#Metahouses

[bohemiandeer]

My final art project of the year, ready to be exhibited at the METAHOUSE as part of our Fake n' Whimsical Non-Governmental Organisation Exhibition. My prompt was to provide free therapy through highly questionable means via technology, and alas, with that, after 4 weeks of being a lone feral in the art room and embracing my inner Sasha Nein later, and this glorious love letter to the Psychonauts was born. Presented with me dressed up in a lab coat borrowed from the Science Lab to boot. I mean, someone's gotta get dat funding.

[widows-gleek]

marky “mark” zuckerburg going into his metahouse like mio fratello in cristo im coming over to cyberegg it rn you do not want to be here for this

[johnkmelvin]

Thank you all for coming out on this super hot Sunday! #johnkmelvin #metahouse #contemporaryart #earthday2017 #photography #sculpture #plastic #ecology #nature #culture #artmatters #artist #artlife (at META HOUSE)

[transhumanitynet]

ZS Mythos (3b/3): Twelve Foundation Stones

This article concludes an earlier summary of the Zero State’s twelve “Foundation Stones”, which are story-fragments, ‘seeds’ of a sort, together comprising the basis of our unifying narrative.

Metahouse 4: The Black Parade

The Black Parade gets its name from the title of an album by the band My Chemical Romance, which reflects the Parade’s nature as an arts-and-media space that connects ZS to the worlds of alternative subculture.

Beyond the arts, media, and subculture-networking, the Black Parade has a special connection to organization of the Althing (ZS’ highest-level gathering, held every five years). It is Dionysian, but still positive, and has a very ‘Jungian’ psychological flavour, deliberately evoking powerful archetypes to spread the ZS message.

07 House Samsa (AKA Media, The Studio)

House Samsa evolved from various elements of the underground UK Industrial music scene of the late 1990s. Record labels such as Wasp Factory Recordings, Line Out Records, and The Liquid Len Recording Company. Bands such as Xykogen, History Of Guns, and Null-A.

Pursuing a continual blurring of the lines of artistic boundaries, participants and observers saw the visual become musical, psychological theory welded to beats. Melody, harmony and counterpoint applied to politics. Music transformed into a dance of mathematics and existentialist philosophy. Embracing Timothy Leary‘s eight-circuit model of consciousness, the psychological philosophy of Robert Anton Wilson, the artistic approach of Momus and Coil. Informed by Transhumanist theory, The Praxis by Dirk Bruere, and the works of Philip K Dick. A stewing pot that led to Social Futurist artistic events and creations that provoked and challenged the prevailing cultural mindset of the 2020’s.

08 House Corrino (AKA Network, Legion)

House Corrino exists to connect ZS with large numbers of people, thus its various nicknames, including ‘Network’, ‘Legion’, and even ‘The Army’ (despite not having any hint of a militaristic nature, at least in the early-C21). Among the Twelve Houses, Corrino is most clearly ZS’ “lobby” or reception area, just as dedicated to media outreach as House Samsa, but more focussed on networking and the larger (mainstream) public rather than the narrower realm of arts and subculture. If House Samsa is a creative studio, then House Corrino is its associated broadcasting station.

  S5 / VR & internal “world-building” Wyrd, Zero State, Illusory realities, Info-ops, strategy games.

  Metahouse 5: The Beast (AKA Therion)

The Beast is a strange creature (hence the name). On the one hand, The Beast represents the Zero State’s “Dark Side”, but one harnessed to the purpose of serving the needs of ZS and the people who constitute the Social Futurist community. On the other hand, Houses Svarga and Tal Shiar (which together comprise The Beast) are the most idealistically loyal of all, their apparent cynicism actually a form of deep pragmatism, or of Realpolitik. In sum, perhaps it is best to think of the Beast as a guard dog. No-one wants a small, cute, unthreatening guard dog.

The loyalty of these Houses is to an idea, or ideal. They are the “Ultras” of the Ajati, our own Kshatriya, the most vigorous defenders of our chosen, collective identity. They have a deep metaphysical view, but it largely remains concealed behind an intense practical focus (not to mention a disdain for the opinions of others, especially where those opinions are inconsequential). Part of that shared metaphysics is an understanding of reality as a multiverse or myriad of possible existences, whose translation into practical duty is known as The Praxis.

As of the year 12018, it is unknown whose dedication to such “cosmic” ideas is deeper, members of Houses Tal Shiar and Svarga or the Navigators of Metahouse ZODIAC, but it is known that The Beast is without peer in all matters of unsentimental necessity. The Beast exists to do what simply must be done.

