<pclass="p-style">Flakes is an audio playback device that combines the functionalities of an analog cassette tape player and a digital sample playback module1. Merged together in the case of an old desktop cassette recorder, this hybrid machine allows both different audio playback techniques to consolidate each other’s technical limitations, make use (and abuse ? misuse) of their capabilities in order to emphasize their ‘unique’ characteristics.
<pclass="p-style">Flakes is an audio playback device that combines the functionalities of an analog cassette tape player and a digital sample playback module <1>. Merged together in the case of an old desktop cassette recorder, this hybrid machine allows both different audio playback techniques to consolidate each other’s technical limitations <2>, make use (and misuse) of their capabilities in order to emphasize their ‘unique’ characteristics. By connecting the available outputs to inputs and using the adjustable knobs on the interface, the user has the options to mix, modify and let the samples from both analog and digital sources interact with each other to create new, unexpected sounds.
<br>By connecting the available outputs to inputs and using the adjustable knobs on the interface, the user has the options to mix, modify and let the samples from both analog and digital sources interact with each other to create new, unexpected sounds.
<br>The starting point for making this device was to somehow ‘reveal’ the simularities of the inner workings between the digital software-based module and the analog origins of sample playback technique by using cassette tape loops <3>. With the idea of combining both playback techniques, I explored each unique characteristics, technical limitations and their potentials to function within a hybrid in order to create a new interface where they could work together, influence and even fight each other. Like an audible ‘internal dialogue’, switching between intuition and reason.
<br> >Note 1: Despite both only being capable of playing lo-fi** samples, the analog device can make recordings and play them back directly and the digital module's behavior is fully programmable, allowing to make use of feedback, phasing, gate triggers, pitch control functions, and configurable functionalities as desired and more.
</p>
<br>How it works: A speech sample (saying IN-SIDE OUT) is cut into pieces so the separate words can be divided to the digital module (programmed onto) and analog tape loop* (recorded onto its magnetic tape). While the analog tape loop is prominent and continuously plays the same slice, the digital module runs a program that allows the recorded sample to (start playback on a trigger and) jump between different starting positions and loop sizes start playback. Played together, random flakes and new combinations of the separate words are constantly being generated in real-time. They correct and complement each other, making new combinations of the 3 words: IN-SIDE-OUT.</p>
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<divclass="extended">
<divclass="extended">
<pclass="p-style">HOW: more detailed (for website only)
<pclass="p-style">
<br>The starting point of this research was an analysis of the Meergranen* module, originally designed as a sample playback device to function within a modular Eurorack** setup. While testing its capabilities, a lot of its technical limitations were exposed: the module could only hold a preloaded 4-second sample in a low-resolution audio quality (8000Hz). Besides that, the experience of being new to this technology, electronics, and programming, it frustrated me that I couldn't comprehend what was happening inside this module and what caused these limitations. Instead of opening it up (I just manually assembled and soldered it), I had to connect this PCB full of weird electronic components to a computer to see what complex code it was running to 'just play a crappy sample'. But I noticed it could do very interesting things too; it allowed input signals to modulate the playback speed, and influence other behaviors and get unexpected results.
<br>How it works
<br>During my research*, I noticed the similarities between the playback technique of an analog cassette tape loop*** and the software-based sample module. Unlike the digital module, the mechanism of the cassette tape player shows how it works at first sight: while physically running, it plays the sample over and over when it encounters the recording on a certain position on the tape. Its technique seems transparent; it looks like it has nothing to hide. It comforts because we are familiar with it and understand it because it's visually present. I realised that in a way, it mimics in what happens inside the 'black box'* of the digital module. To play a sample in a loop: the micro computer runs a certain code that contains the converted data of a digital sample (converted into hexadecimal numbers). When it encounters a certain position, it plays the sample over and over again.
<br>A speech sample <4> (saying IN-SIDE OUT) is cut into pieces so the separate words can be divided to the digital module (programmed onto) and analog tape loop (recorded onto its magnetic tape). While the analog tape loop is prominent and continuously plays the same slice <5>, the digital module runs a program that allows the recorded sample to (start playback on a trigger and) jump between different starting positions and loop sizes start playback. Played together, random flakes and new combinations of the separate words are constantly being generated in real-time. They correct and complement each other, making new combinations of the 3 words: IN-SIDE-OUT.
