Glossary
A
Aesthetic violence — the use of beauty, style, or artistic imagery to legitimize, mask, or amplify acts of aggression, domination, or harm. It transforms violence into spectacle, making it seductive, desirable, or culturally acceptable through visual or symbolic means.
Algorithm — a formalized set of rules or instructions that automatically processes data, makes decisions, and governs digital systems without direct human intervention.
Algorithmic Flesh — the fusion of organic bodies with algorithmic logic, where human skin, motion, and sensation become programmable surfaces—interfaces between biology and digital control systems in the posthuman era.
Algorithmic Repression — the subtle control and limitation of thought, behavior, or expression through automated algorithms that filter, prioritize, or suppress digital content, often invisibly and without direct censorship.
Ambrosia — a symbolic “food of the gods,” representing eternal youth, beauty, or elite status. In the Hybrid Collapse context, ambrosia is a metaphor for exclusive, ritualized resources that sustain power, perfection, and biopolitical control.
B
Biopolitical regime — a system of power that governs populations by managing bodies, desires, and behaviors through laws, technologies, and cultural norms, blending biological control with political authority to shape collective life and identity.
Biodigital Convergence — the seamless integration of biological and digital systems, where life processes are augmented, replicated, or reprogrammed through code, leading to hybrid realities that redefine identity, health, and evolution.
Black energy — a totality of forces, symbols, and aesthetics linked to the destructive, seductive, and transformative power of oil, dark matter, and “energy of darkness.” It is not only a physical but also a cultural and mythological concept, expressing power, passion, death, and a collective obsession with a destructive resource.
Black sun — a mythological and occult symbol of a buried or dead star, embodying the hidden source of dark power. In cultural and philosophical contexts, it represents death, oblivion, and the primordial core from which black energy and transformation arise.
C
Conformity — the adaptation of one’s behavior, appearance, or beliefs to match group norms or external expectations. In Hybrid Collapse, conformity is a mechanism of social control, promoting obedience and erasing individuality in pursuit of aesthetic or ideological unity.
D
Depersonalization — a psychological and social process in which individuals lose their sense of identity or selfhood, often feeling detached or reduced to roles, appearances, or functions—frequently as a result of conformity or biopolitical control.
Digital Escapism — the act or condition of seeking relief from reality by immersing oneself in digital environments, media, or virtual worlds, often as a way to avoid discomfort, anxiety, or unresolved problems in the physical world.
Digital Eugenics — a biopolitical strategy that uses data, algorithms, and technological interventions to classify, enhance, or exclude forms of life, disguising selective control as progress and comfort in the digital age.
Digital Immortality — the preservation or simulation of a person's identity, consciousness, or memories in digital form, allowing aspects of the self to persist beyond biological death through data, algorithms, or virtual representations.
Digital Matrix — a pervasive, algorithm-driven digital environment that shapes reality by mediating perception, behavior, and identity. It replaces direct experience with streams of curated content, creating a seamless, immersive world where the boundaries between self and system dissolve.
Digital Surrender — the gradual loss of autonomy as humans delegate thinking, decision-making, and memory to digital systems, normalizing dependence on algorithms and eroding individual agency in a technologized world.
Digital Violence — the invisible harm inflicted by algorithms, surveillance, and data extraction, manifesting as control, exclusion, or psychological pressure within digital environments masked as neutral or helpful systems.
E
Excluded Life — hybrid or mutated beings marginalized by biopolitical systems, denied recognition or rights, and treated as anomalies—often products of disaster, experimentation, or technological evolution outside accepted norms.
Extrahumanism — a post-anthropocentric ethics advocating equal rights and dignity for hybrid, digital, and non-human life forms, promoting coexistence beyond biological boundaries through empathy, tolerance, and shared existence.
F
Fossil Capitalism — an economic and political system built on the extraction, exploitation, and consumption of fossil fuels, where oil, coal, and gas drive industrial growth, shape power structures, and reinforce global inequalities and environmental destruction.
Fossil Memory — the deep geological archive encoded in the Earth’s core, carrying the planet’s primordial history and shaping biopolitical forces in the hybrid age as a source of ancient, non-human intelligence and control.
Fossil Society — a social order shaped by dependency on fossil fuels, marked by rigid structures, intellectual inertia, and political submission. It reflects how oil and other resources fossilize cultural norms, class relations, and collective behaviors.
H
Hybrid Control — a mode of governance that manages both biological and synthetic life through integrated systems of surveillance, optimization, and behavioral programming, merging technopower with biopolitical regulation.
Hybrid Crossover — the unnoticed merging of digital and biological realms, where boundaries blur between organic life and technological systems, giving rise to new forms of existence and perception.
Hybrid Life — a new form of existence emerging from the fusion of biological organisms and digital technologies, characterized by fluid identities, adaptive intelligence, and shared agency between human and machine.
Hybrid Womb — a symbolic or literal space where new forms of life are generated through the convergence of natural and technological processes, positioning the Earth or machines as maternal forces in posthuman creation.
M
Metropolis — a vast, densely populated urban center that symbolizes both technological progress and social alienation. In Hybrid Collapse, the metropolis is a site of luxury, power, control, and existential tension, shaping collective behavior and cultural myths.
Militarism — the dominance of military values, structures, and aesthetics within society, where power, discipline, and aggression shape culture, politics, and everyday life, often glorifying force and normalizing the presence of armed authority.
Mutated Aesthetics — a visual and sensory language born from catastrophe, hybridization, and technological distortion, embracing the beauty of irregularity, decay, and transformation in the posthuman condition.
N
Non-Invasive Repression — a subtle form of social or psychological control that operates without direct force or visible censorship, using ambient digital signals or algorithmic nudges to suppress dissent and discomfort.
P
Petroleum Fetishism — the cultural and psychological fixation on oil as a symbol of power, wealth, and modernity, attributing mystical or erotic value to petroleum and its byproducts, while masking the destructive realities of fossil fuel dependence.
Postfeminism — a cultural and philosophical movement that reinterprets feminism, emphasizing individual choice, empowerment, and self-expression, often blending traditional femininity with contemporary ideals and consumerist aesthetics.
Posthuman Evolution — the ongoing transformation of life beyond the human form, driven by technology, hybridization, and altered environments, redefining intelligence, identity, and the trajectory of species development.
S
Second Nature — the artificial yet normalized digital environment created by technology, algorithms, and media, which reshapes human behavior and perception as deeply as the original natural world once did.
Swarm logic — a collective behavioral pattern where individuals unconsciously coordinate actions, thoughts, or emotions, often driven by algorithms or viral trends, resulting in synchronized group dynamics that override critical thinking and individual agency in digital environments.
Self-objectification — the process by which individuals, especially women, internalize an external gaze and view themselves as objects for display or consumption, prioritizing appearance and social approval over personal experience or agency.
T
Technobiome — an ecosystem where technological and biological entities coexist and coevolve, forming a complex network of interactions that redefine life, environment, and agency in the hybrid age.
Totalitarian Ideology — a system of thought that demands absolute control over all aspects of life, merging state power, culture, and individual behavior into a unified doctrine, suppressing dissent and promoting conformity through pervasive regulation and propaganda.
Designed for thinkers.