Renaissance Technologies

A one-day interdisciplinary conference at the University of Huddersfield in association with the Northern Renaissance Seminar

Saturday, March 16, 2002, 10am-5.30pm

University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UNITED KINGDOM

Confirmed speakers: Stephen Clucas, Ceri Sullivan, Jonathan Sawday This conference will focus on the theme of Renaissance Technologies. Issues of technological innovation and revolution will be approached from a variety of disciplinary standpoints and theoretical positions. Fruitful avenues for investigation might be: information and print technology; material consumption; the commodification of technology; interaction between human and machine; representations of the meta-human; the economic influence and repercussions of technology; the nature of the body; banking and financial transactions; imperial and republic technologies; measurement and dominion; definitions of spatial relations; labour and agriculture; medical technology and anatomical prints; emblematic representation. Specific discussions could range from a discussion of the iron-man Talus in The Faerie Queene to the impact of new arms technology on early modern warfare or the effect of new time-keeping instruments on Restoration society. Theoretical considerations might deploy the work of Michel Foucault, Friedrich Kittler, Paul Virilio or Jean Baudrillard. Papers from Postgraduate students are welcomed.

Please send abstracts of 400 words (post or email) by November 15th 2001 to:

Jerome de Groot,
English Department,
University of Huddersfield,
St. Peter's Building,
St. Peter's Street, Huddersfield, HD1 1RA
United Kingdom,

Telephone: 01484 478424,
Fax: 01484 478428,
Email: j.degroot@hud.ac.uk

Conference web page: http://www.smhct.org/default.htm