As part of a workshop-style course called ‘The Fungus Among Us’ I have developed a conceptual use for Mycelium networks called Net Net – Fungus Online. Here is the presentation I gave:
A summary of the presentation below:
Mycelium create networks just like the good ol’ internet. In the words of Paul Stamets:
"...diagrams of computer networks bear resemblance to both mycelium and neurological arrays in the mammalian brain."
In other words:
The computer network and neural network interact all the time – we all use our brains and computers! That is how you are reading this now.
Additionally, the mycelial network and neural network also touch, whether intentionally like in our Fungus Among Us class, or unintentionally through a walk in a park, or devouring of a delicious shitake dish.
Yet the mycelial network and computer network never get to connect… until now!
Net Net – the first mycelial network to connect to the web. Through its own sheer force of growth, a mycelial network could gather to force to push a well-placed button and send an email.
This would be a first in intentional interaction between the two networks that I am aware of. Think of it as a friend introducing someone. It is designed to explore the links between and within networks. It evokes the joy of connecting the analog to the digital, the spiritual to the physical.
What would it mean to be sent an email by a fungus? Does it make you think about the ‘person’ or ‘thing’ on the other side? How much plurality do you consider when establishing a connection?
Net Net already has an email address and you can be on it’s/their mailing list. Just send a blank email with ‘sub’ in the subject to NetNetFunguson@gmail.com.