Sapient Circuits and Digitalized Flesh PDF Download

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Defragmenter Media
ISBN: 1944373225
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
This book develops new insights into the evolving nature of organizations by applying the methodologies of posthumanist thought to the fields of organizational theory and management. An emerging 'organizational posthumanism' is described that makes sense of the ways in which forces of technological posthumanization are reshaping the members, personnel structures, information systems, processes, physical and virtual spaces, and external environments available for use by organizations. Conceptual frameworks and analytic tools are formulated that diagnose the convergence in the capacities of human and artificial actors generated by new technologies relating to human augmentation, synthetic agency, and digital-physical ecosystems. As the first systematic study of these topics, this text will interest scholars and students of organizational management and management practitioners who grapple on a daily basis with the forces of technologization that are increasingly powerful drivers of organizational change.

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Defragmenter Media
ISBN: 9781944373153
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 238

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Book Description
Key organizational decisions made by sapient AIs. The pressure to undergo neuroprosthetic augmentation in order to compete with genetically enhanced coworkers. A corporate headquarters that exists only in cyberspace as a persistent virtual world. A project team whose members interact socially as online avatars without knowing or caring whether fellow team members are human beings or robots.Futurists' visions of the dawning age of 'posthumanized' organizations range from the disquieting to the exhilarating. Which of these visions are compatible with our best current understanding of the capacities and the limits of human intelligence, physiology, and sociality? And what can posthumanist thought reveal about the forces of technologization that are transforming how we collaborate with one another - and with ever more sophisticated artificial agents and systems - to achieve shared goals?This book develops new insights into the evolving nature of intelligent agency and collaboration by applying the post-anthropocentric and post-dualistic methodologies of posthumanism to the fields of organizational theory and management. Building on a comprehensive typology of posthumanism, an emerging 'organizational posthumanism' is described which makes sense of the dynamics of technological posthumanization that are reshaping the members, personnel structures, information systems, processes, physical and virtual spaces, and external environments available to organizations. Conceptual frameworks and analytical tools are formulated for use in diagnosing and guiding the ongoing convergence in the capacities of human and artificial actors that is being spurred by novel technologies relating to human augmentation, synthetic agency, and digital-physical ecosystems. As the first systematic investigation of these topics, this text will be of interest to scholars and students of posthumanism and management and to management practitioners who must grapple on a daily basis with the forces of technologization that are increasingly powerful drivers of organizational change.

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Synthypnion Academic
ISBN: 194437308X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 314

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Book Description
This volume serves a resource for the design and analysis of neuroprosthetic supersystems, which can be defined as organizations – either small or large, simple or complex – whose human members have been neuroprosthetically augmented. While numerous other texts focus on the biomedical engineering of neuroprostheses as technological devices or on the biocybernetic engineering of the host-device system comprising a neuroprosthesis and its human host, this volume presents a unique investigation of the intentional creation of higher-order supersystems that allow multiple neuroprosthetically augmented human beings to interact with one another and with external information systems in order to accomplish some shared task. In essence, this can be understood as the work of designing and managing neuroprosthetically enhanced organizations. Individual chapters present an ontology of the neuroprosthesis as a computing device; a biocybernetic ontology of the host-device system; an ontology of the neuroprosthesis as an instrument of ‘cyborgization’; motivating and inhibiting factors for the organizational deployment of posthumanizing neuroprostheses by military organizations and other early adopters; an introduction to enterprise architecture in the context of technological posthumanization; an exploration of the implications of neuroprosthetic augmentation for enterprise architecture; and considerations for the development of effective network topologies for neuroprosthetically augmented organizations. The conceptual frameworks formulated within this book offer a wide range of tools that can be of use to policymakers, ethicists, neuroprosthetic device manufacturers, organizational decision-makers, and others who must analyze or manage the complex legal, ethical, and managerial implications that result from the use of emerging neuroprosthetic technologies within an organizational context.

