to the electronic environments and critical infrastructures of a corporation, military, government, or other organization. “Strategic information warfare” is largely about assuring “cyberspace security and safety” at home, and developing a capacity to exploit vulnerabilities in systems abroad.

“Cyberspace is the fastest growing, newest domain of power and property in the world. The Internet now embraces some 20 million computer hosts, nearly a hundred million users (expected to exceed a billion by the year 2000), and billions if not trillions of dollars worth of activities. Further developing this realm, nationally and globally, is one of the great undertakings of our time.

“The term has a more technological bent than infosphere or noosphere. Yet, there has always been a tendency to treat cyberspace as more than technology, from the moment the term was proposed by cyberpunk writer William Gibson (1984), through recent notions of cyberspace as a realm for building “virtual communities” (Rheingold, 1993), creating a “global matrix of minds” (Quarterman, 1990, 1993), and strengthening people’s spiritual bonds around the world (Cobb, 1998). Such views implicitly portend an overlap of cyberspace with the noosphere.”

D. Ronfeldt and John Arquilla, The promise of noöpolitik , First Monday Issue 12_8 http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue12_8/ronfeldt/

“Infosphere”

“Knowing the limitations of the cyberspace concept, some analysts prefer the term infosphere. Sometimes the two terms are used interchangeably; but when viewed distinctly, the infosphere is far larger than cyberspace — it encompasses the latter, plus information systems that may not be part of “the Net.” In the civilian world, this often includes broadcast, print, and other media (the mediasphere), as well as institutions, like libraries, parts of which are not yet electronic. In the military world, the infosphere may include command, control, computer, communications, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems — the electronic systems said to comprise the “military information environment” of a battlespace.

“According to Jeffrey Cooper (1997), the infosphere is emerging, like cyberspace, as a “truly global information infrastructure and environment” in which traditional notions of space and time no longer prevail. The term has merit because it focuses on “information environments,” rather than computerized infrastructures. The term is also favored because it “carries resonances of biosphere” — meaning the infosphere is “a distinct domain built on information, but one intimately related to the rest of a set of nested globes in which we exist simultaneously.” This implicitly entertains a view of the world that partakes of the next concept.”

D. Ronfeldt and John Arquilla, The promise of noöpolitik , First Monday Issue 12_8 http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue12_8/ronfeldt/

“Noosphere”“The most abstract — and so far, least favored — of the terms is the noosphere. This term, from the

Greek word noos for “the mind,” was coined by French theologian and scientist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin in 1925, and spread in posthumous publications in the 1950s and 1960s. In his view, the world first evolved a geosphere, and next a biosphere. Now that people are communing on global scales, the world is giving rise to a noosphere — what he variously describes (1964, 1965) as a globe–circling realm of “the mind,” a “thinking circuit,” a “stupendous thinking machine,” a “thinking envelope” full of fibers and networks, and a planetary “consciousness.” In the words of Julian Huxley [1], the noosphere is a “web of living thought.” [2]

“According to Teilhard (1964), forces of the mind have been creating the noosphere for ages. Before long, a synthesis of its pieces will occur in which peoples from different nations, races, and cultures develop minds that are planetary in scope, without losing their personal identities. Fully realized, the noosphere will raise mankind to a high, new evolutionary plane, one driven by a collective devotion to moral and juridical principles. However, the transition may not be smooth; a global tremor and possibly an apocalypse may characterize the final fusion of the noosphere.

“The noosphere concept thus encompasses cyberspace and the infosphere. It also relates to an organizational theme that has constantly figured in our own work about the information revolution: the rise of network forms of organization that strengthen civil–society actors. Few state or market actors, by themselves, seem likely to have much interest in fostering the construction of a global noosphere, except in limited areas having to do with international law, or political and economic ideology. The impetus for creating a global noosphere is more likely to emanate from activist NGOs, other civil–society actors (e.g., churches, schools), and individuals dedicated to freedom of information and communications and to the spread of ethical values and norms [3]. We believe it is time for state actors to begin moving in this direction, too, particularly since power in the information age will stem, more than ever before, from the ability of state and market actors to work conjointly with civil–society actors.”

D. Ronfeldt and John Arquilla, The promise of noöpolitik , First Monday Issue 12_8 http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue12_8/ronfeldt/