The seminar will take place on Friday, May 29th, from 12:00 to 13:00 (HG-05A36). You can find more information below.
This is a lunch seminar; please register your attendance by accepting/declining your emailed invitation by Tuesday, May 26th at the latest (for catering).
Abstract
Current Information Systems research suggests that data value is achieved through situated labor. Based on an ongoing study of the Parmigiano Reggiano production chain—a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) ecosystem in Northern Italy, I investigate the role of data governance in maintaining product value. I find that digital records are laboriously tethered to the fluid biological material reality of the material referent, including cows, milk, cheese, forage, and bacteria. Data governance manifests as a craft of distributed stewardship, in which the material referent must continuously demonstrate its value to sustain the validity of data, and vice versa. I illustrate the interplay between data of practice derived from sensory expertise and data of record to stabilize biological variability. As the Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium explores ways to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI), I discuss some opportunities by highlighting how AI can be designed to augment embodied human judgment in material-intensive environments. There is a potential for AI to serve as a relational tool that enables predictive quality management by integrating granular process data with traditional craftsmanship.