pcplantdb

[Stephanie Gerson <sgerson@stanfordalumni.org>]

**APOLOGIES IF YOU'VE ALREADY RECEIVED THIS MESSAGE.  Rich suggested that 
I subscribe to this list and re-post (and for those of you who received 
this message through the ibiblios Permaculture list, this one has 
additional information).  Thank you**

hello Permafolks,

my name is Stephanie, and I am interested in developing somewhat of a 
guild database with a guild design application. I have discussed my idea 
with Kirby Fry of Cross Timbers and Scott Pittman of the Permaculture 
Institute, and both referred me to the ibiblio list (to which I have now 
subscribed). Scott also told me that a similar project had already been 
discussed on the list, and so I browsed through the archives, which is 
how I compiled your email addresses, apologies if you are no longer 
interested/involved in the database project. I was quite amazed at the 
dialogue which had already been initiated, and found that I have been 
considering many of the same issues that had already been presented 
(leave the db modifiable by all vs. having a full-time data-entry person/
moderator, etc.). So, what happened to your database idea? Did it ever 
bear fruit? What season is it in?

I would like to present my project idea to you all, in hope of 
garnering support and interest. I will also be writing to the ibiblio 
list, but wanted to send you a more personal and descriptive message 
first. I certainly look forward to potential collaboration with you! 
Following is a condensed project description-- I left out details, 
particularly related to themes you had already discussed, for purposes of 
brevity. I would appreciate any suggestions, criticisms, words of wisdom 
you have to offer.

Basically, I intend to build a sophisticated guild design tool, which 
additionally offers abundant information on guild components, 
phenomenology, symbiosis, and other such related issues—-presented in the 
form of established research/experience and case studies, and through 
different media including text, images, and perhaps others. To discuss 
how I plan to achieve this end, I must describe the software tool I will 
be using, which is called Thinkmap. Due to its non-linear and web-like 
visual interface, it is an ideal tool for representing complex and 
relationship-based knowledge. Also, because of its interactivity and 
organic architecture, it is easily customized to a high degree of 
specification. Whereas conventional thesauruses display synonyms in a 
linear fashion, merely listing them alongside the original word chosen, 
the Visual Thesaurus displays the synonyms orbiting the original word, 
with their proximity and boldness determined by their relationship to 
each other and the original word. All synonyms are not treated the same, 
as would be the case in a linear representation, but are placed 
relatively. If an orbiting synonym is clicked upon, it too becomes 
surrounded by its own synonyms, some of which may likely be synonyms of 
the original word, and therefore are linked to both the first and second 
words chosen. In this manner, words are situated in the context of their 
meaning, and language is rightly portrayed as a relational web, abundant 
with interconnections. Understanding of these interconnections is 
enriched by this thesaurus, while it is absent from conventional ones. 
Parallel to the manner in which Permaculture learns how to design its 
subject from its subject, Thinkmap is an elegant tool for teaching and 
learning non-linear information in a non-linear manner. 

Viewing the Visual Thesaurus will illustrate beautifully how it may be 
applied to the process of guild design. Please visit http://
www.visualthesaurus.com/online/index.html and use the online edition. 
Thinkmap’s non-linear agility and interactivity lends itself perfectly to 
the building of guilds, and its related topics. Similar to the manner in 
which Visual Thesaurus commences with a core word, guilds commence with a 
core element, the tree, as mentioned above. Users could, for example, 
choose a tree native to their local environment. The tree would suddenly 
become orbited by companion plants—native or non-native plants which ‘get

along with’ that particular tree, so to speak. The user could click on 
whichever plant she wishes to add to the guild, and suddenly that plant 
would be orbited by further companion plants, and so on. There are a 
multitude of possibilities with this application: users could start with 
guilds already established for their local region and edit from there; 
users could enter emphases or restrictions—such as the desire for food 
production, the existence of strong winds coming from a particular 
direction, the presence of a particular pest which a user would like to 
somehow deal with, or the existence of deer; users could attach virtual 
notes to specific combinations, alerting other users of a fine 
combination, or of the complications associated with a particular 
combination; analogous to the manner in which Thinkmap portrays antonyms 
by their almost translucent appearance, a guild-builder could portray 
antagonistic relationships between vegetation; the application could be 
designed to include minerals or soil-additives, bacteria, insects, fungi, 
birds, and other animals (of course, it should include the 5 kingdoms!), 
adding expanded dimensions to the process of guild design. Evidently, 
possibilities abound, and will continue to do so.

I have already spoken with Peter Vlastelica, the Business Development 
Manager for Plumb Design, and he is very enthusiastic about the project 
idea. He recognizes that it would make excellent use of Thinkmap’s 
educational capabilities, and offer access to such capabilities to the 
public sector—in contrast to other Thinkmap applications previously 
developed. And he has agreed to develop the application in-house, with 
Plumb Design developers. 

I am currently in the process of seeking funding for this project, and 
welcome any recommendations! I am also seeking collaborators and 
'subject matter experts.' Please respond if you are interested, or 
simply would like to offer advice. You may reach me at 415.871.5683, or 
by email. I hope to hear back.

   thank you

                peace
                  *Stephanie


+++++++++++++++
Stephanie Gerson
sgerson@stanfordalumni.org
415.871.5683


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