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Defragmenter Media
ISBN: 1944373063
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 444

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Book Description
What are the best practices for leading a workforce in which human employees have merged cognitively and physically with electronic information systems and work alongside social robots, artificial life-forms, and self-aware networks that are ‘colleagues’ rather than simply ‘tools’? How does one manage organizational structures and activities that span actual and virtual worlds? How are the forces of technological posthumanization transforming the theory and practice of management? This volume explores the reality that an organization’s workers, managers, customers, and other stakeholders increasingly comprise a complex network of human agents, artificial agents, and hybrid human-synthetic entities. The first part of the book develops the theoretical foundations of an emerging ‘organizational posthumanism’ and presents frameworks for understanding and managing the evolving workplace relationship between human and synthetic beings. Other chapters investigate topics such as the likelihood that social robots might utilize charismatic authority to lead human workers; potential roles of AIs as managers of cross-cultural virtual teams; the ethics and legality of entrusting organizational decision-making to spatially diffuse robots that have no discernible physical form; quantitative approaches to comparing managerial capabilities of human and artificial agents; the creation of artificial life-forms that function as autonomous enterprises competing against human businesses; neural implants as gateways that allow human users to participate in new forms of organizational life; and the implications of advanced neuroprosthetics for information security and business model design. As the first comprehensive application of posthumanist methodologies to management, this volume will interest management scholars and management practitioners who must understand and guide the forces of technologization that are rapidly reshaping organizations’ form, dynamics, and societal roles.

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Mnemoclave
ISBN: 1944373179
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 42

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Book Description
You don’t know how far you can trust what you see or feel or remember, because it could all just be a byproduct of your neural implant or illusions fabricated by a neurohacker. Self-evolving computer viruses and stray nanorobotic swarms have taken up residence in the components of your robotic prosthetic arm. Battles over access to neurocybernetic enhancement, life-extension biotech, and immersive VR paradises are fragmenting humanity into new strata of haves and have-nots. You can never tell whether the full-body cyborgs that you see in the street belong to military units, megacorps, or bands of hackers-for-hire… or maybe all three at once. Such near-future cyberdystopias provide the perfect setting for a hard-SF roleplaying game campaign. But how much reality lies beneath their surface? Could a human mind really learn how to operate a full cyborg body that has wheels or wings or dozens of robotic tentacles, or would it be too ‘alien’? If relatively small changes in brain temperature can cause behavioral impacts (or even brain damage), is it advisable to implant a heat-spewing miniaturized supercomputer in someone’s cranium? A neural jack that lets you instantly download new skills sounds great, but could such a thing actually work? And which of your cognitive functions could a hacker take control of by compromising such a device? If you’ve ever thought about any of these questions when designing or running an adventure, then Mnemoclave’s Posthuman Cyberware Sourcebook series is meant for you. It’s designed especially for GMs who want to give their campaigns a grittier edge and loads of surprises that’ll keep their players on their toes – and for serious gamers who want to map out the potential and limitations of their characters’ cyberware from a new perspective. This first volume in the series offers an introduction to the use of neuroprostheses for sensory, cognitive, and motor enhancement and explores distinctions between posthuman and transhuman cyberware. It’s not simply a tale of artificial eyes with telescopic night vision or combat-grade cyberlimbs but also a blueprint for the development of neuroprosthetically enhanced imagination, emotions, and conscience and the creation of human-synthetic hive minds. The volume considers neuroprosthetic devices’ human hosts in their three roles as sapient minds, embodied organisms, and social and economic actors to explain how cyberware can be employed either as tools for personal empowerment and liberation or mechanisms of enslavement and zombification. The book serves as a resource for designing campaigns or one-off adventures set in worlds with a cyberpunk, postcyberpunk, or biopunk milieu in which posthumanizing cyberware exists and societies are tilting toward the dystopian. The text includes dozens of special inserts with plot hooks, character traits, equipment descriptions, and ideas regarding setting and atmosphere that help you incorporate the material directly into your game, regardless of which rule system you’re running.

