UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Transnationality, Morality, and Politics of Co!"#ting Ex"ertise A dissertation s#%!i&ed in partial satis action o t'e re(#ire!ents for t'e degree )octor o P'iloso"'y in Anthro"ology %y L#is Feli"e Rosado M#rillo *+,- . Co"yright by L#is Feli"e Rosado M#rillo 2+,- A/STRACT OF T0E DISSERTATION Transnationality, Morality, and Politics o Co!"#ting E$"ertise %y L#is Feli"e Rosado M#rillo )octor o P'iloso"'y in Anthro"ology Uni1ersity o Cali ornia, Los Angeles, 2+,- Pro essor C'risto"'er M2 Kelty, C'air In this dissertation I e$amine t'e alterglo%alization o co!"#ter e$"ertise 5it' a oc#s on t'e creation o "olitical, econo!ic, !oral, and tec'nical ties among co!"#ter tec'nologists 5'o are identi6ed %y "eers and sel 7identi y as 8co!"#ter 'ac9ers2: ;e goal is to in1estigate 'o5 or!s o collaborati1e 5or9 are created on a local le1el alongside glo%al "ractices and disco#rses on co!"#ter 'ac9ing, linking local sites 5it' an e!ergent transnational do!ain o tec'nical e$c'ange and "olitical action. In order to ad1ance an #nderstanding o the e$"erience and "ractice o 'ac9ing %eyond its !ain axes o acti1ity in <estern Euro"e and the United States, I descri%e and analy4e "ro=ects and career trajectories o program!ers, engineers, and hac9er acti1ists w'o are ii !e!%ers o an international networ9 o co!!#nity s"aces called 8'ac9ers"aces: in the Paci6c region. /ased on et'nograp'ic researc' at co!!#nity s"aces, "ro essional !eetings, and infor!al gatherings I "#rs#e the (#estion o t'e conditions or c#lti1ation o s9ills, !oral sensi%ilities, and "olitical orientations 5'ic' allo5 or acti1e "artici"ation in co!"#ter e$"ert collecti1es2 )rawing ro! et'nograp'ic 5or9, I s#ggest t'at “hac9ing” 'as beco!e a glo%al r#%ric or dis"arate c#ltural practices d#e to t'e confl#ence o Free and O"en So#rce tec'nologies and elite tec'nologists 5it' local co!!#nity centers to s#""ort "edagogical "ractices or tec'nical e$"eri!entation and "olitical or!ation. In descri%ing glo%al and local le1el ap"lications o co!"#ting e$"ertise, I de!onstrate 'o5 'ac9ers"aces and co!"#ter tec'nologists are, res"ecti1ely, or!ed at cross7c#ltural contact "oints 5it' t'e "ro=ect o rearranging, c'allenging, and trans or!ing establis'ed tec'nical "ractices, infrastr#ctures, and "olitical i!aginaries2 iii ;e dissertation o L#is Feli"e Rosado M#rillo is ap"ro1ed2 Mari9o Ta!anoi Y#nxiang Yan S'aron Tra5ee9 C'risto"'er M2 Kelty, Co!!i&ee C'air Uni1ersity o Cali ornia, Los Angeles *+,- i1 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION??????????????????????????????????????????2* CHAPTER 1. M#lti7sited Researc' Design: Theoretical and Met'odological Contri%#tions??????2,A 1.1. “Anthropology: Isn't it some sort of Social Science?”...........................................16 1.2. Research Methods, Sites, and Co-Participants.......................................................22 1.3. Holism, Individualism, and Exchange: the Question of Social Ties......................33 1.4. Space, Place, and Globalization: the Question of Spatialization...........................51 1.5. Personhood, Morality, and Exchange: the Question of Personification.................69 CHAPTER 2. Tec'no"olitical Narrati1es o Digital Co!"#ting???????????????????????2B- 2.1. Early Computing for War Efforts and Bureaucratic Governance..........................86 2.2. Dispute for Control and Exploration of Computer Systems..................................93 2.3. From Virtuous to Outlaw Hackers?......................................................................100 2.4. Inventing Free and Open Source Software..........................................................105 2.5. Hacking for Privacy and Social Change...............................................................110 2.6. Hackers and/as Magicians....................................................................................113 2.7. Archival Instance of Hacking as Magic...............................................................115 2.8. Hackerspaces and the (Global) Recreation of Hobbyist Clubs............................121 2.9. Translating the Free and Open Source Software to Open Hardware...................125 2.10. Struggle for Information Liberation...................................................................129 2.11. Conclusion..........................................................................................................142 CHAPTER 3. Trajectories, Moralities, and Et'ical Reasoning????????????????????????,AC 3.1. Personal Trajectories............................................................................................150 Oliva.......................................................................................................................150 Gniibe.....................................................................................................................170 Mitch.......................................................................................................................187 Nalaginrut...............................................................................................................206 3.2. Conclusion............................................................................................................220 1 CHAPTER 4. I!agined S"aces and Convi1ial Places o Hac9ing??????????????????????