From ben at ekran.org  Mon Apr  7 12:41:31 2014
From: ben at ekran.org (B. Bogart)
Date: Mon, 07 Apr 2014 10:41:31 -0700
Subject: [x] =?utf-8?q?=E2=96=B6_The_illusion_of_usability_--_perception?=
 =?utf-8?q?=2C_simulation_and_culture=3A_Ben_Bogart_at_TEDxM=C3=BCnchenSal?=
 =?utf-8?q?on_-_YouTube?=
Message-ID: <5342E34B.1010803@ekran.org>

Hello all,

I was invited to do a TEDx talk in Munich in February, and the video is
finally online:

http://youtu.be/xYtt8qSwJws

I have also been steadily working on the Dreaming Machine, as I aim to
finish the PhD this summer, and it's finally starting to come together.
Following is some work in progress:

http://youtu.be/hTyG23EbriU

I also posted the TEDx talk to the google+ group, but I don't think all
that many Xers are following that.

Ben Bogart



From liane.gabora at ubc.ca  Mon Apr  7 14:04:30 2014
From: liane.gabora at ubc.ca (UBC User)
Date: Mon, 7 Apr 2014 11:04:30 -0800
Subject: [x]
 =?utf-8?q?=E2=96=B6_The_illusion_of_usability_--_perception?=
 =?utf-8?q?=2C_simulation_and_culture=3A_Ben_Bogart_at_TEDxM=C3=BCnchenSal?=
 =?utf-8?q?on_-_YouTube?=
In-Reply-To: <5342E34B.1010803@ekran.org>
Message-ID: <CF6836BE.14710%liane.gabora@ubc.ca>

Hi Ben,
Congrats on the talk!
I'll be in town this wk. We should touch base!
Best
Liane


On 14-04-07 9:41 AM, "B. Bogart" <ben at ekran.org> wrote:

> Hello all,
> 
> I was invited to do a TEDx talk in Munich in February, and the video is
> finally online:
> 
> http://youtu.be/xYtt8qSwJws
> 
> I have also been steadily working on the Dreaming Machine, as I aim to
> finish the PhD this summer, and it's finally starting to come together.
> Following is some work in progress:
> 
> http://youtu.be/hTyG23EbriU
> 
> I also posted the TEDx talk to the google+ group, but I don't think all
> that many Xers are following that.
> 
> Ben Bogart
> 
> _______________________________________________
> x mailing list
> x at vispo.com
> http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com




From jim at vispo.com  Mon Apr  7 13:32:03 2014
From: jim at vispo.com (jim andrews)
Date: Mon, 7 Apr 2014 11:32:03 -0700
Subject: [x]
 =?utf-8?q?=E2=96=B6_The_illusion_of_usability_--_perception?=
 =?utf-8?q?=2C_simulation_and_culture=3A_Ben_Bogart_at_TEDxM=C3=BCnchenSal?=
 =?utf-8?q?on_-_YouTube?=
In-Reply-To: <5342E34B.1010803@ekran.org>
References: <5342E34B.1010803@ekran.org>
Message-ID: <40CF99F3-BF8E-4BDC-A13C-7E9340868DDA@vispo.com>

Hi Ben,

I enjoyed your philosophical TED talk. You communicated well the intended relation of the software/art to human dreaming. 

Although I expect the actual relations might be a bit more problematic. Does the software break images down in similar ways to how people break images down? Or is the similarity metaphorical? And does the software generate images in similar ways to how dreaming generates imagery? Or is the similarity metaphorical?

That the similarities could be metaphorical would be fine for a work of art. 

ja


On Apr 7, 2014, at 10:41 AM, B. Bogart <ben at ekran.org> wrote:

> Hello all,
> 
> I was invited to do a TEDx talk in Munich in February, and the video is
> finally online:
> 
> http://youtu.be/xYtt8qSwJws
> 
> I have also been steadily working on the Dreaming Machine, as I aim to
> finish the PhD this summer, and it's finally starting to come together.
> Following is some work in progress:
> 
> http://youtu.be/hTyG23EbriU
> 
> I also posted the TEDx talk to the google+ group, but I don't think all
> that many Xers are following that.
> 
> Ben Bogart
> 
> _______________________________________________
> x mailing list
> x at vispo.com
> http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com




