Mapping immaterial flows : how consumption invisibilizes labor : the satellite and shipping container

The kiosk system went down and everyone missed their flight. I had this experience recently at Chicago O’Hare International airport when I was flying to Austin. It affirmed the importance of understanding networks and how their working (or in this case, the lack thereof) immobilizes goods and people. Usually, when you check in for a flight, there is a kiosk, a station where you can print out your ticket, bag tags, and receipt. This automation of airline customers and their luggage is routine and due to its speed, allows a lot more people to obtain services. A standard of speed and ease of access is therefore coupled and expected. When this automation is no longer available, people lose their shit or more elegantly stated, the artifice of entitlement becomes gruesomely apparent. I understand everyone has a place to go and we won’t get their soon enough. However, the system is down and the airline workers are doing their best. Of course, once the network is back in place, the kiosks will resume operation and yes, they will arrange a later flight. But in a global economy where networked spaces are equated solely to make money at an expedient pace, how do we get people to understand other ways to respond to a malfunction? The common assumption is that systems are supposed to be perfect and a glitch or a malfunction is an exception, however it is quite the reverse. What if networks weren’t based on dualism? The binary being either: an all digital internet of everything kind of space or a cyberpunk infused reversion to the analog. Instead, what should be thought of and put into place is a multiplicity of network configurations such as A to Z, alif to bari yay, 1 to a 1000, uno to millón. This is what I propose in my research and arts practice: how do we build multiplicity and equity in systems? Networks are not arbitrarily put into place, they have funders, users, buyers, beneficiaries, and losers involved. Therefore, they are porous flows, exchanges, and axioms, always open to change. My research lies in between histories of media, technology, and globalization. I investigate these themes through performance, sculptural installations, reading groups, and workshops that focus on the role of technology. Specifically, my practice is focused on objects that are produced from global circuits and their embedded codes, encompassing both the technological and sociological. I investigate the history of objects such as the satellites and shipping containers and make immaterial streams tangible. The specific objects of the satellite and shipping container carry information that frames notion of historic and present day globalization facilitated by technology. The sections of this text are not necessary meant to be read sequentially, there are organized like nodes. In the first node, I will examine the role of satellites in my projects, Satellites and TELL A STAR. Satellites project examines Our World, the first global transmission (1967) through a sculptural installation, video and website. This project critiques the notion of techno-utopianism, a idea that technology will resolve all inequalities plaguing humanity. Then, I will review TELL A STAR, a 3-channel installation, where I divert the history of the first American satellite, Telstar (1962) through the lens of Afrofuturism, archival research and fluidity of identity. In the second node, I will review my project, Con-tain-er, its installation and performative elements and the role of “flows” within global shipping networks. Near the ending node, the role of networks, “junk,” and the use of workshops will be examined as part of my arts practice. Demanding the creation of more inclusive and divergent networks is central to imagining fluidity. It is within reach, we need to imagine it.Studio Ar

Wire mesh design

We present a computational approach for designing wire meshes, i.e., freeform surfaces composed of woven wires arranged in a regular grid. To facilitate shape exploration, we map material properties of wire meshes to the geometric model of Chebyshev nets. This abstraction is exploited to build an efficient optimization scheme. While the theory of Chebyshev nets suggests a highly constrained design space, we show that allowing controlled deviations from the underlying surface provides a rich shape space for design exploration. Our algorithm balances globally coupled material constraints with aesthetic and geometric design objectives that can be specified by the user in an interactive design session. In addition to sculptural art, wire meshes represent an innovative medium for industrial applications including composite materials and architectural façades. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach using a variety of digital and physical prototypes with a level of shape complexity unobtainable using previous methods

Dynamic Composite Data Physicalization Using Wheeled Micro-Robots

This paper introduces dynamic composite physicalizations, a new class of physical visualizations that use collections of self-propelled objects to represent data. Dynamic composite physicalizations can be used both to give physical form to well-known interactive visualization techniques, and to explore new visualizations and interaction paradigms. We first propose a design space characterizing composite physicalizations based on previous work in the fields of Information Visualization and Human Computer Interaction. We illustrate dynamic composite physicalizations in two scenarios demonstrating potential benefits for collaboration and decision making, as well as new opportunities for physical interaction. We then describe our implementation using wheeled micro-robots capable of locating themselves and sensing user input, before discussing limitations and opportunities for future work

