This summer, the University of Tartu’s International Summer University will host two semiotics courses, Juri Lotman: A Basic Introduction and Contemporary Applications, and Semiotics, Pop Culture, Animals and the Environment. Both will be great opportunities to expand your semiotic knowledge while visiting one of the field’s leading centres. However, hurry, as the application deadline is 30 April 2023! Some […]
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The Struggles of a Wanna-be Tartuvian Semiotician – Blog entry #38 A Llama Among Alpacas After hours, days, even weeks of hard work, I was waiting with googly eyes in front of my laptop screen for a response about my submitted masterpiece. A beautiful work, enticing and intricately structured. Endearing words were expected, but I […]
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(English language CFP below) Kaaskirjade saatmise üleskutse “Hortus Semioticuse” erinumbri jaoks (EST PDF) Nagu väitis Hollandi sotsioloog Frederik L. Polak (1972), ühiskond ilma positiivse tulevikunägemuseta viitab hääbuvale ühiskonnale. Kuigi Polaki 20. sajandi keskpaigale keskendunud töö kontekst on ainulaadne, omades suuresti negatiivseid tulevikukujutlusi (Hicks 2004), ei saa globaliseerumise ja kiire tehnoloogilise arengu kontekstis ülehinnata mitmekesiste tulevike uurimise […]
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“Es como si la conciencia retrocediese al momento precedente a la explosión, e interpretase retrospectivamente todo lo sucedido. El proceso en desarrollo es realmente sustituido por este modelo, generado por la conciencia de un partícipe de la acción. Sobreviene una transformación retrospectiva”. (Lotman, 1999 [1993]: 16) La explosión de la Lotmanósfera A un siglo del […]
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By Rahul Murdeshwar Orcid ID: 0000-0002-3766-6565 The following paper was written for the 2022 Readings of J. v. Uexküll lectures held by Riin Magnus at the University of Tartu. The concept of umwelt, or the subjective world of an individual organism, can also be applied to artificial intelligence (AI). Just as different organisms have unique […]
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By Thorolf Johannes Van Walsum I started to understand cats around seven months ago. It happened in the days immediately prior to leaving Canada for Tartu, Estonia. Up in Ottawa saying goodbye to my friends at home, I was high in a concrete apartment building. Josh and his girlfriend were arguing about expenses. Luna, Josh’s […]
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I always hated roller coasters; I remember kids – schoolmates – being excited about these death machines, but just the thought of being in one made me nauseous. What is the benefit of being tied down into a chair of a train-like vehicle that runs at high speed, throwing your body back and forth, upwards […]
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New issue of the online journal Hortus Semioticus is out! This celebratory issue of Hortus Semioticus honors the tenth time that students and young academics of Semiotics have published their works covering a wide range of topics and subfields and enriching the scope of our field of knowledge. The first of the three articles to consist of […]
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By Thorolf Johannes Van Walsum As I stepped into the room, a wholesome set of eyes swivelled, turned, peered and glimpsed out from their lounging perches amid the chairs and couches. The first material I was impressed with by the December 16th holiday party of philosophers and semioticians was their magnificent collection of held breaths. […]
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By Ana Marić I see the glass glass statue on the floor. Glass…fragileness…clarity…art…gorgon’s piece I am taking the statue and smashing it against the wall Shattering…cutting…tearing apart…dent in the wall I notice an ember leaf on the surface of the river Autumn vibes…wind’s hands…the fluent guidance…panta rei Suddenly, a river devoured the leaf and leaf […]
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