Research on why humans co-operate with each other has revealed that gossip influences our opinions of people even when it contradicts the evidence of our own eyes.
A recent report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences described an experiment involving 126 students, who played a game in which they could either co-operate with each other or cheat on each other. Between the rounds of the game they were permitted to spread rumours about the behaviour of the other students. This gossip had a significant effect on players' perception of each other even if it ran counter to what they had themselves seen. Rumours that a player had cheated had a marked effect on the attitude of other players. The researchers explained this as a fear that a 'busybody' might know something others had missed and would trust this rather than their own judgment. Conversely, rumours that a player was helpful stimulated better co-operation.
monochrom is an art-technology-philosophy group having its seat in Vienna and Zeta Draconis. monochrom is an unpeculiar mixture of proto-aesthetic fringe work, pop attitude, subcultural science, context hacking and political activism. Our mission is conducted everywhere, but first and foremost in culture-archeological digs into the seats (and pockets) of ideology and entertainment. monochrom has existed in this (and almost every other) form since 1993. [more]
