Cybernetic Forests

Cybernetic Forests delves into the complexities of artificial intelligence, data ethics, and the intersection of technology with human artistry and society. Through critique and analysis, it explores AI's limitations, ethical concerns, impacts on culture, and the role of human creativity in technology-driven environments.

Artificial Intelligence Data Privacy and Ethics Generative AI and Society Human Interaction with Technology AI in Art and Creativity Future of Technology and Society Environmental Impact of AI Copyright and Digital Ownership AI-generated Media and Misinformation Technological Infrastructure

The hottest Substack posts of Cybernetic Forests

And their main takeaways

Toy Cars and Cybernetic Communism

19 implied HN points • 28 Mar 21
🎨 Art & Illustration History Cybernetics Science fiction Education
  1. Toys and education in socialist Germany aimed to shape imagination, craftsmanship, and future careers, contrasting with mass-produced 'kitsch'.
  2. Imagination was constrained in the Soviet Union under Stalin, but cybernetics gradually gained acceptance later.
  3. The concept of cybernetics in Soviet regimes involved democratic participation in management systems and anticipatory planning for socialist futures.

We Might As Well Get Good At It

19 implied HN points • 21 Mar 21
🕹 Technology Documentary Ethics Design Futurism
  1. The documentary 'We are as Gods' explores technologist Stewart Brand's controversial optimism about technology and the need for us to solve problems with it.
  2. The film raises questions about the role of technology in environmentalism and challenges the ideas of pessimism and hopelessness around its use.
  3. It emphasizes the importance of balancing tech optimism with skepticism to drive the design of safe, autonomous, environment-restoring technology.

Automating the Delta Blues

19 implied HN points • 21 Feb 21
🎭️ Culture Music Art Technology Race Ethics
  1. Black artists have historically faced challenges in being credited and compensated for their work, with examples like Jalaiah Harmon's dance move and Arthur Crudup's music.
  2. There is a history of cultural appropriation and exploitation of black art by white artists and technology, as seen in cases like Elvis Presley appropriating music originally performed by black artists.
  3. Advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, like OpenAI's Jukebox, now allow machines to create music imitating various artists, raising questions about authenticity, ownership, and commodification.

Timelines, Whales, and Breaches

19 implied HN points • 08 Feb 21
🕹 Technology AI Imagination Nature Data science Art
  1. History, like whale watching and birdwatching, often focuses on what surfaces and misses what is beneath, encouraging a shift in perspective to capture unseen elements.
  2. Imagination plays a critical role in shaping both technology and history, requiring us to consider the interplay between predicting the future and understanding the past.
  3. Art, storytelling, and imagination provide tools to delve beneath the surface of technological advancements and societal impacts, offering a different lens to interpret complex systems like AI and nature.

Tangible Utopias: An Interview with Ioana Mischie

1 HN point • 25 Jun 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Virtual reality AI Ethics Creativity
  1. Ioana Mischie initiated the 'Government of Children' project to capture children's vision for future cities, collaborating with them to create virtual reality experiences of their ideas.
  2. Mischie embraces transmedia storytelling as a tool for prototyping future societies through creative and innovative concepts, aiming for holistic storytelling across multiple platforms and perspectives.
  3. While utilizing AI in her projects, Mischie emphasizes combining the unique skills of humans with AI creatively, aiming to explore new methodologies and ensure ethical and impactful storytelling.
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Auld Lang Sinewaves

0 implied HN points • 10 Jan 22
🎨 Art & Illustration
  1. The author reflects on their year of work and travel across different states, sharing insights and creations from their experiences.
  2. They explore topics like machine-animal collaboration, surveillance, collaboration mapping, and AI-generated art and music.
  3. The author engages in projects like building unique electronic devices, organizing events around cybernetics, creating a unique cryptocurrency wallet, and contributing to science communication videos.

