Figure 12 - uploaded by Philip Steadman
Content may be subject to copyright.
Bird's eye view of Pentonville Model Prison, London, Joshua Jebb engineer, 1840-2 (Author's drawing)
Source publication
Credit for devising the Panoptical 'inspection principle' for prison design is attributed, perhaps now irrevocably, to Jeremy Bentham. However Jeremy always insisted that the original conception came from his younger brother Samuel – 'After all, I have been obliged to go a-begging to my brother, and borrow an idea of his'. 1 Samuel was to have been...
Similar publications
Palaearctic grasslands encompass a diverse variety of habitats, many of high nature value and vulnerability. The main challenges are climate-change, land-use change, agricultural intensification and abandonment. Many measures are in place to address these challenges, through restoration and appropriate management, though more work is necessary. We...
There were some important facts in the past that have influenced the development of structural aerodynamics very strongly. The first important event was the breakdown of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (USA) in the year 1940. The second moment represents the disaster of the cooling towers at Ferrybridge (England) in 1965. In the year 2010 the first time...
Citations
... This phenomenon constitutes a crucial aspect of what is commonly referred to as "surveillance capitalism" (e.g., Aho and Duffield 2020;Zuboff 2015Zuboff , 2023, which is further magnified and highlighted within the AI context. The origins of this type of surveillance can be found in the idea of the "panopticon", which was first put forth by the British philosopher Bentham in the 18th century (Galič, Timan, and Koops 2017;Steadman 2012). The French philosopher Michel Foucault further developed this idea in the 20th century as part of his theory of discourse on power relations. ...
The regulations of generative AI, typified by ChatGPT and Sora, have become one of the most influential alternative technological imaginaries. Developed by states and civil society groups, such regulations are triggering a broad range of social actors seeking to nominalize the AI-related behavior. Against this backdrop, this study starts with interrogating the semiotic character of generative AI. Do these regulations support the AI futures, or do they involve a mere change in the social actors who benefit from the technological status quo? To answer this question, this study examines the rhetoric and realization of AI regulations by the European Union and the United States. The findings reveal a degree of AI regulatory alignment between the European Union and the United States, but these two jurisdictions also highlight and predict some structural challenges. Drawing upon the concept of panopticism by Foucault, the study explores the foundational origins of challenges by dissecting the (in)visibility of AI power. It underscores the necessity of regulating the power of the unseen and proposes a synthetic generative AI regulatory framework. We finally conclude that the integrity of sociosemiotics and panopticism provides a productive and paramount framework for understanding the powerful new capacities of AI-related regulations.
... In the 18th century, empires focused on authoritarian control systems in order to control the indigenous people. In 1785, Jeremy Bentham designed a structure to assist the power structures in terms of surveillance, which became a very valuable design for states that wanted to maintain control (Steadman, 2012). Throughout history, capitalist power has used the eye symbol as a sign of control over society, so that societies that are constantly under the control of the eye have been kept in a position where they cannot even attempt to do anything other than live in a state of constant surveillance. ...
... The 'we' sound composed but also shows a cold demeanor. This voyeuristic viewpoint recalls the concept of panopticon proposed by Bentham and Božovič (1995) and Steadman (2012), which later is repurposed by Foucault (1975) in his book Discipline and Punish. ...
Nowhere and everywhere: Navigating gendered urban spaces in Haruki Murakami’s After DarkUrban space has been one of the most underexplored elements analyzed in literary works. However, as urban space gradually emerges as a culturally influencing element, a casual perusal of any text that employs urban space might result in an oversimplified analysis. This study examines the urban space of After Dark (2004), authored by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami (b. 1949). Accounting for the ways urban space is interwoven with the socio-cultural context, this study establishes a spatial reading of Murakami’s After Dark through the description of the city. With a poststructuralist approach, this study discusses how urban space is utilized and how it serves as an important part of the text instead of a mere backdrop; it reinforces the possibilities of setting as a thematic approach to major issues such as self-identity and the marginalization of women. As it is concluded, the urban space the novel presents have succeeded to show that they form, to some extent, women’s behaviours both directly and indirectly. Hence, the setting may present the main theme further analysed.Keywords: urban space, spatiality, women, self-identity, marginalizationTak di sana dan di mana pun: Menavigasi ruang kota bergender pada novel After Dark karya Haruki