Entanglement at the Human Scale, Utrecht, 2000

Host: University for Humanist Studies, Utrecht

Inspired by the metaphor of 'Quantum Entanglement,' Entanglement at the Human Scale is about people as histories, information, emotions that interact and have memories of past and projections of future intentions.

What does a thinking process in response to 'entanglement' raise as issues or observations which may have received little significance in more traditional approaches?

Description
How to get to Utrecht
Maps
Speakers Schedule
Readings

Event Schedule

Thursday February 17

18:00 Reception with drinks at the University for Humanist Studies address: Drift 6

Friday February 18
at Paushuize address: Pausdam 2
9:00 speeches, break-out groups, speeches
12:30 Lunch
break-out groups, speeches
18:00 End

Saturday February 19
at Paushuize address: Pausdam 2
9:00 speeches, break-out groups, speeches
12:30 Lunch
break-out groups, speeches
18:30-? Diner at Polmanshuis (Corner of Jansdam & Keistraat)

Sunday February 20
10:00 Brunch at Polmanshuis (Corner of Jansdam & Keistraat)
13:30

Description

Attention to inter-relations as opposed to things has increasingly intensified as the decade has drawn to a close. These inter-relations are seldom examined, however, from the perspective of organization. Organization per se is traditionally assumed to be a necessary precondition for scientific study, and not itself a subject of study. One view of the work of science has been to discover and describe patterns of the behaviors of matter. In physics, this work entails applying the organization inherent in mathematics to map the organization inherent in matter. As a result, the worldview of mathematical physics is blind to organization per se because organization is intrinsic to mathematics.

By contrast, what happens when scientists to turn their attention to the question, "What is the origin of organization per se?" This question points directly to topics that are troubling to prevailing paradigms, e.g., memory, self-awareness, telepathy, quantum entanglement, morphogenesis, and the evolution of species. We have trouble discovering the ontology of these phenomena by focusing on the phenomena themselves. Instead, we often must broaden our view to focus on the origin, properties, and behaviors of the systems that are expressed by the phenomena. For example, the allegorical blind men focused on parts of an elephant, and each man produced an idiosyncratic, ad hoc model of the animal e.g., a tree, a wall, a snake, a rope. Because elements of elephants do not exist independently of whole elephants, understanding the relationship among the parts requires comprehending the whole animal.

The quantum concept of entanglement extends the dictionaries "To twist or interweave in such a manner as not to be easily separated; to make tangled, confused, and intricate" by invoking the history of a particle's interactions and a thing with which some other thing (be it a particle or a history) can become entangled. This symposium seeks to explore the question of what entanglement entails when its scale is raised to that of the human.

Einstein was troubled by implications of quantum science that seemed to deny that scientific theory could be 'realistic' {i.e. particles have properties that exist before they are measured} and 'local' {measuring properties of one particle cannot
influence the properties of another physically separated particle, or perhaps information regarding the state of one particle cannot be communicated to a second particle faster than the speed of light}. If measuring one entangled particle defines properties of other entangled particle(s), then 'matter' exists in relationship but may be 'propertyless' if disembedded. The epistemology of science seems, increasingly, to pay attention to 'interrelations' as opposed to 'things'. What influence will the discovery and description of patterns of behavior of matter have on organization theory? If identity, structure and context are inherent in the realm of matter are they also inherent on the social and/or human scale? What do these issues mean for the ontology of organization? In modernist thought, human effort is needed to snatch order out of a material chaos --- what if the material world is 'entangled', that is replete with 'identity' 'order' and inherent 'structure'? Could organization then 'piggy-back' on entanglement's order?

Pre-modern philosophy (thought) was contextually entangled in the life-world, decontextualized analytical science has abstracted (dis-entangled) 'factor's from their context in order to define 'causal' relationships. Current thought seems to be pointing toward interrelating and interconnecting (i.e. re-entangled) forms of understanding.

Entanglement at the human scale thus involves questions of philosophy, physics, psychology, cognitive science, ontology and management theory, amongst the many potential fields of inquiry. Noted academics and practitioners from all these fields have been invited to participate in this workshop. At the workshop we will explore the concept of 'entanglement' in order to investigate its significance(s) and (potential) metaphorical worth as a developing concept.

Thursday evening will be to register, meet and have a drink. Friday and Saturday will be days of explorative discussion (held in the Pope Adriaan's house from 1517 in Utrecht); Sunday brunch will be used to define future projects. We expect several books and journal special numbers to result.

This workshop is dedicated to explorative thought and theoretical agenda setting. It will be small and will provide space to discuss and explore ideas along interdisciplinary lines. The scholars invited are coming from the realms of physical science (and its philosophy) and organizational theory.

How to get to Utrecht from Schiphol (Amsterdam airport)

Train schedules:

Every hour at .06 and .36 from Schiphol to Utrecht CS
The train station is situated conveniently just below the main hall. You can buy tickets for Utrecht there.

How to get to the University:

Upon arriving at Utrecht CS, take a bus or a cab to the Drift, number 6. This is situated just behind the Janskerkhof. Here you'll be welcomed and we'll explain to you how to reach your hotels.

Buses are number 4 and number 11.