ABSTRACT
There is a tendency as a new technology develops to concentrate on technical details and the promises such technology offers (Cheesman et al. forthcoming). It is only at a later date that we usually examine critically the implications of technological development. In this book we have sought to provide such a critical examination from a geographic perspective, prompted in part by the populist rhetoric that cyberspace spells the ‘death of geography’. Our aim has been twofold: (1) to describe and explain the importance of space and spatiality in seeking to understand cyberspace and the infrastructure that supports it; (2) to actually chart some of these spatialities and geometries and provide an overview of the research conducted to date. The scope of the topics discussed, we believe, illustrates the utility and importance of adopting a geographic approach which provides a unique and powerful lens for analysing techno-social changes in society.
