Notes on Nothing

Abstract

radical alterity faced by the self in an open encounter with others that informs his approach to philosophy as the “wisdom of love at the service of love,” in contrast to the “knowledge for the sake of knowledge” dictum. The above five instances are crude etchings, not a comprehensive overview. Encounters with an abstract notion such as nothing have concrete consequences, sometimes leading to major advancements in multiple areas, often fraught with power struggles, and in at least one case incurring being burned at the stake. In this column, I explore notions of nothing with an emphasis on non-Western traditions by pursuing the question: What has nothing to do with the design of technology? I begin my response by drawing attention to the anthology Software Development and Reality Construction, edited by Christiane Floyd and colleagues. In “Human Questions in Computer Science,” Floyd, a pioneer of participatory software design, relates ontological concerns about “what is” (i.e., reality) to epistemological concerns about “what we can know” (i.e., knowledge production). In her formulation, human cognition “may be viewed as bringing forth concepts and insights fitting our experience and viable for obtaining our aims in open situations where we interpret our needs,” and therefore, “the technical result of software development, the execution of programs may be characterized as constructed reality” [1]. Floyd’s articulation has profound sociopolitical implications wherein “computability has almost become a modern moral category, a vehicle for discussing the validity of decisions for action in human terms” [1]. Floyd’s worldview is evolutionary, participatory, action-oriented, and invested: 1) concepts fit our experience and provide viability for obtaining our aims; and 2) to design technology is to construct reality with significant sociopolitical implications. But what might we gain by engaging with non-Western notions of nothingness in relation to the design of technology as reality construction? Floyd traces the origins of computer science to Greek philosophy, which plays a significant role in Western thought traditions. HCI researchers, in turn, have pointed out that computer technology is still often designed based on the intuition, knowledge, and values of people who are Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic [2]. Commenting on Western traditions of hermeneutics in relation to software design, Joseph Goguen’s article in the anthology mentions, “What is missing is a set of guidelines that tell us how to deal with the problems that inevitably arise, and other practices that are less involved with conceptual content and have the possibility of sharpening our general mindfulness and awareness” [1]. If design is by default approached as “doing something” about perceived problems, we might be stumped when faced with a situation that requires us to do nothing or where Nothing, perhaps, has fascinated humans more than notions of nothing. This seemingly simple yet endlessly generative abstraction has intrigued theologians, philosophers, artists, scientists, innovators, and social revolutionaries across cultures for millennia. Here are five instances that demonstrate the importance of nothingness in Western knowledge traditions: • Greek philosopher Parmenides of Elea (considered the founder of ontology) invoked the notion of “what is not” to circumscribe a field of possibilities for defining “what is,” thereby sparking foundational discussions about the nature of being, thought, time, perception, and truth. • Catholic theologian Thomas Aquinas asserted that all creation was made from nothing (Latin: creatioex nihilo), thereby provoking significant debates about causality and observation. • Renaissance cosmologist Giordano Bruno proposed that the universe had no center, for which he was burned at the stake since his hypothesis was in direct contradiction with the thenprevailing idea of a geocentric universe and the beliefs of the Catholic Church. • Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard wrote about existential dread experienced by individuals when confronted with nothingness as a void of meaning and its implications for human freedom, ethical responsibilities, and the quest for an authentic life. • French-Jewish philosopher Emmanuel Levinas engaged with What has nothing to do with the design of technology? Notes on Nothing