From bbogart at sfu.ca  Mon Apr  7 19:44:22 2014
From: bbogart at sfu.ca (B. Bogart)
Date: Mon, 07 Apr 2014 17:44:22 -0700
Subject: [x]
 =?utf-8?q?=E2=96=B6_The_illusion_of_usability_--_perception?=
 =?utf-8?q?=2C_simulation_and_culture=3A_Ben_Bogart_at_TEDxM=C3=BCnchenSal?=
 =?utf-8?q?on_-_YouTube?=
In-Reply-To: <40CF99F3-BF8E-4BDC-A13C-7E9340868DDA@vispo.com>
References: <5342E34B.1010803@ekran.org>
	<40CF99F3-BF8E-4BDC-A13C-7E9340868DDA@vispo.com>
Message-ID: <53434666.60404@sfu.ca>

Hi Jim!

Thanks for the comments.

In scoping the project for the PhD I was oriented toward dreaming
itself, and not perception. Through the research it became clear that
the perception and dreaming are not separable (as claimed in the
Integrative Theory, a first associative version of which is available
here:
http://www.ekran.org/ben/wp/2013/an-integrative-theory-of-visual-mentation-and-spontaneous-creativity/).
Perhaps I never posted the Brain Talks I did with Kieran Fox, who is
studying the neuroscience of mind-wandering at UBC:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Clp0blcHG8M  I've since shifted away
from association toward prediction and also away from creativity, which
I discuss a little bit about at the end of that talk.

The idea from the start was to use a simple (so I thought) computer
vision system to give the system some rudimentary vision. The vision
aspect of the system is not biologically inspired. What the perception
system does provide is perceptual chunks of visual information and their
degree of activation. These chunks represent the high level sensitivity
of particular neurons in the ventral visual stream and medial temporal
lobe (i.e. concept cells). At the level of dreaming, those mechanisms
are simply concerned with what percepts have been activated.

When it comes to cognitive mechanisms of dreaming, we don't actually
know all that much. The Integrative Theory proposes that dreams are
simulations of reality (supported by Hobson, Revonsuo, etc. on the
dreaming side and Schooler and on the mind-wandering side). How exactly
the brain generates these simulations is not yet known. According to the
Integrative Theory, perception, mind-wandering dreaming and mental
imagery are all the activation of high level perceptual representations.
During perception, these representations are activated by the visual
cortex. During mental imagery they are activated by intentional control
from the prefontal cortex. During dreaming and mind-wandering they are
caused by interactions between the prefrontal cortex and temporal lobe
(part of the default network) and are not intentionally driven. The
default network has been proposed as a general cognitive simulator, and
is active during mind-wandering and also when imagining oneself in the
past or future.

We know a lot about the underlying neurological mechanisms of dreaming,
but less about how those mechanisms result in the phenomenology of
dreaming. In short, there is very little at the cognitive level of
description. I'm just finishing up a paper on a the predictive
conception of the Integrative Theory intended for a cognitive science
journal.

I have a lot of interest in the "actual" vs "metaphorical" when it comes
to fidelity and description. In all cases, a description is a mapping
between some measured or experienced aspect of the world or self and a
set of cultural symbols. I would argue that the "actual" (scientific
theory) is itself a cultural construction (rather than perfect copy of
reality) because the descriptions, models and theories produced in
sciences are inherently cultural (composed of symbols that represent
relations whose meaning is context dependent). Thus, there is no hard
line between the "actual" and "metaphorical". If anywhere, we could
perhaps locate the difference in terms of the degree of rigour and
validity in the process of constructing those mappings, but of course
the demonstration of rigour and validity is again done in a culturally
dependent manner (described using symbols that represent relations which
are context dependent). This is why there is no escape from solipsism,
except faith in culture.

Lets reframe your question as: Does the Dreaming Machine *actually* dream?

That depends on what we mean by a dream. If a dream is (as I believe) a
simulation of reality anchored in the sensory faculties of a system,
then the answer is yes.

