Unconventional Computing Arts Philosophy

The unique compendium re-assesses the value of future and emergent computing technologies via artistic and philosophical means. The book encourages scientists to adopt inspiring thinking of artists and philosophers to reuse scientific concepts in their works.The useful reference text consists of non-typical topics, where artistic and philosophical concepts encourage readers to adopt unconventional approaches towards computing and immerse themselves into discoveries of future emerging landscape.Related Link(s)

There is no strict definition of unconventional computing. Being an unconventional computist is not a matter of training but thinking and living. Phenomenologically most works on unconventional computing are about implementation of computing in novel substrates (chemical, physical, biological), development of computing schemes and algorithms not fitting into the mainstream framework, or designing of computing architectures inspired by chemical or biological systems. This short book gives a snapshot of the unconventional computing field. The world-leading experts in the unconventional computing author all articles of the issue. The topics include analog computation, sensing and computing with fungi, chemical computing, swarms of minimalist agents, computational universality, mega-computing in the universe, information and music, universal sensing, art of deduction, reversible computing, philosophy of machine learning, epistemic incompleteness, post-quantum unconventional computing, complexity of natural computing, arts and cellular automata. Articles presented are punchy and well illustrated. All articles are short and self-contained. The book will serve well as a light-touch introduction to unconventional computing for people not familiar with computing and might inspire artists and humanitarians to enter the field.

This book introduces art projects that resulted from unconventional explorations, curious experiments and their creative translations into sensorial experiences. Using electronic and digital art, bioart, sculpture and installations, sound and performance, the authors are removing boundaries between natural and artificial, real and imaginary, science and culture. The invited artists and researchers come from cutting-edge fields of art production that focuses on creating aesthetic experiences and performative situations. Their artworks create a spatial aesthetic experience for visitors by manifesting themselves in physical space. Experiencing the Unconventional is a unique selection of works by artists not based on formal similarities, but on investigative practices. It offers in-depth insights and first-hand working experiences into current production of art works at the edge of art, science and technology. Contents:Epistemological Machines and Protocomputing (Mitchell Whitelaw and Ralf Baecker)The Crystal World (Jonathan Kemp)Nigredo: Configuring Human and Technological Bodies (Marco Donnarumma)Sensing Spatial Experiences. The Essential Nature of Things (Sonia Cillari)Perfect Paul: On Freedom of Facial Expression (Arthur Elsenaar)Hacking the Universe (Frederik De Wilde)Mesoscopic Ripples in the Neural Sea (Evelina Domnitch and Dmitry Gelfand)Vanitas Machine (Verena Friedrich)Interview with Verena FriedrichConnections Continuum: A Life (Saša Spačal)A New State of the Living (Dmitry Bulatov)That Which Lives in Me (Dmitry Bulatov and Alexey Chebykin)Robotics and Design: Towards a New Symbiosis in Gilberto Esparza's Artwork (Reynaldo Thompson and Tirtha P Mukhopadhyay)Pancreas. All Flesh (Candyman)Demons of Art (Interview with Thomas Feuerstein by Hartmut Böhme)Metabodies — Exploring Social Networks on Our Body (Sonja Bäumel and Manuel Selg)Re-Imagining the Biological Membrane (Juan M Castro)Bodymetries. Mapping the Human Body Through Amorphous Intelligence (Theresa Schubert, Michael Markert, Moritz Dreβler, Andrew Adamatzky)The Engineer's Report: "Swarm Cities" and Other Synthetic Companions (Francisco Gallardo and Álvaro Castro-Castilla)Der Zermesser (Leo Peschta)Interview with Leo Peschta Readership: Artists and scientists interested in removing boundaries between their work.Key Features:Brings together established and emerging artists from Europe, the Americas and AsiaProvides in-depth insight and first hand working experiences into art works at the edge of art, science and technologyKeywords:Media Art;Electronic Art;Bioart;Unconventional Computing;Science;Technology;Robotics;Body Sensors