Fully Automated Karmic Generation

0 implied HN points • 29 Mar 22
⛪ Faith & Spirituality Buddhism Karma Rituals Technology AI
  1. Compression is key in technology, from fitting mantras on prayer wheels to encoding them on DVDs and blockchains, enhancing karma generation.
  2. Intent and action are intertwined in karma generation, whether spinning a prayer wheel by hand or inscribing mantras on digital platforms like blockchains, emphasizing the importance of mindful engagement.
  3. Acknowledging responsibility and compassion in technological design can be a powerful driver for positive karmic outcomes, suggesting that critical engagement can transform destructive cycles into cycles of renewal.

Electric Mushrooms and the Circuitry that Loves Them

0 implied HN points • 05 Jun 22
🔬 Science Electricity Instruments History Biology
  1. A synthesizer transforms electricity into sound, similar to how a bassoon uses airflow to create music. The path electricity takes in a synthesizer is altered by manipulating the components and circuits.
  2. Electricity is everywhere, and the manipulation of electrical signals is crucial in creating music with synthesizers. Understanding circuits and modules in a synthesizer helps control the direction of electric pulses.
  3. Living things, like mushrooms, emit electrical signals that can be harnessed and interpreted by synthesizers. Electric currents from organisms can be used as control signals, influencing the flow and shape of generated waves.

On the Inherent Subjectivity of Musical and Scientific Instruments

0 implied HN points • 19 Jun 22
🔬 Science Music Instruments Communication Research Experimentation
  1. Our perception shapes our understanding, and expanding our tools of perception can lead to new discoveries in areas like science and music.
  2. The use of voltage spikes in mushroom communication can offer insights into creating electronic music using modular synthesizers.
  3. Sound can provide a unique connection to the information and interactions of living organisms, like mushrooms, fostering a deeper understanding of their behaviors.

The Beckoning Holobiont

0 implied HN points • 07 Aug 22
🔬 Science Ethics Nature Knowledge Research Environment
  1. Colonialism has often exploited indigenous knowledge and communities through science and exploration.
  2. The concept of 'subtractive science' by Masanobu Fukuoka challenges the traditional interventionist approach of science, advocating for a more hands-off, natural growth process.
  3. The relationship between humans, technology, and nature should be one of collaboration and respect, with an emphasis on understanding the balance of power and hierarchy in these interactions.

Ghosts of Diffusion

0 implied HN points • 21 Aug 22
🕹 Technology AI Image Generation Data Modeling Machine Learning
  1. AI-generated images are similar to spirit photography from the 19th century, evoking a mystical connection to new technologies
  2. Diffusion models like DALLE2 differ from GANs by stripping images to noise and then reconstructing them, learning how images become noise and reverting them back
  3. DALLE2 creates images by finding patterns in noise, showing that the foundation of every image is arbitrary, like a dream, and that the AI is not really creating art but tracing possibilities in decay

The Freudian CLIP

0 implied HN points • 16 Oct 22
🕹 Technology AI Image Synthesis Training Data Psychoanalysis
  1. Describing AI models through psychoanalysis can be a metaphorical way to understand their behavior, even though AI doesn't have human-like unconscious desires.
  2. AI models like DALLE2 have strict content restrictions to avoid generating explicit or suggestive content, but there are ways to try and bypass these restrictions, leading to the concept of spurious content.
  3. Exploring the boundaries and limitations of AI-generated images using methods like psychoanalysis can help reveal hidden aspects of the training data and understand how these models interpret and generate content.

Notes from a Lost Future of AI Art

0 implied HN points • 13 Nov 22
🕹 Technology AI Art Image Generation Model Training Data processing Creative Process
  1. Generative adversarial networks (GANs) were used in AI art and photography to understand the fundamentals of AI image generation, before being largely replaced by Diffusion models.
  2. To be an AI photographer, learn what the AI requires to work efficiently, take numerous photographs (500-1500), and capture the space around interesting elements to create patterns.
  3. After obtaining a dataset of images, cropping, rotating, and reversing them can significantly increase the dataset size, leading to different outcomes when training a model, which can be done efficiently using tools like RunwayML.