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Synthypnion Academic
ISBN: 1944373101
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
How does one ensure information security for a computer that is entangled with the structures and processes of a human brain – and for the human mind that is interconnected with such a device? The need to provide information security for neuroprosthetic devices grows more pressing as increasing numbers of people utilize therapeutic technologies such as cochlear implants, retinal prostheses, robotic prosthetic limbs, and deep brain stimulation devices. Moreover, emerging neuroprosthetic technologies for human enhancement are expected to increasingly transform their human users’ sensory, motor, and cognitive capacities in ways that generate new ‘posthumanized’ sociotechnological realities. In this context, it is essential not only to ensure the information security of such neuroprostheses themselves but – more importantly – to ensure the psychological and physical health, autonomy, and personal identity of the human beings whose cognitive processes are inextricably linked with such devices. InfoSec practitioners must not only guard against threats to the confidentiality and integrity of data stored within a neuroprosthetic device’s internal memory; they must also guard against threats to the confidentiality and integrity of thoughts, memories, and desires existing within the mind the of the device’s human host. This second edition of The Handbook of Information Security for Advanced Neuroprosthetics updates the previous edition’s comprehensive investigation of these issues from both theoretical and practical perspectives. It provides an introduction to the current state of neuroprosthetics and expected future trends in the field, along with an introduction to fundamental principles of information security and an analysis of how they must be re-envisioned to address the unique challenges posed by advanced neuroprosthetics. A two-dimensional cognitional security framework is presented whose security goals are designed to protect a device’s human host in his or her roles as a sapient metavolitional agent, embodied embedded organism, and social and economic actor. Practical consideration is given to information security responsibilities and roles within an organizational context and to the application of preventive, detective, and corrective or compensating security controls to neuroprosthetic devices, their host-device systems, and the larger supersystems in which they operate. Finally, it is shown that while implantable neuroprostheses create new kinds of security vulnerabilities and risks, they may also serve to enhance the information security of some types of human hosts (such as those experiencing certain neurological conditions).

Author: Matthew E. Gladden
Publisher: Mnemoclave
ISBN: 1944373195
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 38

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Book Description
Whether it’s adding a night-vision cybereye or acquiring a full cyborg body, the process of cyborgization reshapes the way in which an individual relates to the physical environment around her. But how does it transform her ability to dive – or to be pulled – into virtual worlds? Cyborgization and Virtual Worlds: Portals to Altered Reality is a resource for designing campaigns grounded in near-future hard-SF settings in which synthetic bodies and VR cyberware offer characters entirely new ways of perceiving, interpreting, and manipulating the analog and digital worlds… It’s easy to know when you enter a virtual environment if the tools you’re using are a VR headset and haptic feedback gloves. If the virtual experience is too much for you, you can always just rip off the headset: the digital illusions instantly vanish, and you know that you’re back in the ‘real’ world. But what if the VR gear that you’re employing consists of cranial neural implants that directly stimulate your brain to create artificial sensory experiences? Or what if you’re wielding dual-purpose artificial eyes and roboprosthetic limbs that can either supply you with authentic sense data from the external environment or switch into iso mode, cut off all sensations from the real world, and pipe fabricated sense data into your brain? What signs could you look for to help you determine whether you’re in the real world or just a convincing virtual facsimile? This second volume in Mnemoclave’s Posthuman Cyberware Sourcebook series explores the two ways in which neuroprosthetic technologies immerse a cyborg in her environment and allow her to sense and manipulate the world: through embodiment and embedding. The process of cyborgization not only grants its human subject an augmented body with enhanced, reduced, or simply different capacities; it also embeds him in a particular part of the real physical world and provides the means by which he senses and manipulates that environment. And it may be the instrument through which he dives into virtual worlds, as well. Among the topics explored are: The paths of cyborgization • Different approaches to cyborgization, including the creation of full-body, partial, extended, sessile, and ‘hollow’ cyborgs • Differing types of neurocognitive interfaces that can exist between a piece of cyberware and its human host • The extent to which cyberware can be concealed from visual or remote electronic detection • The operational lifespan of cyberware and its potential health impacts on users Obstacles to characters’ acquisition of cyberware, including cost, legality, and required maintenance and customization • Problems like neurocoupling resection syndrome (NRS) that affect full-body cyborgs and other augmented individuals Cyberware and virtual worlds • Distinctions between virtual, augmented, and refracted reality • The mechanics by which cyborg characters can recognize and adjust to transitions between the real and virtual worlds • The use of digital avatars as cyberdoubles or cybermorphs within virtual worlds • Plot impacts of cyborg characters’ maximal, partial, temporary, or long-term immersion in VR environments The book is written especially for GMs who are designing adventures or campaigns set in near-future worlds with a cyberpunk, postcyberpunk, or biopunk atmosphere in which posthumanizing cyberware exists and societies are tilting ever further toward the dystopian. The text draws extensively on the best contemporary research regarding neurocybernetics and the bioengineering, economic, sociopolitical, and cultural aspects of human enhancement, to aid GMs who are looking to give their campaigns a hard sci-fi edge. The volume includes dozens of special textboxes with plot hooks, character traits, equipment descriptions, and ideas for successfully GM-ing the ontological puzzles and narrative twists that cyborgization and virtual reality make possible – to help you incorporate the material directly into your game, regardless of which rule system you’re using.