<br>With these findings, I made an inventory of each unique characteristic, the potentials of both playback techniques and their technical limitations and research on how they could work together, influence and fight each other. I started to write new and alter existing code to create the tools to construct the hybrid device so I could explore it more when interfacing it myself.
The main goal of my research was to somehow 'reveal' what's happening inside the digital module by showing the similarities to the analog origins of the sample playback technique by using cassette tape loops. Here, the cassette tape is deployed to elucidate what a sample loop is: a seemingly stable mechanism that is fairly transparent in how it works <5>. The digital function is, in contrast, somehow hidden and mysterious in what it will do. Besised that, once uploaded, the code can't be retrieved from the device .
<br>Note 2: One can argue that the cassette tape's mechanism and recording method on magnetic tape is highly complex and mystical as well. By all means, we are just used to it since it has been around. So it might be a difference in current technical knowledge. But there's a diffrence in visibility and sense of control seeing a mechanism run in front of your eyes or having to rely on the fact that a certain code is running on a micro computer.>
<br>By combining these techniques, the resemblances between the inner workings of the two playback methods somehow seem very logical at first sight. One plays a piece of magnetic tape, the other plays a piece of code in a loop. Over and over again. But both techniques and interfaces offer unique features that can be combined so the machine could have an "inner dialogue", correcting, complimenting, almost discussing each other's limitations and capabilities <6>. Almost as if this device is being self-critical and tries to come to terms with itself.
<br>The main goal of my research was to somehow 'reveal' what's happening inside the digital module by showing the similarities to the analog origins of the sample playback technique by using cassette tape loops. Here, the cassette tape is deployed to elucidate what a sample loop is: a seemingly stable mechanism that is fairly transparent in how it works. The digital function is, in contrast, somehow hidden and mysterious in what it will do.
<br>The visible aspect of the hybrid device functions as a window with the blinds are open: it offers a peek inside but it still raises a question of what's happening inside. As a way to gain interest by showing the first glance and generate curiosity being showing and hiding something. This way, the visual aspect creates comfort and novelty: the analog as the striking presence to draw attention, the digital as the hidden mystery which can raise the question of whether we should care how things are implemented inside. And why should we care as long as it works?
<br>Note 3: Once uploaded, the code can't be retrieved from the device.>
<br>
<br>By combining these techniques, the resemblances between the inner workings of the two playback methods somehow seem very logical at first sight. One plays a piece of magnetic tape, the other plays a piece of code in a loop. Over and over again. But both techniques and interfaces offer unique features that can be combined so the machine could have an "inner dialogue", correcting, complimenting, almost discussing each other's limitations and capabilities. Almost as if this device is being self-critical and tries to come to terms with itself.
<br>[Note 1]: The modular synthesizer is a type of synthesizer, which exists in both physical and virtual forms, consisting of separate specialized modules. The modules are not hardwired together by the manufacturer but can be connected with patch cords, a matrix patching system, or switches by the user to create a patch. Source: Wikipedia)
<br>The visible aspect of the hybrid device functions as a window with the blinds are open: it offers a peek inside but it still raises a question of what's happening inside. As a way to gain interest by showing the first glance and generate curiosity being showing and hiding something. This way, the visual aspect creates comfort and novelty: the analog as the striking presence to draw attention, the digital as the hidden mystery which can raise the question of whether we should care how things are implemented inside. And why should we care as long as it works?</p>
<br>[Note 2]: Despite both only being capable of playing lo-fi samples (Analog low fidelity: hiss, fluctuations in tape speed, limited audio frequency range / digital low fidelity: low bitrate, dithering, and limited audio frequency range. The analog device can make recordings and play them back directly and the digital module's behavior is fully programmable, allowing to make use of feedback, phasing, gate triggers, pitch control functions, and configurable functionalities as desired and more.
