Communciating Gender- Man/Machine

Looking beyond the instruments

Technology to some extent is considered the essence of our lives, the essence of our human nature. it is the basic theory against which we measure or compare ourselves. 'Teche' in ancient Greece was synonymous with poeisis, meaning poetry and technology had the same meaning. Historically, advances in our understanding of material process have far outstripped advances in our understanding of social processes. As a result, vast social potential has been created, but men and women in societies have not yet acquired the capacity to advance their mental engagements at the same pace.

Wireless technologies, materials and embedded chips are just a few of the current technologies influencing the urban environment while they are expected to be extended to connect to new advanced rural junctions. How cities will be developed and where growth will occur will be intimately tied to the technologies of the future as well as our intellectual capacity for creative usage. It is with the new technology that lies potential advancement and empowerment where women act as equal as men in their capacity.

Technologies have created new cultural contexts for understanding gender. The technological texts are compelling extension of Derrida’s “other” ways of writing and reading, where we take seriously “other” logics of the structure of signification. The breakdown of categorical paradigms such as body/mind and human/machine allows us to refashion gendered categories and hierarchies. There is powerful gender dimension to the process of analysing data and information which needs to be included in decision making process. As Teresa de Lauretis claims, technology "shapes our perception and cognitive processes, mediates our relationships with objects of the material and physical world, and our relationships with our own or other bodies."

Initialy men sailing through the world of technology forging instruments that were percieved as traditionaly ordinary and managed to have freshen them up - producing contemporary function and image. An object made of common grade austantic steel generates different gendered setting as to how men and women see materials differently: either for its beautiful reflection of the light on steel or for its different utilization than stainless steel containing chronium and nickel to improve resistance to rusting. The function has bigger gender impact when the same material for example is fabricated into ultra fine woven shape. How different we see materials in the way we perceive easthetics, arts, language, communication, culture and relationships? how differently critiques take position in our gendered relations with materials? The way we react to materials influence manufactureres products and intrigue the rethinking force behind gendered categories and hierarchies. Precious metals and stones like gold and diamond have long been a symbol of wealth and luxury and are part of gendered social stratification. Women with traditional gold bracelets categorized in different social ladder for her money saving behaviour keeping gold, as compared with financial behaviour of a man possesed golden watch. As we move further, technology imitates material, there are pieces of cheap handicrafted stones which looks like the real thing, yet they contain only inexpensive materials. When plastics first came on the market people were uneasy with the new materials but when it was shaped like something familiar to use - say, chair and were afordable, men and women made use of them in different ways. Environment and space affecting us in a gendered system in a similar way. Just as caring for the environment has to maintain a balancing act between many things - some has bigger impact than others in a gendered manner. Scientists are examining whether there is a link between PVC and pollution and increased infertility amongst men.

Designers of the latest Jaguar car have used different techniques and state of the art materials to build the car body. The XS bodyshell is made from aluminium and magnasium alloys, as light metals are often used to reduce the weight of components and structures. Strenght to weight ratios together with stillness and ressistance to buckling are particularly important. The sheet has to meet demanding requirements such as formability and the minimum gauge to provide the maximum weight. Castings are used in places where the body geometry is complex and where stillness is needed to withstand high loads.

The Jaguar history 1940 - 2004 shaped the E Type which is associated in popular culture with glamour and famous men and women. The new XJ series code named X300 first appeared in '1995'. Simultaniously, in '1995' the Carbon Fibre reinforced composite of the high strength Kayak that weight only 6 kg was used by Lynn Simpson when she won the Gold Medal for Britain in the world Slalom Championship. In the very same year '1995', at the Beijing + 5 Platform for Action collective reflecton was iterated that women share common concerns that can be addressed only by working together and in partnership with men towards the common goal of gender equality around the world. The Platform stressed respects and values for the full diversity of women's situations and conditions and recognizes that some women face particular barriers to their empowerment whether social, political or economically. The Platform for Action required immediate and concerted action by all to create a peaceful, just and humane world based on the principle of equality for all people of all ages and from all walks of life, and to this end, recognizes that broad- based and sustained economic growth in the context of sustainable development is necessary to sustain social development and social justice.

