new code, new rig

POC Mindwave to WS2812 control with animation

more images from Gernsback's work

Gernsback was also fascinated by telematics both passive and active from the looks of these inventions in personal viewscreens and telerobotic (medicine pictured here). Lastly,  his proposal for a monument to electricity.

new inspiration HUGO GERNSBACK

it has been a couple of grueling days of reading and trying to wrap my head around technical methods with the Neurosky data. during that time of reading looking up references and so forth, i have discovered a new inspiration! Hugo Gernsback was an inventor, writer, and editor. in 1925 he presented the Gernsback Isolator, a device to assist you in concentrating and shutting out the annoying distractions of the world.  i found these images at: http://www.strangerdimensions.com/2014/12/09/strange-inventions-isolator-1925/

Teensy

recently, i bought some Arduino clones known as the Teensy 2.0 from PJRC. the device is thumbnail size at 1.2 in. by 0.7 in., a ATMEGA32, and boasts 25 I/O, 7PWM, and 12 analog pins. there are many small clones available on the market, but most of the designs require you to use a FTDI breakout board. i was really sold because the Teensy includes a USB jack and all for $16 to $19 for the model with pins already attached. the ++ version offers 46 I/0, 130MB and is only a few dollars more.

i have purchased these as part of a wearable i am designing and hopefully i will be telling you all about very soon.

the Kickstarter campaign marches on

i am discovering that fundraising is a game in the truest sense. it is not that i am specifically looking for loopholes to game Kickstarter. i have just come to the conclusion that the whole nature of raising money for a project is actually a quest based resource gathering system with tons of variables. I can compare it to a kind of puzzle quest that requires solving to unlock the next in the quest line. fundraising requires a balance of tone and honesty; no glory-hounding but not feel embarrassed about saying that we really believe this to be a cool project. and the way you say it is so different in formality and tone depending if you are addressing the Dean, a friend, or a philanthropic agency.



we are about 10 days from the deadline and very close to 50% which has raised our visibility on the Ks webpages considerably. i believe that if we can get a few more bucks from several people—can you spare a $10, friend?—that we will be well on the way to getting on the front page. we have pulled ahead of two CNC projects as of this week which is no mean feat because those project are very important right now.

so...
if you are one of my readers/friends even a $1 helps so please consider donating. here's the link

project selected for ISEA2011 (Istanbul, Turkey)

well now we did it! Our sonification project for ISEA International 2011 was accepted. We have proposed a workshop to work with activists and performers (or both) to develop wearable tech workshop to sonify the object the actors/agents touch. We are still working on a better title but for now it is code named 'Touchstone'.

from our proposal:

"Mr. Bricolage, Asmuth and Stone, propose a DIY wearable technology workshop at ISEA 2011 for activists, performers, and interested parties. The workshop will consist of demonstrations, discussions about strategies for use, and most importantly a hands on workshop to build Touchstone devices. The culmination of the workshop will be a local performance and/or action.

Touchstone is a mobile and tactical media broadcast platform worn on the hands of performers and activists. Touchstone is an strategy for contesting the urban/performance landscape rather than a product.

The technology of Touchstone is built upon audio exciter circuits embedded in gloves which transform the hands of an agent into broadcast transmitters. Touchstone agents activate objects as a temporary/ad-hoc public address systems, by simply pressing their palms against it. Touchstone is a discrete technology platform: (1) it is virtually invisible on the garb of a performer/agent and (2) it is light and flexible; agents or performers can easily move (or escape). Moreover, it is a cinch to produce; the system does not require advanced electronics knowledge and is easily assembled from surplus, inexpensive, and/or widely available consumer technology."

more images here