<br>[Note 3]: In a tape loop, the sound is recorded on a section of magnetic tape and this tape is cut and spliced end-to-end, creating a circle or loop which can be played continuously.
<br>[Note 4]: Working with speech samples for the demonstration gave the device human characteristics. The narrated character of the speech sounds calming and, at first, comforts. We recognize this mode of speech when receiving instructions from a navigation system, for instance; or from a mentor who will lead you in the right direction, which we can follow blindly. As the vocals are processes, language moves from being an interface to becoming an instrument. From the structure of an unknown system.
<br>[Note 5]: In music, tape loops are loops of magnetic tape used to create repetitive, rhythmic musical patterns or dense layers of sound when played on a tape recorder. Originating in the 1940s with the work of Pierre Schaeffer, they were used among contemporary composers of 1950s and 1960s, such as Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and Karlheinz Stockhausen, who used them to create phase patterns, rhythms, textures, and timbres. Popular music authors of 1960s and 1970s, particularly in psychedelic, progressive and ambient genres, used tape loops to accompany their music with innovative sound effects. In the 1980s, analog audio and tape loops with it gave way to digital audio and application of computers to generate and process sound. (source: Wikipedia)
<br>[Note 6]: One can argue that the cassette tape's mechanism and recording method on magnetic tape is highly complex and mystical as well. By all means, we are just used to it since it has been around. So it might be a difference in current technical knowledge. But there's a diffrence in visibility and sense of control seeing a mechanism run in front of your eyes or having to rely on the fact that a certain code is running on a micro computer.
<br>For me this module is a book, a reusable book.
<br>For me this module is a book, a reusable book.
<br>A book that can be infinitely rewritten,
<br>A book that can be infinitely rewritten,
<br>A reusable bag.
<br>A reusable bag.
<br>
</p>
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<divclass="extended">
<pclass="p-style">
<br>Remote control is a storytelling machine.
<br>Remote control is a storytelling machine.
<br>It’s a cognitive toolkit providing a space for literary works to converge with the dialectics of code.
<br>It’s a cognitive toolkit providing a space for literary works to converge with the dialectics of code.
<br>It’s a simple device that turns a strict protocol into a machine for speculation.
<br>It’s a simple device that turns a strict protocol into a machine for speculation.
<br>A platform offering a performative approach to discourse, putting forth the idea that conceptual confusions surrounding language-use are at the root of most philosophical problems.
<br>A platform offering a performative approach to discourse, putting forth the idea that conceptual confusions surrounding language-use are at the root of most philosophical problems.
<br>(It’s a defense tool for times when opinionated news footages are being referred to as the truth, and scientific data is being referred to as fake news by figures of power).
<br>(It’s a defense tool for times when opinionated news footages are being referred to as the truth, and scientific data is being referred to as fake news by figures of power).
<br>A physical object, which goals are to generate a practice of storytelling, inspired by the ways disparate narratives can come together to create inroads into the unknown (or the obvious).
</p>
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<divclass="extended">
<pclass="p-style">A physical object, which goals are to generate a practice of storytelling, inspired by the ways disparate narratives can come together to create inroads into the unknown (or the obvious).
<br>With this in mind, this module is an arena to explore how protocols can induce new forms of inventiveness in the act of storytelling, grounded in the cohabitation of a multiplicity of standpoints, rather than a linear, all-encompassing narrative.
<br>With this in mind, this module is an arena to explore how protocols can induce new forms of inventiveness in the act of storytelling, grounded in the cohabitation of a multiplicity of standpoints, rather than a linear, all-encompassing narrative.
<br>Its interests and uses will reside in the stories you decide to generate through it.
<br>Its interests and uses will reside in the stories you decide to generate through it.
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<buttontype="button"class="collapsible">Read More >></button>
<divclass="extended">
<divclass="extended">
<pclass="p-style"> It only works when and if the user is successfully triggered to complete their steps in the protocol, asking and answering their own set of questions.
<pclass="p-style">It only works when and if the user is successfully triggered to complete their steps in the protocol, asking and answering their own set of questions.
