It probably makes sense to start my blog with an explanation of what is meant by 'Autopoiesis' and why it is of interest to me (by the way, I will link to Wikipedia wherever possible to give readers the opportunity to find out more about the terms I use).

The word was first used biologists Francisco Varela and Humberto Maturana in 1973 to describe a 'system' that has the ability to regenerate and reproduce. The example they used in their work was that of the biological cell, which both maintains its structure over time and can make copies of itself.

Following Verela and Maturana's use of the term it was picked up by people working in other fields, including psychology and sociology, to describe phenomena that behave in similar ways.

The concept of autopoiesis has fascinated me as an artist ever since I first came across it and I have wanted to produce a major piece of work about it for a number of years.

I've just been given a Slingbox as an early birthday present! If your reaction to this is 'a what?', or you think I've been given a pair of casual trousers, then you really need to read on, you're in for a treat.

Simply put, a Slingbox lets you access your TV via the Internet. It has a video input and an a broadband connection (and a built-in Freeview tuner in the UK version) and lets you connect to it via a networked device such as a PC, Windows Mobile phone, or (soon) Macintosh.

This is quite cool, you can sit at work and watch News 24 on your PC or Windows phone during your break, or the kids can watch Cartoon Network in their rooms without the need for their own TV aerial etc., however, it really comes alive when you connect it to a hard disk video recorder, such as a Sky+ box.

With a Slingbox you have access to your personal TV anywhere. Not only can you watch TV at work, but you can catch up on that episode of 24 that you recorded last night, or you can set reminders via wi-fi when you are in a cafe. I can watch BBC Breakfast when in Bulgaria, then set Sky+ to record a programme mentioned, then watch the film I recorded last week, all via my laptop and network connection.

Now, if this still hasn't grabbed you (not everyone likes TV) I suggest that you think about the wider implications of the Slingbox approach to accessing your personal media and how it differs from, say, the iPod's. I think it's nothing short of revolutionary.

I was invited along to a presentation by Mia Makela aka SOLU at Modulate's studios in Birmingham on the 31st August.

It was a very interesting evening during which Mia presented her Master's thesis on 'Live Cinema', a term I have been hearing used for a while.

I've become wary of using expressions, such as 'Live Cinema', to describe my creative work for fear of jumping on bandwagons ('Live Multimedia' has always suited me). However, having heard Mia's explanation and history of the term I think it's one I might start using more often.

Download the PDF of Mia's thesis to find out more.

The 3-day Summer Sundae festival has come and gone for another year and yet again it was an excellent weekend of live music, attraction and great food and booze (all washed down, of course, with the occasional downpour of rain).

Friday night saw the Bathysphere stage play host to a fine mix of electronic and acoustic music.

The headliner was Plaid, but for me the two outstanding artists were Psapp from Domino Records, whose upbeat poptronica tunes and love of cats made a positive impression on me, and A Hawk and a Hacksaw (pictured), playing as a duo of violinist and accordion/percussionist.

Any artists who can play accordion whist hitting a cymbal with a drumstick protruding from a jingle-bells hat deserves respect in my books. As for AHAAH's music, an avant guard folky sound appealing to my Balkan sensibilities is probably the best way to describe it.

Well done to Bathysphere for selecting some great music for the night. My contribution was visuals for SofaLofa and The Buoys who also appeared on the bill.

On Saturday I had the pleasure of seeing favourites of mine Calexico play on the main stage. A fine set and an appreciative audience.

I had fancied seeing José González (of Sony Bravia advert fame) on Sunday, but did quite make it. I'm sure I'll get to see him at some point in the future.

It's also worth noting that Pineapster hosted the official Summer Sunday warm-up gig this year at the Firebug.

I'm looking forward to next year already...

P.S. I've just found out that Calexico are going to be supported by A Hawk and a Hacksaw on part of their forthcoming UK tour. Unmissable!

It's been a hot summer so far in the Cuttlefish office - although I've managed to miss most of it with my first two-week holiday in five years! I spent one week spent in rural Bulgaria reading and watching DVDs and another relaxing and sightseeing.

My favourite book of the break was most definitely "The Tree of Knowledge" by Humberto Maturana and Francisco Varela. Their radical approach to cognition from a systems perspective is quite amazing.

The best DVD I watched was "How Art Made The World" from the BBC. This series presents a fascinating perspective on why humans make art and how art makes us human. I also started re-watching Jacob Bronowski's classic BBC2 series "The Ascent of Man".

Just before I went away I had some good news relating to my creative work. From October I will be studying part-time towards a MA in Digital Arts at Camberwell College. This is a two-year practice-based course that I plan to use to help me move creative work forwards and to give me a good foundation for a follow-up PhD. I'll be posting more about this in the near future.

A few other things are worth reporting on. Pineapster 2.0 is nearing its beta release. Summer Sundae is less than two weeks away. My studio's almost back together following the Moving Science project. Finally, thinking back to my holiday, fresh sheep's milk tastes pretty good in tea!

It's taken a little time, but I've uploaded a selection of video clips and stills from the visuals I produced for the SofaLofa show at the National Space Centre in Leicester in March.

After a lucky find on an old hard disk I have been able to re-upload a complete version of Nemeton - The Shamen's Web site. I've given the site a bit of a tidy in order to remove broken links, but it is pretty much as it was when The Shamen split in 1999.

Cuttlefish - both a commercial side and arts site - has been working hard over the past few months on a number of new initiatives. These are now starting to see the light of day with the announcement of Leicester.TV and Pineapster 2.0. We will be releasing full information about these shortly - but take it from us, they're going to be good!

Resonance was an early digital arts group involving Geoff Broadway, Noel Douglas and Sean Clark. Geoff maintains an archive of some of our work on his Web site.

I went to see Chumbawamba play an acoustic set as part of the 'Big Session' festival at De Montfort Hall in Leicester on Sunday.

I've been something of a fan of the band for many years (in fact, I was amazed to realise that I bought my first Chumba album in 1988) and have seen them play as an 'electric' band many times. This, however, was the first time I'd seen them in this stripped-down formation.

While I still think nothing beats the full-on live electric Chumbawamba experience, the show was excellent. They mostly played stuff from the older 'Rebel Songs' and two most recent albums, and reminded me - if I needed reminding - just how good they are at mixing pop/folk with an uncompromising political message.