Computers are essential for the functioning of our society. Despite the incredible power of existing computers, computing technology is progressing beyond today’s conventional models. Quantum Computing (QC) is surfacing as a promising disruptive technology. QC is built on the principles of quantum mechanics. QC can run algorithms that are not trivial to run on digital computers. QC systems are being developed for the discovery of new materials and drugs and improved methods for encoding information for secure communication over the Internet. Unprecedented new uses for this technology are bound to emerge from ongoing research. The development of conventional digital computing technology for the arts and humanities has been progressing in tandem with the evolution of computers since the 1950s. Today, computers are absolutely essential for the arts and humanities. Therefore, future developments in QC are most likely to impact on the way in which artists will create and perform, and how research in the humanities will be conducted. This book presents a comprehensive collection of chapters by pioneers of emerging interdisciplinary research at the crossroads of quantum computing, and the arts and humanities, from philosophy and social sciences to visual arts and music. Prof. Eduardo Reck Miranda is a composer and a professor in Computer Music at Plymouth University, UK, where he is a director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Computer Music Research (ICCMR). His previous publications include the Springer titles Handbook of Artificial Intelligence for Music, Guide to Unconventional Computing for Music, Guide to Brain-Computer Music Interfacing and Guide to Computing for Expressive Music Performance.

The unconventional computing is a niche for interdisciplinary science, cross-bred of computer science, physics, mathematics, chemistry, electronic engineering, biology, material science and nanotechnology. The aims of this book are to uncover and exploit principles and mechanisms of information processing in and functional properties of physical, chemical and living systems to develop efficient algorithms, design optimal architectures and manufacture working prototypes of future and emergent computing devices. This first volume presents theoretical foundations of the future and emergent computing paradigms and architectures. The topics covered are computability, (non-)universality and complexity of computation; physics of computation, analog and quantum computing; reversible and asynchronous devices; cellular automata and other mathematical machines; P-systems and cellular computing; infinity and spatial computation; chemical and reservoir computing. The book is the encyclopedia, the first ever complete authoritative account, of the theoretical and experimental findings in the unconventional computing written by the world leaders in the field. All chapters are self-contains, no specialist background is required to appreciate ideas, findings, constructs and designs presented. This treatise in unconventional computing appeals to readers from all walks of life, from high-school pupils to university professors, from mathematicians, computers scientists and engineers to chemists and biologists.

Unconventional computing is a field of advanced computer science, which general goal might be summarised as the quest for both new groundbreaking algorithms and physical implementations of novel and ultimately more powerful - compared to classical approaches - computing paradigms and machines. This volume brings together work that especially focuses on experimental prototypes and genuine implementations of non-classical computing devices. A further goal was to revisit existing approaches in unconventional computing, to provide scientists and engineers with blue-prints of realisable computing devices, and to take a critical glance at the design of novel and emergent computing systems to point out failures and shortcomings of both theoretical and experimental approaches.

Did you know that computation can be implemented with cytoskeleton networks, chemical reactions, liquid marbles, plants, polymers and dozens of other living and inanimate substrates? Do you know what is reversible computing or a DNA microscopy? Are you aware that randomness aids computation? Would you like to make logical circuits from enzymatic reactions? Have you ever tried to implement digital logic with Minecraft? Do you know that eroding sandstones can compute too?This volume reviews most of the key attempts in coming up with an alternative way of computation. In doing so, the authors show that we do not need computers to compute and we do not need computation to infer. It invites readers to rethink the computer and computing, and appeals to computer scientists, mathematicians, physicists and philosophers. The topics are presented in a lively and easily accessible manner and make for ideal supplementary reading across a broad range of subjects.

"Did you know that computation can be implemented with cytoskeleton networks, chemical reactions, liquid marbles, plants, polymers and dozens of other living and inanimate substrates? Do you know what is reversible computing or a DNA microscopy? Are you aware that randomness aids computation? Would you like to make logical circuits from enzymatic reactions? Have you ever tried to implement digital logic with Minecraft? Do you know that eroding sandstones can compute too? This volume will review most of the key attempts in coming up with an alternative way of computation. In doing so, the authors show that we do not need computers to compute and we do not need computation to infer. It invites readers to rethink the computer and computing, and appeals to computer scientists, mathematicians, physicists and philosophers. The topics are presented in a lively and easily accessible manner and make for ideal supplementary reading across a broad range of subjects"--