<br>If the user fails to internalize the protocol, ignoring the sound, failing to reach a symbiotic union with the device, the DM is deemed to be completely dysfunctional and futile.
If the user fails to internalize the protocol, ignoring the sound, failing to reach a symbiotic union with the device, the DM is deemed to be completely dysfunctional and futile.
<br>The interaction between a human and this device can be a productive and an inclusive relation.
<br>(Of course, looking from the antropocentric human perspective, the device can't really feel it, can it?)
<br>Humans (in all instances) are the ones that give devices their life and their meaning, whereas this device challenges its user to reform their own behaviour - at an expense of the human no longer being blinded by other devices and the countless possibilities of use that they possess and distraction that they compell us with.
The interaction between a human and this device can be a productive and an inclusive relation.
<br>(What a traitor it is, this device!)
(Of course, looking from the antropocentric human perspective, the device can't really feel it, can it?)
<br>DM is simple, its physical interface is minimal and its purpose is as complex as the user wants it to be. We can consider the DM as a highly inclusive interface, as its user is in charge of the great majority of the devices' functions. The interfacing does not take place in the material world, nor in between the lines of code, nor the rumble of wires. It happens in the mind of its user, discretely and without the need for the knowledge of translation between the language of the human and the language of the device/system/chip.
<br>Each interaction between this device and its user is specific to the needs of the user. You get triggered and you are the one asking the questions.
Humans (in all instances) are the ones that give devices their life and their meaning, whereas this device challenges its user to reform their own behaviour - at an expense of the human no longer being blinded by other devices and the countless possibilities of use that they possess and distraction that they compell us with.
<br>A device to interface with yourself.
(What a traitor it is, this device!)
<br>The Distraction Manager is meant to be used as a training-tool that develops the users' internal methodologies for awareness. It highlights the possibility to re-program, to rewire our subconsciousness by enhancing the users' reflexes produces by a response to the DM stimuli. It is only necessary to use this pragmatic device until the questions posed do not anchor into the subconscious mind, the trigger becomes automatic, the pull towards awareness instinctive, the protocol internalized. This is only reachable by repetition that eventually reinforces the habit and embeds the changed behaviour.
<br>Then - the device is not needed anymore. It has served its purpose.
DM is simple, its physical interface is minimal and its purpose is as complex as the user wants it to be. We can consider the DM as a highly inclusive interface, as its user is in charge of the great majority of the devices' functions. The interfacing does not take place in the material world, nor in between the lines of code, nor the rumble of wires. It happens in the mind of its user, discretely and without the need for the knowledge of translation between the language of the human and the language of the device/system/chip.
<br>-
<br>Normally, the goal of creating an interface would be to make it as user-friendly as possible, achieving the desired output with minimal input from the user.
Each interaction between this device and its user is specific to the needs of the user. You get triggered and you are the one asking the questions.
<br>This is not the case with the Distraction Manager. The users' input is far from minimal. In fact: as much input as the human gives, as well the device functions!
<br>Ranging from complete uselesness to accurate relevancy.
A device to interface with yourself.
<br>The inspiration for the way that the DM is put together derives from the observation and usage of contemporary interfaces – black boxes that conceal their internal workings, seducing the user that remains ignorant to the intrinsic networks and protocols that these devices use.
<br>Induced ignorance masked in a sleek design.
The Distraction Manager is meant to be used as a training-tool that develops the users' internal methodologies for awareness. It highlights the possibility to re-program, to rewire our subconsciousness by enhancing the users' reflexes produces by a response to the DM stimuli. It is only necessary to use this pragmatic device until the questions posed do not anchor into the subconscious mind, the trigger becomes automatic, the pull towards awareness instinctive, the protocol internalized. This is only reachable by repetition that eventually reinforces the habit and embeds the changed behaviour.
<br>The Distraction Manager empowers its human user to take control, to exercise their capability of intervening into the protocol of the device.
