Waves of Identity – Dan Molter
In this first podcast for the Creating Life project, our host Marjolein Pijnappels goes into conversation with Dan Molter. Dan is a naturalist, expert mushroom photographer, and lecturer of philosophy University of Tennessee Knoxville. His research is in scientific metaphysics, with a focus on questions of biological individuality. Questions, such as “What is an organism?”, are answered in the context of scientific theories and models, and these latter tend to carve nature in incongruent ways. In this podcast, Marjolein talks to Dan about the life cycle and multiplicity of mushrooms, and ventures into the analogy of mushroom's multitude to human beings: Where does the individual end and the other begin? And what is a species anyway? Is it a group of organisms? Must they be similar in
Animal Awareness
Aysha Akhtar, M.D., M.P.H., is a double Board-certified neurologist and preventive medicine/public health specialist. She is demonstrating how there is a mutual benefit to both humans and animals when animals are protected. Dr. Akhtar is the President and CEO of the Center for Contemporary Sciences, which is catalyzing the replacement of unreliable animal testing with more effective human-specific research techniques. A U.S veteran, she previously served as Deputy Director of the U.S. Army Traumatic Brain Injury Program developing the Army’s brain injury prevention and treatment strategies for soldiers. As a Commander in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Dr. Akhtar frequently deployed to assist with national public health emergencies. She is published in peer-reviewed journals including Lancet, Pediatrics, Journal of Public Health Policy and Reviews in
Future Based x Inverse Surveillance with Nadia Benaissa
Inverse Surveillance AI is a project of The Asimov Institute, funded by the SIDN Fund. The project is a think tank of scientists, policymakers, and philosophers in order to answer the question, “How can we use AI as a Panopticon to promote beneficial actions for citizens by organizations?” Based on the insights produced from this think tank, a first proof of concept will be developed in a hackathon. The project lasts 6 months and operates from a utopian and solution-oriented approach. The main goal is to deepen the subject of Inverse Surveillance, to explore how AI can make this possible, and sharing all information so that it can function as a launchpad for future research. This podcast series together with Asimov director Stefan Leijnen, we go into conversations with experts in the field of AI technology.
Oversaturation of information and interdisciplinary solutions with Jasmijn Visser
Text: Augustina Lavickaite | ACEDThe urge to understand, organize, and structurize the world around us has been part of human existence for as long as we are aware. Complex algorithms, such as programs for self-driving cars, or groups of elementary ones, such as primitive rituals of sacrifice, are examples of actions intended to understand and control the future. As our experience and knowledge of the surroundings grow, these actions become more complex. We have handed over most of the repetitive and time-consuming calculations as well as a rising amount of cognitive tasks to technology, increasing the flow of new knowledge, but creating a fracture of expertise and a decrease in understanding. The most prominent and successful approach to dealing with the oversaturation of information has been the collaboration
Events:
No longer purely figures in science fiction, robots make up a progressively larger part of society due to developments in artificial intelligence. As we guide ourselves through our evolving relationships with robots assisting us in a diverse range of disciplines, such as well-being, health, and sex, we form our own ideas about what human-machine interaction
Often going beyond the standard discourse, climate fiction depicts alternative scenario’s to climate change. For example, in Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer, a team of scientists explore the expanding ‘Area X’ to document its mutated flora and fauna, causing us to wonder how species will adapt to climate change. Not only confronting us with how climate
New projects:
A project on the extraordinary nature of the ordinary things around us.
Future Based Scientific Imagination is a new project of the Future Based platform, hosted and curated by Sabine Winters. The philosophical quest of this project is based on the wish to understand more about the role of imagination in our understanding of the world. Furthermore, the different perspectives on the function of imagination, represents a wider perspective on questions on human knowledge: how we obtain knowledge and which beliefs we hold about the methodologies in acquiring knowledge. Special contributors are among other professor Vincent Icke, Astropreneur Nancy Vermeulen and Cybrog anthropologist Marques D Anderson. Read more.
Witchcraft made Science – how witchcraft created modern science.
Guided and curated by Lieke Wouters, we’ll be discussing how the common stereotype of the witch, the old crone wearing a black pointy hat while riding on a broomstick with a black cat in tow, stands in the way of important herstories about women healers, midwives and other non-conforming women and the impact of witch-hunts from the 16th century onwards on the development of science. What can we learn from these anti-patriarchal re-tellings and how do they influence our view on gender diversity in science? Read more.
Creating Life – A three part essay on human beings – being human
In a series of three video essays created in collaboration with Marjolein Pijnappels, we explore how life is created and sustained on our planet. Taking a closer look at human birth, mycorrhiza connectivity, chimerism and the pan-microbiome from a philosophical and personal perspective, Marjolein wants to shed light on the different perspectives on the ability to bear life, on being alive, and on what defines being a human being in this particular aspect of life. The research will run from June through December 2021, begins with a personal examination and reflection on the three topics around the theme “Creating Life”: Life Cycle, Multitudes, Networked Beings. The final result, in collaboration with a filmmaker, will be cast in three short video essays that will be presented on our website, and during a meetup. Read more.
