An
interview with a sentient representative
of my gut microbiome.*
Category: Publication
Date: TBD
Location: Online, Center for Sustainable Practice in the Arts (CSPA) Publication
* The gut microbiome interview text was generated in July 2023 using OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The accompanying marked images were created by Midjourney’s AI-powered image generator.
Project Description
Adopting an anthropocentric perspective, we often view ourselves as individuals, neglecting to acknowledge that we are, in fact, a thriving ecosystem hosting a multitude of microscopic life forms. This raises existential questions - what defines us as humans when our bodies harbor more non-human, genetic material than our own? An apt illustration of this is our gut ecosystem, an intricate network that is yet largely enigmatic. The complexities of the gut microbiota are the subject of extensive research, but our comprehension of it still remains incomplete. As the most minute living entities known to us to experience the cycle of birth, life, and death, they offer a fascinating insight into the foundational levels of existence. As such, our existence as humans is not a singular, isolated occurrence, but rather, a web of interconnected ecosystems spanning from the microscopic to the macroscopic realms.
Publication as part of:
BEYOND DEATH: Reflections on the Afterlife Imagining the Unfathomable, Inscrutable, Unknowable
Center for Sustainable Practice in the Arts (CSPA) Publication
Guest Editor: Linda Weintraub
Adopting an anthropocentric perspective, we often view ourselves as individuals, neglecting to acknowledge that we are, in fact, a thriving ecosystem hosting a multitude of microscopic life forms. This raises existential questions - what defines us as humans when our bodies harbor more non-human, genetic material than our own? An apt illustration of this is our gut ecosystem, an intricate network that is yet largely enigmatic. The complexities of the gut microbiota are the subject of extensive research, but our comprehension of it still remains incomplete. As the most minute living entities known to us to experience the cycle of birth, life, and death, they offer a fascinating insight into the foundational levels of existence. As such, our existence as humans is not a singular, isolated occurrence, but rather, a web of interconnected ecosystems spanning from the microscopic to the macroscopic realms.
Publication as part of:
BEYOND DEATH: Reflections on the Afterlife Imagining the Unfathomable, Inscrutable, Unknowable
Center for Sustainable Practice in the Arts (CSPA) Publication
Guest Editor: Linda Weintraub
