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trAced
Cyberculture
and Theory
Bad
Subjects
"We challenge progressive
dogma by encouraging readers to think about the political dimension to
all aspects of everyday life." A left wing journal with a sense of humour?
Consumptive
Writing (A Fatal Strategy)
The philosophy of Baudrillard
underlies this attempt at removing notions of process from the teaching
of composition in writing classes. What emerges is that the medium of the
Web is at the heart of anti-processed writing. An engagingly eclectic mix
of resources from hermeneutics to sit-coms, surrealism and semiotics are
engaged.
Critical
Art Ensemble
The Critical Art Ensemble
are a collective of five artists of various specialisations dedicated to
exploring the intersections between art, technology, radical politics,
and critical theory. On this site you'll find a copy of their book The
Electronic Disturbance which looks at the area of the digi-tech age
from a radical perspective using theories by Guattari and Deleuze and the
like.
CTheory
CTheory is an international
journal of theory, technology and culture. Articles, interviews, and key
book reviews in contemporary discourse are published weekly as well as
theorisations of major "event-scenes" in the mediascape. If you want to
know what's happened/happening to philosophy after/during post-modernism
(depending on your point of view) then this is the journal to read. It
boasts essays and reviews by a lot of big names including Jean Baudrillard,
the late Kathy Acker, Hakim Bey, and the Krokers.
Cyberpoet's
Guide to Virtual Culture
"A cyberpoet is one who
strives to be artful in their use of virtual space. Someone who makes frequent
trips to the edge of technology/culture/society and then reports back to
anyone who will listen. The avant-guard of virtual culture." This site
is worth visiting if you want to know more about cyberculture if only for
the lexicon of virtual culture which will help you understand what Cyberpunk
is about. There are also good links to various SF, Cyberbeatnik and Cyberpunk
zines.
Cybersoc
Cybersoc, maintained by
Robin Hamman, is an online resource for social scientists interested in
the study of the Internet, cyberspace, and online communities. The range
is wide, from cybersociology about AOL users to ethnographic drama, and
a discussion of Deleuze and Guattari's "Rhizome". Besides Hamman's research,
there is a library of online papers addressing the language used by virtual
communities, and how Muds, newsgoups and IRC impact on social interaction.
Enculturation
Enculturation is a space
devoted to theoretical approaches to discourse, culture, and society. Essays
on rhetoric, music, film, literature, and critical/literary/postmodern
theory, et al, are invited. While there is no limit on topics other than
the broad scope of culture and/or society, a certain level of academic
discourse is expected.
Ensemble
Logic + Choragraphy
An intriguing and ongoing
project, in two parts, that launched on June 10. The first part was a series
of nine "lectures" by writers, artists and theorists - including Sue Thomas
the Director of trAce. "The intention is to produce an electronic rhetorics/poetics
that will lead to the production of new art work(s) - Choragraphy." CUSeeMe,
IRC and MOOs will be used as well as an email list in this artistic exercise
that gets to grips with the essentials of the medium of cyberspace.
frAme
Part of the trAce site,
edited by Simon Mills, the focus is on critical cyberculture. That focus
manifests in many ways. Cutting and pasting, for example, are mutating
into strange new cyborg manifestations. Text, graphics, sound, other Websites
- who can draw the line between artist, artform and programming anymore.
Is there a line?
Frontlist
Books
Online bookshops are nothing
new. But beyond the Amazons, BOLs et al, some of the specialist ones are
definitely worth visiting. Frontline specialises in scholarly and avant-garde
books for the theoretically minded. As well as the area of culture and
technology, it is also strong on wider cultural studies, literary studies
(theory and otherwise), feminist theory etc. New titles are flagged, which
is helpful, and discounts are given on selected titles.
geekgirl
Described by Wired as having
"funny, intelligent features with a strong technowhore theme", this cyberfeminist
zine is published in Australia. As well as raising your consciousness,
you can buy T-shirts online too. Definitely worth dropping
in on.
