Exercise 2: Relations in a cognitive ecosystem.

Chapters 2 and 3 of Cognition in the Wild present many examples of relations among elements of a cognitive ecosystem. The discussion on pages 112 – 114 collects several of them in one place. Pages 164 – 174 also provide examples and analysis. The lectures on 10/13 and 10/15 (will) also contain concepts that will be helpful to understanding cognitive ecosystems.

Consider the activity of driving a car in Southern California.

Examine the relations among various elements of the cognitive ecology in which the activity takes place. Think about space, tools, artifacts, social roles, and cultural practices. What kinds of relations can you find among the elements of the cognitive ecosystem? Can you find relations of dependence or synergistic relations, conflicting or competitive relations? Thinking metaphorically, are there any examples of predator-prey relations or arms races?

If you are having trouble seeing the elements of the ecosystem, here is an exercise: imagine how the world could have been other than it is. Conventions are never fully determined by physical constraints. We drive on the right side of the road. What would have to change if our national government suddenly decided to switch to driving on the left? It is outrageous, right? But it has been done by other nations in the past (Sweden in the 1960s and Samoa just last summer). Do this exercise to sharpen your vision of the ecosystem, but DO NOT base your essay on this exercise.

The theme of your essay will be to identify and describe the cognitive consequences of some of the relations among the elements of the cognitive ecosystem.

You can draw on your own experience of driving as a starting point for this assignment. You will be tempted to talk about how things work in general. You should resist this temptation. Try instead to think about actual events.

For example, you can identify cognitive consequences by asking how basic cognitive functions are accomplished in the system. The question “What must be remembered?” seems like a good place to start. In fact, it is not bad, but “What happened in some actual event when I had to remember something as part of my participation in the driving activity?” is a much better question. Some other good questions would be: “What elements or relations have manipulated my attention while I was driving?”; “How have I managed to establish coordinated action with other drivers?”; “What happened when I had to make a decision as part of participating in the driving activity?”; “How did that decision fit in the cognitive ecosystem of driving?”

Once you have created clear and explicit answers to these and perhaps some other similar questions, you will be ready to begin writing your essay. Be specific and detailed. Descriptions that are general and vague will make it difficult for you to see the patterns in your data. Your clear descriptions of actual events in your own experience will provide the data you can then analyze.

Use your data as support for a discussion of the cognitive consequences of some aspects of the cognitive ecosystem of driving.

If you are not an experienced driver, or feel that you cannot do a good job with this activity system, see the professor or your TA to negotiate a different topic. You may NOT choose your own topic without approval from a course instructor.

Turn in on October 20, 2009:

1. Your essay (see the HowToWriteAnEssay guidance)

2. Your self evaluation

3. Optional supporting material – notes, diagrams, etc.