In this article Newell uses two case studies to explore one of the central threads of Mbembe’s Abiola lecture, the idea that there is a relationship between the plasticity of digital technology and African cosmologies of the deuxième monde. One case concerns the viral YouTube video #sciencemustfall, in which students at the University of Cape Town criticize “Western” science and demand that African forms of knowledge such as witchcraft be incorporated into the meaning of science. The second case considers fieldwork among the brouteurs of Côte d’Ivoire, internet scammers who build intimate relationships on false premises using social media. They acquire shocking amounts of wealth in this way which they display on their own social media accounts. However, they are said to use occult means to seduce and persuade their virtual lovers, trapping their prey in the sticky allure of the world wide web. Newell uses both examples to highlight the overlaps between the transformational efficacies embedded in both occult ontologies and digital worldings, calling for the possibility of using African cosmologies of the second world to produce a ‘theory from the south’ of virtual sociality.

在本文中，Newell使用两个案例研究来探讨Mbembe在Abiola演讲中的核心思想之一，即数字技术的可塑性与deuxièmemonde的非洲宇宙论之间存在联系。一个案例涉及病毒性的YouTube视频#sciencemustfall，其中开普敦大学的学生批评“西方”科学，并要求将诸如巫术之类的非洲形式的知识纳入科学的含义。第二种情况考虑了布道尔人之间的野外工作网络诈骗者科特迪瓦的一员，他们使用社交媒体在虚假的前提下建立了亲密关系。他们以这种方式获得惊人的财富，并在自己的社交媒体帐户上显示。但是，据说他们使用神秘手段来诱引和说服他们的虚拟情人，将他们的猎物困在万维网的黏性诱惑中。纽厄尔使用这两个例子来强调隐匿于本体论和数字世界中的转换效率之间的重叠，呼吁使用第二世界的非洲宇宙论来产生虚拟社会性的“南方理论”。