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Intro Phys Comp | Journal Entry 8| November 8, 2001
Thinking about the final project
There are three main ideas I’m tossing around
right now for the final, and I need to make a decision soon.
1) The Magic Jello Fortune Telling Device
The Magic Jello Fortune Telling Device uses the jiggles of two pieces
of jello to deliver a wavering, indecisive ‘fortune.’ Essentially,
when asked a question, it repeats over and over again ‘yes’
’no’ and ’maybe’ depending on the input from the collisions
of two conductive pieces of jello over a dynamically determined unit of
time. This is essentially the jello switch I showed in class hooked up
to some sound chips. The user approaches the device and asks it a question
‘through the intercom.’ The device inputs how long the intercom
button has been held down and sends that data to a motor that jiggles
the two jello pieces for the same amount of time and registers how many
times they collided. The result outputs a spoken ‘fortune.’
2) The Flock
The Flock is a continuation of the midterm. It takes the same autonomic-seeming
behaviors, but simplifies them. These behaviors are implemented in a ’flock’
of furry Beasties, each of which reacts to stimuli from users and from
its neighbors. The behaviors are simpler, but the results, multiplied
in a group, are correspondingly more complex.
3) The Furry Chair
The Furry Chair is also a continuation of the midterm. It takes the behaviors
of the Beastie and maps them onto a large, comfortable-seeming chair.
Sitting in the chair displaces gel in sensors, which causes the chair
to react to the movement of the body within it, hopefully in an exceedingly
disconcerting fashion. There are a couple of new techniques I want to
try out with the chair, including sensors that measure weight and placement
by displacing gel from networks of tubes that users sit on, and latex
‘skin’ that has gel-filled ’veins’ that, when squeezed,
also complete a circuit. The latex skin idea also has the potential to
create some very disquieting aesthetic effects, mimicking as it can the
texture of human flesh.
Here’s the deal:
I’m not totally excited by the jello idea — I’ve already
tried it out. However, I have already written most of the code for the
project as I was futzing around last week with the jello, and I’m
fairly sure it would work and that I could construct a funny interface
for it without so much trouble. Which would be relaxing, given the amount
of work I have. One of my goals for the class is to construct a finished
project — not just a nice-looking-but-nonfunctional prototype or
an aesthetically-sloppy-but-functionally-okay presentation. This has proven
to be harder than I thought, so the idea of a simple, fun project is kind
of appealing.
However, I think the furry stuff is more interesting in a longterm way.
I like the idea of constructing a flock of weird little Beasties that
interact with the user and with each other; I like the idea of creating
organic-seeming group dynamics with my squishy friends. It seems fitting.
But I’m also really excited by the Furry Chair, because it is the
most potentially affecting of the lot. I especially like that it does
not attempt to ‘please’ or charm the user. Like any living thing,
it should follow its own rules and communicate as clearly as possible
in its own fashion. A lot of research goes into making organic or living
objects more ‘wired’ and controllable in behavior (cf those
robot dog toys); I think it’s interesting to try and make something
that is wired seem (and in its internal structures perhaps be)
unpredictable and organic. Interactive furniture that tries to please
or amuse us would be useful and/or fun, but interactive furniture that
recognizes our presence but obeys its own rules might be creepily enlightening.
Suggestions? Comments? Please please please advise.
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