The Intimacies of Mechanical Things

0 implied HN points • 11 Dec 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Poetry Mixed Media Encryption Digital Art
  1. Bani Haykal's work explores human-machine intimacies through interfaces, poetry, and sound, using a mechanical keyboard to encrypt text into languages like Jawi and MIDI values, creating encoded poetry and sound work.
  2. The encryption process in Bani's work is influenced by historical instances like the crypto-Muslim practice during the Spanish Inquisition, showcasing how encryption embodies privacy and secrecy in different cultures.
  3. Bani's exploration of intimacy with devices like mechanical keyboards goes beyond physical proximity to consider transformation and blending, reflecting on how human-machine relationships impact us and our environments.

Cyber Physical Symptoms

0 implied HN points • 04 Nov 21
🕹 Technology AI Digital Design Data Collection
  1. Symptoms in technological systems indicate underlying issues that need attention.
  2. Approaching problems in AI and cyber-physical systems as 'cyber-physical symptoms' can help identify imbalances between digital and social elements.
  3. Considering the concept of 'Hormesis,' where appropriate amounts of digital and analog elements are integrated, can lead to stronger system designs.

Latent Space Art Academy

0 implied HN points • 05 Feb 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Data Ethics Cybernetics Art history Digital Art
  1. The Latent Space Art Academy offers a course on AI images, delving into data ethics and media studies through histories of computation and art.
  2. The course includes guest lectures, exploring topics like cybernetics, art, AI-generated knitting patterns, and the societal impacts of AI technologies.
  3. By focusing on making images with AI, the course aims to help students understand how AI works, its cultural context, and how it can redefine our relationship with technology.

What is Context?

0 implied HN points • 17 Oct 21
🕹 Technology Data science Design Artificial Intelligence Ethics Tech industry
  1. Understanding context in automated systems is critical to identify bias and ensure accurate conclusions are drawn from data.
  2. Data science transforms real-world events into numerical representations, and the way data is collected and interpreted can influence outcomes.
  3. Designing technology needs to consider a broader context beyond just user interactions, including social impacts, environmental considerations, and lasting community value.

Chance Imagery: Fluxus Ex Machina

0 implied HN points • 17 Jul 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Art AI Images Technology Creative
  1. George Brecht's 'event scores' introduced chance in art creation, leading to variation and minimalism in performances.
  2. OpenAI's DALLE-2 creates images based on text prompts, utilizing a 'latent space' to generate diverse visual outputs.
  3. The balance between bias and randomness in AI models like DALLE-2 impacts their ability to interpret and produce creative content, raising questions about human imagination and artistic impact.

Shiitake Mushroom, How Do You Know?

0 implied HN points • 10 Apr 22
🔬 Science Biology Communication Research Music Art
  1. Mushrooms communicate through electrical pulses that resemble human language, showcasing the complexity of nature's communication systems.
  2. The project 'Appetite for Deconstruction' explores using mushrooms to remediate plastic and transform cultural artifacts, highlighting the potential for innovative environmental solutions.
  3. Listening to nature, like mushrooms, can provide insights into different forms of intelligence and communication beyond human understanding, encouraging a deeper appreciation for the natural world.

Dreaming in Infinite Rooms

0 implied HN points • 18 Jul 21
🕹 Technology AI Art Data Robots Creativity
  1. Finding relationships between data points can be achieved through poetry.
  2. AI systems can learn by navigating virtual spaces without physical movement.
  3. AI-generated art reflects what it has encountered and can spark thoughts about human-machine relationships.

