Rakosha says, "Stelarc - Phantom Bodies"
Hmmm.... says, "Talking about prosthetic arm, w/ 21 degreees of freedom"
Hmmm.... says, "because of so many degrees, you'd tell your arm what to do"
Hmmm.... says, "anyone could tell her arm what to do, the thalidomide girl in the lab,"
Dria laughs
Hmmm.... says, "much giggles"
Rakosha chuckles.
Sn00dle_Guest says, "brrrrr"
Hmmm.... says, "Stelarc talking about the third hand"
Hmmm.... says, "Which he has"
Hmmm.... says, "There's a diagram of "INVOLUNTARY BODY / THIRD HAND on the screen..."
laurie says, "i'm confused again. of course."
Stelarc asks, "Girl offers me one of her arms, eh?"
Rakosha says, "a girl with a prosthetic arm tried on stelarc's 3rd hane on her other arm, and managed to make it happen ... offered to give him one of her old arms ..."
Dria grins
Stelarc exclaims, "She unscrews her arm, hands it over!"
Stelarc says, "That idea, that a part of her person was being held by someone else was a disconcerting visual displacement."
Stelarc says, "She had only one arm, I had four..."
Rakosha grins.
Dria he's got a great laugh :>
Rakosha nods to Dria.
Rakosha nods to Dria.
Dria says, "d'oh."
Sn00dle_Guest is going to go read the program and come back
Rakosha smiles at Sn00dle_Guest.
Stelarc asks, "Final little story, what happened at the ICA - did a performance in London - at the end - group of people stayed after - one approached me - said we're from the Torture Garden - would you like to do a performance for us while you're here?"
Stelarc says, "I'm not sure, I say."
laurie says, "i wonder how she felt about her armedness."
Stelarc says, "I'm only in London for a few days."
Stelarc asks, "Could we do something to you if you can't do something for us?"
Stelarc says, "Now we go to the first video - I'm gonna switch off the overhead."
Stelarc says, "TOO LOUD< TURN IT DOWN!!! Ok, fine."
Rakosha says, "videos of stelarc -- sorry about the sound ..."
Sn00dle_Guest slips
Sn00dle_Guest goes out through the out door.
Stelarc says, "What's seductive is that we've evolved into an absent body - image of me being held by hooks through the skin above the ocean"
Stelarc says, "Part of a survival strategy."
Stelarc says, "Inadequate absence - the absence of the body on the Internet"
Stelarc says, "I'm moving my hands around to illustrate my point at the moment."
Stelarc says, "Physicality surfaces when we do Yoga."
Stelarc says, "When we malfunction we're startled into awareness."
laurie says, "but it's also absence of the object on the net."
Stelarc says, "Awareness as an aspect of malfunctioning is a very important one, I do think."
Stelarc says, "Hooks through back and legs."
Stelarc says, "I'm hanging again, this time being lifted up, uh... I think I'm, I don't know where I am, I'm flying higher, there's a camera shot following me up up and away...."
Rakosha says, "_insane_ pictures ... totally amazing ..."
Circus_Murders_Guest fades in from Entry Point and joins you.
laurie asks, "what's happening?"
Goatium_Guest says, "I suspect this romance would read very differently if the artist were disabled."
Rakosha smiles at Circus_Murders_Guest.
Stelarc says, "I'm now going really high up, being held up in the air by a crane with hooks through my skin."
laurie says, "i agree, goatium."
Stelarc says, "Me too, it's pretty good."
Rakosha says to Goatium_Guest, "good point ..."
Stelarc says, "I'm going higher and higher..."
Circus_Murders_Guest says, "ouch"
Stelarc says, "Showing very short segments, oh here I'm in Copenhagan..."
Stelarc exclaims, "You better believe it, Circus!"
Stelarc says, "The experience the body is undergoing is somewhere between dream-fantasy, floating and flying, and on the other hand, the astronaut in zero g"
Stelarc says, "Skin a manifestation of gravitational pull."
Dria says, "*ow**ow**ow*"
Stelarc says, "Is the skin an adequate interface to the world."
laurie says, "this is too frustrating."
Rakosha grins at Dria.
Rakosha nods to Dria.
Stelarc says, "OOga is more likely what I said..."
Stelarc says, "Skin is a collapse between the personal and public - self no longer bounded with piercing and probing..."
Stelarc says, "I'm really high now..."
Stelarc says, "Sort of above a dome."
Stelarc says, "When a body speaks an "I" it doesn't mean an ego-driven body - but signifies a whole series of complex interactions in social spaces and languages - it's a compression of a complex space etc."
Stelarc says, "part of the problem operating with language"
Goatium_Guest says, "talk about an alienation effect. I cant see this so I'm not seduced by the christ imagery..."
Stelarc says, "we've evolved w/ absent bodies, realize we're obsolete - body now inhabited by small bits of technology -"
Stelarc says, "I'm taling a bit about nanotech now./"
Rakosha smiles at Circus_Murders_Guest.
Rakosha nods to Circus_Murders_Guest.
Circus_Murders_Guest waves
Stelarc says, "Body becomes the new landscape for machines...."
Stelarc says, "Next video coming up -"
Circus_Murders_Guest . o O (circus murders ?!)
Circus_Murders_Guest smiles
Circus_Murders_Guest goes home.
Goatium_Guest says, "if you  are any number of people (disabled?) your body has always *been* landscape for the machine. Hello"
Rakosha says, "stomach sculpture ..."
Dria laughs
Rakosha says, "a sculpture woith a flashing light and a beeping sound -- performance was done as a sight specific work -- sight specific sculpture ..."
Rakosha says, "exploring the internal spheres of the bpody thru a 'thing' that was inserted 60 cm into his body ..."
laurie says, "i agree goatium."
Rakosha says, "video of stelarc's internals ..."
Rakosha lotsa blood and stuff ...
Rakosha says, "erp ..."
laurie says, "like the scope they did my kidney surgery with."
Rakosha nods to laurie.
Dria says, "gah."
Lee fades in from Entry Point and joins you.
Rakosha says to laurie, "very similar ..."
Stelarc says, "it's more the digestive tract I think."
Stelarc says, "I remember it going through the mind itself..."
Stelarc says, "We could radically hollow out the human body..."
laurie says, "and i'm paying thousands of dollars for."
Rakosha says, "watching it go down the throat ..."
Stelarc says, "This is a body without organs, but not in the same way as the Deleuzian one."
laurie asks, "what's the difference between doing this for art and doing this for health?"
Dria looks askance.
Rakosha says, "2nd stomach sculpture has been designed -- five parts ..."
Goatium_Guest asks, "we also fill in the body with this technology, and manage its births via ultrasound. its called not being a white guy?"
Stelarc exclaims, "HAHAHAHAHAHHHEEEEEHEEEEHEEEHEEEEHAHAHAHAHAHAHHOOOHAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Rakosha says, "5 bits to be inserted into him ..."
Stelarc says, "You should see the work - it's fantastic."
Rakosha nods.
Stelarc says, "You can find out about it through any artindex."
Rakosha says, "body computer controlled -- coupled to a virtual body -- electrodes all over the place ..."
Stelarc says, "Spectaular video, I must say if I did it myself, which I did, of moving around, and there's this robot moving in relation to me and vice versa..."
Stelarc says, "Robot arm scanning and rotating around the body "
Rakosha says, "physical involutary body ... robot arm ..."
Goatium_Guest asks, "Now here is a question: how come Orlan is blasted for doing this stuff with surface technology, but if its internal and trascendent, well that is different?"
Rakosha says to Goatium_Guest, "hang onto that ..."
Goatium_Guest says, "you got it"
Rakosha says, "an involuntary body actuating a virtual body, trying to avoid the robot movements ... tilting the 3rd hand interrupted the robot, allowing him to enter his own subroutines ..."
laurie asks, "who is oraln?"
Rakosha says, "the situation ended up quite dangerous -- ducking to avoid the arm ..."
laurie asks, "orlan?"
Rakosha says, "it wasn't a leap of imagination to plug in a modem and create a remote activation ..."
Stelarc says, "Now I'm showing myself in an INTERNET UPLOAD diagram"
Goatium_Guest says, "laurie, Orlan is a performance artist who routinely has "cosmetic" plastic surgeries done to herself as performance and is called "narcissistic and obscene""
Stelarc says, "People in various cities could remotely choreograph/access my body"
Rakosha nods to Goatium_Guest.
laurie says, "i see."
Rakosha says to Goatium_Guest, "she was bought up in a session yesterday ..."
Rakosha says, "onto 'fractal flesh'"
Goatium_Guest says, "Her work is more interesting than she is, I think, but that is fine by me"
Stelarc says, "Talking about Sandy Stone, Telopolis, etc."
Rakosha says, "telepolis "
Rakosha says, "sandy reached orgasm by rubbing the palm of her hand ..."
Stelarc says, "Hi Rakosha, you remember me? I suspended myself FOR YOU DARLING and it did no good at all..."
Raxcip ponders the difference between body-hating and mind-loving transformations...
Rakosha grins at Stelarc.
Rakosha says to Stelarc, "i remember you, sweets ... :)"
Rakosha licks Stelarc ever so slowly.
Stelarc exclaims, "HAHAHAHHAHEEEHEEEHEEEHEEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!!!!!!!!!NEW JOKE!!"
Dria grins
Stelarc says, "body actuation system, not really tactile system"
Rakosha winks slyly to Dria.
Goatium_Guest exclaims, "Is that how it worked for Sandy? Hah she is easy!"
Rakosha grins at Goatium_Guest.
Goatium_Guest says, "The guy could at least buy you a nice dinner <tm my mother>"
Stelarc says, "I perform an action without a memory of an action or a desire to perform it - because it's controlled over the net..."
Stelarc says, "you have a split physiology"
Stelarc says, "a split physiology is an advantage in a cybersystem"
Goatium_Guest says, "uh, if the net has one thing, its a memory..."
Dria says, "fascinating idea"
Stelarc says, "talking about net sex, remotely controlled arms of people - divinely guided"
Rakosha listens to the Stelarc cackle with glee ...
Dria laughs...he's so happy :>
Stelarc says, "HAHAHAHAHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHEHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHA"
Rakosha nods to Dria.
Rakosha grins.
Stelarc says, "HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHHHAHAHAHHAHAHHA!!HEEEHEEHEE"
Stelarc says, "HOOOWHAAAAAAAA"
Stelarc exclaims, "WHEEHAWKEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Rakosha raises an eyebrow, "wheehawken ?"
Stelarc says, "I'm talking about the Ping Body, An INternat Actuated and Uploaded Performance"
Goatium_Guest says, "Of course he's happy. We are all sitting here getting off on how the Shock of the New new new tells us about cybersystems"
Stelarc says, "HEHEHHEHAHAHHAHOOOHOOO>>>STOP ME!!!HEHHEE>>>"
Rakosha tackles Stelarc to the ground !
Dria says, "GG -- uh, no."
Stelarc says, "Talking about scan/search engines doing visual/acoustic mappings onto/within the body, so the body's experience will be that of an Intenet Vision and Sound"
Rakosha boggles at Goatium_Guest.
Stelarc says, "What's important is to see how the body isn't a single biological entity but rather becomes part of a greater operation of system.s..."
Stelarc says, "one that can ebb and flow in size and complexity (and I'd add, epistemolgoy and ontology)"
Stelarc says, "what's important isn't the body but its connectivity and the collective experience it can have through the Internet hookup"
Stelarc says, "What's important now is our mobility and connectivity..."
Rakosha howls long and loud at the full moon ...
Stelarc says, "I've got to go, with the plenary session coming u..."
Rakosha smiles at Dria.
Goatium_Guest says, "Brought to you by NYNEX"
Stelarc says, "up..."
Stelarc says, "Rakosha will take over during the plenary"
Dria looks at GG, raising an eyebrow
laurie says, "well, the linking between this body and the internet is weakeening."
Rakosha peers at GG
Dria says, "oh cool...waht a neat idea "
Rakosha says, "in the past the notion of consentual experience has essentially been one of mind -- now with these technologies it can be one of mind ... with the technology, intimacy without proximity ..."
Rakosha says, "a situation where you can physically affect the orientation of another body without being there ..."
Goatium_Guest asks, "Isn't s/m about intimacy without proximity?"
Rakosha says, "questions ..."
Rakosha says to Goatium_Guest, "your question (s/m) is next ..."
Rakosha waits waits waits ...
Rakosha says, "in the suspension events the body performed with a similar awareness before, during and after ..."
Goatium_Guest asks, "For what are we waiting?"
laurie asks, "how is his health?"
Rakosha says, "stelarc to take a breath ..."
Rakosha says, "waiting for ..."
Dria grins
Rakosha winks.
Goatium_Guest says, ""playing the Cybermind Theme music...""
Rakosha says, "intim w/out prox an aspect of s/m ... s/m has a physical component ..."
Rakosha says, "cyberSM -- embeded electrodes into fetish leather wear, to do the similar thing ... s/m a state of mind, rather than a state of presence ..."
Dria says, "remote SM.  Whoa."
Rakosha grins at Dria.
Rakosha asks, "frooty, huh ... ?"
Dria grins...entertaining idea :)
Rakosha grins mischieviously at Dria.
Dria snickers impishly
Rakosha says, "i-net for S. not aout dispersal of body, but new physical couplings being possible -- generation of phantom bodies ..."
Goatium_Guest says, "I guress I buy that. I'm wondering what the investment is in acting as though many of us arent already soaking in our cyborg state, especially as a condition of illness, pregnancy, disability, etc"
Rakosha says, "construction of the phantom body proximal to S."
Dria . o 0 (Demolition Man)
laurie says, "how does health and illness fit into this construction of the body."
Rakosha nods to Dria.
Rakosha says to laurie, "ok ..."
Dria says, "neat."
laurie says, "i agree, goatium. that's what bothers me."
Rakosha says, "stelarc is just about to come on to answer you laurie .."
laurie says, "with the meds I'm on, and the cane I use every so often, i'm a cyborg to stay functioning."
Fluffy says, "hello"
Stelarc says, "health and illness, ha,ha...."
Fluffy jumps up and down
Dria snuggles Fluffy
laurie says, "hi."
Fluffy says, "wheew... lots of camear chasing there..."
laurie asks, "ha ha?"
Goatium_Guest asks, "There's also the problem that it is a quick jump from the bestial to the mechanic in modernism, like slave laborers working in sweat shops. How do these folks fit into transcednence through cyborgdom?"
Rakosha says, "short break ... off to pollute ... ;)"
Stelarc says, "hi, my typing skills are lousy so sorry about this slow response..."
Fluffy lloks around for coffee
Goatium_Guest says, "but skip that. Laurie's question is more to the point."
Dria says, "heh...polluting as we speak."
Fluffy says, "I'm still typing blind"
Fluffy gestures to sunglasses
Stelarc says, "well the fundamental parameters of the body are its longevity"
Fluffy pats Stelarc on the back
laurie asks, "how does health and illness, esp. chronic and or terminal illness figure in?"
Fluffy exclaims, "that was EXCELLENT!"
Fluffy runs off for COFFEE
laurie says, "go on...."
Dria  woos! Alan next.
Dria giggles ...cute ;>
Stelarc says, "the body is profoundly obsolete- not only in its phsiology but also in its inablity to function in a tech terrain"
Goatium_Guest asks, "With all due respect, what on earth does that mean?"
Dria says, "yet we cannot function without it."
laurie says, "yes, but i've still got this obsolete body that i have to live in, and it doesn't work all that great."
Fluffy reappears
Fluffy says, "applogises for Stelarc"
Goatium_Guest says, "once again laurie is more cognent than I am"
Fluffy says, "he has to run off, and can't type now"
laurie exclaims, "phooey!"

laurie says, "i wanted an answer."
Goatium_Guest says, "He seems better at hanging himself from objects. How very cyber of him"
Dria says, "hum.  We should keep the MOO us post-conf and have ongoing discussions..."
Dria says, "us=up"
Raxcip is ready to enter the fray, now.
Fluffy says, "um, what was the question exactly... i could aslk him later and then pass on an anwer..."
Dria says, "I heard Stlarc's thing on RA...it was a lot more...um...comprehensive that way (of course)...hopefully there will be transcriptions."
Raxcip asks, "laurie, may I suggest the perception of body for you, with your challenges, is different than for others?"
Goatium_Guest says, "The question is "Why are high modernists still getting grants to do their transcendent guy schtick and label it cyber-whatever? "
Fluffy exclaims, "trsanscriptions? .. sheesh!"
laurie says, "how does health and illness, esp. chronic and terminal illness, figure in to constructions of the cyborg body? rats, i can't get RA."
Fluffy exclaims, "bags not!"
Dria says, "heh...just a suggestion :)"
Dria says, "Stelarc went on at length about the malfunctioning of the body making us more aware of it..."
laurie says, "but i think people need to take into account my perception of the body. because it's going to bop them over the head at some point."
Lee says, "P"P"procedural question -- new at this -- I'm only getting one line of a person's text -- advice?""
laurie asks, "but is there a difference between deliberate malfunction and malfunction that arises out of the body's own defects?"
Fluffy asks, "go on laurie - your perception..?"
Fluffy oops!
Dria says, "he said that as his malfunctioned further, he thot he would become more aware of it...I guess (?) he didn't...either that or he became *completely* aware and thus...realized it's obsolesence"
Goatium_Guest asks, "Both Laurie and I are trying to speak as inhabitants of a feminized cyborgdom that comes from disability. Is that somehow *less* valid then what S. is doing?"
Fluffy says, "Definately NOT"
Raxcip says, "Of course.  And we are not all Stelarc. "
Dria says, "I think it's like the idfference btwn voluntary and involuntary surgery."
Dria says, "Stelarc chooses to do what he does.  "
laurie says, "I have a chronic illness and this weekend is the 10th anniversary of my illness. I have been in pain for 10 years. I don't comprehend deliberate infliction of pain on oneself."
Fluffy says, "Yeah, its one thing to theorise and talk about cyborg bodies, an another to actually DEAL with real ones in extremis"
Goatium_Guest asks, "Is gender reassignment surgery voluntary? What about if it is done at birth to a hermaphrodite?"
Dria says, "I think you guys got a really bad impression of Stelarc...it made a hell of a lot more sense if you could hear it."
Fluffy says, "hermaphrodites are usually Involuntarily reassigned by the doctors"
Fluffy says, "it made a lot of sense ... "
Goatium_Guest says, "Stelarc seems to do quite nicely  regarding his own p.r., and ought to welcome critical concern about his work."
laurie says, "i didn't get enough of an impression at all."
Dria says, "hard to choose wehn you're an infant."
Fluffy says, "um, i kinda do get deliberate pain..."
laurie says, "i just want to know what role health and illness has in his work."
Fluffy says, "Its difference when you have achoice .. consesual"
Dria says, "GG: I really think you missed the point, but I'm unable to explain.  You maybe should look at his site?  (I haven't but it might help)"
Dria goes to check the site
laurie asks, "but when you don't have a choice in the pain you receive? what then?"
Fluffy says, "like piercing myself - i know that its up to me to stop when i want"
Raxcip says, "Health and illness have no role in his work, he is just one man, exploring his own persinal limits"
Fluffy says, "i can't deal very well with long-term pain i can't control"
Dria says, "for Stelarc, this is art.  His creatie expression experimentation et al."
laurie says, "but i don't see how he can't keep it out of his work."
Fluffy says, "with an accident, big cut or something... the whole shock of it helps... but a continual backache..."
Goatium_Guest says, "But he is issuing all these meta statements about a technology that is not his alone. Of course we can dissent"
laurie says, "well, then it's a good thing it happened to me instead."
Fluffy says, "is something i can't stand"
Fluffy says, "pain you take on is VERY different that pain you don't want and can't CONTROL"
laurie says, "well, the pain i know is the latter."
Goatium_Guest says, "Tell that to Bob Flanagan."
Rakosha exclaims, "we're baa-ack ... !"
laurie asks, "who is bob flanagan?"
Stelarc says, "will @more"
Dria says, "crsay woo :)"
Fluffy looks empathetically at laurie
Dria blahs
Dria says, "woo :>"