Products of Acts of Making: the Limited Fork Theory Poam as Investigation

A way to enter a session of a system of making can be the setting up or configuration of an investigation, the purpose of which can be discovery of (some of) what happens under a set of conditions or parameters, as if to answer a question such as:

What happens if...? What happens when...? What doesn't happen if...? What doesn't happen when...? Etc.
Typically, a Limited Fork Theory investigation is carried out according to a set of rules related to the question[s] being asked. The maker applies the rules and documents what happens, that documentation a poam itself, the outcome system of an investigation. The outcome system is configurable, perhaps according to rules of the investigation or as solutions to how the outcome system can be displayed to help reveal interpretations and meanings of the outcome system or outcome data. (investigation logo made at spiffytext.com)

Rules of an investigation exist whether or not the rules are explicitly stated; rules (and their companion obstructions) provide context, and configure what will be possible to consider. Rules form a context of inclusion and exclusion. Some of the nature of access is shaped by choices governing what is considered and what is not considered, what becomes possible and what becomes impossible within the context of investigation, outcomes biased or configured to respond to the parameters of the investigation. Listen to rules and obstructions in Samuel Beckett's Rule number one:


Read some of Samuel Beckett's rules and obstructions from pages 97 and 98 of Molloy:


Click to investigate and experience more (rules and obstructions) of a more complete sucking stone sequence excerpted from Samuel Beckett's Molloy.


In an approach to poam as investigation, revision of the outcome system, other than modes and manners of configuration for revelatory display and access of information, would be considered manipulation of data, (further) tainting of findings, so the documentation of outcome is left intact, the data is left intact in all the forms in which data was collected, and continues to be collected, some the outcome of further thinking about the data, thought configuring and reconfiguring the data set into subsets which in turn may give rise to subsets of their own (which may intersect [on some scale in some location for some duration of time] with the initial outcome data). Display and interpretation of the outcome system data is configurable and reconfigurable. When outcome system sata sems shallow or flawed, then the investigation itself can be revised or revisited —reconfigured, and new data collected according to revised parameters of investigation.

Ask different (or what the investigator might consider) better questions the next time, and the next time, and the next time.

Try to determine all the contributing factors (that you can), try to identify all collaborators (that you can) as these factors can (and probably should, as participants in a system of information and activity) shape the possible configurations of the system investigated, configurations that vary as scale, location, and time is varied and context shifts. The geometry of the investigated system is variable and complex, structures that may connect (in some form) here and here, on some scale, in some location, for some duration of time —multifaceted (regular and/or irregular) structures part of super geometric communities of temporarily connected (in some form on some scale) multifaceted (regular and/or irregular) structures.

While in Toronto, at the CNE shortly after the publication of Tokyo Butter, I visited The Farm building where I was intrigued by an Ostrich and an unkempt man who seemed thoroughly mesmerized by the ostrich to the point of paralysis —he was able to move toward the caged Struthio camelus by only an inch per minute —powerless for having looked into the ostrich eye! He was under a spell, under hypnosis, under influence a spiritual calling, so I watched and filmed ostrich acolyte and watched and filmed ostrich, really interested in this culture of dependence and devotion (each contained by and containing the other simultaneously, a selected perspective determining momentary fixing of container or contained status —rather like the challenge of seeing both the young woman and old woman at the same time; the eye and brain shifts from one configuration to the other) unfolding so publicly, a slow ecstasy that would seem dynamic and explosive only when the footage was sped up. The man in white t-shirt had white hair, dirty white pants, like, somewhat a zombie snowman come to life under the influence and power of the ostrich —and that is the possibility I investigated in a simultaneity study: The Culture of Snowmen (a text poam in Tokyo Butter) temporarily connects with the living snowman-automaton. (ostrich head image from wikipedia commons). The video poam that follows investigates this temporary contact/interaction system as a study of simultaneity.






