- What risks do we face from the militarisation of cyber space and outer space?
- Is increased cyber security undermining the liberties and values we want to protect?
- Are artists the first line of defence?
- Does capitalist society really value the arts?
These are just some of the questions leading choreographer and champion of the arts Rosie Kay will be addressing with a wide-ranging panel of experts from the arts, academia, journalism and the military in The Mind is the Frontline – which is part of Army@TheFringe.
In 2010 Rosie Kay created the seminal dance work 5 Soldiers – The Body is The Frontline which explored the realities of combat and the impact on those sent into battle. A decade on she asks if we face new dangers, with the threat of outright physical combat morphing into a permanent Cold War of fake news, disinformation and deliberately manufactured conspiracy theories being used to sow distrust and undermine democracy.
On 10 and 11 August she will host a series of hybrid, in-person and live streamed, panel discussions entitled The Mind is the Frontline. One of the key issues being examined is the role of the arts and of artists, who have traditionally forewarned societies of the dangers they face and the follies they commit.
Topics for discussion include:
- Global security versus personal freedoms – a false dichotomy? Exploring the tension between military, state and capitalistic information technologies.
- Army and the new body soldier: Where does the body meet technology?
- Surveillance and Data – who is watching whom?
- Fiction meets Reality – dystopian concern about the breakdown of the old world order.
- Is the mind the new frontline? Propaganda, conspiracy, coercion and ethics.
There will also be an emphasis on the changing nature of conflict, as forces are no longer restricted to land, sea and air but are increasingly facing each other in cyber space and outer space.
The list of speakers features:
- James Arroyo- Director, The Ditchley Foundation
- Roman Baca – former Navy Marine, choreographer, junior research scientist and data architect
- Kenneth Cukier – Senior Editor, The Economist author of Big Data: A Revolution that Will Transform How We Work, Live and Think
- Jonzi D – Founder and Artistic Director of Breakin Convention
- Dr Linda Dubrow-Marshall, Head of Psychology, University of Salford
- Hasah Elahi – Professor and Director School of Art, George Mason University
- Eli Lee author of A Strange and Brilliant Light
- Lt Col Gordon Mackenzie – Head of Engagement, Army in Scotland
- Dr Nicholas Marquez-Grant- Lecturer in Forensic Anthropology, Cranfield Forensic Institute
- Dr Alice Konig – Senior Lecturer in Classics at the University of St Andrews
- Harry Parker- former soldier, author of Anatomy of a Soldier
- Professor Frank Pollick – Professor of Psychology, University of Glasgow
- Nicholas Reys – Partner, Control Risk, Head of global cyber and online threat intelligence practice
- Leo Selvaggio – visual /tech artist, Bro
- Sydney Skybetter – choreographer, speaker and consultant
- Professor Sir Hew Strachan FBA, FRSE – Professor of International Relations at the University of St. Andrews
- Susannah Wise, author of This Fragile Earth and actor
Tickets are available from Edfringe.com or https://www.armyatthefringe.org.
