Calculating Empires: A Genealogy of Technology and Power Since 1500
The project "Calculating Empires" by Kate Crawford and Vladan Joler explores technology's impact on power dynamics since 1500. It covers communication, computation, colonialism, surveillance, and more, offering insights into societal changes.
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The text discusses a project titled "Calculating Empires: A Genealogy of Technology and Power Since 1500" by Kate Crawford and Vladan Joler. The project explores the intersection of technology and power over the centuries, focusing on various topics such as communication and computation, control and classification, education, emotions and intelligence, human bodies, colonialism, political and economic systems, production, energy and resources, spatial representation, surveillance infrastructure, and military systems. The project delves into the impact of technology on different aspects of society, including communication devices, data organization, algorithms, human computers, biometrics, medical practices, policing, borders, and colonialism. By examining these themes, the project aims to provide insights into how technology has shaped and influenced power dynamics since 1500.
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9 commentsA lot of unavoidable, but still quite subjective compromises had to be made to project the very high-n space addressed by this infographic into 2 representational dimensions. A lot of stuff got mapped to the zero vector here.
On that note, when I drill into the details I see things that are initially puzzling, such as the lineage starting from cartesian geometry seeming to end abruptly at vector calculus, to be resumed (but without guiding connectors) both above as forecasting, and a panel or so rightward as Markov Chains and further on, the somewhat loose cluster of concepts headed by the word "Transformers."
And... what's with all the hunched-over shoegazers? Are they here to pay off a debt? Their multiplicity and contextual disjointedness with respect to their surroundings somehow gives off MidJourney vibes. First time I've ever felt a pang of sympathy for clip-art.
It looks like the authors were inspired by those mind-bendingly complex biological cycle charts published by Roche, but didn't want to attempt the extremely tedious (and necessary, IMO) bird's nest business of cross-linking causally influenced (but rep-space remote) systems with a spaghetti of directed connectors and data detailing that those charts made famous.
I will say that there's a lot that could be added before and after Frege that would be helpful, for the programming languages bit. Whitehead, Russell, Peirce, and Chomsky would be nice to see, not to mention Aristotle and Hegel
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