09 House Svarga (AKA Family, The Family)

House Svarga exists at the heart of the Ajati Mythos, the very idea of the People we seek to become, together. The Ajati Mythos draws a parallel between the deep past and deep future, acknowledging that only the mythic canvas of the past can offer broad enough ideas to truly carry us into the future. Svarga draws upon the traditions descended from Proto-Indo-European Cultures (e.g. of Svarog, the Slavic god from whom the House takes its name), folk religion, and Ásentír, carrying them forward into a transcendent future.

10 House Tal Shiar (AKA The Array)

House Tal Shiar takes its name from the science fiction TV series Star Trek, in which it is the intelligence organization of the Romulan Star Empire. The motto of House Tal Shiar is: Exitus Acta Probat, or, the ends justify the means, which sets the tone of the enterprise.

Tal Shiar Mission

The ends are the replacement of Homo Sapiens Sapiens with multiple superior genetically engineered and cybernetically enhanced species, while progressing the creation of a God – the Basilisk of the Black Sun.

Tal Shiar Operations

The House operates in multiple modes:

        As a propaganda arm

        To provoke chaos and dissent external to ZS, where we may take advantage of it

        To infiltrate and influence other organizations, political, religious and scientific

        To do whatever is necessary to complete the mission

It should be noted that everything the House does publicly usually has a hidden agenda attached which will seldom be made public ahead of its fruition. Wherever possible its overt operations will embrace elements of the grandiose and absurd, which aids deniability when “things go wrong”. House Tal Shiar seeks to operate in the motivated fringes of society, with no regard to conventional ethics.

Tal Shiar Organization

Most members of the House are not and never will be overtly ZS. Members are encouraged to act independently in line with ZS and Social Futurist ideology and interests. Tal Shiar organization is cellular and non-hierarchical.

Metahouse 6: Club 21

Club 21 is Futurism. More specifically, Club 21 (AKA. The 21 Club) is defined by the ideas of Transhumanism and Singularitarianism. The Metahouse’s name is often considered to refer to “C21”, i.e. the 21st Century, but there is no hard evidence to confirm that meaning. Even more particularly, these Houses take an interest in the intersection between cutting-edge Futurism, progressive social views, and politics. Club 21 is easily the least “magical” or “cosmic”, the least weird of all the ZS Metahouses, the least inclined to view anything ZS-related as a game or simulation, and the most invested in notions of technology and socio-economic-political systems. Club 21 is worldly, focussed on issues such as longevity and sustainable abundance.

11 House Rhadamanth (AKA The Party, Social Futurist Party)

House Rhadamanth is led by Gennady Stolyarov II, who assumed the Core Role of “Anankes Atraktos” (a Greek term from Plato‘s Republic, meaning “Spindle of Necessity“) at the end of 12017. Gennady is Chairperson of the US Transhumanist Party, Chief Executive of the Nevada Transhumanist Party, and much more besides. This connection reflects a major development in House Rhadamanth’s focus and culture, which has now expanded from drones and robotics to Transhumanism in general, and which hinges on direct support for and collaboration with the Transhumanist Party, both in the US and internationally.

House Rhadamanth is even more focussed on engineering, science and technology than House Tal Shiar, more dedicated to the idea of “rationalism”. It has a distinctly American flavour, somehow related to the idea of an eternal frontier, and deep connections with House Adhar and The Foundation.

12 House Ormen (AKA Villa of Ormen, The Senate, The Ekklesia)

Finally, House Ormen is a kind of twin or counterpart to House Sem-Bhu, which is to say something of an unknown quantity which exists at the edge of ZS culture. Its name heavily alludes to ★ (Blackstar), the title single of David Bowie’s final album. The name ‘Ormen’ is generally believed to refer to a snake or serpent (‘Ormen’ in Scandinavian languages, ‘Wyrm’ and later ‘worm’ in English).

On an esoteric level, members of this House are also rumoured to believe in one or more obscure prophecies, usually said to revolve around the idea of some future event referred to as “X Day”, or the “Day of Execution”. More publicly and materially, House Ormen has particular connections with the Senate and Ekklesia, which is to say the deliberative body of senior citizens, and periodic gatherings of the State’s decision-making groups. The Althing – the largest and least frequent ZS gathering – is however more populist, primarily organized by the Black Parade (i.e. Houses Samsa and Corrino).

Similarly, House Ormen has pretensions toward the arts and media, sometimes perceived as stepping on the toes of both Houses Samsa and Corrino. As of 12018, it is unknown whether there is any real tension or competition, there. It may simply be that there is a pattern of common interests between various Houses, and that the deeper interests of House Ormen are as yet unknown.