Guattari
and Deleuze
When the sun goes down on
the Twentieth Century then Deleuze and Guattari will surely be considered
as two of the most important theorists of our age, if only for being able
to popularise the unlikely term Body-Without-Organs. This site provides
links to Web sites which have D&G related material.
Heim
Seminars
Art is a well established
medium for transforming reality. Does it provide a good model for reality
bending cyber technologies? Digital and virtual reality are under a philosophical
and theoretical microscope at this site, instigated by Michael Heim, that
includes details of seminars, books, articles and conferences in the area.
The front page has an applet that streams challenging quotes at the visitor
very effectively. There's a Tai Chi page too for those who are looking
for a way of maintaining psychic balance as they switch between physical
and virtual realities.
High
Noon on the Electronic Frontier: Conceptual Issues in Cyberspace
Cheers to MIT associate
professor Peter Ludlow for publishing the core of his recent book on the
Web free of charge. Perhaps this isn't so suprising as the work starts
with the argument that 'information wants to be free' then looks at the
problems surrounding intellectual property rights, particularly those associated
with computers. Loads of interesting pieces here from various perspectives
examining topics like piracy, bootlegging, hacking, warez and crypto-anarchy.
So if you're thinking of getting some pirate software and need some moral
justification this is the place to look. By the way has anyone got a cracked
copy of Cubase Score... ?
Hotwired
This is the online sister
to Wired magazine and deals with the same kind of technology related subjects.
It's probably the most famous of the online zines and rightly so. Even
if the design tends to the garish. It's competently written and produced
and invariably has something of interest to say about this increasingly
digitized world of ours. You do have to subscribe to Hotwired but subscription
is free, so it doesn't matter.
Illuminations
Run by Douglas Brown and
Douglas Kellner this is a useful website for anyone interested in the Frankfurt
School of Critical Theory. There are essays on Adorno, Fromm and Marcuse
(among others) plus some work by the Next Generation including Steven Best
and Douglas Kellner.
Internationale
Situationniste
The Situationists were an
avant garde group in the same tradition as Dada and Fluxus. This site has
a complete translation of Guy Debords' Society of the Spectacle,
which is probably the most famous Situationist text and an incomplete translation
of Raoul Vaneigem's brilliant The Revolution of Everyday Life. Chapter
20 Creativity, Spontaneity and Poetry is highly recommended if you
need a bit of a lift.
Parallel
An intelligent, attractive
journal which "presents cross-disciplinary work from artists and writers".
Topics include: art, fiction, design, video, film, sexualities, death,
writing and maybe even the kitchen sink. The issue dated 1995 was still
online in May 1998
Pataphysics
Still searching for that
moment of clarity? This is probably the site to visit. Jarry described
Pataphysics as "the science of imaginary solutions" so it's good to see
Baudrillard gets a mention. Other than that there are numerous links to
all things pataphysical.
Post
Modern Culture
"An electronic journal of
interdisciplinary criticism." A similar kind of journal to CTheory although
it is a bit more diverse in that it has fiction and poetry as well. Off-line
it's published by Oxford University Press. There are lots of back issues
to peruse and also a link to PmcMoo. Another great aspect of this site
is the search facility which allows you to enter a word and it will list
not only places this word occurs within the journal but also in the virtual
seminar records from the Moo. For example whilst searching for references
to Baudrillard I found a virtual seminar given by Douglas Kellner!
Public
Netbase
This is a comprehensive
theory and cyberculture site. A main attraction is Zero News which
contains essays by Konrad Becker, Hakim Bey, Manuel de Landa, Peter Lamborn
Wilson, Bob Black and interviews with Mark Dery, Sadie Plant and more!
Readings
And Surfings: Techno Cultural Media Resources
Ethics and the Internet
is a course at Duke University. Its reading and Web links page is a mine
of information about the history of computers and communications and how
they feed into and are affected by: the media, journalism, postmodernism,
cyberculture, art, technology and cognition. A massive resource that will
be of use to academics, writers and anyone involved in interactive pursuits.
