EPISTEAM stands for Epistemology in Art, Science and Technology. The objective of the Consortium of 14 partners behind this project is to develop an intersectoral and interdisciplinary common research program for cutting-edge strategies of technological mediation and innovation with a direct impact on society and knowledge construction (epistemology). The fundamental problem that Episteam addresses is the negative impact of digital technologies on the construction of knowledge and truth conducive to an epistemic crisis inside and outside academia.
The key objective of the project is to propose a model of epistemological diversification through transdisciplinary research. In the context of EPISTEAM, transdisciplinary research will inquire at the crossovers between art, science and technology, expanding the boundaries between different disciplines involved in the process. Crucially, Episteam develops the hypothesis that diversification of epistemological positions is key to responsible technological innovation.
Research Objective (1) To develop a digital hermeneutic framework (WP1) and platform for deliberation (text, image, and speech) to demonstrate alternative epistemological processes in specific disciplines (Digital Studies, Architecture, New Media, Neuroscience and proton accelerator Physics).
Reseacrh Objective (2) To develop and implement a framework for responsible and ethical technological innovation (WP2), including technological impact assessments tools which incorporate a inter/transdisciplinary approach in specific disciplines (Architecture and the Built Environment, Neuroscience, and Media Studies).
Research Objective (3) To develop and investigate specific examples of contemporary epistemological challenges related to cognition and emotion (WP3) using machine learning. EpisTeaM will research the ethical and epistemological impacts of post-human embodied cognition leading to epistemic values.
Research Objective (4) To develop alternative epistemologies (WP4) through the new modes of experimentation (technological failures and fabulations) and alternative histories of technological evolution. These modes of experimentation will be embedded in specific techno-scientific contexts (AI, Particle Physics, Architecture)
The consortium exchanges skills and knowledge strengthen collaborative research between different partners and sectors, producing a series of academic and non-academic outputs that revert to the wider community through open-access channels of dissemination and pedagogical actions. The staff members and researchers who participate in the project develop new skills and are exposed to new research environments contributing to the strengthening of the European model of open-access research.
This research team proposes an epistemology that is located within a genealogy of thinking that understands epistemology and technology as a mode of technē (technical practices that influence the way in which knowledge construction takes place),which possesses an irreducible political and social dimension.