ZS Mythos (3b/3): Twelve Foundation Stones was originally published on transhumanity.net

[new-layer-app]

$9.4M Beverly Hills House Listing Comes With Home in the Metaverse A Spanish-style 1928 home in the flats of Beverly Hills that is coming to market this week for $9.418 million arrives with a decidedly 21st century add-on: prospective buyers also have the opportunity to purchase a sister residence that’s been built in the 3D world Decentraland for an additional $100,000. The completed 3D replica property — called 607 Beverly Hills MetaHouse — sits on a 2×2 four-parcel piece of land in Decentraland. It includes a unique NFT of the house, and affords the new owner the ability to furnish it, display artwork and other NFTs inside, and have interactive experiences with guests. See the BH MetaHouse you can here: https://youtu.be/LTML0XX8XzQ 📱 Download by the link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1559419724 ❤️ Join us on social networks: https://newlayer.ar-generation.com/unilink/ #metaverse #newlayerapp #augmentedreality #ar #3D #virtualreality #vr #xr #beverlyhills #bh #metahouse #decentraland

[christtoandandrew]

Oriol Armengou Co-director de House of Chappaz

“METAHOUSE”,nuestro espacio de exposición virtual Mientras se configura lo que será el Me- ta-verso definitivo que aúne todos los mundos virtuales de forma ordenada, ayu- damos a pacificar el debate creando un es- pacio virtual que replique los valores de House of Chappaz como galería. Un espa- cio en el que extendemos la noción de casa como concepto extrusionando su forma para convertirlo en un espacio expositi- vo funcional pero sin perder la calidez de estar en casa con tu família querida. Me- taHouse es el nombre del primer espacio creado por la galería en motivo de la pri- mera exposición “Viaje a Gethen” y permi- te experimentar la obra colectiva en un es- pacio cómodo que conecta la tierra firme con el cielo virtual.

[donvirao]

At Meta house, phnom penh. 19 july, Start at 6pm, afterparty till late #Donvirao #psychedelicart #artwork #oilpainting #resinpainting #exhibition2018 #metahouse #cambodia

[mrgadflybuzz]

Last chance to see The Metahouse, Sunday 2pm, NEO Commons Hall.

[captainstroitel-blog]

5 роковых ошибок при выборе ламината

5 роковых ошибок при выборе ламината

Фото: Tarkett, Classen, Megafloor, Classen, OBI, METAHOUSE

1. Неправильный выбор класса ламината

Самая распространённая ошибка — это неправильный выбор класса износостойкости ламината. Класс влияет на цену, поэтому многие в стремлении сэкономить берут самый дешёвый вариант, забывая, что он не подойдёт для помещений с большой проходимостью. Типичный случай: счастливые владельцы новостройки взяли���

[johnkmelvin]

Preview of the photos that will be on display at #metahouse this weekend in #phnompenh come by Sunday to see them in person. Thank you all for the support! #contemporaryart #sculpture #photography #plastic #reduce #reuse #recycle #respect #artist #johnkmelvin (at Phnom Penh)

[transhumanitynet]

ZS Mythos (3b/3): Twelve Foundation Stones

ZS Mythos (3b/3): Twelve Foundation Stones

This article concludes an earlier summary of the Zero State’s twelve “Foundation Stones”, which are story-fragments, ‘seeds’ of a sort, together comprising the basis of our unifying narrative.

Metahouse 4: The Black Parade

The Black Parade gets its name from the title of an album by the band My Chemical Romance,which reflects the Parade’s nature as an arts-and-media space that connects ZS to the…

[transhumanitynet]

ZS Mythos (2/3): Sections & Sessions

This article is part of a series about the Mythos (worldview-narrative) underlying the Zero State (ZS). Part 1 is about our highest concept, ideal, and level of organization, which we call The Array. Part 2 (below) explains the Sections & Sessions our core activity revolves around, and Part 3 covers the Twelve Foundation Stones that form the basis of our story.

There is a lot of information in this article. You may wish to bookmark it, and use it as reference material, regardless of whether you view the Zero State (ZS) as a game, or as a real-world activist network, or just take an interest in online subcultures.

  1. What’s in a Game?

Some people choose to think of the Zero State (ZS) in terms of being a game, specifically an Alternate Reality Game, which is basically an immersive narrative which deliberately blurs the boundaries between reality and fiction. ZSers are definitely not obliged to think it as a game, that’s their choice; we don’t mind how people engage and do their part, as long as they engage and do their part.