Ultimatly the XJ Jaguar has under gone further improvements upto the present day. For joining the body some 3200 rivets are used to make the integrated monocoque body and chassis structure, the light specialised structure of the body shell greatly reduces the weight and improves its impact resistance. While there exists half the world's population under the age of 25 who need proper education more, while more than 85 per cent of the youth live in developing countries . The implications of these demographic factors must be recognized. Special measures is expected to be taken for young women to have the life skills necessary for active and effective participation in the advanced world. It will be critical for the international community to demonstrate a new commitment to the future - a commitment to inspiring a new generation of women and men to work together for a more equitable society.

The Jaguar XJ is currently available with V6 and V8 petrol engines. A high performance V6 diesel engine was show cased in the new Jaguar in 2004 and can achieve 40 miles to the gallon. The result is an engine which is very durable. it also has very high specific power and torque outputs for its weight. This improves performance and fuel economy and lessens emissions. The super efficient Hi-tech and highly sensitive injectors made of material called peizoelectric polymers have managed to over come many previous problems of older generation diesel engines. This urge for improvement and growth is an endowment of human beings, living organisms compelled to develop by a pressure within themselves, which in turn gives life and energy to the growth of the instruments and systems they create. The theory has to outline enabling space and describe rules and regulations to allow 'even' growth and development to be placed at the center.

Social behaviors, skills, attitudes, customs, traditions, systems, formal organizations, non-formal institutions, cultural values; and linguistic determinants, data, facts, information, beliefs, opinions, systems of thought, ideas, theories, and spiritual values-all of which interact and influence each other to impact the course of human development. The advancement of women as a condition to the new social order is expected to be engineered by men and women and should not be seen in isolation as a women's issue. Technology Regime and Mind-set is based on democratic use of instruments. The only way to build a sustainable, just and developed society.

A theory of development should aim at a knowledge that will enable society from multi dimensional aspects to more consciously and effectively put in practice its development potentials utilizing new instruments productively. The first challenge is to select the right materials for the job. The proirity is to match the properties of the materials to the task to be performed. Strategic implications of a wide range of global trends such as the new economy, the digital society, financial services, biotechnology, health care, lifestyle changes, consumer behavior, public policy, corporate ethics, and social responsibility needs the engineering of a new social development paradigm. The purpose is to develop and share a common framework composed of easily understood, scientifically based principles that can serve as a basis to move society toward sustainability looking through gender lenz. This conceptual knowledge of the development process should enable every man and woman to better utilize the available instruments, and make up for past ignorance in terms of social behavior, aspiration to establish new mind set to tap its developmental potential and making it work in equal terms for both genders. Empowerment of women and equality between women and men in mutual participation are prerequisites for casting and forging political, social, economic, cultural and environmental security among all human beings considering how differently both genders percieve security.

The aerospace industry is pushing creation of materials to the limits, yet within a few years many materials from aerospace research find a place in everyday life where, soon, we are faced with a whole new reality.

Nasrin Azadeh

References:
1)The British Museum of Science and Society, www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
2)Royal Academy of Arts, London, Luxury in Living, Italian Design Exhibition, www.luxuryinliving.com
3)The Urban Land Institutue: http://www.uli.org/AM/Template.cfm
4)Anthony Champion, Flight From the Cities, Home Alone; School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology University of Newcastle
5)Patrick Dixon, Futurewise: Six Faces of Global Change; Global Change Ltd. London
6)Jennifer James, Thinking in the Future Tense; Urban/Cultural Anthropologist, Jennifer James Inc.
7)Women's Equality, Development and Peace: Achievements and Challenges for Beijing + 5, http://www.un.org/womenwatch/confer/beijing5/
8) Bill Seaman responds to Diane Gromala:
Textuality — an open, infinite process that is meaning-generating and subverting.
http://www.electronicbookreview.com/v3/servlet/ebr?essay_id=seamanr2&command=view_essay
9)Teresa de Lauretis:
http://humwww.ucsc.edu/CultStudies/PUBS/Inscriptions/vol_3-4/delauretis.html