*DA 4.1. Noisebridge Hackerspace.....................................................................................238 Entering the Space..................................................................................................246 Imperatives of Excellence and “Do-ocracy”..........................................................252 Protocols and Practices of Horizontal Governance................................................257 Occupy San Francisco and Hackupy......................................................................268 Supporting Noisebridge from a Distance...............................................................275 Actual and Imagined Spaces..................................................................................277 4.2. Chaihuo Makerspace............................................................................................283 Home-based Open Hardware Business..................................................................290 Open Source Hardware Supply-Chain...................................................................296 Shenzhen's “Creative Class”..................................................................................309 “Copy-Cat Culture” and “Bad” Clones..................................................................312 4.3. Dim Sum Labs......................................................................................................323 Entrepreneurs and Makers......................................................................................336 Celebrating Big Gift Givers....................................................................................345 4.4. Tokyo Hacker Space.............................................................................................353 Learning to Perceive the Fukushima Crisis............................................................357 Open Source Responses to 3-11 in Japan...............................................................360 Hacker as Bricoleur................................................................................................365 Open Source Hardware Bricolage..........................................................................369 “Safecasting” Gunma.............................................................................................378 Responsibility of Open Source bricoleurs..............................................................380 4.5. Conclusion............................................................................................................388 CONCLUSION???????????????????????????????????????????A+, REFERENCES???????????????????????????????????????????2A,+ 1i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It 5as a long and '#!%ling =o#rney or 5'ic' I 'a1e o#nd inesti!able s#""ort a!ong friends, family, and fac#lty me!%ers2 C'risto"'er 3elty acce"ted !y doctoral "ro=ect and 'el"ed !e 6nd all the s#""ort that I needed2 To 'i!, I a! i!!ensely grate #l2 0e 5as 1ery engaged 5ith t'e "ro=ect and attenti1e to all the diEc#lties along the 5ay2 I ha1e al5ays co#nted 5ith his 'el" at e1ery critical =#ncture2 0is generosity, er#dition, dedication, and intellectual ac#ity 5ere 9ey to the "ro=ect. Since I cannot return 'is giF to 'i!, I can certainly "ass it along. ;e reader 5ill identi y 'is t'o#ghtf#l contri%#tions thro#gho#t this !onograp'2 For e1erything else that has yet to be de1elo"ed, I take f#ll res"onsi%ility2 S'aron Trawee9 'as ser1ed as a !entor or !e and !any other doctoral st#dents2 ;e same dedication s'e 'as to "#%lic ed#cation 5as e$tended to acti1ely s#""ort all o #s2 I ha1e no 5ords to descri%e 'o5 inde%ted I am to her2 S'e ins"ired !y 5or9 on e1ery le1el@ ro! design to e$ec#tion, ro! "resentation to theorization, ro! "olitical co!!itment to inter"ersonal relations2 I 'ave o#nd that s'e 'as leF 'er indeli%le !ar9 in ant'ro"ology and science st#dies o1er t'e years2 On "ro essional and "ersonal le1els, I 'a1e o#nd !any et'nograp'ers 5'o are dee"ly inde%ted to 'er2 )es"ite the hig' visi%ility o her de6niti1e sc'olarly contri%#tions, m#c' o her 1ii !entors'i" is in1isi%le2 One 'as to care #lly read ac9no5ledgment sections to 6nd that 'er na!e is us#ally t'ere2 And rig'tf#lly so2 Y#nxiang Yan 'el"ed !e t'ink thro#gh (#estions o