This week, we touched on the subject: Cyberspace, Cybernetics and Cyberpunk.
According to Webopedia,the term was coined by author William Gibson in his sci-fi novel Neuromancer(1984). Cyperspace is a metaphor for describing the non-physical terrain created by computer systems. In simple terms, unlike real space, cyberspace does not require any physical movement other than pressing keys on a keyboard or moving a mouse.
Cybernetics on the other hand can be described as the study systems of command, control and communication in machines and animals. Today, cybernetics is closely affiliated with artificial intelligence and robotics.
An example of cybernetic system is a modern flush toilet. Contrary to popular belief that cybernetics is all about cyborgs, robots and all things electronic; I realized it is much more than that. In average term, cybernetics means half-human, half-machine but it functions in both ways where the machine uses living organs to function and the living organs using the machine to function.
Cyberpunk as what the name suggested is the combination of Cybenetics and Punk (as in the music genre). It is a science fiction genre based in possibilities inherent in computers, genetics, body modifications and corporate developments in the near future (Griffith Lecture notes).
Cyberpunk is not complete without the element of gritty aesthetic, high technology, questionable morality, and hybrid genre.
William Gibson is a US/Canadian writer whose main works focuses on “cyberspace” and “virtual reality”. He was known for taking ideas from science and theory and reinventing them. Although he is not an easy writer to understand, he provides reader with few clues to understand what is going on.
Below is the link of an online timeline containing the work of William Gibson.
William Gibson Key Works
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