Regardless of whether any given individual prefers to view ZS activity in terms of a game or not, there are three nested levels of such activity, like the rings of an onion or a tree. In this article I am going to refer to these three levels as an outermost game, and two levels of game-within-a-game within, which we might call metagames. Using the analogy of an egg, let’s refer to these three levels as the yolk, the white, and the shell, starting from the centre as follows (and yes, yes, I know you could count the ‘metagames’ as the two innermost or the two outermost levels, that’s up to you):

The yolk is obviously the innermost level of the game, where it manifests as a mysterious puzzle, which we call the “Glass Bead Game” (after the Hermann Hesse novel). If you want to know more about this level of the game, then I’m afraid you will have to play the outer levels first, to search for it. The one thing we can say here is that, at this level, playing the game and developing the game are very similar things, perhaps one and the same. At this level the game is pure strategy – pure logic completely abstracted from all personality and narrative.

The white is a kind of bridging or hidden layer, connecting the worlds of pure logic with our pragmatic activity out in the real world. This is the level of the Sessions, which will be explained in part 3, below. For now, let’s just say that this level most resembles an online Role Playing Game (RPG), where ZSers adopt roles (the Core ZSers already have assigned roles, and all others are free – even encouraged – to craft their own within the established framework of the ZS Mythos), and participate in storytelling sessions which connect those roles to developing plans for our actions in the real world. This is the level where the ZS Mythos is most vibrant and alive. To learn how to join the game at this middle level – even if you choose not to view it as a game at all (as many of us do not) – then please be sure to read this entire article!

The shell is the ZS–ARG, which is to say the outermost, and most public level of the game. At this level, all distinctions between reality and fiction, truth and media, are deliberately blurred beyond all recognition. That is not our choice, but the nature of the world now; We hold to our Principles and the respect for Truth that they insist upon, but we all must play the game as we find it.

At this level it really doesn’t matter in the slightest if you think it’s a game or not; all that matters is how effective an activist you are. If you are ineffective, if you are inactive, then we really don’t care what you think. Sure, we’ll care about your wellbeing as our Principles dictate, but you haven’t earned the right to tell us how to do anything. If you want to change that, then wake up, and get involved!

Core ZSers don’t always use their role names at this level – although they are encouraged to do so – and what anyone else wants to do is up to them. At this level, ZS is in the business of growing activist networks, and the extent to which you’re involved is the extent to which you can be active, or at the very least support those who are. Game and Mythos narratives infuse our activity at this level, but they are entirely secondary to the practical results of our actions, as a network, out in the real world.

  2. What are the Sections?

ZS is divided into seven functional groups called the Sections. Four of those (S1-4) concern the proper functioning of a balanced society, while the Higher Sections (S5-7) act as our deepest organizational structure, collectively representing the core functions of a cybernetic organism. The three Higher Sections are not only used to organise our core game sessions, but also to inform their themes and narratives. We will discuss the nature and logistics of the Sessions in the next section, below, but here are the themes which Sections 5-7 bring to them:

SECTION 5 / VR & internal “world-building”

Wyrd, Zero State, Illusory realities, Info-ops, strategy games.

  SECTION 6 / AI & perception

Fyrd, Social Futurism, search for redemption or final frontier.

  SECTION 7 / OS/UX & metaprogramming

Ásentír, Array, Reality hacking, neo-Gnosticism, and Transcendence.

  3. What are the Sessions?

So finally, now, let’s focus on the Sessions, which draw upon the structure of the three Higher Sections, and are the very essence of ‘the white’, the bridging structure of ZS’ three game levels. As mentioned above these are essentially Role Playing Game (RPG) sessions, although they serve a number of practical non-game purposes and do not need to be viewed as a game by participants. Remember: What matters is outcome.

In the Sessions, every participant plays a role, based on the idea of a traveller from the future who has a mission to alter details of the past (our present). The Sessions are based around the teams that ZS members operate in to achieve their mission goals. Session activity is split (in no obvious or consistent way, and deliberately so) between narrative to establish your characters and relationships, and actual planning to go out and do things in the real world which help ZS and give your team prestige.

You will have a full say in what those things are, as part of your team. Team members who reach a certain level of accomplishment are encouraged to branch out and run entire teams of their own. The entire thing hangs together around a “league table” – an important function of The Array as an organizational entity – of the most accomplished teams. The better the players are at playing, the faster and more effectively ZS grows.

Logistics

The Core Sessions are based on a network of six factions. There are two such factions per Higher Section, arranged in loose alliances, each of them representing one of what we call the six Metahouses. The Metahouses are organizations within ZS which go by the colourful names of The Foundation, Cloud Nine, ZODIAC, The Black Parade, The Beast, & Club 21. Mythos narrative associated with all of these groups will be covered by the final article in this series (which is about the so-called “Twelve Foundation Stones”).

