LEA Dec '04: From the Extraordinary to the Uncanny Part II

*sincere apologies for cross-posting*

Leonardo Electronic Almanac: December 2004
ISSN#1071-4391
art | science | technology - a definitive voice since 1993
http://lea.mit.edu
Subject: LEA Dec '04: From the Extraordinary to the Uncanny Part II

In LEA's December issue, guest editor Michael Punt presides over Part II of a special double-issue, based on the theme "From the Extraordinary to the Uncanny: The Unusual and Inexplicable in Art, Science and Technology."

Following this theme, the first article, by Peter Anders, explores intriguing parallels in the development of communications technology and spiritualist practices, including stage magic, in the nineteenth century; Josephine Coy discusses her project, *Media Ghosts*, in which images adapted from various news media "seemed to have emerged as if through a fissure between worlds," and describes the process of creation of the works.

Len Massey looks into various takes on the supernatural within the alternative media, finding an interesting contrast to the "saturated spin we are fed on a daily basis;" Pia Tikka looks at "Cinema and the Biological Basis of Otherness," discussing her view that interactive cinema can be seen as an "externalization of mind;" and C. S. Unnikrishnan makes a compelling case for the central role of "unobservables" in cosmology and physics, arguing that exploring the nature of such phenomena can even lead to profound spiritual insights.

In Leonardo Reviews, introduced by Robert Pepperell, Pia Tikka contributes a review of *Metacreation: Art and Artificial Life*, Sean Cubitt reviews *The Digital Sublime: Myth, Power and
Cyberspace* and Amy Ione reviews *Experiments in Form*.

We also take a look at the contents and selected abstracts from the first 2005 issue of *Leonardo*, while ISAST News brings us the latest events in the Leonardo/ISAST community. On a final, more somber note, John Milner brings us an obituary of the Russian artist Kirill Sokolov, a long-time supporter and contributor to the *Leonardo* journal.

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For over a decade, Leonardo Electronic Almanac (LEA) has thrived as an international peer-reviewed electronic journal and web archive, covering the interaction of the arts, sciences and technology. LEA emphasizes rapid publication of recent work and critical discussion on topics of current excitement. Many contributors are younger scholars and artists, and there is a slant towards shorter, less academic texts.

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