Digital Cash! is a two-day conference on the past and future of electronic payment at the University of California, Los Angeles, September 27-28, 2014 in Decafe, Perloff Hall.
Todayâs discussions about electronic currency often focus on the obsolescence of traditional institutions such as the federal reserves and credit companies. Itâs said that the old world of brick and mortar banks, paper cash, and plastic cards is disappearing â and the future is bitcoins, P2P infrastructures, and e-cash served through dotcom companies and mobile phone carriers.
But we have heard these stories before. Like jet-packs, flying cars and trips to mars, digital cash is a relic of the past and a constantly renewed promise from the future. Thatâs why this conference gathers together humanities scholars, engineers, and science fiction authors, all focused on the past and future of payment. Together guests will explore the historical legacy of payment systems â from conventional cash and credit, to prototype experiments with digital currency â alongside the speculative representations and explorations of science fiction in novels, film and games.
Schedule
Saturday â Decafe, Perloff Hall
9:00 â 9:30 â Coffee and tea
9:30 â 11:00 â Legacies of Digital Payment
11:15 â 12:45 â Futures and Speculative Currencies
12:45 â 1:30 â Lunch
1:30 â 3:00 â Politics and Power in Payment Systems
3:15 â 4:45 â Dangers, Alternatives, and Experiments in Online Currency
Sunday â Decafe, Perloff Hall
9:30 â 10:00 â Coffee and teach
10:00 â 11:00 â Glowpearls, Ingots, and Mana â Currency in Other Worlds
11:00 â 12:30 â Brunch with Books
12:30 â 12:45 â Break
12:45 â 2:00 â Digital Cash and the State
PARTICIPANTS: Amelia Acker, Tom Boellstorff, Finn Brunton, Anumpam Chander Steve Crocker, Julian Dibbell, Kevin Driscoll, Virginia Eubanks, Alex Golub, Sandra Harding, Christopher Kelty, Greg Lastowka, Bill Maurer, Jennifer Mnookin, Matt Novak, Anita Ramasastry, Ron Rivest, Allan Schiffman, Karl Schroeder, Emin GÃn Sirer, David Stearns, Lana Swartz, and Sherryl Vint.
Sponsored by the University of California Humanities Research Institute and the UCLA Computer Science Departmentâs Kleinrock Center for Internet Studies, along with the NSF-Funded Participation Lab at the Institute of Society and Genetics, the Department of Information Studies, and the UCLA Law Schoolâs Program on Understanding Law, Science and Evidence.
To register, write to
msmorgancurrie@ucla.edu.