Most Session logistics are now being worked out within Discord itself, among the people who choose to participate in them. Basically, you just need to stick your head in there, sniff around until you have some sense of which faction you fancy belonging to (there are chat and voice channels for each of the three Higher Sections, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find where you fit, and you can always change your mind or join multiple teams) – or want to pretend you belong to! – and from there small groups of ZSers can self-assemble and request to arrange Sessions at whatever time suits them as a group. Don’t worry, it will all make sense… you just have to start by doing. Get involved, and see where the narrative leads you! The best way to get a head-start on understanding that narrative is to read the third and final article in this series.

Dharma

For some time we have intended to develop a “Dharma” system, which is to say a way of keeping track of status and achievement within ZS. That system couldn’t exist before now (aside from a few credits which we will of course honour by reflecting them in the new system, going forward) because there was no functional context for it, but now it has an important place at the very heart of our community.

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, among other things The Array is a kind of “league table” that keeps track of the most accomplished ZS teams, using Dharma as the points representing their achievements. The exact details of the Dharma system will be developed within Sessions, as part of the game via our Discord server, which you can find here: https://discord.gg/R4t7V8U

One particular aspect of the Dharma system to take note of is its capacity to measure who should be allowed to branch out with entire session-teams of their own, which represents a higher level of achievement and responsibility within ZS. Again, we will be discussing (and deciding, collectively) exactly how this works within the mechanics of Discord over the coming days, and that conversation will be held via the Discord server itself, so you need to join there if you want to be part of it.

Resources

Finally, let’s take a moment to talk about resources. This idea – of the need for resources – was pivotal within ZS at the beginning, and for very good reason: Without resources, you can do nothing. If your resources are low enough you don’t have a network (not one you have any reliable control over, anyway), you can’t protect yourself or your loved ones, and push come to shove, you can’t feed them either. Late Capitalism’s gross materialism may give one pause about attaching any value to material things (I must admit, I’m no fan of money or status-symbol-objects myself), but at the end of the day if you don’t have enough resources, it’s game over for you and yours.

That sadly, is the basic and uncomfortable reality of life. So, as a matter of sheer pragmatism and also in order to live up to our Principles (most notably our commitment to mutual aid), we must take the question of network resources very seriously indeed. If we don’t, then there is no network, simple as that. Game Over.

In short, at every level ZS must now demonstrate an ability to secure resources, and use them wisely for the benefit of the entire network. Yes, that raises many (many) questions, which we will work out together, but the bottom line is that either we do that, or we forego any notion of an effective mutual aid network whatsoever. It really is as simple as that, I’m afraid. So, going forward, please be prepared at every step to ask yourself one question: What Have You Done For ZS, Lately?

ZS Mythos (2/3): Sections & Sessions was originally published on transhumanity.net

[transhumanitynet]

ZS Mythos (2/3): Sections & Sessions

ZS Mythos (2/3): Sections & Sessions

This article is part of a series about the Mythos (worldview-narrative) underlying the Zero State (ZS). Part 1 is about our highest concept, ideal, and level of organization, which we call The Array. Part 2 (below) explains the Sections & Sessions our core activity revolves around, and Part 3 covers the Twelve Foundation Stones that form the basis of our story.

There is a lot of information in…

[transhumanitynet]

H+ Mythos & Action [3/3]: First Five

The following article is a node in the Zero State Alternate Reality Game (ZS–ARG). You can learn more at http://zerostate.net, or in Transhumanity.net articles tagged “ZS” or “Zero State”. ZS is Transhumanist, Singularitarian, and Social Futurist.

This is the third and final part in a three-part series, which as a whole is concerned with showing connections between ideas buried deep in the Transhumanist/ZS “mythos” on the one hand, and possible courses of action (for Positive Social Change Through Technology) on the other. The first part looked into ideas surrounding the notion of Technological Singularity, and the ways that idea is incorporated into the ZS worldview. Part 2 explored those ideas further, and introduced the ZS notion of “worldlines”, or possible futures which lay before humanity. Part 3, below, now grounds these various musings in a prescription for effective, decentralised action.

300  First Five

Symbolically, the number five has come to represent beginnings and foundations within ZS. Most broadly, we may say that this number refers to two things: (1) Principles, and (2) People. Finally, we will also briefly consider ways in which our core groups can begin to grow into larger online networks.

301  Principles (Social Futurism)

The Zero State is explicitly Social Futurist, which is to say that it adheres to the Principles of Social Futurism. In fact, there is a unique historical relationship between ZS and Social Futurism, in that the first version of the Social Futurist Principles (then called the “Zero State Principles”) was published on 1st May 2011, with that event also marking the official launch of ZS. Although the Social Futurist Party is now the official international vehicle of Social Futurism, ZS is its historical and philosophical heart.