<br>The primary action that a human derives from their wish to manage their distraction (the initial reason to use the DM), switching on the device and choosing a desired time sequence of the trigger production. When the sound appears, as a mid-protocol occurence, the human considers it as an input, triggering the sensibilization protocol. This is where the human and the machine encounter, interface eachother, creating an inter-system communication. The actual output of the DM is the changed state of mind, the management of distraction that the human reaches when the protocol is repeatedly and successfully completed.
Then - the device is not needed anymore. It has served its purpose.
<br>The causality of the final output is unpredictable and specific to each individual, whose conceptual input (set of questions) to the protocol is the unknown variable, that depends on the initial motivation and the needs of the individual.
<br>-
-
<br>Machines have shaped humanity more abruptly, causing a shockwave stronger and more lasting than any other occurences ever since our species first stepped into existence. Tracing the legacy of tools, humans have always striven for the bettering of our lives, towards the simplification of mundane tasks.
<br>Somewhere along the line, it seems, we have lost control over what kind of tools/machines/devices we produce and how we do it, for whom and why. How we use them and who is the boss.
Normally, the goal of creating an interface would be to make it as user-friendly as possible, achieving the desired output with minimal input from the user.
<br>Since the "discovery" of the internet, our bubble of known or possibly-known has blown up. Complexity arose and hit us hard.
This is not the case with the Distraction Manager. The users' input is far from minimal. In fact: as much input as the human gives, as well the device functions!
<br>It is alluring to have all the humanity's knowledge accessible anywhere, anytime. It is also perplexing.
Ranging from complete uselesness to accurate relevancy.
<br>(Is curiosity thriving?)
<br>"The world" is a distraction generator, the excessive flood of impulses results in the loss of sharpness in our sensory experiences, perception.
The inspiration for the way that the DM is put together derives from the observation and usage of contemporary interfaces – black boxes that conceal their internal workings, seducing the user that remains ignorant to the intrinsic networks and protocols that these devices use.
<br>Our generation is severely shaped by the immense power of connectivity, the dominance of accesibility. This is why it is urgent to reassess the notion of relevancy.
Induced ignorance masked in a sleek design.
<br>Making choices, being focused, having a mission, a clear direction, following a single strong impulse has become an end in itself, being also a desirable fundamental skill to have in order to manoeuvre the entanglements of today.
<br>To completely eradicate distraction would mean to cut off from the world that provides it, to seclude oneself in order to minimize the impulses.
The Distraction Manager empowers its human user to take control, to exercise their capability of intervening into the protocol of the device.
<br>The task is not to battle distraction, it is to manage it.
The primary action that a human derives from their wish to manage their distraction (the initial reason to use the DM), switching on the device and choosing a desired time sequence of the trigger production. When the sound appears, as a mid-protocol occurence, the human considers it as an input, triggering the sensibilization protocol. This is where the human and the machine encounter, interface eachother, creating an inter-system communication. The actual output of the DM is the changed state of mind, the management of distraction that the human reaches when the protocol is repeatedly and successfully completed.
<br>(Its management is necessary for our mental health.)
The causality of the final output is unpredictable and specific to each individual, whose conceptual input (set of questions) to the protocol is the unknown variable, that depends on the initial motivation and the needs of the individual.
<br>I consider distraction as the current systems' strongest tool that makes us obedient and conformed. Our attention is being perpetually pulled from one to the other flashy impulse, headline, infinite irrelevant content packages, our thought stream being disrupted.
<br>Propaganda of today is strong, its tactics are detrimental, ardvertisements bomb us on every step. The outside world penetrates our mind with such a zeal, it is almost impossible to resist it, to finish the thought we have just started without interruption.
-
<br>To be continuously interrupted, infused with the flood of impulses makes us blind, numb, insensible, inattentive - mainly to ourselves as bodies, as homo sapiens situated in the midst of this complex intertwinement of overwhelming impulses. Our time and conscious attention are swallowed by the black hole, made out of the substance called: distraction. We have sucessfully managed to forget about ourselves, indulged in the virtual reality that became the mirage in the desert of our time.
