Nodes and queries - Linking locations in networked fields of inquiry

This article, based on a collaborative research project on genetic knowledg e production, examines the relations between on- and off-line field sites r elated to rh, ee heritable diseases: epidermolysis bullosa, chondrodysplasi a, and Marfan syndrome. Field sites include the Web sites, listservs, and c hat rooms run by lay health advocacy groups and biomedical professionals as well laboratories, clinics, and support groups meetings. The analysis uses the notion of location work, and the concept of the node that links differ ent elements in a network, in describing a relational approach to multisite d ethnography. The article presents three case studies that examine shiftin g locations between online and face-to-face relations, hyperlinks as a meta phor for interactive knowledge production, and the process of negotiating a networked ethics.