Architecture and Situated Technologies
A bit of delayed live-blogging for this conference in NYC…
Usman Haque was the first speaker and I didn’t think to begin blogging until Victor prompted me over iChat. I’m already doing a write-up for the conference for their evening session, but it’s going out only to the IDC mailing list.
One of the more (personally) interesting comments he made was “most people are familiar with Arduino”. Arduino, as you may know, originated out of IDII and the Wiring project, and it’s nice to see how far it’s gone.
^^^^
I’m going to take a different approach to this live-blogging format and just add stuff to the end: it gets a little too confusing for me to keep adding stuff to the beginning, and it is problematic when reading the final product as it becomes very Memento-esque.
Peter Hasdell is the next speaker. He’s talking about Second Nature and the Digital Wild. He’s shown potato and lemon radios, and some physical “creatures” that interact with people, basically asking the question of whether technology must be use-driven. What exists between scripted and unscripted behavior?
Personally, I find these interesting questions, but lacking in a particular…urgency. Obviously anything technological done on a small scale is more or less harmless, but once it scales to large-scale production, seemingly minor problems magnify: resource-use, electronic waste…
^^^^
Michael Fox is next. Why hasn’t architecture done more with engaging the future? is it a fascination with forms? The economics of R&D dictate innovation: architects don’t invent very often. What does R&D have to do with being visionary?
The format for this morning is very quick presentations followed by a group discussion, so there’s a lot of information flying around but not much in the followup at this point. Maybe the conversations will reveal more.
“How does the environment teach us to use it?” He’s got several examples of full-size, large scale prototypes that people can walk around and interact with, and learn from the process (both creators and users). One project is in LA where paired balloons react when people bump into them, deflating and inflating until the person leaves and the system returns to a state of rest.
Not experts, but know how to communicate design intent.
^^^^
Natalie Jeremijenko What’s the difference between a security camera and a camcorder? Unequal access to data: you can’t access the security data. Asymmetrical access…Her talk is basically looking at museums, the types of interactions within them, and the assumptions we currently hold about how to behave in museums.
I might note right now that the WiFi access at this venue, while appreciated, is HORRIBLE. I keep dropping my connection…I know my Powerbook has WiFi issues to begin with, but this is way beyond what I’d consider normal.
She’s showing off SoundSystem, the Tilty Table, and some other projects, talking about the differences in interactions with the devices based on the social resources around them at the moment.
^^^^
Post-lunch posting…
Anne Galloway – the panopticon, convenience and security, devolving management to the level of the consumer. Difficult to have recourse if there are no human beings attached to the process. Where do you locate responsibility and accountability? The citizen’s responsibility. “Power is a negotiation.” What kind of intermediaries are we talking about?
Anne has an abstract of her talk on her blog Purse Lip Square Jaw.
^^^^
Question session: fear is fear about belonging?
Well, the live-blogging isn’t working so good as the internet connection isn’t cooperating…so just some random notes I took while listening to the presenters….
Jonah Brucker-Cohen – the rsstroom reader
^^^^
“Karmen Franinovic”http://www.zero-th.org – Transforming behaviors through interactive art
^^^^
Richard Coyne – Voice as spatial determinant – how large the space, determined by how far the voice carries? Pantagruel’s encounter with frozen words: in space, cut off from being. I actually like the image this conjures as it reminds me of Beowulf for some reason, probably the concept of transition between the oral tradition and the onset of writing.
^^^^
Photos will be posted on Flickr.