Design of freeform membrane -tensegrity structure

Inspired by a lightweight, and tectonically decent pavilion, MOOM pavilion in Japan, this thesis study explores a digital approach to transform an existing physical structure into a digital computational model by following the principle behind in order to explore and generalize the principle and develop a generic digital tool for designing freeform membrane-tensegrity structures in architecture. Through generalize the regulations behind the existing structure and the generic digital tool development, the way of designing the same type of structure could be more efficient, logical and free. In this thesis, a generic digital tool for constructing membrane-tensegrity structure will be developed by referring to the analysis of MOOM pavilion and the generic freeform tensegrity algorithm proposed by Tomohiro Tachi and his team in The University of Tokyo. Through analysis and tool development process, the digital modeling and simulation programs are required. Here the used programs are Rhinoceros 6; Rhinoceros plug-in Grasshopper and Kangaroo Physics; Kangaroo 2; Weaverbird etc. in grasshopper. Furthermore, two demonstrators of freeform membrane-tensegrity structures would be proposed as two possible approaches to apply the developed digital tool in architectural and structural design. Since then, this thesis study will be an inspiring starting point for the further researches and designs of membrane-tensegrity structures

Development of an Augmented Reality Mobile Application for Museums

[ES] El objetivo del proyecto es desarrollar una aplicación de realidad aumentada para la visita mejorada de un museo de esculturas al aire libre en la UPV, utilizando teléfonos inteligentes basados ​​en Android. El propósito es que los visitantes del museo puedan disfrutar de una visita enriquecida a través de los corredores del museo utilizando un nuevo tipo de experiencia gracias a las tecnologías de información y comunicación. El proyecto tendrá dos etapas diferentes. En la primera etapa, que se desarrollará en BUPT, el alumno realizará una revisión del estado del arte en las tecnologías actuales de realidad aumentada y su aplicación a los museos. Además, el estudiante desarrollará una aplicación de prueba de concepto usando Unity y Vuforia. En la segunda etapa, que se desarrollará en la UPV, el alumno completará una aplicación totalmente funcional para el museo de esculturas al aire libre. La aplicación debe resolver todos los problemas técnicos relacionados con la usabilidad y los formatos de medios (animaciones, videos, audios, textos ...). La aplicación será validada con visitantes reales del museo.[EN] The objective of the Project is to develop an augmented reality application for the enhanced visit of an open-air sculpture museum in UPV, using Android based smartphones. The purpose is that museum visitors can enjoy an enriched visit through the museum corridors making use of a new kind of experience thanks to the information and communication technologies. The Project will have two different stages. In the first stage, to be developed in BUPT, the student will make a revision of the state of the art in the current augmented reality technologies and their application to museums. In addition, the student will develop a proof of concept app using Unity and Vuforia. In the second stage, to be develop in UPV, the student will complete a fully functional application for the open-air sculpture museum. The application should solve all the technical issues related to usability and media formats (animations, videos, audios, texts...). The application will be validated with real museum visitors.He, Z. (2020). Development of an Augmented Reality Mobile Application for Museums. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/152413TFG

Shop Class for the Next Millenium: Education through Computer-Enriched Handicrafts

In this paper we use our experiences with the HyperGami program as a springboard for a broader look at the future of computationally-enriched handicrafts. HyperGami is an educational application for the design and construction of mathematical models and sculptures in paper; as such, it serves as a source of examples and insights for the more general problem of how to integrate the "high-tech" features of computation with the "low-tech" features of traditional craft materials in education. We begin by describing the HyperGami program, focusing on those features that were designed in response to problems encountered by papercrafters; we illustrate the program's capabilities by presenting some of our own and our students' papercraft designs; and we describe our initial steps in implementing elements of HyperGami on the World Wide Web. In the closing sections of the paper, we explore the broader educational issues involved in integrating computation and handicrafts; and we conclude with a discussion of how physical objects could play a role in a future "educational object economy." Reviewers: Timothy Koschmann (U. Illinois), Agnes Kukulska-Hulme (Open. U.), Henry Lieberman (MIT) Interactive elements: 'The HyperGami website includes Java applets for rotating and constructing polyhedra, plus video clips of an animated sculpture, included with this article. HyperGami is available free of charge, and JavaGami will be released soon.' Interactive demonstrations: The authors' 'HyperGami' website includes Java applets for rotating and constructing polyhedra http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~eisenbea/hypergami, plus two QuickTime videos of an animated HyperGami sculpture, included with this article. HyperGami is available free of charge, and runs on any color Macintosh with at least 12 MB of free RAM. Email [email protected] for further information. A Java version called 'JavaGami' will be released soon. Subscribe to the article's commentaries area to receive this announcement.)