Timothy Gorichanaz wins the 2017 Litwin Books Award for Ongoing Dissertation Research

Press release
7/5/2017
Media contact:
Rory Litwin, rory@staging.litwinbooks.com

We are pleased to announce the winner of the 2017 Litwin Books Award for Ongoing Dissertation Research in the Philosophy of Information. We are granting this year’s award to Timothy John Gorichanaz of Drexel University, based on his dissertation project, “Understanding Self-Documentation.” In this work, Gorichanaz seeks to better understand our current obsession with self-documentation – pictorial documentation in particular (e.g., the “selfie”) – through a study of the popular artistic practice of self-portraiture from the point of view of document theory and the philosophy of information.

A member of the award committee says, “Gorichanaz shows a wide-ranging knowledge of the relevant work in philosophy and information science, displaying an ability to make novel and insightful connections amongst a broad range of theorists. On this base he builds a set of well-crafted and fascinating research questions about the nature of the self-portrait as a document and as a form of experiential understanding.” The committee is confident that this dissertation will be a valuable contribution to the areas that Gorichanaz identifies in his proposal: document theory, information behavior, the philosophy of information and critical discourse within information science.

The award consists of a certificate suitable for framing and $1000 check.

Since this award is for ongoing research, other applicants who are still working on their dissertations will be eligible to enter their work next year, and we strongly encourage them to do so.

For more information about the award, please visit https://staging.litwinbooks.com/award.php.

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