[Commlist] Call for papers: Cybernetics in Science Fiction

Call for papers: Cybernetics in Science Fiction

When artist Neil Harbisson implanted a cyborg antenna in his head to 
extend and augment the range of colours his eyes could perceive, it 
marked a potential turning point in the relationship between art and 
cybernetics.[i] <#_edn1> Conversely, the concept of Artificial 
Intelligence continues to create a chasm of anxiety between the 
possibilities for human progress and its imagined demise.

The use of chatbots to potentially create student essays has created 
shockwaves within academia itself, but in a wider sense, alarmist 
scenarios, including from the pioneers of the technology itself 
(Geoffrey Hinton),[ii] <#_edn2> echo the dystopian imagination of 
science fiction narratives, suggesting the ongoing, symbiotic 
relationship between art and reality.

Cybernetics has been in the English language since 1948, borrowing from 
both the language and philosophy of classical Greek for /kubernetes/, 
the steersman of a ship. Meaning at core the feedback loops or 
mechanisms through a mechanical or animal system, the cybernetic ideas 
of Norbert Wiener have proved pervasive in science and the popular 
understanding of science. The advent of ChatGPT and other Artificial 
Intelligence and the multitude of terms that begin with the prefix 
‘cyber’ attest to the enduring and still expanding understandings of 
cybernetics. Scientifically informed science fiction writers have 
continually found inspiration in cybernetics. A major work, Patricia 
Warrick’s /The Cybernetic Imagination in Science Fiction /explored the 
multiple interpretations of cybernetics in post-war science fiction. 
That work came out in 1980 and since then, few larger scale studies of 
cybernetics in science fiction have appeared.

However, cybernetics themselves remain a compelling source of 
inspiration. Among the most notable may be the Cybermen of /Doctor Who/, 
the Cybernauts of /The Avengers /and /The New Avengers/, and the Borg of 
/Star Trek/, from /The Next Generation /to /Picard. /Yet these famous 
examples may not necessarily distil cybernetics with any particular 
degree of accuracy, proposing a science fiction version of cybernetics 
related to spare part surgery and the replacement of body parts rather 
than to a systems theory. Thus, the cyborg (a synthesis of cyborg and 
organism) is the most commonly visible iteration of cybernetic concepts, 
ranging from the mainstream televisual series /The/ /Bionic Woman/ 
(1976-78) and /The Six-Million Dollar Man/ (1973-1978) to the villains 
of science-fiction and horror in /Star Wars/ (Darth Vader, General 
Grievous) and /The Terminator/ franchise.

Yet the point of fiction is not to be instrumentalist but to give 
creative expression to the range of possibilities (and fears) that the 
concept of cybernetics itself proposes rather than to strict conceptual 
accuracy. This call for papers is for chapters on how cybernetics has 
been imagined, including those taking note of differences between 
science fiction and real-world applications. It is anticipated that a 
focus on the different paths taken by science fiction and science will 
be analytically fruitful. Contributions on mainstream, screen versions 
of the cyborg as 'replacement parts' are welcome. Papers on the wider 
print tradition and on the scientific verisimilitude of cybernetics are 
also encouraged.

There is a diversity of genres and works that could be considered as 
well as a rich number of themes including, but by no means limited to:

  * Disability, spare parts, and surgery
  * Cybernetic modification
  *   The ‘Whiteness’ of cybernetics
  * Trans-generic cybernetics
  * Global representations of cybernetics
  * Videogames (/Mortal Kombat/ e.g.)
  * Anime (/Ghost in the Shell/ e.g.)
  * Cybernetics in popular franchises (/Doctor Who, Star Wars/, /Star
    Trek/, /The Terminator/, Marvel/DC etc.)
  * Gender and Cybernetics
  * Cybernetics and ‘futurism’
  * The posthuman experience
  * Technophobia
  * Cyperpunk

Proposals from different national contexts and through the lens of 
diversity will be especially welcome.

We are in discussion about this project with a British publisher.

*/Advice for contributors/*

If you are interested in contributing to this collection, we ask that 
you submit an abstract of up to *250 words* explaining the focus and 
approach your proposed essay as well as a brief biography of *50 
words*.  The proposed volume is intended to be scholarly but accessible 
in tone and approach. Each contribution should be around *6000 words*.  
Abstracts should be emailed to (Marcus.harmes /at/ usq.edu.au) 
<mailto:(Marcus.harmes /at/ usq.edu.au)> and (Mark.Fryers /at/ open.ac.uk) 
<mailto:(Mark.Fryers /at/ open.ac.uk)> *by September 15th 2023*and contributors 
with successful abstracts will be notified in early October.

Full chapters would be expected by*April 26^th 2024. *


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