Category: Links

“If it’s true that more than half the world’s people organize themselves in cities, then it’s our responsibility to understand and pay attention to the wild and unmanaged plants that grow up all around us.” Curious discussion of the need to reconsider the way we perceive weeds or invasive species.

“…our economic and social ‘adjacent possible’ appears to now include complete economies and social structures delivered as software service…” Since I am desperately looking for ways we might reinvent how we measure value, this is of some interest. Via Alper.

“It’s a tool to help you do something. That notion led to the thought that mechanically-realised stories – the kind that movies can’t really ever tell, and the kind that games are invariably best at – are a kind of narrative exoskeleton.” Games as tools instead of media, that’s what it’s all about.

“We need to question any ”reality that presents itself as natural”and that includes something as apparently innocuous as Google.” An examination of the rhetoric underlying Google’s seamingly neutral tech, and the new frontier of politics that is the internets.

Mostly of interest for its account of the game’s origins.

“…the idea of appropriate technology and alternative design: that needs to come back big time.” An interview with Kim Stanley Robinson in which (among many things) the follies of current thinking on ‘sustainable’ technology.

“There’s this idea that they are the agents of change, the true revolutionaries, where the revolutionary change is to … make exclusive the pleasures that had potentially belonged to anyone in the past, to celebrate the upwards redistribution of wealth.” A description of the origins of the hipster, as well as thoughts on why they elicit as much hatred as they do. I am probably a little guilty of this behaviour myself at times.

This essay argues that 4chan’s /b/ is a prime example of a new form of art some call relational aesthetics. I found the examination of the mARBLE CAKE ALSO THE GAME raid to be the most interesting part, reminding me of the ludic happenings of the 50ies, but on steroids.

The author argues that to cling to Jacob’s romantic ideal of the vibrant urban neighbourhood is futile in the face of long term economic development.

I keep digging up fascinating factoids about this strange Chinese city. Here’s another one, about village-like nodes within the city limits.

“I do hope that we always have people around us reminding us to never take the internets too seriously.” Danah Boyd makes a convincing argument that the folks at 4chan are hacking the attention economy, similar to how old school hackers were challenging security systems.

Pretty proud of the fact that Dutch games studio Ranj have won yet another award. They keep bringing it, and don’t shy away from novel formats.

Not a bad list of things to live up to as a business. I think Hubbub is in pretty good shape when it comes to these.

“the most creative environments allow for repeated failure”. Fail early, fail often. Idea scaffolding. We know these things and by the looks of things after these two books the whole world will, too.

A pretty impressive tour of the mechanisms behind multiplayer games. The point about almost any game being multiplayer in some sense is a welcome one, too.

“several factors suggest that the impulse to make life as exciting as a game is not without a certain naivety” A discussion of a curious pervasive game with some good insight into the issues surrounding everyday reality with games.

“subtracting an hour from the life of another human being isn’t to be taken lightly. It’s almost violent. It’s certainly invasive. Shared calendars are vessels you fill by taking things away from other people” Having to combine being an entrepeneur with being a designer, making sure enough time is available for creative cycles is a real challenge.

‘De mondiale crisis dicteert ons onze levenswandel. We moeten ons leven daadwerkelijk veranderen, nieuwe levensvormen ontwikkelen, deelnemen aan ecologische en economische zelfhulpprogramma’s. We kunnen niet anders dan “doen”. Of het ons nu bevalt of niet, dat speelt geen rol meer.’ An interesting interview with philosopher Peter Sloterdijk on the social effects of the global crisis. I certainly identify with the feeling of impending doom urging one to pragmatic action, or practice as Sloterdijk calls it.

“The Evaporative Cooling Effect … occurs when the most high value contributors to a community realize that the community is no longer serving their needs any more and so therefore, leave.” Interesting observation. I recognise the behaviour from my own experiences. It is something I think we have instinctively managed to avert for This happened – Utrecht using several mechanisms. But in other cases I might need to pay special attention not to fall in its trap.