MurakamiSelama ini ruang urban masih menjadi unsur yang paling kurang digali dalam menganalisis karya sastra. Namun demikian, seiring dengan kenyataan bahwa ruang urban lambat-laun hadir sebagai unsur yang secara kultural berpengaruh, kajian kasual mengenai suatu teks yang memanfaatkan ruang urban mungkin justru menghasilkan analisis yang terlalu sederhana. Kajian ini menelisik ruang urban After Dark (2004), hasil karya pengarang Jepang, Haruki Murakami (lahir 1949). Dengan berpusat pada cara-cara ruang urban berjalin berkelindan dengan kontek sosio-budaya, kajian ini menghadirkan pembacaan ruang terhadap karya Murakami yang berjudul After Dark melalui deskripsi tentang kota yang digunakan sebagai latar. Dengan pendekatan pascastruktural, kajian ini membahas bagaimana ruang urban dimanfaatkan serta bagaimana hal tersebut menjadi bagian penting dari teks dan bukan hanya sekadar latar belakang; hal ini mendorong hadirnya kemungkinan latar sebagai subjek tematik untuk membahas isu-isu besar seperti identitas diri dan marjinalisasi perempuan. Sebagaimana yang diperoleh di kesimpulan, ruang urban yang ditampilkan dalam novel ini telah berhasil menunjukkan kemampuannya untuk membentuk perilaku tokoh-tokoh wanitanya baik secara langsung maupun tidak langsung. Dengan demikian, latar tempat dapat menunjukkan tema utama sebuah karya yang layak diteliti lebih lanjut.Kata kunci: ruang urban, spatialitas, perempuan, identitas-diri, marjinalisasi
... It was for example adapted to include ICTs, in the "electronic panopticon" (Lyon, 1993), which is a key concept in Zuboff's (1988) study of how automation leads to increased visibility of work processes with implications for worker autonomy (see also Burton-Jones, 2014). 1 The idea for which is attributed to his brother Samuel Bentham (see Steadman, 2012) Page 13 of 41 Today, the panopticon metaphor is so commonly applied that "the very mention of the term in conferences immediately leads scholars to roll their eyes in boredom" (Caluya, 2010, p. 621). In response to its overuse, Haggerty (2006) argues for "tearing down the walls" of the panopticon, assumedly along with transmorphisms such as the 'superpanopticon', 'electronic panopticon', 'post-panopticon', 'ban-opticon', 'pedagopticon', 'fractal panopticon', 'synopticon', and 'neo-panopticon' (Caluya, 2010;Haggerty, 2006), and more recently the 'portable panopticon' (De Saulles & Horner, 2011), which is enabled by mobile technologies. ...
This paper builds a theoretical argument for exile as an alternative metaphor to the panopticon, for conceptualizing visibility and control in the context of distributed “new culture” organizations. Such organizations emphasize team relationships between employees who use digital technologies to stay connected with each other and the organization. I propose that in this context, a fear of exile – that is a fear of being left out, overlooked, ignored or banished – can act as a regulating force that inverts the radial spatial dynamic of the panopticon and shifts the responsibility for visibility, understood both in terms of competitive exposure and existential recognition, onto workers. As a consequence these workers enlist digital technologies to become visible at the real or imagined organizational centre. A conceptual appreciation of exile, as discussed in existential philosophy and postcolonial theory, is shown to offer productive grounds for future research on how a need for visibility in distributed, digitised, and increasingly precarious work environments regulates employee subjectivity, in a manner that is not captured under traditional theories of ICT-enabled surveillance in organizations.
... Si possono assimilare alla prima categoria: l'ediicio centrale del Real Pósito de la Villa de Madrid (il Deposito Reale di Madrid), che precedette di alcuni anni la fabbrica di Brihuega essendo stato realizzato nel 1745 su progetto dell'architetto Nicolás Churriguera (il quale collaborò anche con l'architetto Ventura Padierne, progettista della Rotonda) e che, chiamato Santísima Trinidad, era un ediicio a pianta ellittica su due livelli e con un patio centrale: al piano terra era diviso in 22 stanze affacciate sul patio, che venivano afittate a privati, mentre il primo piano era costituito da un'unica grande galleria (con capienza pari a circa 5534000 litri 4 ) usata come magazzino per le granaglie (fu demolito nel 1869); il celeberrimo progetto del Panopticon Plan elaborato dal ilosofo e giurista inglese Jeremy Bentham nel 1791 che ebbe origine dalle considerazioni sui problemi di controllo della manodopera delle manifatture di inizativa aristocratica in Russia amministrate dal fratello Samuel (Steadman, 2012) e che si sviluppa -trovando larga diffusione in tutto il mondo (University College London, 2009) -come penitenziario, costituito da un ediicio a pianta circolare con le celle disposte lungo il muro perimetrale esterno e affacciate su una corte interna circolare che prende luce dal sofitto vetrato e da cui le guardie potevano facilmente controllare tutti i detenuti. ...
L'articolo discute la nascita delle manifatture accentrate, promosse dai sovrani europei con la diffusione delle teorie economiche del colbertismo agli albori dell'industrializzazione (sec. XVIII), analizzando in particolare le questioni tipologiche. Si approfondisce il caso dei primi edifici industriali a pianta circolare (e anulare) e la diffusione ed evoluzione di tipo edilizi fino ai giorni nostri.
