Bernard Dionysius Geoghegan
Seeing and Seafaring: How the Scopic Regime of Computation Was Mobilised
Taking a cue from Carl Schmitt’s suggestion in Land and Sea that each of the four elements lends its own distinct perspective on the world, this talk examines the role of water—and more specifically, the sea, the ocean, maritime navigation—in the emergence of modern computational graphics. To-date, scholars have dedicated intensive research to the role of earth, air, and fire in the rise of multimedia and graphical computing—albeit through a host of proxies, such as the role of aerial bombardments, nuclear ballistics, smart bombs, and underground bunkers in the rise of digital computing. But what about water? Following the lead of writers including Margaret E. Schotte and David Mindell, this talk aims to add to the elemental mix, by examining how 18th and 19th century maritime navigation mobilized—by means of instruments including almanacs, logbooks, and chronometers—computational perspectives on the graphic rendering of time and space.
DIGITAL SEMINAR ON ZOOM
14 November 2023, 13:00-14:30
Bernard’s presentation will be followed by a response from Pablo Abend, current Ander Visiting Professor in Geomedia Studies, and a Q&A and discussion.
Contact: Pablo Abend
https://www.kau.se/en/geomedia/conferences-and-events/geomedia-speaker-series