[NetBehaviour] (Re)connection, databases, demolition

[Tom Keene]

Hello (mis)behaviour'ists!

To my shame I'd setup a filter to store netbehaviour emails in its own
folder, though rarely found the head space to follow threads. Partly as
a result of two very young kids, though also because I have spent the
past 5 years fighting demolition of my home by Lambeth council which
initially killed my creative output, which I have now managed to turn
into an (ongoing) PhD...

It's been a joy to have been de-filtered as a result of the email
systems change, I've really enjoyed the blockchain discussion.
Particularly the points around of how we can think about the
complexities of digital objects which is a problem I have had to tackle
in my artist/activist/research. 

I'm dealing with housing databases used by local authorities to manage
repairs. While one might think they would be straight forward, they are
anything but. As ana example, the recent Grenfel fire saw police seize
31 million documents and over 300 companies implicated in the management
of just one tower. Its a similar story for most housing estates across
the country, including Cressingham Gardens where I've lived for the past
10 years. Us residents have had to submit over 250 freedom of
information requests which gives you some idea of how distant local
authority decision making process is from their citizens. 

To help think through all of that complexity of people, authority, 
software, forms of standardisation, archives, networks, politics, legal
process  (I helped instigate two judicial reviews), and the
administrative mess of a local authority I've found lots of inspiration
from the philosopher Gilber Simondon who wrote his thesis "mode of
existence of technical objects" in 1958 at a formative time of digital
computers. The book that Rob mentioned "mode of existence of digital
objects" extends Simondon's thinking. Both texts help think through the
problems of dealing with abstract concepts of (such as an engine,
computer, database, or blockchains) which turn into the real world money
machines of global capitalism, or demolition machines of a local
authority regeneration programme.  

Mark - I think you would be particularly interested in a  'shadow'
repairs database I've been building with residents of Cressingham
Gardens Estate. We've been trying to create something (possibly a
platform) that works with us rather than against us. An attempt to get
closer to distant local authority technologies  to address our
alienation from them. Documentation isn't public yet, but its getting
there on www.db-estate.co.uk...

Anyway, bit of a intense download. I'm glad to be reconnecting with many
familiar faces again.

Tom


TOM KEENE: Artist/Activist/Researcher
Save Cressingham Gardens
www.db-estate.co.uk
-----------------------------------------------------
PhD Student: Housing Databases & Urban space
Dept. Design, Goldsmiths University of London
w: www.theanthillsocial.co.uk
e: tom at theanthillsocial.co.uk
t: @anthillsocial
t: 07930 573 944