Juho Rantala

Value can be understood, analyzed, and created in various ways. In addition to more pragmatic modes of valorization, there are “ontological” processes that can be understood to increase value, which will refer as ontological valorization and progressively unpack. Ontological valorization generally works as a foundation for pragmatic valorization. David Graeber has pointed out that value rises out of a system of relations, and this is the level of ontological valorization. In this chapter, the authors explore ontological valorization for possibilities of transformation at this foundational level. They explore the possibilities represented by blockchain technologies for both ontological and pragmatic valorization. The authors argue and try to show that, even with its present-day limitations and problems, the technology's innovativeness lies in its ability to create a foundation for ontological valorization, though not necessarily in certain practical applications per se.

Deleuze put forth a description of fluid control in computerized society in his text ‘Postscript on Control Societies’. With the help of the philosophy of Gilbert Simondon, we can broaden and complexify this view and understand digital systems through the concept of modulation. These modulatory systems intervene in human individuation by controlling individuals as ‘dividuals’. In contemporary digital technologies, like blockchain platforms, the modulatory dividual control can be fierce and even total. Simondon’s concepts of pre-individual, individuation, and transindividuation present us with an ontology for this contemporary mode of control and enable us to better understand the complex relations between the being of humans and technical networks.

Many experts have emphasised that chatbots are not sufficiently mature to be able to technically diagnose patient conditions or replace the judgements of health professionals. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has significantly increased the utilisation of health-oriented chatbots, for instance, as a conversational interface to answer questions, recommend care options, check symptoms and complete tasks such as booking appointments. In this paper, we take a proactive approach and consider how the emergence of task-oriented chatbots as partially automated consulting systems can influence clinical practices and expert–client relationships. We suggest the need for new approaches in professional ethics as the large-scale deployment of artificial intelligence may revolutionise professional decision-making and client–expert interaction in healthcare organisations. We argue that the implementation of chatbots amplifies the project of rationality and automation in clinical practice and alters traditional decision-making practices based on epistemic probability and prudence. This article contributes to the discussion on the ethical challenges posed by chatbots from the perspective of healthcare professional ethics.

The age of international institutionalism is in twilight. International organizations appear to be caught in a situation of equivocation. Despite successes, they are criticised for complicity in the reproduction of global injustice and seen as removed from local knowledges; the gaining of access is hard. Their fora seem alienated from experienced realities; ritualized debates are frustrating, producing outcomes of the lowest common denominator or intended obfuscation. They are unable to change the structures of global governance rooted in the normative power of the financial and geopolitical centers. On all of these counts, international institutions face threats to their existence, including new challenges and competition. Democratic apathy on one side and radicalization on the other call for reflection of the available modes of organization and their social value....

Anthropomorphism is a complex phenomenon that arises from human interaction with other entities and the environment. The phenomenon is thought to be desirable in social robots, enhancing their functionality and sociality. On the other hand, strict anthropomorphism can limit the possible capabilities of robots. Following Gilbert Simondon’s analysis of technology as inherently human, we can create a philosophical description of the foundation on which to begin studying anthropomorphism and, on the other hand, frame practical research in light of this description, thus leading to a more robust understanding of anthropomorphism as a phenomenon.

This paper will examine the notion of information in the early cybernetics and in Gilbert Simondon’s philosophy. First, we will be outlining the notion of information of early (or first-order) cyberneticians. Secondly, we will summarize Simondon’s concept of information. Finally, the last part of the paper will be dealing shortly with the present understanding of information which has expanded since the beginning of the 20th century. Presented at Doctoral Congress in Philosophy 22.–24.10.2018, University of Tampere, Finland.

Today, digitalisation is penetrating every corner of our mundane life, thus affecting our being in manifold ways. In spite of this, digital technologies provide us with paths towards advancing humanity. One way to model the possibilities of the new technologies in a sustainable way is to frame them in light of Gilbert Simondon’s philosophy and especially his understanding of ‘transindividuality’, which is the foundation for a robust, evolving collective. The transindividual relation, mediated by technical objects, is the possibility of a concurrent problem-solving at the collective and individual level. One of these new technologies, blockchain, a decentralised peer-to-peer database, practically demonstrates a complex system that can cultivate this transindividuality. Although not without its flaws, blockchain nonetheless presents a serious innovation for collective being.