Pigford: Extra credit

Andrew Zahn

Pigford: Installation

            I found her installations smart and informed, as well as simple and fun. The first piece consisted of one computer hard drive triggered by a motion sensor. When I approached the piece, the HD started to spin. I felt the wind produced by it on my face. I feel this installation as about humans interacting and using information. It could have been improved if it sensed how long you stood in front of it and maybe spun faster the longer you stand in front of it.

            The second piece consisted of several dozen computer HD’s, all spinning at different rates and times. This was also triggered by a low cost motion sensor. When no one is in the gallery space, the piece goes silent. The clacking sounds begin as you step into the space, and more and more HD’s are triggered as you walk near the piece. This piece could be improved with more specific sensing through a more sophisticated motion sensor (maybe an ultrasonic sensor). This piece was also about the information age, but it better conveyed the idea of multiple layers of information and large numbers of users in society using high tech memory and storage.

            The final piece was a sound piece. It consisted of about a dozen wooden mallets triggered by a single push button. A single press triggered a short sequence of mallets playing. The longer I pressed the button, the long the sequence, and more complicated the pattern. I felt that the user would be better served if they were to press the button once and only one mallet triggered. This way the user could discover the patterns more slowly. Or if the user was able program their own sequence with a record function, it would improve the interactivity of the piece.

 

 

 

Final: See DVD

Learning log 6:B Future of Design

They speak about "SPIME" objects, they define them as, "Networked, context aware, self monitoring, and self documenting." Wearables - sensor heavy technology that we bring with us wherever we are. Soon, this type of technology is be so integrated into our society that we will  no longer notice them. This is part of what they define as "UBICOMP" - Ubiquitous computing that is EVERYWHERE. Everything (almost) will have this feature, a networked society that is self-aware and intelligent. 

I hope to live long enough to see they day that a computer is almost a clone of the human brain... This time is coming - Ray Kurzweil calls this "The Singularity" - the moment that machines become self-aware. 

Learning log 6:A Future of Design

I found interesting how they speak about computer moving from behind monitors to all around us. I have always been fascinated with future technology and the way our society is adapting with it. The reading talks about robots preforming tasks that humans preform normally. Also about artificial intelligence. I am a big fan of Ray Kurzweil, and the inevitable merger of humans and robots. As he predicts, we will eventually merge into one, indistinguishable entity. This is what they are getting at in the reading. 

All areas of our lives are changing at a rapid, accelerating rate, due to technology. The IPHONE, and other portable, wireless technology is proof that this is coming faster than we previously thought.