Once the video poam simultaneity study was configured, stills were extracted for a closer examination of what's inside the interaction at various locations:



Extracted stills (many of which are from spaces between film frames, progeny of the frame that precedes and the frame that follows; from locations of interactions between frames, the connective tissue of moments)have been compiled into a small booklet of ostrich culture of snowmen interaction stills. Each still is a form of page from a dynamic video book —a closed loop video book in its unchanging playback (varying frame rate or direction in playback scenarios shifts perceptual encounters and scale without actually altering the content; the video content is perceptually configurable, and can be edited further by anyone who has or acquires editing skills, but the video content is not self-changing) of video content dependent on technological mishap for change as opposed to be a system that changes within itself over time, or on changing assessments/interpretations of the content, or on direct tinkering with the video content by an agent outside the video content, for instance. Matters of resolution of eye and screen, and sonic issues related to playback device speakers and to ears are other factors contributing to dynamic qualities (putty qualities) of configurations of the Ostrich Culture of Snowmen video poam system.

Zooming into various sections of the stills reveals detail on an even smaller scale, detail that interacts with the pixels for other understandings and interpretations of the unfolded collaborative event moment. Zooming into the zoomed outcomes will reveal even more, including what might prove to be interesting and/or useful distortions once this zooming into the zoomed outcomes occurs as a bifurcation investigation (or subsystem or extension) of the initial investigation occurs. The extracted stills already provide extended consideration of interactions with two text systems: text generated with video editing tools and text scanned with a USB microscope (like one used in an episode of CSI ) from the print version of The Culture of Snowmen in Tokyo Butter. Stay tuned for outcomes of this planned further forking of the investigation, that with the plan (in any form, on any scale, in any location) intact, is ongoing. (CSI/proscope image from everything USB)


Beckett, another incurable tinkerer, investigates and tinkers with a configuration of his play What Where:

DJ Adio at Beachwood Place with Phillip Bimstein's Door music reveal some of the Vibrational Ways of Doors in Augmenting [Limited Forked Theory] Configurable Spaces, including idea spaces, and a fondling of ripples of creation —riding some of those wavy portals

While at Beachwood Place Mall, looking, as usual, for evidence of interaction (such as shadows and reflections), I came upon DJ Adio in a shop window, positioned where both he and his reflection could be seen on two glass planes on which reflections from passersby also temporarily converged, diverged, then converged again on the second plane. A sampling, if you will, of space, of occupancy; a sharing of moment as he spun red discs of music I could not hear.

The sharing of space as reflections converged seemed to be a visual aspect of what the DJ was mixing; persons he did not know, could not see were becoming part of him, walking through his image, enlarging what his image could contain, just as he was enlarging sonic space and sonic meanings.

DJ Adio was functioning as a door, as a bifurcation point, as an entrance and exit point, an access point —and his gestures seemed to be shuffling what was converging, configuring the sonic and visual geometries of the connections. A fantastic door system that I wanted to highlight and explore further with Philip Bimstein's Door music and added vocal tracks expressing and exploring some gist of my observations that were part of the convergence, part of the collaboration.

DJ Adio Door Ways Ghost Relay: an adventure in vibration studies was a poam outcome of an unplanned investigation of a convergence of DJ, reflection, observation, meaning as transit system, the mixing of elements by a DJ in the configuration of a moment.

In this investigation, the movements and gestures took on more context as ripples of experience, shockwaves fanning out from a central event: the DJ's role as an assembler of realities within realities; DJ Adio was acting as a hub into which realities fed, a hub of convergence where he reassembled what converged and transmitted alternate versions, more of the other possibilities for the information that converged in his hub. DJ Adio as relay station, as transformer.

