Overview

""The Robot in the Garden"" initiates a critical theory of telerobotics and introduces ""telepistemology"", the study of knowledge acquired at a distance. Many of our most influential technologies, the telescope, telephone and television, were developed to provide knowledge at a distance. Telerobots, remotely controlled robots, facilitate action at a distance. Specialists use telerobots to explore actively environments such as Mars, the ""Titanic"" and Chernobyl. Military personnel increasingly employ reconnaissance drone and telerobotic missiles. At home, we have remote controls for the garage doors, car alarm, and television (the latter a remote for the remote). The Internet dramatically extends our scope and reach. Thousands of cameras and robots are now accessible online. Although the role of technical mediation has been of interest to philosophers since the 17th century, the Internet forces a reconsideration. As the public gains access to telerobotic instruments previously restricted to scientists and soldiers, questions of mediation, knowledge and trust take on new significance for everyday life. Telerobotics is a mode of representation. But representations can misrepresent. If Orson Welles's ""War of the Worlds"" was the defining moment for radio, what will be the defining moment for the Internet? As artists have always been concerned with how representations provide us with knowledge, the book also looks at telerobotics' potential as an artistic medium. The 17 essays, by leading figures in philosophy, art history and engineering, are organized into three sections: Philosophy; Art, History and Critical Theory; and Engineering, Interface and System Design.

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9780262072038

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Reviews

The Robot in the Garden brings together some of the most profound thinkers currently writing about such issues as telepresence, internet art, and the status of the real in a virtual age. Moreover, they frequently disagree with one another, an indication of the intellectual vitality of this work. Ken Goldberg's discussion of his pioneering work with robotic art sets the high standard that other distinguished contributors carry on, from Martin Jay to Eduardo Kac, Lev Manovich to Albert Borgmann. Don't miss out on this important collection. --N. Katherine Hayles, Professor of English, University of California, Los Angeles

Author Information

Ken Goldberg is Associate Professor of Industrial Engineering and founder of the Art, Technology, and Culture Colloquium at the University of California, Berkeley. His Net art installations include ""Dislocation of Intimacy,"" ""Memento Mori,"" and ""The Telegarden.""

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