Society Reset Button
Published:
Materials: Arduino C++ (code) on ESP32-2432S028R on polylactic acid (PLA) bioplastic (case) on Baomain 660V button (polypropylene); acrylic on aluminum
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The Society Reset Button is a speculative fictional device that satirizes technological solutionism. An official-looking sign invites you to press a red emergency stop button to reset Society, which is always capitalized as a singular proper noun. In English Legalese, it warns you of the liabilities and consequences you will incur if you decide to radically reconfigure Society. These also include accepting Society’s Terms and Conditions, which are not disclosed — nor are any details about what version of Society we will reset to if you press the button.
The device uses an ESP32 microcontroller and a small LCD screen, which displays an updating set of satirical metrics about the state of Society. The units of measurement are fictional and reflect absurd unmeasurable aspects, to precise digits: Oppression in pounds per square inch (PSI), Truth to Power as a ratio (so little Truth to speak to so much Power), Inequality in terms of Musks (Elon), the percentage of Privacy that is remaining, and the Moral Arc of the Universe in degrees (per Martin Luther King, Jr.’s maxim that it is long, but bends towards justice). The device also tracks the number of reset attempts.
A flashing cursor invites the participant to reset Society by pressing the button. Can this technological device really give this Society the reset that we all deserve? See what happens when you press the button…