readings

"Ross Ashby long ago pointed out that no system (neither computer nor organism) can produce anything..."

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:33:45 +0000

“Ross Ashby long ago pointed out that no system (neither computer nor organism) can produce anything new unless the system contains some source of the random. In the computer, this will be a random-number generator which will ensure that the “seeking,” trial-and-error moves of the machine will ultimately cover all the possibilities of the set to be explored.
In other words, all innovative, creative systems are (…) divergent; conversely, sequences of events that are predictable are, ipso facto, convergent.”

- Bateson, Gregory. Mind and Nature. A Necessary Unity. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1979.

"Each subsystem has two components (as is implied by the word stochastic): a random component and a..."

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:33:45 +0000

“Each subsystem has two components (as is implied by the word stochastic): a random component and a process of selection working on the products of the random component.”

- Bateson, Gregory. Mind and Nature. A Necessary Unity. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1979.

"In that stochastic system to which Darwinians have paid most attention, the random component is..."

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:33:48 +0000

“In that stochastic system to which Darwinians have paid most attention, the random component is genetic change, either by mutation or by the reshuffling of genes among members of a population. I assume mutation to be nonresponsive to environmental demand or to internal stress of the organism. I assume, however, that the machinery of selection which acts on the randomly varying organisms will include both each creature’s internal stress and, later, the environmental circumstances to which the creature is subjected.”

- Bateson, Gregory. Mind and Nature. A Necessary Unity. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1979.

"The explicit argument against the creation of long texts by completely random processes dates back..."

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:33:45 +0000

“The explicit argument against the creation of long texts by completely random processes dates back more than two thousand years, to Cicero. In his De natura deorum (“On the Nature of the Gods”), Balbus the Stoic presents the following argument against the atomists (such as Democritus), who have argued that the order of nature arose out of the random collision of atoms: “I can’t but marvel that there could be anyone who can persuade themselves that solid atoms moving under the force of gravity could construct this elaborate and beautiful world out of their chance collisions. If they believe this could have happened, then I don’t understand why they shouldn’t also think that if innumerable copies of the twenty-one letters of the alphabet, made of gold or what have you, were shaken together and thrown out on the ground they could spell out the whole text of the Annals of Ennius. I doubt whether chance would succeed in spelling out a single verse!””

- Lloyd, Seth. Programming the Universe. A Quantum Computer Scientist Takes on the Cosmos. London: Jonathan Cape, 2006.

"Professor Max Bense, whose theory of generative aesthetics has been based on computing procedures,..."

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:33:45 +0000

“Professor Max Bense, whose theory of generative aesthetics has been based on computing procedures, has pointed out that randomness involved in computer graphics replaces that aspect in art which is described as intuitive. Thus the randomizing procedures in computer technology are analogous to an artist’s intuition. This theory is questionable but it shows that attempts are being made to find equivalence between human activities in the sphere of creativity and the realization of those activities with the aid of a cybernetic device.”

- Reichardt, Jasia. The Computer in Art. London: Studio Vista, 1971.

"When it comes to the construction of autonomous machines that exhibit such a prized human ability..."

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:33:45 +0000

“

When it comes to the construction of autonomous machines that exhibit such a prized human ability our engineering skills arguably fall short. The potential of the computer as a dynamical system generating patterns that we might easily associate with art may only be realised if we know how to engineer collections of instructions that allow it to exhibit creative ability. The characteristics required of it might be summarised as follows. The system must exhibit

— Coherence and unity, maintain its identity over time, despite perturbation;

— Multi-scaled temporal complexity, demonstrate complex dynamics over fine and coarse timescales;

— Autonomous production of novelty, explore large design spaces independently of human input;

— Responsiveness to perturbation, permit external events to deeply influence its behaviour.

An artist might also prefer that the system exhibit

— Susceptibility to external control, permit external (artist-laid) constraints on its behaviour. [all are further developed in the following pages]

”

- Dorin, Alan. “A Survey of Virtual Ecosystems in Generative Electronic Art.” The Art of Artificial Evolution. A Handbook on Evolutionary Art and Music. Eds. Romero, Juan and Penousal Machado. Berlin: Springer, 2008. 289-309

"As neither AARON nor any known contemporary system has reached such a level of autonomy, generative..."

