IFD:TheNetworkIsTheMachine: Difference between revisions

Could the ubiquity of the contemporary web and its evolution from data transmission medium to universal infrastructure and interface for the interconnection of 'everything' presage what Kurzweil has titled 'the coming Singularity'? As the world enters what are possibly the waning years of human-machine plurality, there is still time to examine the technological and sociocultural phenomenon that is the world wide web, and its role not just in the production, mediation and dissemination of human information, knowledge and culture, but also its function in the gradual unification of all objects, devices and Things, great and small, into an all-encompassing rhizomatic machine that will eventually envelope all of humankind. This module will focus on the concept of Web of Things as a central platform, wherein the web itself is no longer just an application, but an environment for interaction (and possibly assimilation) between People and Things, such as data, devices and services. Participants will evaluate and employ contemporary strategies and methodologies for developing a web-connected device, object, installation, application or service.