Between Mean Time

Felix Kalmenson traces the story of gutta-percha, a natural thermoplastic resin extracted from plants native to Singapore and Malaysia which was used for the coating of submarine telegraph cables. In making possible the first near-instantaneous planetary-scale communication systems, gutta-percha contributed to the expansion and maintenance of colonial power. Exploring local ecologies, as well as the histories of use, trade and eventual depletion of gutta-percha, the essay maps the temporality of technological and capitalist development against the metabolic cycles of nature.