If a dream is a simulation of social relations that leads to an
organism's experience of a world not sensorially present (as I also
believe), then the answer is no.

I actually think the biggest barrier between how a human dreams and the
mechanisms of the system is not the programming at all, but in the
dependence on the system on computational realization. Dreaming,
perception and phenomenology are possessed by living, autonomous beings
(at least mammals and birds).

Dreaming Machine is a representation, like a scientific model or text.
Its value and validity depends on the context and articulation of the
mapping between what it does and what dreaming appears to be when
measured. It's not a copy of dreaming, as no representation or
description can be. As science (if I permit myself such a label), its
central value is to integrate knowledge from multiple fields in order to
arrive at a conceptually cohesive theory meant to inspire future
empirical work. As art, its central value is in that it provides an
intellectual site through which we can reflect on our own conceptions,
biases and experience of dreams vs reality, machine vs life, and reality
vs description.

I hope that answered your question Jim... (though likely opened up many
more!)

B.

On 14-04-07 11:32 AM, jim andrews wrote:
> Hi Ben,
> 
> I enjoyed your philosophical TED talk. You communicated well the
> intended relation of the software/art to human dreaming.
> 
> Although I expect the actual relations might be a bit more
> problematic. Does the software break images down in similar ways to
> how people break images down? Or is the similarity metaphorical? And
> does the software generate images in similar ways to how dreaming
> generates imagery? Or is the similarity metaphorical?
> 
> That the similarities could be metaphorical would be fine for a work
> of art.
> 
> ja
> 
> 
> On Apr 7, 2014, at 10:41 AM, B. Bogart <ben at ekran.org> wrote:
> 
>> Hello all,
>> 
>> I was invited to do a TEDx talk in Munich in February, and the
>> video is finally online:
>> 
>> http://youtu.be/xYtt8qSwJws
>> 
>> I have also been steadily working on the Dreaming Machine, as I aim
>> to finish the PhD this summer, and it's finally starting to come
>> together. Following is some work in progress:
>> 
>> http://youtu.be/hTyG23EbriU
>> 
>> I also posted the TEDx talk to the google+ group, but I don't think
>> all that many Xers are following that.
>> 
>> Ben Bogart
>> 
>> _______________________________________________ x mailing list 
>> x at vispo.com http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________ x mailing list 
> x at vispo.com http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com
> 



From jim at vispo.com  Thu Apr 10 20:57:46 2014
From: jim at vispo.com (jim andrews)
Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2014 18:57:46 -0700
Subject: [x] Arne Eigenfeldt: Group of X: Fri Apr 25, 7pm, Beresford St
Message-ID: <D303E15A-CCB0-42CD-9A23-7E50D46D9840@vispo.com>

Here?s a reminder that Arne Eigenfeldt will be giving a talk to the Group of X on Fri Apr 25, 7pm.

Arne Eigenfeldt is a composer who has dedicated the last ten years to making his computer a truly creative partner. Exploring notions of AI through the use of multi-agent systems and evolutionary algorithms, his systems attempt to generate what Galanter considers the "complete work of art" through autonomous processes.

artwork: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/works/works.html
papers: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/research.html

He will describe his latest system, which will generate live music for eight musicians. Musical notation will be displayed on iPads for individual musicians to read (not improvise), and will be accompanied by three robotic instruments. The music will use a completely heuristic interpretation of evolutionary algorithms for creative purposes, and will be premiered at SFU Woodward's on May 2nd and 4th by the Turning Point Ensemble.

Arne teaches at Simon Fraser U in Vancouver in the School for Contemporary Arts and is also associated with SIAT, the School of Interactive Arts and Technology.

LOCATION

The talk is at Jim Andrews's and Natalie Funk's place at #805, 4350 Beresford St, Burnaby (Metrotown). There's free parking at the foot of the building and on Beresford St. Just don't park in the bus stop. It is easy to get here by skytrain. Go to the Patterson skytrain station. Walk up Beresford St. for 3-5 minutes. You can only walk in one direction on Beresford cuz it starts at the Patterson station. We are at the corner of Willingdon and Patterson. Buzz 139. BYOB. We will provide sushi and possibly sweets.