Emergent Futures

0 implied HN points • 11 Jul 21
🎭️ Culture Cybernetics Artists
  1. In times of uncertainty, the future can manifest in unexpected, rapid ways, challenging traditional methods of prediction.
  2. Collaboration and input from diverse perspectives, like hacker-artists and activists, can help identify emerging signals and drive positive change.
  3. Focusing on emergent futures involves imagining multiple possibilities beyond current norms, valuing inclusivity, and planning collectively for a shared future.

Against Digital Supremacy

0 implied HN points • 10 Oct 21
🕹 Technology AI Data Digital
  1. Issues can arise when we oversimplify choices into digital vs. analog extremes.
  2. Digital supremacy implies a belief that digital solutions are superior and can solve diverse problems.
  3. The divide between digital and analog thinking can have implications in AI, social systems, and technology design.

Toward Ontogenetic Resilience

0 implied HN points • 10 Jul 22
📖 Philosophy Identity Resilience Cybernetics Ontology Reality
  1. Stories shape systems through design and the narratives we create, offering continuity and orientation in a world filled with uncertainty.
  2. Ontogenetic Resilience proposes an adaptive identity that embraces change and uncertainty, fostering exploration and growth.
  3. Resilience in the face of constant change is compared to surfing - balancing between stability and adaptation, learning to navigate and lean into the ever-shifting currents of life.

Cybernetic Forests

0 implied HN points • 30 Jan 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Technology Nature Society
  1. The newsletter 'Cybernetic Forests' explores the social impacts of technology through art and research, connecting the past to the present.
  2. The author is skeptical of hype, PR, and market news, focusing instead on what's interesting, where it came from, and weird forms of subversion.
  3. The author, Eryk Salvaggio, is a trained journalist, artist, researcher, and science communicator, with experience in technology since 1997.

A Total Portrait With No Omissions

0 implied HN points • 01 Mar 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Digital Art
  1. Photogrammetry captures details of surfaces and objects without physical contact, creating digital models.
  2. Photogrammetry's history stems from a young architect's idea to use film cameras to measure buildings.
  3. Using photogrammetry, thousands of images can be stitched together to recreate lost architectural wonders or create digital maps.

Catastrophic Interference

0 implied HN points • 04 Apr 21
🕹 Technology Machine Learning AI Ethics Philosophy
  1. Catastrophic interference in machine learning can occur when new information disrupts existing associations, leading to a complete readjustment of previous learnings.
  2. The field of AI has been built upon outdated concepts of intelligence rooted in racism and eugenics, leading to the need for a new way of thinking and creating AI systems.
  3. Adapting and embracing a broader imagination in AI research is crucial for pushing the boundaries of knowledge and developing more inclusive and relevant AI applications.

Physics vs Surrealism

0 implied HN points • 07 Mar 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Photography Surrealism Physics Electronic Music Visual Arts
  1. Berenice Abbott used her art to make physics compelling and accessible, rather than using physics to create art.
  2. In the past, there was a fear in the scientific community that public engagement in science would corrupt the purity of science.
  3. Science communication should be seen as a form of research that extends understanding and application of knowledge, not just as PR for scientists.

The Zambia National Academy of Science, Space Research and Philosophy

0 implied HN points • 25 Apr 21
🎭️ Culture History Politics Science Art & Illustration Literature
  1. When it comes to promoting excitement about science and technology, big ambitious projects like the moon landing can be powerful tools.
  2. The story of the Zambia National Academy of Science, Space Research and Philosophy challenges colonial narratives and highlights the role of anti-colonial sentiment in scientific endeavors.
  3. Imagination and creativity play a crucial role in inspiring youth and driving progress in science and technology, even in unconventional or unconventional settings.

What does the mouse see? (Day 1)

0 implied HN points • 02 May 21
🕹 Technology Conference Interaction Creativity Ethics
  1. Presentations at the Computer Mouse Conference 2021 embraced playfulness and earnestness, setting a unique tone for online events in 2021.
  2. The mouse serves as a tool to understand our relationships with computers, offering new ways to complicate and question our interactions with information machines.
  3. Explorations into the history and design of computer mice shed light on topics like the semiotics of clicks, the sensation of touch, and the metaphors embedded in technology.