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:32:44 +0000

“As neither AARON nor any known contemporary system has reached such a level of autonomy, generative works will likely continue to be seen as human works. If the role of the system exceeds that of a conventional tool, these works might be seen more as human-machine collaborations; collaboration, as used here, does not require machine autonomy.”

- Ariza, Christopher. “The Interrogator as Critic: The Turing Test and the Evaluation of Generative Music Systems.” Computer Music Journal 33.2 (2009): 48-70.

"Critical common sense would find the idea of an alien, machinic intelligence not only rebarbative..."

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:32:44 +0000

“Critical common sense would find the idea of an alien, machinic intelligence not only rebarbative but contradictory. Because humans program machines, machines must in principle be under the control of humans. The tacit assumption here is that it is impossible to make something autonomous. To think otherwise would be fetishism or reification and, in the case of computing, to subscribe to the dehumanizing effects of instrumental rationality.”

- Goffey, Andrew. “Intelligence.” Software Studies: A Lexicon. Ed. Fuller, Matthew. Leonardo. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2008. 132-42.

"Like those failed media renaissances before this one, we remain one step behind the capability..."

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 16:32:44 +0000

“Like those failed media renaissances before this one, we remain one step behind the capability actually being offered us. Only an elite—sometimes a new elite, but an elite nonetheless—gain the ability to fully exploit the new medium on offer. The rest learn to be satisfied with gaining the ability offered by the last new medium. The people hear while the rabbis read; the people read while those with access to the printing press write; we write, while our techno-elite program. As a result, a majority of people remain one dimensional leap of awareness and capability behind those who manage to monopolize access to the real power of any media age.”

- Rushkoff, Douglas. “NET EFFECT: It’s not too late for humanity to survive the digital” Arthur. 2009.

"Today, most of us think of computers—and all of our digital devices—in terms of the applications..."

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:32:45 +0000

“Today, most of us think of computers—and all of our digital devices—in terms of the applications they offer: “What does it already do” instead of “what can I make it do?” Likewise, instead of teaching computer programming in school, we teach kids how to use Microsoft Windows. This difference is profound. It exemplifies the core difference between a society capable of thinking its way beyond its current limitations, and one destined to repeat the same mistakes until it drives itself to extinction.”

- Rushkoff, Douglas. “NET EFFECT: It’s not too late for humanity to survive the digital” Arthur. 2009.

"Educated with minimalist figures and text, computer scientists may be shocked to realize our..."

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:32:45 +0000

“Educated with minimalist figures and text, computer scientists may be shocked to realize our representations for formal objects are not as constrained as originally thought. Until the era of computer graphics and fast computers, we had little need to inquire about what initially appeared to be exotic ways to encode formal knowledge. This is a challenge not only for computer scientists, however, but also for artists, who should be encouraged to consider the computer, and computing practices, as subject material as well as raw material. This suggestion may strike some artists as a modernist era agenda; however, as a tool or subject, the computer with its mathematical foundation creates significantly higher complexity than paint, palette knife, or chisel ever could.”

- Fishwick, Paul A. “An Introduction to Aesthetic Computing.” Aesthetic Computing. Ed. Fishwick, Paul A. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2006. 3-27.

"Licklider again described what computers could do for intellectual work: in due course it will be..."

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:32:45 +0000

“Licklider again described what computers could do for intellectual work: in due course it will be part of the formulation of problems; part of real-time thinking, problem solving, doing of research, conducting of experiments, getting into the literature and finding references and it will mediate and facilitate communication among human beings.”

- Flichy, Patrice. The Internet Imaginaire. 2001. Trans. Carey-Libbrecht, Liz. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2007.

"(…) the use of digital media is essential to the survival of craft practice. The key to achieving a..."

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:32:44 +0000

“(…) the use of digital media is essential to the survival of craft practice. The key to achieving a viable curriculum in computing is in recognizing that programming — despite it’s abstract nature — has the properties of a concrete craft practice. I suspect that when the curriculum is designed by educators who have grown up with coding, the computer will become more transparent in our art and design schools. What makes for good virtual craft is not the quality of the technology but the application of our perceptive ability to generate surprises — combining motivation, visual thinking, knowledge of tools and our experience of media.”