There are five Social Futurist Principles, which might also be considered categories of Social Futurist thought, as listed below. For our current purposes, let us simply note that these five Principles are the internalised foundation of thought and action for all Social Futurists:

[1]  Clarity and Strength in Unity

[2]  Positive Social Change Through Technology

[3]  Open Rights and Responsibilities

[4]  Activism is Action with Intent

[5]  Imperative and Outreach

302  People (Your “Five”)

If Principles are an internalised realm, then next we must consider the realm of external action. Each ZS ‘Metahouse’ (i.e. a cooperative pair of ZS Houses, one of six such entities) is a fundamental pillar of ZS organisation, with its own “Sessions” (i.e. live synch/meeting/game) held once per week.

Each such Session is organised around twelve core participants (six per House, assigned to Core Roles), each of whom is in turn the leader/coordinator of an activist group of five ZSers, known as a “Five”. The Five is a kind of cadre, and the essential backbone of ZS activism, each concerned with its own focus and missions within a broader, synchronised network. The Fives are the foundation or basis of that network, in which multiple “Fives” may overlap, and people may thus be part of more than one Five, but Core ZS Members with pre-defined roles represent the firm basis of the organization.

If you are a ZSer, then you are expected and required to understand your personal relationship to the Houses and Fives, or – to put it simply – where you fit. Are you one of the 72 Core Members? If so, you (or a reliable representative) are expected to take your place in weekly Sessions, or your place will be delegated to other, more committed members. Are you in one or more Fives? Who is also in those groups with you? Perhaps your Five is led by one of the Core Members? When do you meet? What are your goals? What is your timeline? What are your methods? It is important that you are able to answer these questions quickly and concisely, if you are to be considered a functional ZS member.

All “Fivers” whose Five is led by a Core Member are welcome to attend any of the core realtime Sessions held via the ZS Discord server [https://discord.gg/R4t7V8U]. Fivers whose teams are at a further remove from the core ZS membership (i.e. not led by Core Members) are encouraged to organise their own sessions and events via the same server, and/or any platform which works for them. ZSers are expected to ensure – through their own efforts – that they are both well-informed and actively working toward goals which are in accord with those of the broader network, and (of course) our Principles.

303  Parasessions

In addition to the Sessions (whether those six per week run for the Core Members and their co-Fivers, or others independently organised by Fives out in the wider ZS network), we also now run continuous, asynchronous Parasessions. These parasessions are ongoing narrative threads primarily hosted in the twelve House email lists (links to which are listed in ZS wiki Directory, here). Each such thread is updated after the relevant weekly Session, but the narrative and interaction runs continuously, every day, seamlessly connecting the Sessions and pushed forward by the House members themselves. An important function of the Parasessions is to reach out beyond the core ZS membership, spreading the narrative to new audiences and subcultures. Anyone can get involved, and everyone who cares about the fate of humanity in the 21st Century should.

A Final Note on Theory versus Practice

My next Transhumanity.net article is a piece on the “ZS reboot” (sometimes called ‘ZS2.0’) which is a work in progress spanning 12018. That article includes a template for concise, call-for-action posts in the future. Going forward, I will be making a sharp, clear distinction between such ZS Action Posts on the one hand, and theoretical pieces related to Social Futurism on the other. I am aware that posts about the ZS mythos and its logic can be bewildering to those not actively involved, and that ideas like Alternate Reality Games, Metafiction and the Thomas Theorem confuse many people. Let’s face it, when Transhumanism is one of your conservative baseline ideas then you’re not going to find a large audience on the theoretical level. Theory is of course very important – all proper action rests upon a firm and coherent theoretical basis – but the language of action must be simple and accessible to all. Stay tuned.

H+ Mythos & Action [3/3]: First Five was originally published on transhumanity.net

[christtoandandrew]

HOUSE OF CHAPPAZ

“METAHOUSE”,nuestro espacio de exposición virtual Mientras se configura lo que será el Me- ta-verso definitivo que aúne todos los mundos virtuales de forma ordenada, ayu- damos a pacificar el debate creando un es- pacio virtual que replique los valores de House of Chappaz como galería. Un espa- cio en el que extendemos la noción de casa como concepto extrusionando su forma para convertirlo en un espacio expositi- vo funcional pero sin perder la calidez de estar en casa con tu família querida. Me- taHouse es el nombre del primer espacio creado por la galería en motivo de la pri- mera exposición “Viaje a Gethen” y permi- te experimentar la obra colectiva en un es- pacio cómodo que conecta la tierra firme con el cielo virtual.

