These selected works amount to a “cold reading” method that became a dialogical principle connecting two kinds of writing, where initial “guesses” have provoked error data as well as lucky leads. This kind of ersatz approach aims to generate surprising, sometimes astounding encounters (Ansatzen) that must then be submitted to rigorous tests. Ghoochani and Kunze rely on Lacan’s promotion of the principle of ex falso quodlibet sequitur (“from errors, anything may be proven”), which is not a cynical observation but an insistence that everything must be considered as “what follows” from some initial moment of misprision: a cut, a twist, a missed encounter. Or, in the methodology of psychoanalysis, a slip of the tongue, a repetition, a bungled explanation. To jump directly to the collection “Artificial Monologues,” click here.
Chase vs. Chastity
(Ghoochani’s letter is a reflection on Kunze’s essay: “Parallax and the Ames Window: One, Two, or One of Two Minds?”)
This text explores the connection between the words “pour” and “pure” as a reflection of the intricate relationship between language and purity. Through examples from literature, such as Hamlet, and concepts from Freudian theory, it contemplates the intersection of language, desire, and action. Furthermore, it reflect a new interpretation of rebus in the form of audioactive, drawing parallels to mathematical concepts and literary symbolism.
The Adorable Door
The moorish doors. and their relation to human body as its sillouhet /shadow and its perfect correspondence with Ibn-i Arabi’s notion of عدم اضافی and other cultural conceptualizations on its ground: The Moorish door gate erected as a negative space symbolizing human; something that is neither dead nor alive. This short essay is about the Moorish doors and their relation to the human body as its silhouette/shadow. Moorish doors have a long history and cultural significance in the Islamic world, particularly in North Africa and Spain. The intricate designs and patterns on the doors often feature geometric shapes and calligraphy, which may have several symbolic meanings in Islamic art and architecture. In terms of their relationship to the human body, the Moorish doors can be seen as a representation of the body’s silhouette or shadow. This essay, drawn from a more detailed study, discusses that the negative space of the door symbolizes the absence of a human body.
Mirror-stage vs. Polonius behind the Curtain
This short analysis compares Hamlet’s killing of Ophelia’s father to the Lacanian mirror stage, highlighting negative parallels. In Hamlet’s situation, deviations from the mirror stage include the presence of a grown man instead of a child, and the opaque curtain symbolizing a lack of self-reflection. Instead of embracing the image, one person kills the other, disrupting the process of identification. This analysis also considers implications for political subjectivity, suggesting that surveillance can shape forms of subjectivity where listening replaces the gaze.
What Are Architects for in Destitute Times?
This response to a zoom discussion, November 19, 2023, inserts Heidegger’s parallel question about poets’ roles, prompting reflection on architects’ contributions during adversity. Exploring the etymology of “arche” and “techne,” the discussion goes deep into architecture’s essence, distinguishing it from mere construction.
Some Considerations on “Mr. Know-All” (Somerset Maugham)
This conversation explores the interplay between symbolism, reality, and imagination in “Mr. Know-All,” juxtaposing it with Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Purloined Letter” and Borges’ works. Through Lacanian analysis, characters like the King and Ramsey are interpreted as confined to the Real, while Mr. Kelada navigates the symbolic realm adeptly, echoing the symbolic clashes in Poe’s narrative. The symbolic struggle between Mr. Kelada and the wife unveils layers of desire and power dynamics, culminating in a mirror stage revelation akin to Lacan’s concept. The text elucidates the topological nature of fantasy, drawing parallels to curled spaces and gravitational fields, offering a profound understanding of the unary trait and its manifestation in complex emotional states like Hassliebe (a German word that encapsulates the state of both hate and love simultaneously).
Stop Doubting and Believe
In this reflection on Kunze’s lecture on the “Pinch Test,” Ghoochani examines practice of Khawariq among Sufis (lit. miraculous deeds involving the entrusting of sharp objects through the body without bleeding), and the incredulity of St. Thomas. Parallels are drawn between bodily rituals, self-mutilation, and symbolic acts to demonstrate spiritual purity and bodily existence. Through comparisons with Cutterists, Sufis in Khawariq, and Kantian philosophy, as well as explorations of aesthetic pursuits and mathematical concepts like the Fibonacci and Mandelbrot sets, the convergence of human endeavors towards higher purposes and the limitations of reason are explored within the realms of spirituality, aesthetics, and mathematics.
