Il sé minimale e la tecnologia ibrida bio-macchinale: un contributo alla fenomenologia dell'incorporazione tecnologica

Summary

The article explores whether incorporating a machine into the body—specifically bio-machine hybrid technologies like biomimetic visual prostheses—affects the minimal self, the simplest sense of individual identity rooted in basic body structures. From a phenomenological perspective, it examines how prosthetics can be experienced as part of one's own body and whether this incorporation alters minimal self-experience. The discussion focuses on a case study of biomimetic visual prostheses, which benefit from advances in digital modeling of bodily signals and bio-integrated materials, to investigate this relationship.

Study at a glance

Abstract

This article contributes to ongoing research on the minimal self, i.e., the simplest config-uration of individual identity, which is rooted in basic body structures and schemes. The topic of minimal selfhood will be treated from a phenomenological perspective, focusing on issues of technology incorpora-tion. Some types of technology, such as prosthetics, are experienced by the user as part of her or his own body. Is there a phenomenologically relevant relationship between the incorporation of a machine and minimal self-experience? The question is crucial for a new generation of incorporable machines, known as bio-machine hybrid technology, which benefits from significant advances in digital modeling of bodily signals as well as research on bio-integrated materials. The article delves into the relationship between bio-machine hybrid technology and the minimal self by discussing a highly informative case study in the field of vision technology (biomimetic visual prostheses).