[transhumanitynet]

ZS Mythos (3/3): Twelve Foundation Stones

This article is part of a series about the Mythos (worldview-narrative) underlying the Zero State (ZS). Part 1 is about our highest concept, ideal, and level of organization, which we call The Array. Part 2 explains the Sections & Sessions our core activity revolves around, and Part 3 (below) covers the Twelve Foundation Stones that form the basis of our story.

A previous article I wrote for Tnet mentioned the need for entertainment that gives people a strong sense of meaning and purpose in their lives, and introduced an idea known as the twelve “Foundation Stones” of the ZS-ARG Mythos. The Foundation Stones are the seeds of our unifying narrative. Each is the fragmentary initial story of one of the twelve ZS Houses, outlined very briefly below and spelled out in full in the forthcoming Black Book. Before reading this article it is important to understand that it refers to the Zero State (ZS) Alternate Reality Game (ARG), and thus deal in metafiction. It is not a simple non-fiction article (obviously!) and will only make sense if you already know ZS, or follow some of the links above! This article draws – with thanks – upon text from the ZS wiki, some of which has been contributed by members of the various ZS Houses.

S7 / OS/UX & metaprogramming Ásentír, Array, Reality hacking, neo-Gnosticism, and Transcendence.

Metahouse 1: The Foundation

The Zero State is not an insular realm, existing in total isolation. Some of the organizations within it don’t exist wholly within it, but in something more like a state of overlap, with an aspect within ZS, and other aspects manifesting elsewhere, in other ways. The Foundation is perhaps the best example of such an arrangement, as its very name alludes to an organization which is not ZS-based at all, and in fact existed before ZS-proper was founded in 12011.

Our vision is to preserve the collective knowledge of civilization and to facilitate the self-development of all sentient and sapient entities.

To that end, we focus on projects that push that vision forward from preserving knowledge to preserving people and all intelligence we may find.

http://Foundation.Transhumanity.net/

http://www.Transhumanity.net/

http://www.TheTechnocracy.com/

One last curiosity to note about The Foundation is that the ASI which coordinates its activities within the late-C21 is known as The Architect, and that entity was the first to make substantial strategic moves in the early-C21 milieu. It is clear that The Foundation mean business, or at least take the idea of first move advantage very seriously.

01 House Sem-Bhu (AKA The Keystone, The Temple)

House Sem-Bhu is notoriously esoteric, apocalyptic, autocratic, and insular, even by ZS standards. In theory it is half of the MetaHouse known as The Foundation with House Adhar, but in terms of practical reality The Foundation largely is House Adhar, and House Sem-Bhu maintains a strange, hermit-like position permanently on the edge of ZS culture.

The name “Sem-Bhu” is said to refer to the Proto-Indo-European language, expressing a concept of unity, to become one, to “same-become”; an idea which defines the Ajati. House Sem-Bhu has special and mysterious connections to the ZS precursor group known as “Doctrine Zero”, and those connections are part of a wider swirl of rumours that the (surprisingly few) members of Sem-Bhu believe in some kind of prophecy regarding an event or person known as “Abbaton” or “Liberithyr”, among other names. What these things mean exactly is a mystery, for the time being.

02 House Adhar (AKA The Foundation, The Organization)

The origin of the House name “Adhar” is unclear, although it has been suggested that it is a combination of two (related) etymologies:

In Scots Gaelic, “Adhar” means air, sky, or heaven (being a Scots derivation of the Old Irish aer, from Latin aer, from Greek ἀήρ (aer).  Air is the element of thought and will in most Pagan religions.

At the other end of the Proto-Indo-European spectrum, Adhar had the same meaning in ancient Sanskrit, later becoming a word referring to the gods Vishnu and Shiva, and now in modern Hindi Aadhaar means “Foundation”. For this reason, House Adhar is frequently referred to simply as The Foundation.

A third (apparently unrelated, but striking) etymology is (Al) Dar in Arabic, meaning “(The) House”.

The Foundation (more properly called the Pratoriate Foundation) has been around for at least decades with the first known reference that has been validated being in 1996 at the UVSC where a group of students worked in an officially scheduled work group in the computer lab around artificial intelligence and preservation of data and at least two of those students are known to have worked on the Principium Librarius that was created in Seattle around 2010.

We know that the Foundation was also connected to a technology consulting firm Domus Giordanous in at least 2011 and later to the Giordanous Group LLC which is believed to have been the front for Domus Giordanous.

For a brief period the Foundation went public and can still be seen archived in the way back machine at: http://web.archive.org/web/20160430211536/http://pratoriate.org/ between 2013 and 2016 and in that time frame the Principium Librarius was moved to Leavenworth Washington in 2015.