Author: Tanmoy Kundu
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 1527565939
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 205

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Book Description
This volume, including an extended interview with noted philosopher of posthumanism Francesca Ferrando, explores the contemporary philosophical, literary and cultural landscapes that have emerged as a response to the unavoidable crisis faced by humans in the Anthropocene era. The essays gathered here map posthumanism both as theoretical posthumanism, which primarily seeks to develop new knowledge, and as practical posthumanism, which emphasizes socio-political, economic, and technological changes. Posthumanism, which explores how one can address the question of what means to be human today, is a burgeoning area of interest among universities across the globe. Written in accessible, yet scholarly, language, this volume introduces posthumanism in its diverse ramifications and explicates the subject through various literary and filmic texts in order to cater to the needs of researchers and students in the humanities.

Author: Edward H. Huijbens
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000377784
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 214

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Book Description
This book explores the development and significance of an Earth-oriented progressive approach to fostering global wellbeing and inclusive societies in an era of climate change and uncertainty. Developing Earthly Attachments in the Anthropocene examines the ways in which the Earth has become a source of political, social, and cultural theory in times of global climate change. The book explains how the Earth contributes to the creation of a regenerative culture, drawing examples from the Netherlands and Iceland. These examples offer understandings of how legacies of non-respectful exploitative practices culminating in the rapid post-war growth of global consumption have resulted in impacts on the ecosystem, highlighting the challenges of living with planet Earth. The book familiarizes readers with the implied agencies of the Earth which become evident in our reliance on the carbon economy – a factor of modern-day globalized capitalism responsible for global environmental change and emergency. It also suggests ways to inspire and develop new ways of spatial sense making for those seeking earthly attachments. Offering novel theoretical and practical insights for politically active people, this book will appeal to those involved in local and national policy making processes. It will also be of interest to academics and students of geography, political science, and environmental sciences.

Author: Thomas Riccio
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040038263
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
This book considers David Hanson’s robots as a performative expression of our cultural moment, serving as a paradigm for the evolution of humanoid social robots. Mechanical beings have occupied the human imagination since antiquity. Now, they inhabit the pop-cultural imagination, embodying the apotheosis of humanity’s technological aspirations and dread. Sophia, Hanson’s most advanced robot, anticipates the future as she articulates the mythic pattern, narrative, anxieties, and hopes as old as humanity. Gendered as an attractive female with a face inspired by Queen Nefertiti and Audrey Hepburn, Sophia is a cipher, avatar, and turning point that brings humanity and technology a step closer to the emergence of a post-human species. The author is a transdisciplinary artist/scholar/educator working internationally in experimental performance, indigenous performance (ritual, shamanism), and social robotics. Hanson’s robots and Sophia are examined as performance media and events, as characters evolving as post-human narratives of technological beings. The emergent, complex, and collaborative relationships social robots have with technology, AI, performance, anthropology, mythology, psychology, sociology, popular culture, social media, politics, and economics are considered.