Volume #50
Out Now: Volume #50
— by joris
When Volume started as ‘magazine to go beyond architecture’ in 2005, the world was a different one. There was a lot of attention for the spectacular in architecture, for instance, and little for where society was going in relation to architecture: the urgencies and opportunities architecture could and should engage with. Since, Volume explored a wide variety of topics and terrains, each time looking for the added value of architecture.
Blog
The Empire Strikes Back?
— by Kai Vöckler
Kai Vöckler/Archis Interventions participates in a research project focusing on the material legacy of the former Soviet Union in the former soviet States in Eastern Europe.
Article, Learning Network, Volume #49
Drive
— by Carla Leitão and Ed Keller
Design is, by definition, inhuman. We humans design, yet we do not, cannot really, at least not yet, design humans. Yet the boundaries of contemporary design increasingly encroach upon the real. The design of fleshy bodies, genetics, entire species, landscapes, territories, and even planets are becoming no longer mere fantasies. But do we really know how to design, to think, to be creative, to be careful, to be responsible, to be innovative, to be progressive both at and between such scales?
Event, Learning Network, Volume #49
Launch: Volume #49 Hello World!
— by Archis/Volume
While the Istanbul Biennial questions ‘Are We Human?’, Volume explores the post-human world of Artficial Intelligence and Machine Learning. It’s not about the future, not about promise, it’s very much about the here and now. Please join us coming Friday (October 28) for an informal gathering at Post Office, Rotterdam to exchange on this life changing topic.
Article, Learning Network, Volume #49
Machine Learning from Las Vegas
— by Pierre Cutellic
The data-saturated environment we live in today was already there almost half a century ago; it’s just that the nature of data has changed. Data used to be much more spatial, more architectonic, and the means of locating oneself in, and navigating through, such a space could be revealed by architectural theory and critique. With data only penetrating deeper into our cognitive realm by the day, what is there for architecture to say?
Blog, Volume #46
Housing as a Fundamental Human Right
— by Archis/Volume
To see housing as a fundamental human right is a relatively new concept with consequences for law, justice and politics. In issue 46: Shelter, Volume published Abla el Bahrawy’s quick scan of the first formulation of this universal right and its further development into an action agenda in consecutive UN-Habitat conferences to promote and secure this right globally.
Article, Learning Network, Volume #49
Welcome to FutureLand
— by Victor M. Sanz
Machines need to learn to be able to act on their own. It’s a debatable question whether we want, or need, machines to do so, but the trend toward automation, is undeniable. Autonomous machines are being trusted with increasing responsibility in maintaining and providing for contemporary society, and we are finally finding out what happens to the human after the machines take over.
Event
Panel Discussion: Zuidas Futures
— by wietzegelmers
The 7th of October means the very last event of Palace Ruin! Good riddance! Together with Petra Heck of TAAK, James Beckett will reflect on the nature and intent of the project, and the elaborate architecture and music programmes. This is followed by a panel discussion led by Arjen Oosterman, based on the theme ‘Zuidas Futures’. Referring to possible outcomes of this district, this debate is to be constructed by a panel of contrasts – exploring scenarios that are advocated by differing parties.
Article, Learning Network, Volume #49
Architecture After the Event Horizon
— by Kazys Varnelis
The concept of the ‘tipping point’ is a properly Cartesian understanding of history. It not only presumes that there is such a thing as ‘before’ and ‘after’, but also that we will be able to recognize and identify its difference to a single moment in time. This used to work, when historical events were things like wars, and we could organize our collective energies to effect the course of history. But now that events take place at the speed of light and even at a quantum level, how can we know when we’re already past where?
Editorial, Learning Network, Volume #49
Going Live
— by Nick Axel
With the rise of computational networks and power, cognitive models developed and debated over in the postwar decades have finally been able to be put to work. Back then, there was a philosophical debate raging alongside the burgeoning field of computer science theory on the nature of consciousness. Yet with the proliferation of data and the centralization of its archives, theoretical practice moved from conceptual experiments to empirical tests.