SITA SINGS THE BLUES as a Tine of Limited Forked Universe

Nina Paley generously gives her beautiful film Sita Sings the Blues to us, all of us, noting that as part of culture (made of components of culture, which includes dreams), it belongs to us already, is an assemblage, an extension of parts of human experience and human interactions with all things human and all things not human. Idea itself is in part response to that which spawns it; some existing information in some form is at part of idea's heart (as it is in this clever heart umbrella from my design pick.com):




How wonderful it is for the human community to link in inspiration and response; negatively or positively we connect, configure, and reconfigure, making a map of human experience that exposes what is marvelous about us and what is not (at times, according to principles of some temporary configurations, interchangeable).

No matter how brief the configuration in which connections succeed, I am grateful that connection occurs, and I accept that for the possibility of sublime connection, the possibility of brutal connection must be risked. Indeed; perception itself is configurable, winners and losers in the same situation. If there is connection, then all possible forms of connections will manifest on some scale in some location for some duration of time. Forms that are not possible will not manifest. Once a form manifests, that form is possible. Forms not possible in this configuration of now many become possible in the now of other circumstances. And what is not possible in a now of other circumstances will not manifest.

The seeking of interaction, a form of connection, that must occur in Limited Fork Theory, the study of interacting systems on any scale in any location for any duration of time; and the participation in interactions found are the context and focus of my ambition. Perhaps study and participation in some as yet undetermined number (so much falls between the tines of the limited fork, so I cannot be sure of anything, even that there is slippage —an incredible probability of slippage, but I have no proof of exactly what flips between the tines, for to know what slips is to have information that slippage denies; to know what falls through tines would be a form of catching what slips. I assume slippage, but what might disprove slippage I believe has slipped through the tines that themselves sponsor my adherence to slippage probability). Therefore: share, share, share!
This post (and forkergirl's other posts in this blog) joins Nina Paley in being made available for re/continued use with a creative commons share alike license:


This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.



As most of us (to whom Sita Sings the Blues belongs) still exist in circumstances that require us to have a source or sources of income, Nina Paley is not prospering from free distribution of her wonderful film, so please consider supporting the ethics of sharing and collaborative building (the collaborative is a prevailing nature of things, it would seem, according to Limited Fork Theory, among other tools of perception/understanding) by making a donation at the Sita Sings the Blues site and/or by purchasing some of the products at Question Copyright.com Perhaps a Copyleft Tee shirt or a Valmiki Violin Shirt or jewelry, stickers, etc.

Nothing but praises for Sita Sings the Blues and Nina Paley!


No better example of Limited Fork Theory in action!

RUDE TEXT & accessorized text systems

Often the placement of text on a page in typical text poetry may be understood as domination of the page. The text takes over. The page derives its identity from the content, from the often uppercase and bold title in stark contrast to the peasant blankness whose purpose is for development. Whatever might be inhabiting that page already, whatever might be incubating in that environment already is subjugated by the text.


Such RUDE TEXT!
O the audacity of idea!
(image from stuffaspergerpeoplelike.com)


Not that text should be mannered and well-behaved, afraid of controversy, so respectful of every atom in the paper, so hesitant to displace them that the poem mutes itself, but
The ease with which text asserts itself on the page, with which text claims the page
is shocking —as if the page is speechless, voiceless, undeveloped until text provides
possibilities for meaning. Seldom does it seem that the writer has collaborated
with the paper, has valued what paper is bringing to the piece.

Let the text and the paper host duke it out sometimes!
Let what populates the paper reveal configurations of outcomes of the battle!

A text piece could be more responsive to specifics of the [paper] environment hosting it. [Subtle] Differences in the paper environments, even in mass reproduction of paper environments in a print run, could influence how the text is placed in that environment.

to the left: Ed Ruscha: Lisp and Lisp detail from the National Gallery of Art.
A text poam may be considered forms of idea fashion for paper pages, the idea affected by the traits of the paper model. Usually, there is a complete outfit on the page; the text poam is a system that is accessorized —the outfit cam be worn in a variety of ways via versatility of the accessories. A collection of text poetry may be considered a runway showing of the wearing of accessorized text systems.