WorkMap
Examining work and play across space and time
Made by Francisco Rojo
I want to examine the relationship between work and play in the areas that we inhabit. I am interested in where people spend time doing formal work and where they spend time doing recreation. It is meaningful to me to see the societal dynamics of where and when work gets done. In a place such as CMU when time is a commodity that must be managed carefully, I think it would be interesting to be able to visualize this information.
Created: September 16th, 2014
I want to examine the relationship between work and play in the areas that we inhabit. I am interested in where people spend time doing formal work and where they spend time doing recreation.
It is meaningful to me to see the societal dynamics of where and when work gets done. In a place such as CMU when time is a commodity that must be managed carefully, I think it would be interesting to be able to visualize this information.
I think this information could have useful applications, both for individuals looking to analyze their own work habits, and those interested in broader trends of work/play in a particular time and place. I'm just wondering how you collect reliable data on all of this. How do we define work and play? They're often not so easy to distinguish, especially if you spend most of your day on a computer. A lot of the time we're moving rapidly from page to page. Some of these may be work-related, some not. Which pages correspond to work or play may not be as easy to distinguish as you assume in your description. Say, for instance, that you're doing work by updating the Facebook page for an organization or club that you're involved with, but you decide to procrastinate by opening another tab in your browser and reading the New York Times instead. An app (or an outsider observer) that simply tracks this movement from Facebook to NYT would probably not deduce that the former was work and the latter was (a kind of) play, or at least procrastination from work. Can you think of some ways you might modify your idea to clarify some of this complexity and uncertainty?
I agree with Kevin, and I also wanted to expand that question into the specific section you spoke about movement. I think you were going for the idea that if you're walking around or working out, then you're not "working", but if someone is on a sports team or is in a gym class for credit here, would that be considered work because it is a commitment or they are getting a grade? Also, does this app count time in class as work, even if you are in a lecture like 112 and computers and phones are not allowed. How does the app or software track dead periods?
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