Numerical representation is one of Lev Manovich’s five features of New Media. The term refers to the fact that all new media objects are composed of digital code, like binary, which is the primary language that computers use. According to Lev Manovich, this numerical representation has two key consequences:

1) New media objects can be described formally, or mathematically.

2) New media objects can be manipulated using algorithms. In other words, they can be programmed.

Moreover, numerical representation is essentially a universal language that underlies all new media objects, whether they have been originally created on computers, or have been digitally converted from analog forms of media. As a “basic, ‘material’ principle of new media” (Manovich 63), numerical representation is the technological basis for other principles of new media: Modularity, Automation, and Variability. It is even relevant to the process of Cultural Transcoding, because of its role in the “computer layer” of new media, which interacts with the “cultural layer”.

Works Cited:

Manovich, Lev. “Principles of New Media.” The Language of New Media. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2002. 63. Web.

Works Consulted:

Manovich, Lev. “Principles of New Media.” The Language of New Media. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2002. Web.