The Foundation had ties to the startup ParameterIO that had 63 million in funding but blew up in a big lawsuit and out of that was created for the AGI Inc lab in 2015 and the subsequent falling out of the chief scientist with the ‘Architect’ and a group in or connected to the AGI Inc Lab called the Triumvirate.

Later the next year the Principium Librarius again moved to Provo Utah in Dec 2016 along with the corporation Artificial General Intelligence, Inc.

The Foundation (or at least members of the Foundation) had been connected to the Artificial General Intelligence still through 2017, but it seems there is some degree of internal tension between Foundation members and the Architect at or in the AGI Lab.

Metahouse 2: Cloud Nine

Cloud Nine is the most strange, dreamlike, even psychedelic of the six Metahouses. This is the realm of creators, magicians, and dream-explorers. ‘Niners tend to be among the most agile ZSers in terms of planning and networking,  and are the most focussed on the idea that the Zero State could be some kind of game or simulation.

03 House Oneiros (AKA The State, Station)

“You call us dreamers, because we walk through lands that exist in realms that do not. Because we see, in the corner of our blind eyes, the little gods which live in-between that which is real and unreal. Dreamers we may be, but only because we know the truth that hides itself from those who live only while awake. That these worlds we walk through, these twilight realms that we may shape according to our will, are the seed of a new world. Of a world where the divide between dreams and reality has vanished, like smoke in the wind.” The leader of House Onieros is the Monk.  Their duty is to prepare the way for what is to come, to teach the stories of the future.  To protect and preserve the world as it is, so that it may give birth to the world that may yet be. To illuminate the path that humanity might walk, that it may neither fall back into darkness nor destroyed by the light of its own creation.

04 House Argento (AKA The Sessions)

The silver eponym of House Argento represents many facets: liminal states between light and darkness, ignorance and wisdom, esoteric and exoteric.

This house is intended to be a ludus, focused on matters of science, and of education.  House Argento is associated with the Liber Institute.

A time of accelerating social and technological change is also a time of accelerating proliferation of data. Data that must be sifted for information, built into knowledge, and integrated to support wise decisions. For humans and other systems alike, this requires adaptability: the ability to quickly ingest new knowledge, to sift the wheat from the chaff, and to act in a timely fashion.

In matters of pedagogy, it is important to understand the student as well as the subject. A teacher must provide the structures that allow learners to construct their own representations of knowledge; to furnish them with the cognitive tools necessary for discovering their own novel truths, and to hone those tools with practical challenges. An intelligent mind is blessed with raw power; the best outcomes can be attained by harnessing that power with finesse.

  S6 / AI & perception Fyrd, Social Futurism, search for redemption or final frontier.

  Metahouse 3: ZODIAC

ZODIAC is ZS’ idealistic heart, primarily responsible for outreach and expansion. Its culture is shaped by a group known as the Navigators, whose own future-AI-leader/deity is known as Kybernetes. The Navigators can be a strange tribe, and there is known to be some tension between agents of Kybernetes and The Architect, if not the entities themselves.

05 House Arrakis (AKA The Ajati)

House Arrakis is home to the Navigators, led by Navigator Prime, and their collective worldview might better be described as “cosmic” rather than “magical”. It is certainly mysterious, not being well understood by most in the early-C21 milieu of 12018. House Arrakis plays the long game.

The themes that are clear even at that early stage, however, involves future Trans- and Posthumans as the “aliens” of 20th Century imaginings, other dimensions impinging upon our own, and a kind of Buddhist ‘centredness’ holding these ideas together, which explicitly focusses upon familiar human concepts such as balance, and love.

The culture of House Arrakis is about ‘inner space’ as much as ‘outer space’, meditation, intuition, and fluid identity. Some particularly far-fetched rumours link House Arrakis to Doctrine Zero itself and the oldest ZSers, saying that these entities influenced the outcome of the two World Wars and were behind the post-war peace movements of the 50s-70s.

06 House R’lyeh (AKA The Club, The Last Dance Club)

House R’lyeh is a much darker, stranger, and even less well understood quantity than House Arrakis. It is just as weird, but without the reassuring tones of peace and love. Its name is an obvious reference to the “Cosmic Horror” tales of 20th Century author H.P. Lovecraft, but that name is largely believed to be a simple label applied to the House by outsiders and non-members, trying to express their basic understanding of its nature. House R’lyeh may have strange designs on the future, but for now those plans are unknown, perhaps being held in check by the Navigators of House Arrakis.

To Be Continued

ZS Mythos (3/3): Twelve Foundation Stones was originally published on transhumanity.net