Neon Road Trip by John Barnes (review)
Notice bibliographique
Résumé
Reviewed by: Neon Road Trip by John Barnes Joshua Merced Neon Road Trip. By John Barnes. Layton: Gibbs Smith, 2020. iv and 199 pp., figs., and index. $24.99 hardcover (ISBN: 9781423654070). John Barnes' Neon Road Trip is a well-curated collection of North American neon signage with interludes of commentary on thematic narratives certain signage represents. While the book is unconventional scholarship, it retains the potential to serve an insightful purpose to the breadth and depth of geography. Barnes studied photography amongst other art techniques, leading to him receiving his BFA from the University of Delaware in 1984. Neon Road Trip is a product of a two-and-half-year RV trip across the United States and Canada, during which he gathered 50,000 photos of vintage neon signage (Wiley 2020). The arc of the book begins with providing an abbreviated history of neon signage and the scientific composition of the signs that create the glow effect. The book continues into brief commentaries on particular images, structures, and purposes neon signage adopts. Barnes uses these sections to provide deeper context about specific signage he encountered on the trip, and how they preserve themes and trends within neon signage use. The book ends with information about neon museums across North America and a photo index of the 204 photos he included, organized by state/province. Barnes deconstructs the language of "neon signs" with a brief fundamental chemistry overview early in the book to help readers understand that the signage involves more than just neon gas. In a section titled "The Four Gases Used in 'Neon' Signs," Barnes provides histories and characteristics of the gases Krypton, Xenon, Neon, and Argon that are the chemical foundation of the signs. He then redirects readers to how the adoption of neon signage is primarily a business strategy. One example he offers more depth on is the Tower Records sign in Sacramento, California. This particular sign had a "Happy Days-esque, rock-around-the-clock feel to it, with two kids shown dancing atop a 45 record" (22). He continues to create this narrative about why the imagery of the sign is intentional and unique. Barnes includes a section in the book that highlights neon signage adoption in the food and beverage industry, appropriately titled "Eat, Drink, & Be Merry." In this section, he examines trends and themes that restaurants display through their neon signage. One example he provides is the Star Noodle restaurant on Historic 25th Street in Ogden, Utah. This corridor was known for their "opium dens, brothels, and gambling joints in the late nineteenth century" (79). Chinese and Japanese railroad laborers brought diversity to the area, which included diversifying the food and beverage scene. The Star Noodle restaurant opened on 25th Street in 1948 with a dragon neon sign used at the storefront, which was created by Ogden-based company YESCO. Though the restaurant closed in 2007, the sign remained in place as it was an iconic element to the 25th Street landscape. In 2015, YESCO restored the sign and changed the wording on the sign to [End Page 437] "Historic 25th Street" to pay homage to its historic significance. The Star Noodle dragon is also one of many examples of animals depicted through neon signage. Later in the book, Barnes includes a section titled "What a Zoo," which examines how animals — whether they are actual, imagined, or extinct — are adopted into neon sign advertisements. The depiction of animals was not confined to food and beverage advertisements, as many of Barnes' examples illustrate. For example, a neon parrot is perched on top of the Poll Parrot Juvenile Shoes sign in Las Vegas, Nevada. "Parrot" derives from the name Paul Parrot, the founder of Poll Parrot Shoes. Neon Road Trip can be of interest to geographers in its topical and methodological approach. Barnes' work can strongly appeal to cultural geographers through the techniques and themes presented throughout the journey through the photos. Neon signage can be argued to be a medium for cultural placemaking and a marker for social and economic activity, concepts that continue to be tackled across the human geographies. Geographer Dydia Delyser (2018) recounted the history of neon signage in the...
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Comment cette classification a été obtenuedéplier
Prédiction machine sur la base complète
Imitation des enseignantsNi prévalence calibrée, ni vérité terrain. Validation humaine à venir. Le volet Gemma est une étiquette directe du modèle pour chaque travail de la base, lue sur la notice réduite au titre. Le volet Codex est un classifieur appris des 10 348 étiquettes directes de Codex et calibré sur les taux pondérés de l'échantillon; les champs sans appui suffisant ne portent aucun appel Codex. Le mode candidate est l'union des deux volets; le consensus est leur intersection. Ces sorties portent le statut machine_predicted_unvalidated et ne sont pas des étiquettes humaines.
Scores du classifieur distillé par catégorie (deux têtes)
| Catégorie | Codex | Gemma |
|---|---|---|
| Métarecherche | 0,001 | 0,004 |
| Méta-épidémiologie (sens strict) | 0,002 | 0,001 |
| Méta-épidémiologie (sens large) | 0,002 | 0,001 |
| Bibliométrie | 0,002 | 0,003 |
| Études des sciences et des technologies | 0,001 | 0,001 |
| Communication savante | 0,003 | 0,003 |
| Science ouverte | 0,002 | 0,002 |
| Intégrité de la recherche | 0,002 | 0,004 |
| Charge utile insuffisante (le modèle a refusé de juger) | 0,057 | 0,042 |
Scores machine (provisoires)
Les deux têtes enseignantes du modèle étudiant, lues sur ce travail. Un score ordonne la base pour la relecture; il n'affirme jamais une catégorie, et le statut de validation accompagne chaque rangée tel quel.
Scores de référence d'un modèle non mature (critères de maturité non atteints, 7 itérations). Un score ordonne; il n'affirme jamais une catégorie.
score_only:v0-immature-baseline · tel quel depuis la passe de notation : score_only signifie que le nombre peut ordonner les travaux, et qu'aucune étiquette de catégorie n'en découleClassification
machine, non validéePrédiction automatique; un appel candidat d’une seule source (Gemma direct ou Codex distillé), pas un consensus.
Le détail, modèle par modèle et score par score, se trouve en fin de page sous « Comment cette classification a été obtenue ».