<br>Being distracted prevents us from noticing that we are governed and manipulated, it takes away our empowerment and therefore we are weakened, not able to intervene, to react. We are less aware of our own emotion, our attention span is shortened, the capability of complex thoughts is crumbling, we dedicate our time to instant indulgence instead of managing our long-term well-being, satisfied by the virtual quick dopamine fix that we are entitled to receive.
Machines have shaped humanity more abruptly, causing a shockwave stronger and more lasting than any other occurences ever since our species first stepped into existence. Tracing the legacy of tools, humans have always striven for the bettering of our lives, towards the simplification of mundane tasks.
<br>It is a hard task to rewire our mind anew and adopt more optimised patterns of functioning. We run on an autopilot of our subconscious mind taking decisions for us in a much quicker way than the rational, analytic consciousness though. But that does not mean that it is optimal, how we would want it to be. The Distraction Manager disrupts this autopilot and triggers a crucial moment in all of this distractive complexity, it aids us to develop the good habit of checking-in with ourselves from "time to time", a moment of presence and self-care.
<br>Sensibilization is the first step. By taking it, we reclaim agency, we empower ourselves to see, to react, to change.
Somewhere along the line, it seems, we have lost control over what kind of tools/machines/devices we produce and how we do it, for whom and why. How we use them and who is the boss.
<br>We have the capability to expand our attention from only seemingly relevant matter, missing out on the core of the issue, the hidden mechanisms and intrinsic causes of things, if we are not distracted by any of the random impulses that try to trick us. Distraction works like a magician does - guiding our gaze where he wants to, while the real trick happens outside of the area of our attention. If we develop our potential, sharpen our awareness of things, if our sensibility is well-trained we can reveal the trick of the magician, understand better, direct our focus in the midst of the urge to simultaneously process a lot of information.
<br>-
Since the "discovery" of the internet, our bubble of known or possibly-known has blown up. Complexity arose and hit us hard.
<br>Being sensible to ourselves holds another asset. It makes us instinctively sensible to others, our empathy grows. This leads to a change in the way we communicate, being more sensitive and compassionate.
It is alluring to have all the humanity's knowledge accessible anywhere, anytime. It is also perplexing.
<br>Communication is the basis of any community, of any conglomeration of individual parts, striving towards mutual understanding and well-being.
(Is curiosity thriving?)
<br>Separate individuals, modules get interconnected by efficient communication channels, functioning as one organism. The overall function of a system is a sum of specific functions of its constitutive parts.
"The world" is a distraction generator, the excessive flood of impulses results in the loss of sharpness in our sensory experiences, perception.
<br>Community is a modular system.
Our generation is severely shaped by the immense power of connectivity, the dominance of accesibility. This is why it is urgent to reassess the notion of relevancy.
<br>Social contracts are so deeply embedded in us that we don't even see the very possibility of them being questioned, hacked, shaped, remodeled. We are used of acting and interacting in certain ways. We mostly don't react until the moment when something suddenly hits us – when the way humanity functions reveals itself as cruel at a very explicit level. Then, it is too late.
<br>Isn't this aggravating, maddening? It calls for action, it calls for the change in our subconscious patterns of interaction that would allow undistracted, direct, honest, raw and well-intentioned exchange of content.
Making choices, being focused, having a mission, a clear direction, following a single strong impulse has become an end in itself, being also a desirable fundamental skill to have in order to manoeuvre the entanglements of today.
<br>The optimization of the whole system can happen only by optimising individual parts that constitute it and this is what the Distraction Manager does – constructs a proposition for reality, an experiment in the everyday life as a form of resistance to the unsocial politics of today, especially regarding awareness of oneself, expanding onto the awareness of others and reciprocal communication.
<br>
To completely eradicate distraction would mean to cut off from the world that provides it, to seclude oneself in order to minimize the impulses.
The task is not to battle distraction, it is to manage it.
<br>Being sensibilized, gaining awareness and gradually understanding the structures and the mechanisms of contemporaneity, seeing its faults and difficulties, acknowledging other people (especially) within our communities. Reacting and being critical to ignorance, to distraction, to the means of control governing us, elegantly masked and fragmented, omnipresent and sly. Making, creating something that is beneficial for others. Sharing individual insights, combining and producing new forms of knowledge. Merging and cross-pollination qualities of separate particles. To empower and be empowered.</p>
(Its management is necessary for our mental health.)