Resource
Center for Cyberculture Studies
This is an ambitious project
but from the initial signs it looks like it will achieve some success.
The purpose is to "research, study, teach, support, and create diverse
and dynamic elements of cyberculture". The site went online in January
1997 and built up an impressive amount of information - including a useful
annotated bibliography. The standards are high and the whole site is non-profit
making.
Speed
Addressing technology, media
and society, the first edition of Speed was subtitled "Myths of Electronic
Living" and contained pieces by or about Mark Leyner, Mark Pesce and Kathy
Acker. A special edition dedicated entirely to Paul Virilio was online
early in 1998.
Spoons
Collective: E-Mail Discussion Groups
If you'd like to do three
incredible things before breakfast then one of them might be to read and
answer the prodigous postings from one of the Spoons lists. Subjects range
right across the theoretical spectrum. There are are often posting letting
you know about new books, conferences and websites.
Technoculture
A vast amount of links at
this site cover the spectrum of the impact of digital technologies on culture
from Howard Rheingold and virtual communities, through power abuses in
cyber space, government attempts to hi-jack technology in order to shackle
privacy and control citizens, and anti-technological movements exemplified
by the Unabomber's manifesto.
Technorealism
"Technorealism demands
that we think critically about the role that tools and interfaces play
in human evolution and everyday life. Integral to this perspective is our
understanding that the current tide of technological transformation, while
important and powerful, is actually a continuation of waves of change that
have taken place throughout history."
Technology - good or bad?
Trying to trace a realistic centre path between utopianism and neo-Luddism,
a group of writers and intellectuals calling themselves Technorealists
have put online their manifesto for evaluating the complicated and often
contradictory implications of modern technology. There's a high-profile
list of signatories to the manifesto plus a link to a separate site for
dialogue
instigated by the original signers of the manifesto (Data Smog author David
Shenk, The Nation's Andrew Shapiro, Cyberselfish author Paulina Borsook,
et al), with guests, including Howard Rheingold and Kirkpatrick Sale. Join
the debate.
Technoromanticism
French speakers will find
much of interest at Stephan Barron's site which has theoretical texts on
romanticism, psychology, science and technology by authors such as Vilem
Flusser, Derrick de Kerkhove, Pierre Restany, Francois Terrasson etc, and
some excellent artwork too. As a concept, Technoromanticism was developed
by Barron for his doctorate at the University of Paris and his book on
the subject published this year.
theory.org.uk
If you're interested in
those areas of media and cultural studies that examine the relationship
between the mass media, identity, gender and everyday lives, this site
has resources and book reviews you might want to pursue. It looks at the
Internet in teaching and communications as well. Star theorists who feature
prominently include Adorno, Foucault and Gramsci. There's even an interactive
critical-theory quiz for those who like their Frankfurt school seasoned
with trivia. In the first four weeks after launching, the site received
4,000 visitors.
Trincoll
Journal
"The net's first multimedia
magazine." This is a weekly magazine, produced by college students, which
covers lots of issues and includes poetry and reviews. Worth a look if
only because magazines like this are going to become more and more popular.
There is an archive of all the back issues as well, of course.
Virtual
Community
Howard Rheingold, the self-styled
prophet of computer communications, has here published a complete book
available for free. Well, that is if you don't pay for your own online
access time. If you do you might be better off getting it from your bookshop.
VNS
Matrix
The impetus of the group
is to investigate and decipher the narratives of domination and control
which surround high technological culture, and explore the construction
of social space, identity and sexuality in cyberspace.
The project which they pursue
is one of debunking the masculinist myths which might alienate women from
technological devices and their cultural products. They believe that women
who hijack the tools of domination and control introduce a rupture into
a highly systematised culture by infecting the machines with radical thought,
diverting them from their inherent purpose of linear top-down mastery.
©
1995-2000 trAce Online Writing Community
Last amended
August 1, 2000
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