Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine (CHSTM)
University of Manchester

Seminar, Tuesday 1 April, 16:00-17:30
Room 2.219 (not 2.217), University Place, 178-186 Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL
http://goo.gl/maps/uJFP9

Alan Shapiro (Offenbach University of Art and Design, Germany)

“After Modernism and Postmodernism: How Can Science Fiction Theory, Hyperreality Theory, Posthumanism and Cybernetics Help Us?”

In the age that we are living in now of so-called new media, new technologies, and the information society, we find ourselves to be in a very new situation in our social, individual and technological existence. As opposed to the historical periods of modernity/modernism and postmodernity/postmodernism, I call this new historical situation hypermodernity or hypermodernism. The continued use of the term ‘historical’ could as well be placed into question, but it still seems to have partial validity. Nowadays, the very assumption that we know what ’reality’ is does not hold up. We are on shaky ground here and we need new ideas (in the context of practice, of course). What is reality? What is the relationship between reality and mediality? Between reality and virtuality? Between reality and simulations? We need new terms, new words, for describing, understanding and experiencing these dimensions of things. And the assumption that we know what space and time are does not hold up well either. We are on shaky ground here too, and we need new ideas and new practices, new terms and words for even thinking about space and time. What is ‘here’ and what is ‘there’? What I am interested in asking is this question: What cultural and sociological theories from the past can help us to understand our present situation in the information society? In this lecture, I will consider the current state of four theoretical approaches: science fiction theory, hyperreality theory, posthumanism and cybernetics.

All are welcome and please feel free pass this list on to interested colleagues.

Event co-organised by Niki Vermeulen and Ray Macauley
http://www.chstm.manchester.ac.uk/newsandevents/seminars/chstm/index.aspx