... He refers to the fact that slums prevent the exercise of ones rights (1994, p.355), arguing that this is because it is not possible to "dissociate the effective practice of freedom by people, the practice of social relations, and the spatial distributions in which they find 16 Foucault suggests that "the Panopticon is a machine for dissociating the see/being seen dyad: in the peripheral ring, one is totally seen, without ever seeing; in the central tower, one sees everything without ever being seen" (Foucault 1991, pp.201-202). See the work of Steadman (2012; for a detailed analysis and discussion on this supposed asymmetry and its function. In particular, Steadman (2014) argues that the Panopticon failed to deliver the disciplinary result that it advertised, being substituted by the radial prison layout. ...
Political and cultural agendas determine the programmes of public libraries, implying complex and often conflicting requirements in terms of their functioning. On one hand, they need to provide open and equal access to knowledge. On the other, they have functional needs that might restrict or condition the distribution and access of books, equipment and people. At the same time, social and technological changes cause this building type to change so as to include the idea of socialisation as a form of learning. This thesis investigates how space, programme and use interrelate in public libraries in order to express an intended public message and fulfil a specific social and cultural effect. Medellín’s Library-Parks are the main case studies analysed, as they function as key elements of a project that addresses social inequalities. Through spatial analysis using space syntax methods, the thesis provides a thorough description of these libraries’ spatial configuration and their spatial organisation of programme. In addition, it shows how the libraries are used through a detailed mapping of users’ co-presence, which exposes patterns that are further associated with the spatial and programmatic arrangements. Based on these three analyses, the thesis formulates types of spatial cultures in public libraries and exposes the role of space in influencing the emergence and/or constraint of particular patterns of social awareness that the traditional notion of the programme cannot capture. It is found that depending on how public libraries control public use (spatially and programmatically), they can support the emergence of informal activities or work as educational institutions only. In addition, depending on how public libraries’ educational role is manifested in space as spatial practices, they can serve as places that facilitate the exercise of institutional-bureaucratic power to normalise visitors’ behaviours, or places that stimulate public participation and negotiation. The findings emphasise how public libraries work as accessible civic environments, promoting visitors’ political and social awareness and potentially strengthening the collective engagement of the surrounding communities.
Historically, libraries, archives, and museums—or LAM institutions—have been complicit in enacting state power by surveilling and policing communities. This article broadens previous scholars’ critiques about individual institutions to LAM institutions writ large, drawing connections between these sites and ongoing racist, classist, and oppressive designs. We do so by dialing in on the ethical premise that justifies panoptic systems, utilitarianism, and how the glorification of pragmatism reifies systems of control and oppression. First, we revisit LIS applications of Benthamian and Foucauldian ideas of panoptic power to examine the role of LAM institutions as sites of social enmity. We then describe examples of surveillance and state power as they manifest in contemporary data infrastructure and information practices, showing how LAM institutional fixations with utilitarianism reify the U.S. carceral state through norms such as the aggregation and weaponization of user data and the overreliance on metrics. We argue that such practices are akin to widespread systems of surveillance and criminalization. Finally, we reflect on how LAM workers can combat structures that rely on oppressive assumptions and claims to information authority. Pre-print first published online February 10, 2023
The information revolution has ushered in a data-driven reorganization of the workplace. Big data and AI are used to surveil workers and shift risk. Workplace wellness programs appraise our health. Personality job tests calibrate our mental state. The monitoring of social media and surveillance of the workplace measure our social behavior. With rich historical sources and contemporary examples, The Quantified Worker explores how the workforce science of today goes far beyond increasing efficiency and threatens to erase individual personhood. With exhaustive detail, Ifeoma Ajunwa shows how different forms of worker quantification are enabled, facilitated, and driven by technological advances. Timely and eye-opening, The Quantified Worker advocates for changes in the law that will mitigate the ill effects of the modern workplace.
The jurist and philosopher, Jeremy Bentham, and his lesser-known brother, Samuel, equally talented but as a naval architect, engineer and inventor, had a long love affair with Russia. Jeremy hoped to assist Empress Catherine II with her legislative projects. Samuel went to St Petersburg to seek his fortune in 1780 and came back with the rank of Brigadier-General and the idea, famously publicised by Jeremy, of the Inspection-House or Panopticon. The Bentham Brothers and Russia chronicles the brothers’ later involvement with the Russian Empire, when Jeremy focused his legislative hopes on Catherine’s grandson Emperor Alexander I (ruled 1801-25) and Samuel found a unique opportunity in 1806 to build a Panopticon in St Petersburg – the only panoptical building ever built by the Benthams themselves. Setting the Benthams’ projects within an in-depth portrayal of the Russian context, Roger Bartlett illuminates an important facet of their later careers and offers insight into their world view and way of thought. He also contributes towards the history of legal codification in Russia, which reached a significant peak in 1830, and towards the demythologising of the Panopticon, made notorious by Michel Foucault: the St Petersburg building, still relatively unknown, is described here in detail on the basis of archival sources. The Benthams’ interactions with Russia under Alexander I constituted a remarkable episode in Anglo-Russian relations; this book fills a significant gap in their history.
