by Thiago Rosenberg
The similarities between a living organism, with its complex immune system, and the equally complex workings of machines were the focus of the fifth meeting of the Emoção Art.ficial 3.0 Symposium, Seres Humanos, Reflexões e Máquinas (Human Beings, Reflections and Machines). Immunologist, Nelson Monteiro Vaz and French artist, France Cadet participated in the debate.
Vaz’s talk was different from that of the other participants of the event since he limited himself to the issues of his area, biology, leaving it up to the public to connect them to the workings of machines. He addressed processes of the immune system, among which the ability to reject or not foreign bodies, understood by many as intelligent. But, one of the conclusions presented by the scientist, who knew Chilean biologists Francisco Varela and Humberto Maturana, points to the idea that “the intelligence of the immune system is in our perceptions.”
Controversial little robotsFrance added doses of art and criticism to the discussion. Or, more specifically, critical art. She commented on her work with robot-dogs Dog[LAB]01, from 2004, present in the Emoção Art.ficial 3.0 exhibition. These are seven autonomous robots, dogs with the characteristics of other animal species, previously programmed and coordinated to act in a specific manner. A reference to the first cloned mammal and a work critical of experiments of the kind, Dolly is 50% dog, 30% ewe, 15% cow and 5% sheep. A robot-dog with cow hide, subject to constant behavioral alterations, as if suffering from the mad cow disease, or Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE).
Jelly Doggy, in turn, represents a dog with the genes of a chameleon and a jelly fish, but which is neither adapted to land nor water. Endowed with Green Fluorescent Protein, the GFP Puppy is a reference to Alba, Eduardo Kac’s fluorescent bunny.
Dissatisfied with the way part of the public reacted to the installation, by having fun and not becoming critically moved by the actions performed by the robots, France thought of a more daring project. In Dog[LAB]02, from 2006, there are 20 robots, all identical as clones, which simulate the symptoms of the mad cow disease, in a performance that ends with the simultaneous death of all of them. “I wanted to create something scarier,” said the artist, who, according to the work’s repercussion was able to reach her objective. “They said I was an insensitive artist, that I shouldn’t talk about the mad cow disease, that I was planning a boycott, etc. It’s funny how a simple little robot can cause so much controversy.”
Learn more about cybernetics, and understand basic concepts of artificial intelligence.
Tags: clonagem, genetic engineering, performance, robotics
Posted in Simposyum 2006 | No Comments »
