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The double status of the map shown in the previous quote,
both as a synoptic representation and as the translation of
information on a given support, introduces Pascal Robert's
concept of maps as intellectual technology. He takes Goody's
definition further by portraying the map as a means of
creating knowledge, and adds a management and logistical
dimension to writing. He takes the example of the Great
Mesopotamian and Egyptian States which, because of
writing, disposed of a way of managing their populations and
goods [ROB 08a]. According to his theory, the intellectual
technologies operate by changing the dimensions of things;
they make a phenomenon easier to apprehend by
transforming it into a document. So intellectual technologies
are “regulated complexity management tools that translate
an event into a document by changing its dimensions”
[ROB 00, p.103]. Extending the analysis of the place of
instruments in the sociology of sciences, the totality of the
writings is enclosed into a document defined by notions of
stability, mobility and accumulation [ROB 00, p.113].
Following
this
definition,
maps
are,
for
Robert,
a
paradigmatic example of intellectual technology:
- Maps are regulated tools with their own apparatus
developed over time.
- They are the means for transferring information from
one surface to another in the same way as parchment, paper
or a screen, which help to translate the elements represented
on them.
- Their synoptic nature enables us to visualize
simultaneously a large number of elements and to juxtapose
and
compare
different
components
on
the
map
[ROB 08a, p.37-38].
As information-management tools, three properties make
maps particularly effective to acquire, register and circulate
writings. Defined as intellectual technology, they combine
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