MAP

https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4350+Beresford+St,+Burnaby,+BC 


From jim at vispo.com  Fri Apr 25 18:37:46 2014
From: jim at vispo.com (jim andrews)
Date: Fri, 25 Apr 2014 16:37:46 -0700
Subject: [x] Arne Eigenfeldt: Group of X: Fri Apr 25, 7pm, Beresford St
In-Reply-To: <D303E15A-CCB0-42CD-9A23-7E50D46D9840@vispo.com>
References: <D303E15A-CCB0-42CD-9A23-7E50D46D9840@vispo.com>
Message-ID: <28AC4884-0C78-46DD-AC11-1DA8F1FD871F@vispo.com>

Here?s a reminder that Arne Eigenfeldt will be giving a talk to the Group of X on Fri Apr 25, 7pm.

Arne Eigenfeldt is a composer who has dedicated the last ten years to making his computer a truly creative partner. Exploring notions of AI through the use of multi-agent systems and evolutionary algorithms, his systems attempt to generate what Galanter considers the "complete work of art" through autonomous processes.

artwork: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/works/works.html
papers: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/research.html

He will describe his latest system, which will generate live music for eight musicians. Musical notation will be displayed on iPads for individual musicians to read (not improvise), and will be accompanied by three robotic instruments. The music will use a completely heuristic interpretation of evolutionary algorithms for creative purposes, and will be premiered at SFU Woodward's on May 2nd and 4th by the Turning Point Ensemble.

Arne teaches at Simon Fraser U in Vancouver in the School for Contemporary Arts and is also associated with SIAT, the School of Interactive Arts and Technology.

LOCATION

The talk is at Jim Andrews's and Natalie Funk's place at #805, 4350 Beresford St, Burnaby (Metrotown). There's free parking at the foot of the building and on Beresford St. Just don't park in the bus stop. It is easy to get here by skytrain. Go to the Patterson skytrain station. Walk up Beresford St. for 3-5 minutes. You can only walk in one direction on Beresford cuz it starts at the Patterson station. We are at the corner of Willingdon and Patterson. Buzz 139. BYOB. We will provide sushi and possibly sweets.

MAP

https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4350+Beresford+St,+Burnaby,+BC


From ideatron at gmail.com  Fri Apr 25 18:52:37 2014
From: ideatron at gmail.com (Jeremy Turner)
Date: Fri, 25 Apr 2014 16:52:37 -0700
Subject: [x] Arne Eigenfeldt: Group of X: Fri Apr 25, 7pm, Beresford St
In-Reply-To: <28AC4884-0C78-46DD-AC11-1DA8F1FD871F@vispo.com>
References: <D303E15A-CCB0-42CD-9A23-7E50D46D9840@vispo.com>
	<28AC4884-0C78-46DD-AC11-1DA8F1FD871F@vispo.com>
Message-ID: <65A13BD4-30C1-478E-A915-B117365AEDA6@gmail.com>

Hey Jim,
I wish I could go tonight as I like Arne's research. However, I have an extra night with Nolan tonight and he just had a tooth extraction so I am staying local with him.
Talk soon,
Jeremy

Sent from my iPhone

On Apr 25, 2014, at 4:37 PM, jim andrews <jim at vispo.com> wrote:

> Here?s a reminder that Arne Eigenfeldt will be giving a talk to the Group of X on Fri Apr 25, 7pm.
> 
> Arne Eigenfeldt is a composer who has dedicated the last ten years to making his computer a truly creative partner. Exploring notions of AI through the use of multi-agent systems and evolutionary algorithms, his systems attempt to generate what Galanter considers the "complete work of art" through autonomous processes.
> 
> artwork: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/works/works.html
> papers: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/research.html
> 
> He will describe his latest system, which will generate live music for eight musicians. Musical notation will be displayed on iPads for individual musicians to read (not improvise), and will be accompanied by three robotic instruments. The music will use a completely heuristic interpretation of evolutionary algorithms for creative purposes, and will be premiered at SFU Woodward's on May 2nd and 4th by the Turning Point Ensemble.
> 
> Arne teaches at Simon Fraser U in Vancouver in the School for Contemporary Arts and is also associated with SIAT, the School of Interactive Arts and Technology.
> 
> LOCATION
> 
> The talk is at Jim Andrews's and Natalie Funk's place at #805, 4350 Beresford St, Burnaby (Metrotown). There's free parking at the foot of the building and on Beresford St. Just don't park in the bus stop. It is easy to get here by skytrain. Go to the Patterson skytrain station. Walk up Beresford St. for 3-5 minutes. You can only walk in one direction on Beresford cuz it starts at the Patterson station. We are at the corner of Willingdon and Patterson. Buzz 139. BYOB. We will provide sushi and possibly sweets.
> 
> MAP
> 
> https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4350+Beresford+St,+Burnaby,+BC
> _______________________________________________
> x mailing list
> x at vispo.com
> http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com



