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Archiving is always political

"Observers of community archives have tended to distinguish between those politically and culturally motivated endeavours acting to counter to the absences and misrepresentations relating to a particular group or community in mainstream archives and other heritage narratives and those whose the inspiration is not so directly or overtly political or cultural, but rather is a manifestation of a shared enthusiasm for the history of a place, occupation or interest. Whilst it is an important distinction, the authors would also contend that even in the most nostalgic and leisure-orientated community archive projects there is something inherently political in individuals and communities taking an active role in the re-telling of their own history." (2013, 5)

"One of the consequences and dimensions of this commitment to independence and sustaining autonomy is the resulting dependence on the significant personal sacrifice (financial, physical and mental) of key activists and a network of volunteers, arising from great emotional and political commitment to the collections and their impacts. As we have already noted this commitment is both an enormous benefit to the archive but also a potential vulnerability with regard to the long term stability, succession and sustainability." (2013, 12)

Second wave community archiving

"[D]evelopments in the web and social technology were a significant factor in what in the UK we might term the second wave of community-based archives and heritage activities in the late 1990s and early 2000s." (2013, 13)

Search for definitions and the 'institutional gaze'

"[W]hy are “we” (and here we are referring not only to academics in archival studies, but also to archival practitioners) so focused on formulating definitions of and making distinctions between mainstream and community archives and their endeavors? For the most part, “we” are not the voices of, or even representing “community archives”– although that line is becoming more blurred with increased numbers of professionally-trained archivists coming from and returning to these communities. We are the ones applying the term “community archives” to these diverse social, political and cultural initiatives and we are the ones viewing their inception and flourishing as some kind of phenomenon or movement. But are they really, or is that our projection, possibly because we recognize how these initiatives address the shortcomings of our more traditional archival constructions and practices?" (2013, 14)

Smart autoalarm guardrail is designed for helpping people emergency contact and remind the other drivers when car accident happen in remote area. People will drive on some remote area, or late night. If car accident happens, might be no one know the accident is happen. This design is help the litigant automatically make a emergency call, and send the location through the GPS when the car is crash the guardrail. As well as, it can turn on/flash the light within the accident area to warn the other drivers. 

Smart guardrail is concept design by Yuguo chen and Changlin He, who are from School of Design, Hunan University in China. 

This design could help people in an unknow emergency situation, for example, the driver pass out when the traffic accident happen, and this design can help people to save life. However, I think this concept design might be cost a lot if it is applied into real life, because it means there are lots of guardrail need to install this system, and the government also need to prepare another extra fee for repair the guardrail after every accident. 

The smart guardrail is designed to be used in some remote area and highway. 

Smart Guardrail is autoalrm and could be send location to the nearset emergency centre by GPS when the car crash into the guardrail. As well as the warning light within the area will be swithched on to avoid the potential sencond accident. The system is design to install into the highway guardrail, and use the circuit to make the system work. Therefore, the materials might be include electrical wire and circuit, and also plastic caution lights.

This concept design is supposed to install on the highway guardrail and work automatically in a pubilc area, therefore there is no specifically skill need to learn. 

Smart Guardrail is considered as a good concept design, because it can be solve the emergency problem for traffic accident in some situation. This design is applied a common materials and method to solve problem. It is a small change and might make a big influenced. But the design could be used or not is depend on the cost would be proportional to the value or not.

This concept design is create a market which is within more functions and technologies for guardrail. In the existing market, there are some good design highway guardrail, such as EZY-guard smart guardrail. Most of the existing product are applied outter shapes and physical structures rather than some electrical technology. Compare to the existing products, this concept design is more challenged by the cost. 

As mentioned above, this concept design is challenged by the cost. As well as, it needs more resource to used, such as electricity, and human source for checking and repair system.