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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.
The philosophical connection between medical ethics and hair loss
Raymond Tallis reveals the philosophical connection between medical ethics and hair loss. Photographic evidence shows that in 1980 I had a full head of hair, while in 1990 I was bald. It follows from this that some time in the 1980s I became bald. However, it seems impossible – or daft – to state when … Read more
BP and Ryskin’s methane extinction theory
BP’s Deepwater Horizon drilling operation may have triggered an irreversible, cascading geological Apocalypse that will culminate with the first mass extinction of life on Earth in many millions of years. The oil giant drilled down miles into a geologically unstable region and may have set the stage for the eventual premature release of a methane … Read more
A desertifying world needs utilitarian camels
In a desertifying world short of water, the utilitarian camel, and the ancient cultures that depend on it, offer a way to use land too poor to sustain anything else. The camel has long had a special place in the imagination of the West, from the Greek historian Herodotus telling a story about Indians using … Read more
The Magic Pill Question: GLBT and the ‘medical model’
Here’s a link to a commentary by April Michelle Herndon. She is an assistant professor of English who also teaches in the Women’s and Gender Studies department at Winona State University in Minnesota. “Would you take a magic pill to make yourself straight?” That question came from an audience member at a recent panel discussion … Read more
Researchers use robot to determine how human strangers develop trust
What can a wide-eyed, talking robot teach us about trust? A lot, according to Northeastern psychology professor David DeSteno, and his colleagues, who are conducting innovative research to determine how humans decide to trust strangers — and if those decisions are accurate. The interdisciplinary research project, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), is being … Read more
A 1000 years of economic bubbles, panics, and collapses shows that investors always think ‘this time is different’
Oh really? The advertisement warns of speculative financial bubbles. It mocks a group of gullible Frenchmen seduced into a silly, 18th-century investment scheme, noting that the modern shareholder, armed with superior information, can avoid the pitfalls of the past. “How different the position of the investor today!” the ad enthuses. It ran in The Saturday … Read more