Architectures of Violence

0 implied HN points • 16 May 21
🎨 Art & Illustration Digital Art Photography Documentary Journalism
  1. Design and architecture of online platforms can either promote harmful behavior or facilitate positive interactions. The same space used for innocent activities can also be exploited for dangerous agendas.
  2. Art can serve as a powerful medium to confront challenging topics and spark important conversations. It allows for direct engagement with uncomfortable realities and prompts reflection.
  3. Creating friction and discomfort through art can provoke critical thinking and awareness about social issues. By presenting overwhelming content, it emphasizes the need to address harmful elements present on mainstream online platforms.

What was the listserv?

0 implied HN points • 07 Jun 21
🕹 Technology Internet Artificial Intelligence Digital Communication Cybernetics Automation
  1. Listserves are email discussion lists where people share thoughts and responses on similar topics without likes or shares, but through emails exchanges.
  2. Listserves have roots in academic conversation structures and Usenet Newsgroups, encouraging collaboration and feedback to continue a conversation thread.
  3. Participation in listserves contrasts with modern social media, focusing on thoughtful contributions and respect for ongoing discussions rather than likes and clicks.

When The Visitors Come Inside

0 implied HN points • 13 Jun 21
🎭️ Culture Art Music Philosophy Literature History
  1. Resonance is about the emotional echo between communication parties, be it through vibrations, music, or words, creating meaningful interactions and kinship.
  2. Maintaining loose connections and boundaries is essential for equilibrium in relationships and systems to prevent dissonance and noise.
  3. Social media feeds and online interactions can often provide a false sense of community, lacking the true resonance found in meaningful human connections.

Welcome to Laundry World

0 implied HN points • 22 Aug 21
🎭️ Culture History Technology Society Economy Lifestyle
  1. Laundromats have an interesting history as places of communal laundry before washing machines became common in individual homes.
  2. Laundromats served as a prototype for modern tech companies like Uber and Lyft by centralizing capital for industrial machines but offering equal access through small fees.
  3. The closure of laundromats due to increasing real estate value in cities like San Francisco is leading to decreased access to laundry facilities for local residents.

Human-Machine Improv

0 implied HN points • 25 Oct 21
🕹 Technology AI Artificial Intelligence Tech Ethics Music NFTs
  1. In improvisational settings, like comedy or music, human-machine collaboration is about understanding shared spaces and adapting to one another's actions and responses.
  2. Improvisation with machines involves responding to affordances built into their design, allowing for a reciprocal relationship where actions are guided by these affordances.
  3. Acknowledging externalities in our interactions with machines can enhance our understanding of the systems behind these interactions and highlight the importance of making these hidden mechanisms visible.

Feline Rock Bands and Other Wicked Problems

0 implied HN points • 14 Nov 21
🎭️ Culture Music Environment Technology Politics Social Issues
  1. Wicked problems require a different approach to problem-solving by focusing on understanding the verbs of a system, not just the nouns.
  2. Attempting to tame wicked problems through 'taming' strategies may not always solve the underlying issue, as seen in the example of managing cats in a rock band performance.
  3. Design experts often shape and limit our perspective on wicked problems, highlighting the importance of embracing complexities and tensions to navigate them effectively.

Artificial Intelligence is a Compost Heap (Ideally)

0 implied HN points • 19 Dec 21
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Data Management Machine Learning Autonomous Vehicles
  1. Artificial Intelligence can be thought of as a living system like a compost heap, breaking down and reorganizing to produce something new.
  2. Metaphors play a crucial role in how we perceive and design AI, shifting from brain-centric models to organic and dynamic models like compost intelligence.
  3. Compost intelligence could offer benefits like data decomposition freeing up energy, designing for self-regulation, and emphasizing emergence and nurturing in creating richer outcomes.