top of page
Dissolution_RGB_Logos.png

Think tank #1

The first think tank about digital waste was held at Corda Campus on February 11, 2022. Several participants from Corda Campus, Studio Plankton and studio.POC brainstormed about digital waste visualisation and the trajectory of the DISSOLUTION project.

Our life in the cloud seems less bound by restrictions than the finite life in which we are dependent on our own bodies, living conditions, decisions of others, etc. But what are the consequences of these virtual excesses? What digital traces do we leave behind? Countless amounts of storage space are taken up by zombie profiles and inactive virtual rooms.
The mass of virtual space clutter is almost as incomprehensible as the (un)boundlessness of the universe itself.

What is digital waste?

Digital waste - 

Hardware

Endless stream of photos, without limit -> What is being used/What is trash?

Archives and back-ups that are never being used again

Content of trash bin on computer ->

Where does it go?

Energy waste because of multiple, connected devices 

Metals and sources for fabricating hardware -> tangible waste

Digital waste - 

Energy

Never ending streams -> falling asleep with Netflix

Which data is relevants? How much energy for irrelevant data?

Data efficiency,
e.g. bitcoin, NFT

Energy used to exchange data

Websites and apps stay open on smartphones, laptops and devices

Energy consuming servers, rendering,...

Autoplay on sites, streaming platforms

Satellite connections for GPS, tracking, ...

Digital waste - 

Storage/Platform

Fake profiles on dating apps, social media, ...

Advertising on social media and websites popping up

Tracking on browsers 

Spam on servers

Storage of personal data for advertisement and corporate use

Ghost profiles, accounts, websites, virtual rooms,...

Clickbait for companies, no actual content

Online workspaces, brainstorms (like this one!) on several platforms

Downloads over wetransfer, large filesn torrents,... how much stays on servers?

Websites, blogs and social platforms that don't exist anymore, but still 'tracable'

Attachments on mails, whatsapp, messages,...

Useless content, clips, pictures, 'articles', blogs, ...

AI and bots

Digital waste - 

Conceptual

Time waste ->

wasting time on overload of information and advertisement

Personal energy in order to process all the digital information on 1 day

Not tangible -> 
not urgent?

Irregular growth, invisible -> a whole universe?

Irregular growth, invisible -> a whole universe?

Is 'waste' so negative? What can we re-use as a source material?

'Waste' is different for everyone ->

What content is useless? What is trash?

Digital waste of time

'Digitus': a condition, 0 and 1

How to visualise digital waste?

Digital Waste Visualisations

A set of graphic and motion visualisations by

Studio Plankton

Per message ->

a cube will grow

Laser beams as data captation

graphic per subject: e.g. 'news', 'sports', 'finances',...

Data counter: amount of megabites per 'visit'

Reaching a limit?

10' time out, e.g.
a ban on using any data

Awareness through interviews and surveys

Limiting the amount of data by the provider -> how long will it last?

'Clean room':

a stimuli free room, digital detox room

App ->

like a pedometer

'Dirty room':

lasers, noise, light, polution,..

Data as a poisonous cloud over the campus

Game: play as long as possible with a certain amount of data ->

Competition

Maze -> without waste, dissolution of the maze

Adaptable shades: dark (trash), light (detox)

Too much wasting time on trash and advertisement?

Disappearing of pixels on the screen

Recycle park with different bins

Antique store 

Digital compost: re-using trash as source

Negative space:

form, visuals, music

Tetris approach:

waste really gone?

Remove it permanently when 1 line is formed

App with preferences: what is waste for you?

Annoying pop-up with information about your data usage

How to solve digital waste?

Visualisation = 

Awareness = 

Consciousness = 

Part of the solution

Punishment:

10' time-out, no data during that time

Take the test (event):

how much data of yourself is somewhere online?

Data slots according a certain plan

Apps automatically in sleep mode

Self-destruction of unused websites and profiles

Digital shower:

portal of awareness: data usage pops up

Appropriate protocols: 

How to deal with data?

Dissolution of pixels: cold turkey, rehab, behaviour modification

3D-printing a Tower of Digital Waste in Corda Campus ->

awareness

App with data counter: how 'better' your digital hygiene, the more data you will receive

How to recycle digital waste?

Trash becomes energy source

metaverse = 'land' that is not being used -> other purpose, destination

Data becomes energy

Data = 0-1

Re-use the 'O-1' for other purposes

Data as blockhain

Cooling used for servers -> converting to energy to heat up the building

Algorithmic compost: AI will clean up all the waste, according to our own bias

Algorithmic paradox: will AI solve the waste problem, or only create more waste?

DSCF0454.jpg
bottom of page