Believing in bits: digital media and the supernatural

As technologies that work by computing numbers, digital media apparently epitomize what is considered scientific and rational. Yet people experience the effects of digital devices and algorithms in their everyday lives also through the lenses of magic and the supernatural. Algorithms, for instance,...

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Bibliographic Details
Contributors: Natale, Simone 1981- (Editor) ; Pasulka, D. W. (Editor)
Format: Electronic Book
Language:English
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Published: New York, NY Oxford University Press [2020]
In:Year: 2020
Series/Journal:Oxford scholarship online
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B New media / The Supernatural
Further subjects:B Digital media ; Philosophy
B Digital media ; Religious aspects
B Digital Media Philosophy
B Digital Media Religious aspects
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
Description
Summary:As technologies that work by computing numbers, digital media apparently epitomize what is considered scientific and rational. Yet people experience the effects of digital devices and algorithms in their everyday lives also through the lenses of magic and the supernatural. Algorithms, for instance, are discussed for their capacity to 'read minds' and predict the future; Artificial intelligence is seen as an opportunity to overcome death and achieve immortality through singularity; and avatars and robots are accorded a dignity that traditional religions restrict to humans. The essays collected in this volume challenge and redefine established understandings of digital media and culture by employing the notions of belief, religion, and the supernatural.
Item Description:Also issued in print: 2019. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Description based on online resource; title from home page (viewed on September 13, 2019)
ISBN:0190050020
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780190949983.001.0001