FIELDCLUB

Seminarium 1 - Numbering the Field 
27th - 29th July, 2011

Dr Matthew Watkins, Nick Swallow, Robin Mackay, Hollie Rochfort, Kenna Hernly and Paul Chaney.

Number, and consequently math, has often been appropriated for the furtherance of expansionist human endeavours. Math has stood accused of being the bedfellow of rampant capitalism, from the invention of double entry book-keeping in 13th Century Italy, to the convoluted fiscal methodologies of contemporary venture capitalists. But, in themselves, do math and number have an expansionist agenda? Can math and number be equally put to work in the exploration of a post-industrial de-coupling from globalised capital?

This, our first FIELDCLUB seminarium, attempted to address the issue of ‘Numbering the World’, in terms of the quantification of materials for human consumption, and the quantification of biotic interdependance at the boundaries of the human niche at FIELDCLUB. The usefulness of Kant's Catagorical Imperative (a simple system of ethics without rhetoric) was assessed within the context of the FieldMachine 1.0 - our interactive design tool for the creation of self-sufficiency systems. The participants also discussed a paper entitled 'The Last Refuge of the Unquantifiable' by M. Hannis.

During the three day seminarium, the participants were also asked to help in the task of identifying and developing new computational elements for the FieldMachine 1.0 Interactive Meaty Master.

Dr Matthew Watkins - Prime number theorist, Honorary Research Fellow in Mathematics at Exeter University, author of The Secrets of Creation – The Inamorata Press 2010, lent his radical expertise in the field of number theory and personal insight into the philosophy and application of math in the real world, also drawing upon his years of experience of low-impact living and travel.

Robin Mackay - Philosopher, director of Urbanomic and editor of COLLAPSE - Journal of Philosophical Research and Development, provided an overview of Alain Badiou’s ‘mathematical ontology’, expanding upon his interview with Badiou published in Collapse Vol I within the context of FIELDCLUB and the subject matter of this seminarium.

Nick Swallow - (MSc Architecture with Environment and Energy Conservation) Co-author of Zero Carbon Britain - CAT publications 2007, having 22 years experience as a tenant livestock farmer and a penchant for number crunching, contributed his vast practical knowledge of agricultural systems, and lateral approaches to the problem of ecology to the debate.

Hollie Rochfort - A recent graduate from University College Falmouth - whose work confronts the inability to conceive large quantities or distances, by the use of her own body as a system of comparative measure and quantification - discussed her practice.
 

Image: Dr Matthew Watkins and Kenna Hernly, pictured making theorical additions to the Interactive Meaty Master: