Oliver Human
Biographic Data
| ID | 150556 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Oliver Human |
| GIVEN NAMES | Oliver |
| FAMILY NAME | Human |
| SIGNATURE | HUMAN O |
| AFFILIATIONS | Stellenbosch University |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 8 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 21 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 8 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2011 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Complexity
This E-Special Issue collects together 11 articles from the archives of Theory, Culture & Society. These articles all articulate and debate the contribution of what some have described as either 'complex complexity' or 'general complexity'. In contrast to reductionist or restricted attempts to understand complexity, the articles collected here move away from the tendency to assume mastery of complexity by expounding a set of universal and simple …
Potential Novelty
This paper explores the possibility for a means of bringing about novelty which does not rely on kairological philosophies based on an event. In contrast to both common sense and contemporary philosophical understandings of the term where for novelty to arise there must be some break in the repetition of the structure, this paper argues that it is possible for novelty to come about through small-scale experimentation. This is done by relying on t…
Deconstruction and complexity
In this paper we argue for the contribution that deconstruction can make towards an understanding of complex systems. We begin with a description of what we mean by complexity and how Derrida's thought illustrates a sensitivity towards the problems we face when dealing with complex systems. This is especially clear in Derrida's deconstruction of the structuralist linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure. We compare this critique with the work of Edga…
Aids, Sex, and Culture
Towards an Economy of Complexity
In this article we explore the possibility of viewing complex systems, as well as the models we create of such systems, as operating within a particular type of economy. The type of economy we aim to establish here is inspired by Jacques Derrida's reading of George Bataille's notion of a general economy. We restrict our discussion to the philosophical use of the word 'economy'. This reading tries to overcome the idea of an economy as restricted t…
Social movements and biopolitical states
In May of 2008, a wave of xenophobic violence erupted in South Africa resulting in the displacement of thousands of ‘refugees’ who ended up in government-established ‘safety camps’. Due to the lack of an adequate response by government and the United Nations, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), a South African AIDS activist organisation, began providing relief to the displaced population. In this paper, we are interested in investigating the ‘bi…
Fifa 2010 and the elusive spirit of communitas
This article focuses on two cases of elusive and hyper-transient expressions of ‘communitas’ that seem to have been structured by specific conditions of liminality. These are the FIFA World Cup 2010 and the experiences of young Zimbabwean refugees living in Cape Town. In the course of the analysis we draw attention to the limits and possibilities of Turner's analysis of the ritual process for understanding contemporary forms of sociality. In each…
The Rings Around Jonathan's Eyes
In this article I explore how a medical protocol is encountered by a doctor practicing in a South African setting. I examine how the attempt at standardizing medical services is simultaneously challenged and upheld within medical practice by illustrating the cognitivist assumptions upon which standardizing medical decision making is based, and showing how this is a product of a particular history of thought. This is challenged by the practice of …
Towards an Economy of Complexity
In this article we explore the possibility of viewing complex systems, as well as the models we create of such systems, as operating within a particular type of economy. The type of economy we aim to establish here is inspired by Jacques Derrida's reading of George Bataille's notion of a general economy. We restrict our discussion to the philosophical use of the word 'economy'. This reading tries to overcome the idea of an economy as restricted t…
Complexity
This E-Special Issue collects together 11 articles from the archives of Theory, Culture & Society. These articles all articulate and debate the contribution of what some have described as either 'complex complexity' or 'general complexity'. In contrast to reductionist or restricted attempts to understand complexity, the articles collected here move away from the tendency to assume mastery of complexity by expounding a set of universal and simple …
Potential Novelty
This paper explores the possibility for a means of bringing about novelty which does not rely on kairological philosophies based on an event. In contrast to both common sense and contemporary philosophical understandings of the term where for novelty to arise there must be some break in the repetition of the structure, this paper argues that it is possible for novelty to come about through small-scale experimentation. This is done by relying on t…
The Rings Around Jonathan's Eyes
In this article I explore how a medical protocol is encountered by a doctor practicing in a South African setting. I examine how the attempt at standardizing medical services is simultaneously challenged and upheld within medical practice by illustrating the cognitivist assumptions upon which standardizing medical decision making is based, and showing how this is a product of a particular history of thought. This is challenged by the practice of …
Deconstruction and complexity
In this paper we argue for the contribution that deconstruction can make towards an understanding of complex systems. We begin with a description of what we mean by complexity and how Derrida's thought illustrates a sensitivity towards the problems we face when dealing with complex systems. This is especially clear in Derrida's deconstruction of the structuralist linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure. We compare this critique with the work of Edga…
Fifa 2010 and the elusive spirit of communitas
This article focuses on two cases of elusive and hyper-transient expressions of ‘communitas’ that seem to have been structured by specific conditions of liminality. These are the FIFA World Cup 2010 and the experiences of young Zimbabwean refugees living in Cape Town. In the course of the analysis we draw attention to the limits and possibilities of Turner's analysis of the ritual process for understanding contemporary forms of sociality. In each…
Fifa 2010 and the elusive spirit of communitas
This article focuses on two cases of elusive and hyper-transient expressions of ‘communitas’ that seem to have been structured by specific conditions of liminality. These are the FIFA World Cup 2010 and the experiences of young Zimbabwean refugees living in Cape Town. In the course of the analysis we draw attention to the limits and possibilities of Turner's analysis of the ritual process for understanding contemporary forms of sociality. In each…
The Rings Around Jonathan's Eyes
In this article I explore how a medical protocol is encountered by a doctor practicing in a South African setting. I examine how the attempt at standardizing medical services is simultaneously challenged and upheld within medical practice by illustrating the cognitivist assumptions upon which standardizing medical decision making is based, and showing how this is a product of a particular history of thought. This is challenged by the practice of …
Social movements and biopolitical states
In May of 2008, a wave of xenophobic violence erupted in South Africa resulting in the displacement of thousands of ‘refugees’ who ended up in government-established ‘safety camps’. Due to the lack of an adequate response by government and the United Nations, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), a South African AIDS activist organisation, began providing relief to the displaced population. In this paper, we are interested in investigating the ‘bi…
Deconstruction and complexity
In this paper we argue for the contribution that deconstruction can make towards an understanding of complex systems. We begin with a description of what we mean by complexity and how Derrida's thought illustrates a sensitivity towards the problems we face when dealing with complex systems. This is especially clear in Derrida's deconstruction of the structuralist linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure. We compare this critique with the work of Edga…
Aids, Sex, and Culture
Towards an Economy of Complexity
In this article we explore the possibility of viewing complex systems, as well as the models we create of such systems, as operating within a particular type of economy. The type of economy we aim to establish here is inspired by Jacques Derrida's reading of George Bataille's notion of a general economy. We restrict our discussion to the philosophical use of the word 'economy'. This reading tries to overcome the idea of an economy as restricted t…
Potential Novelty
This paper explores the possibility for a means of bringing about novelty which does not rely on kairological philosophies based on an event. In contrast to both common sense and contemporary philosophical understandings of the term where for novelty to arise there must be some break in the repetition of the structure, this paper argues that it is possible for novelty to come about through small-scale experimentation. This is done by relying on t…
Complexity
This E-Special Issue collects together 11 articles from the archives of Theory, Culture & Society. These articles all articulate and debate the contribution of what some have described as either 'complex complexity' or 'general complexity'. In contrast to reductionist or restricted attempts to understand complexity, the articles collected here move away from the tendency to assume mastery of complexity by expounding a set of universal and simple …
Sociology (7 works) · Law (5 works) · Law (5 works) · Political science (5 works) · Epistemology (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works) · Computer Science (3 works) · Critical Realism in Sociology (3 works) · Economic Theory and Institutions (3 works) · Philosophy (3 works)