From jim at vispo.com  Sat Apr 26 10:04:10 2014
From: jim at vispo.com (jim andrews)
Date: Sat, 26 Apr 2014 08:04:10 -0700
Subject: [x] Arne Eigenfeldt: Group of X: Fri Apr 25, 7pm, Beresford St
In-Reply-To: <65A13BD4-30C1-478E-A915-B117365AEDA6@gmail.com>
References: <D303E15A-CCB0-42CD-9A23-7E50D46D9840@vispo.com>
	<28AC4884-0C78-46DD-AC11-1DA8F1FD871F@vispo.com>
	<65A13BD4-30C1-478E-A915-B117365AEDA6@gmail.com>
Message-ID: <9BE7F3CD-3EB8-4D59-82C3-955CA428A17A@vispo.com>

Hi Jer,

Sorry to miss you, Jer. We filmed it so it?ll eventually be online. You going to his May 2 or May 4 show? Let?s go together if so.

I hope Nolan is recovered well!

ja

On Apr 25, 2014, at 4:52 PM, Jeremy Turner <ideatron at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hey Jim,
> I wish I could go tonight as I like Arne's research. However, I have an extra night with Nolan tonight and he just had a tooth extraction so I am staying local with him.
> Talk soon,
> Jeremy
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
> On Apr 25, 2014, at 4:37 PM, jim andrews <jim at vispo.com> wrote:
> 
>> Here?s a reminder that Arne Eigenfeldt will be giving a talk to the Group of X on Fri Apr 25, 7pm.
>> 
>> Arne Eigenfeldt is a composer who has dedicated the last ten years to making his computer a truly creative partner. Exploring notions of AI through the use of multi-agent systems and evolutionary algorithms, his systems attempt to generate what Galanter considers the "complete work of art" through autonomous processes.
>> 
>> artwork: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/works/works.html
>> papers: http://www.sfu.ca/~eigenfel/arne/research.html
>> 
>> He will describe his latest system, which will generate live music for eight musicians. Musical notation will be displayed on iPads for individual musicians to read (not improvise), and will be accompanied by three robotic instruments. The music will use a completely heuristic interpretation of evolutionary algorithms for creative purposes, and will be premiered at SFU Woodward's on May 2nd and 4th by the Turning Point Ensemble.
>> 
>> Arne teaches at Simon Fraser U in Vancouver in the School for Contemporary Arts and is also associated with SIAT, the School of Interactive Arts and Technology.
>> 
>> LOCATION
>> 
>> The talk is at Jim Andrews's and Natalie Funk's place at #805, 4350 Beresford St, Burnaby (Metrotown). There's free parking at the foot of the building and on Beresford St. Just don't park in the bus stop. It is easy to get here by skytrain. Go to the Patterson skytrain station. Walk up Beresford St. for 3-5 minutes. You can only walk in one direction on Beresford cuz it starts at the Patterson station. We are at the corner of Willingdon and Patterson. Buzz 139. BYOB. We will provide sushi and possibly sweets.
>> 
>> MAP
>> 
>> https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4350+Beresford+St,+Burnaby,+BC
>> _______________________________________________
>> x mailing list
>> x at vispo.com
>> http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com
> 
> _______________________________________________
> x mailing list
> x at vispo.com
> http://vispo.com/mailman/listinfo/x_vispo.com




