Call

Doubles permeate literature, poetry, art and everyday language, conveying complexity, irony or profound symbolism by presenting contrasting or harmonious elements within a single idea. They provoke paradox, reflection and a multiplicity of perspectives, inviting us to unravel different layers of meaning.

A double, in the figurative sense, refers to a situation, concept or expression that has two possible interpretations. It often involves duality or ambiguity, allowing for multiple perceptions. What happens when we transpose this notion of the double into the digital realm, precisely in the context of a digital transition that affects the way we build, govern, imagine and conceptualize cities and urban systems? Rather than aiming for an intricate and precise virtual representation of a given system, as digital twins or replicas do, we will use the concept of doubling – that is, the duplication of meanings and virtual representations of physical objects or systems – to disrupt conventional thinking in engineering, manufacturing, fabrication, urban development, policy-making and education.

This workshop seeks to situate Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) within the current landscape of urban affairs and knowledge, moving beyond speculative notions of automated urban futures. It explores the real-world applications and implications of AI and ML in research and policy contexts, covering areas such as digital fabrication, transport, energy management, public health and participatory governance. By grounding the discussion in the present, the workshop aims to highlight the tangible ways in which these technologies are already shaping cities around the world. In addition, the workshop will emphasize the importance of considering the ethical, social and economic implications of the use of AI and ML in urban research, applications and environments, and how responsible governance and community engagement work in this field.

• We seek contributions that address, but are not limited to the following reflections:
• Exploring the impact of AI on urban studies, science, architecture and planning
• Tracing historical influences on future urban scenarios
• The significance of visualisations in digital planning
• Leveraging visualizations for enhanced digital urban planning
• AI’s integration into computational and smart urban trends
• Reimagining simulations beyond performance replication
• Challenging assumptions about urban existence and interactions
• Examining epistemic shifts in probabilistic urban systems
• Unveiling the nature of Digital Doubles in urban analysis
• Investigating the physical presence of Digital Doubles
• Exploring cultural and technological interactions through human-like digital figures

We invite doctoral students and early/mid career researchers to participate in a 2-day symposium exploring emerging intersections of artificial intelligence, machine learning, urban studies, urban planning, and architectural and urban history. We encourage candidates from diverse backgrounds in architecture, the arts, humanities, social sciences, information science, engineering, and design to apply. An ability to converse across disciplinary perspectives is essential.

To apply for the symposium, please submit a 300-500 word abstract with relevant references (references not included in the word limit) to dario.neguerueladelcastillo@uzh.ch and julio.paulos@arch.ethz.ch by 30 June.

Timeline

• Abstracts due by 22 July, 2024
• Notification of acceptance by 1 August, 2024

For any questions regarding the symposium, please contact Darío Negueruela del Castillo (dario.neguerueladelcastillo@uzh.ch) and Julio Paulos (julio.paulos@arch.ethz.ch)

Co-organized by Digital Visual Studies, a Max Planck Society project hosted at the University of Zurich, and ETH Future Cities Lab, Digital Double 2024 is hosted by the Bibliotheca Hertziana – Max Planck Institute for Art History, in Rome, one of the most recognized institutions in its field, giving us an invaluable chance to get to know its assets and interact with its staff and researchers.

The symposium is offered at no cost upon application and selection. The travel, accommodation, and food costs will be covered individually by the participants themselves.

Program

Symposium. October 24-25, 2024

Bibliotheca Hertziana – Max Planck Institute for Art History, Rome
Organized by Dr. Julio Paulos (FCL/ETH) and Dr. Darío Negueruela del Castillo (DVS/UZH)

Location: Villino Stroganoff, via gregoriana 22, 00187 Rome

Thursday 24th

13:45 Arrival to location (coffee)

14:00-14:30 Welcome and Introduction

Talk Nicolo’ Guariento, FCLl, ETHZ

14:30-15:30 Paper presentations. Cluster AI, Climate Change and Urban Growth

1. “Climate-Smart Urban Health Solutions: an ethical reflection” by Joanna Sleigh, Shannon Hubbs, Eirini Petrou
2. “(AI2) Artificial Intuition & Augmented Intelligence: Informing City Architectonics Complexity with Machine Learning Visualizations over Graz’s Latentscapes, in Austria” by Carlos Marchi

15:30-15:45 Pause

15:45-17:05 Paper presentations. Cluster AI and Urban Planning/Design

1. “Metabolic AI” by Nour Alkhaja
2. “Urban engineering in the wake of AI: a case for liveability” by Dr. M Cavada
3. “Exploring the Duality of Digital Doubles in Urban Design and Pedagogy” by Dr. Asma Mehan

17:15 – 17:45 Visit to the Bibliotheca Hertziana

18:00        Keynote lecture

20:00         Dinner

Friday 25th

09:00-09:30 Welcome back

Talk Darío Negueruela del Castillo

09:30-11:15 Paper presentations. Cluster Digital Representation and Urban Simulation.

1. “Meta-Urban Imaginaries – Exploring and Shaping Architectural Narrative in Immersive Post-Internet Realities” by Ian Nazareth and Ebbe Vandenberghe
2. “”What If” Infrastructure: Critically Understanding Digital Twins and the Geographies of Delegation in Transportation Networks” by Harrison Smith
3. “Using objective data to plan a space: the challenges of the SPACIOUS project” by Marie-Alix Molinié-Andlauer et al.
4. “Prompts & Provenance: Decoding Digital Geographies – AI’s Interpretation and Our Exploration of Global Localities” by Judd Smith & Virginia Zangs

11:15-11:30 Pause

11:30-12:50 Paper presentations: Cluster  Social and Ethical Implications of AI in Urban Spaces

1. “The Crowd and Its Double” by Simon Terrill
2. “The Arrogation” by Judith Igelsböck
3. “Playing with Digital Doubles : The Ambivalence of Spatial Practices in the Age of Digital Simulation”, by Tyler Reigeluth

13:00-14:00 Lunch Break

14:00-14:30 Lecture Arup Italy

14:30- 15:30 Workshop Round Table (open)

15:30-15:45 Pause

15:45-17:30 Workshop Scenario Play (open)

17:45 End of the Symposium

Organizing Institutions

Bibliotheca Hertziana – Max Planck Institute for Art History, in Rome, promotes scientific research in the field of Italian and global history of art and architecture. Established as a private foundation by Henriette Hertz (1846–1913), it was inaugurated in 1913 as a research center of the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gesellschaft. Today, the Bibliotheca Hertziana is part of the Human Sciences Section of the Max Planck Society and is considered one of the world’s most renowned research institutes for art history

Digital Visual Studies, is a cooperative project funded by the Max Planck Society and hosted by the University of Zurich, starting January 2020. The project’s aim is to establish Digital Visual Studies to expand Art History towards the Digital Humanities, modernize its methodologies, and contribute to forming a first generation of Digital Visual Humanists. The project includes Predoctoral Fellows, Postdoctoral Fellows and Visiting Fellows, who work in the areas of visual, textual, spatiotemporal and multimodal research. Digital Visual Studies is connected with a national and international network of partner institutions and digital initiatives. This cooperative project seeks to generate avant-garde research and methodological, technical, and intellectual innovation.

Future Cities Laboratory (FCL) Global is a research collaboration between ETH Zurich and the Singapore universities – National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) – with support from the National Research Foundation (NRF). It operates under the auspices of the Singapore-​ETH Centre (SEC).