Ikosmos

Networked Performance (N_P), a research blog that focuses on emerging network-enabled practice, announces issue 10 of Culture Machine , dedicated to the theme of Pirate Philosophy : “Pirate Philosophy explores how the development of various forms of so-called internet piracy is affecting ideas of the author, the book, the scholarly journal, peer review, intellectual property, copyright law, content creation and cultural production that were established pre-internet. To this end it contains

Gallagher, Winifred, Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life , Penguin:New York, 2009, 244 pp. Rapt is a wide-ranging and elegantly written summary of what scholars, authors, and a few mystics have to say about human attention and the role that it plays in our emotions and our day-to-day actions. Written in a very polished and literate style, it finds a nice balance between the author’s personal reflections on the role of attention in her life, quotations about focus and attention by authors s

Stalking the Next Gold Nugget I am going to describe how an expert would use levels of thinking in an applied prediction situation such as to find gold nuggets. The approach would just as easily apply to evaluating the potential of a property for mining operations, though I assume most of us would be happy to find the next nugget. Prediction of anything consists of using two different extreme approaches in a blended combination. As extremes, they can b

This panel should be very interesting and, given what’s been going on in Iran and the new protests that took place there yesterday, I think it’s a good time to learn more about Iranian culture. If you’re in NY, I hope you’ll come. THE PHILOCTETES CENTER FOR THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY STUDY OF IMAGINATION at the New York Psychoanalytic Institute (EDWARD NERSESSIAN AND FRANCIS LEVY, DIRECTORS) invites you to a Poetry Reading & Discussion Tuesday, September 22, 2009 at 7:00pm at The Phil

Next month, I am scheduled to give a short speech (three to five minutes in length) at the annual induction ceremony of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Boston. This is a bit different from the usual scientific talks that I am used to giving; there are no slides, blackboards, or other visual aids available, and the audience of Academy members is split evenly between the humanities and the sciences, so this will be an interesting new experience for me. (The last time I gave a speech

FROM THE STATESMAN Arunayan Sharma on Durga Puja and all that it brings with it Yaa Devi Sarva Bhuteshu, Shakti Roopena Samasthita, Namastasyai, Namastasyai, Namastasya, Namo Namah. TODAY is Mahalaya. The day we offer tarpan to our ancestors. This religious observance and the traditional worship associated with it has, apart from being merely an adoration of the divine, a somewhat different significance for us. Today is the day when we welcome Durga and the values she stands for

TED announced the list of its 103 TEDIndia 2009 Fellows yesterday and I’m on it. So are friends Dina Mehta (@ dina ), Amit Varma (@ amitvarma ), Sanjukta Basu (@ sanjukta ), Gautam John (@ gkjohn ) and Rose Shuman (@ roseshuman ). According to TED: “This diverse group of artists, entrepreneurs, scientists, musicians, activists, doctors, researchers, filmmakers and teachers provides a snapshot of the creativity and innovation emerging from South Asia.” The TEDIndia conference wi

The gay universe is a remunerative market. Research evidences that the gay market is worth cultivating, regardless what your product or service. In spite of the cultural alters during the past fifty years the gay market is still relatively untapped. Research indicates that the gay market is worth cultivating, no matter what your product or service. Despite the cultural changes during the past fifty years the gay market is still relatively untapped. Gay consumers deeply appreciate being treated

Kerry Picket has done a great job of piecing together a story that looks an awful lot like administration officials using taxpayer money to buy support for its agenda. (Full disclosure: Kerry and I both work for the Washington Times .) Check out the timeline : November 10, 2008: Former NEA chief named to Obama transition team. Bill Ivey, NEA head under Bill Clinton, will handle arts and cultural issues in the transition. January 13, 2009: Arts groups lobby Obama transition team for stimul

The Book of Jerry Falwell Fundamentalist Language and Politics National polls show that approximately 50 million adult Americans are born-again Christians. Yet most Americans see their culture as secular, and the United States is viewed around the world as a secular nation. Further, intellectuals and journalists often portray born-again Christians, despite their numbers, as outsiders who endanger public life. But is American culture really so neatly split be