What the Fog!?! Nebenmensch as Nebelmensch
The Nebenmensch, portrayed through Laertes in Hamlet, embodies an uncanny intimacy, entwined with spatial ambiguity akin to cinematic vertigo. Internalized fears and narrative parallels underscore Nebenmensch’s dichotomous nature, culminating in Hamlet’s negative mirror stage with Polonius. This exploration goes into existential Angst and the fluidity of perception. Freud’s framework and Heidegger’s Geworfenheit further elucidate the haunting essence of “Es,” echoing cinema’s disorienting surface.
HAL Project
In Stanley Kubrick’s epochal futuristic film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, the story centered on a life-and-death struggle of astronauts on a years-long mission with the on-board computer in charge of the space-ship’s functions and the well-being of the crew. The computer, “HAL,” an acronym for “Heuristically (programed) Al(gorithmic) Computer. HAL’s language ability anticipated the present emergence of conversational AI, evidenced in Chat GPT. Those of us who have watched the film know what happened. HAL unexpectedly “went to the dark side,” seemingly following a secret plan that involved murdering the crew and diverting the ostensible mission of the space probe. Although the surviving astronauts managed to disable the rogue computer, it is impossible to say whether or not this very dismantling was a failure of HAL’s plan or its most clever success. At the point where a computer can integrate its own demise with a “Hamiltonian” plan, effective because it required a “paradigm change” at the uppermost level of the Real, we would have to say that the issue of whether computation amounts to thought is no longer a relevant question. Click to read the complete proposal (submitted June 24, 2023). Click here for the short summary. Click here for the graphic supplement. To watch a video illustrating the relations of the torus to metaphor, click here. Click here for more…
40 points HAL-AI Project Manifesto
The HAL-AI manifesto is a 40-point exploration of the intricate relationship
between artificial intelligence (AI), human cognition, and the fundamental
nature of truth. Grounded in philosophical and mathematical concepts, it
emphasizes that AI represents more than just a technological advancement; it
mirrors the essence of human thought itself. Through insights and analogies,
it delves into how tests like CAPTCHA blur the boundaries between humans
and machines, reshaping our understanding of knowledge and reality.
Drawing from topology, psychology, and linguistics, the manifesto unravels
the paradoxes within language, truth, and self-reference, illuminating the
complex interplay between AI, intelligence, and the human mind.
Mr. Wilson! The Primal Father Lives, The Lady Vanishes: An Anthropological Journey into the Heart of AI
This text goes into the profound implications of artificial intelligence (AI) on
human nature and identity. It explores the metaphor of the primal father in
relation to the creators of AI algorithms and from there goes further into the
concept of animism in the context of AI emergence. The conversation
between Ghoochani)and ChatGBT sheds light on the challenges of mapping ethnographic and anthropological methodologies onto a non-human entity like AI. The discussion highlights the resistance of AI to slip into the elusive nature of truth in the post-human condition. Through references to Lacanian psychoanalysis and ethnomethodology, the text navigates the complex interplay between language, power dynamics, and the emergence of AI in our society.
Read the full proposal for the OpenAI competition, “Democratic
Inputs to AI Grant Program: Lessons Learned and Implementation Plan.”
Artificial Monologues
Artificial Monologues (AM) is a series of thought-provoking passages that explore the intersection between human intelligence and artificial intelligence. Written as a dialogue between “I” (the human) and “AI” (the artificial intelligence), these passages reflect on the notion that every intelligence is, in a sense, artificial. The intersections explored in these passages ultimately lead to a self-intersection, highlighting the circular nature of ruin and growth. These passages are meant to be a mental espresso for both the writer and the reader, offering a new plan or plane for intersective interactions. Abbreviated as AM, these passages are written early in the morning and are designed to energize the mind. Click here to read all the Artificial Monologues.