I consider distraction as the current systems' strongest tool that makes us obedient and conformed. Our attention is being perpetually pulled from one to the other flashy impulse, headline, infinite irrelevant content packages, our thought stream being disrupted.
Propaganda of today is strong, its tactics are detrimental, ardvertisements bomb us on every step. The outside world penetrates our mind with such a zeal, it is almost impossible to resist it, to finish the thought we have just started without interruption.
To be continuously interrupted, infused with the flood of impulses makes us blind, numb, insensible, inattentive - mainly to ourselves as bodies, as homo sapiens situated in the midst of this complex intertwinement of overwhelming impulses. Our time and conscious attention are swallowed by the black hole, made out of the substance called: distraction. We have sucessfully managed to forget about ourselves, indulged in the virtual reality that became the mirage in the desert of our time.
Being distracted prevents us from noticing that we are governed and manipulated, it takes away our empowerment and therefore we are weakened, not able to intervene, to react. We are less aware of our own emotion, our attention span is shortened, the capability of complex thoughts is crumbling, we dedicate our time to instant indulgence instead of managing our long-term well-being, satisfied by the virtual quick dopamine fix that we are entitled to receive.
It is a hard task to rewire our mind anew and adopt more optimised patterns of functioning. We run on an autopilot of our subconscious mind taking decisions for us in a much quicker way than the rational, analytic consciousness though. But that does not mean that it is optimal, how we would want it to be. The Distraction Manager disrupts this autopilot and triggers a crucial moment in all of this distractive complexity, it aids us to develop the good habit of checking-in with ourselves from "time to time", a moment of presence and self-care.
Sensibilization is the first step. By taking it, we reclaim agency, we empower ourselves to see, to react, to change.
We have the capability to expand our attention from only seemingly relevant matter, missing out on the core of the issue, the hidden mechanisms and intrinsic causes of things, if we are not distracted by any of the random impulses that try to trick us. Distraction works like a magician does - guiding our gaze where he wants to, while the real trick happens outside of the area of our attention. If we develop our potential, sharpen our awareness of things, if our sensibility is well-trained we can reveal the trick of the magician, understand better, direct our focus in the midst of the urge to simultaneously process a lot of information.
-
Being sensible to ourselves holds another asset. It makes us instinctively sensible to others, our empathy grows. This leads to a change in the way we communicate, being more sensitive and compassionate.
Communication is the basis of any community, of any conglomeration of individual parts, striving towards mutual understanding and well-being.
Separate individuals, modules get interconnected by efficient communication channels, functioning as one organism. The overall function of a system is a sum of specific functions of its constitutive parts.
Community is a modular system.
Social contracts are so deeply embedded in us that we don't even see the very possibility of them being questioned, hacked, shaped, remodeled. We are used of acting and interacting in certain ways. We mostly don't react until the moment when something suddenly hits us – when the way humanity functions reveals itself as cruel at a very explicit level. Then, it is too late.
Isn't this aggravating, maddening? It calls for action, it calls for the change in our subconscious patterns of interaction that would allow undistracted, direct, honest, raw and well-intentioned exchange of content.
The optimization of the whole system can happen only by optimising individual parts that constitute it and this is what the Distraction Manager does – constructs a proposition for reality, an experiment in the everyday life as a form of resistance to the unsocial politics of today, especially regarding awareness of oneself, expanding onto the awareness of others and reciprocal communication.
Being sensibilized, gaining awareness and gradually understanding the structures and the mechanisms of contemporaneity, seeing its faults and difficulties, acknowledging other people (especially) within our communities. Reacting and being critical to ignorance, to distraction, to the means of control governing us, elegantly masked and fragmented, omnipresent and sly. Making, creating something that is beneficial for others. Sharing individual insights, combining and producing new forms of knowledge. Merging and cross-pollination qualities of separate particles. To empower and be empowered.</p>
Slayr
5 years ago