- Crow, David. “Magic Box, Craft and the Computer.” Eye Winter 2008: 20-25.

"By calling digital art “[new] media art,’’ public perception has focused the zeros and ones as..."

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:32:44 +0000

“By calling digital art “[new] media art,’’ public perception has focused the zeros and ones as formatted into particular visual, acoustic and tactile media, rather than structures of programming. This view is reinforced by the fact that the algorithms employed to generate and manipulate computer music, computer graphics, digital text are frequently if not in most cases invisible, unknown to the audience and the artist alike.”

- Cramer, Florian, and Ulrike Gabriel. “Software Art”. 2001.

"By means of the use of sound, the computer is given a voice and thereby the ability to contact and..."

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:31:44 +0000

“By means of the use of sound, the computer is given a voice and thereby the ability to contact and communicate with its user and the world around it. In short, it comes alive. Three interesting aspects can be drawn from this Tamagotchi-like nature of the computer. First, the computer uses sound to draw our attention the same way that the sound of a telephone or an alarm does. Our responses to these sounds are part of our social behavior (…) Second, the computer is able to communicate the nature of its own state, for example: “I am running out of power” (…) The ability to communicate the possibility of its own ruin, thereby commanding us to act, is remarkable and unique for a tool; not many tools interfere with our social behavior in this way. Third, by the use of sound the computer not only communicates with the user, it announces its presence within a larger context and exposes the actions of its user.”

- Breinbjerg, Morten. “System Event Sounds.” Software Studies: A Lexicon. Ed. Fuller, Matthew. Leonardo. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2008. 243-50.

"The development of contemporary music shows an increasing dependence on concepts that are inherently..."

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:31:45 +0100

“The development of contemporary music shows an increasing dependence on concepts that are inherently variable, and obey evolving hierarchies. That is why we have already seen the series of twelve equal notes replaced by series of sound blocks of unequal density; metre replaced by series of durations and rhythmic blocks (whether dynamic cells or a number of superimposed durations); and finally dynamics and timbre no longer content with their decorative or expressive role, but, while preserving these qualities, seeking also a functional importance, which increases their power and importance.”

- Boulez, Pierre. “Alea.” Stocktakings from an Apprenticeship. 1966. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. 26-38.

"The complexity of the neural network process, and particularly the fact that neural networks appear..."

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:31:44 +0100

“The complexity of the neural network process, and particularly the fact that neural networks appear to “learn” without revealing their methods, can give the impression that these networks have intelligence and are capable of creativity. As with genetic algorithms, however, we should not overestimate the abilities of neural networks or let comtivity mask a lack of true creativity. As we have seen, and will yet see, creativity need not be complex — in fact, creativity often produces the simplest, rather than the most complex, results.”

- Cope, David. Computer Models of Musical Creativity. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2005.

"No one has trouble with the idea that “the same novel” can exist in two different languages, in two..."

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:31:46 +0100

“No one has trouble with the idea that “the same novel” can exist in two different languages, in two different cultures. But what is a novel? A novel is not a specific sequence of words, because if it were, it could only be written in one language, in one culture. No, a novel is a pattern — a particular collection of characters, events, moods, tones, jokes, allusions, and much more. And so a novel is an abstraction, and thus “the very same novel”.”

- Hofstadter, Douglas R. I Am a Strange Loop. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Basic Books, 2007.

"Through language, other people’s bodies can become flexible extensions of our own bodies. In that..."

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:31:44 +0100

“Through language, other people’s bodies can become flexible extensions of our own bodies. In that sense , then, my brain is attached to your body in somewhat the same way as it is to my body — it’s just that, once again, the connection is not hard-wired. My brain is attached to your body via channels of communication that are much slower and more indirect than those linking it to my body, so the control is much less efficient.”

- Hofstadter, Douglas R. I Am a Strange Loop. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Basic Books, 2007.

"Whistles signal. People communicate. The difference is profound. Designers may think their designs..."

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:04:44 +0100

“Whistles signal. People communicate. The difference is profound. Designers may think their designs communicate, but, in fact, they only signal, for the communication only goes in one direction.”

- Norman, Donald A. The Design of Future Things. Philadelphia: Basic Books, 2007.