by edwin.lang -

An Excurse into the Field of Sonification

The following blogpost covers the content of the scientific paper named “SOIL CHOIR v.1.3 – soil moisture sonification installation”. It was published at the NIME 20 conference in Birmingham by Jiří Suchánek from Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts.

The project deals with the sonification of moisture values in soil, where each tube is filled with a different type of soil. The tubes form independent units, each consisting of three low-cost capacitive soil moisture sensors. The sensors are located at different depths and send information about the moisture values to a Bela board where they get transformed into organized sound structures.

The challenge in this project are the slowly changing values of the moisture sensors, letting the artist focus on creating a suitable listening experience for slowly evolving data inputs. Therefore, the idea was to create a sonic behavior similar to that of a Geiger counter.

I also tried to understand the sound mapping, unfortunately I did not understand it completely as I need to dig deeper into the theory of sonification first. However, I think this project shows the potential of sonification in nature and the ability to give a voice to normally silent processes. In my opinion the contrast between expected human musical time scale and the extremely slow environmental processes could listeners let rethink the perception of time.

References:

SOIL CHOIR v.1.3 – soil moisture sonification installation; Jiří Suchánek; Nime 2020
https://bela.io/images/products/bela.png

by edwin.lang -

Current State and Outlook

Mind Map Update

I expanded the mind map by adding the topic “Tangible User Interfaces” which I already discussed in my previous post. Now the mind map consists of 84 sources and is categorized in 6 main topics. In the next semester I will continue with this format by adding new relevant sources as I see great value in it.

Here you can see the topic named “Tangible User Interfaces”, which has been added to the mind map recently:

Final Presentation

As this is the last blog post for this semester, I would like to take the opportunity and share the slides I made for my final presentation. By doing so, this not only gives a great overview of all the topics I did research on but also underlines my current vision and goals for the next semester.

The presentation will be presented in a very restricted format called “Pecha Kucha” and consists of 10 slides á 20 seconds. Despite being very challenging, this format forces me to condense my research topic even further.

So without further ado, here you can take a look at my final presentation:

DesignResearch1_Presentation_Final_Credits_EN

Vision

For the next Semester, I want to explore different media technologies to discover the
“sweet spot” between the digital and analog medium. Therefore I am looking forward to all the upcoming lectures giving me new insights into programs and concepts.

by edwin.lang -

Enhancing Exhibits with Physical Objects

The Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab is focused on using technology to support creative learning and playful expression. One of their main research areas is based on a constructivism-based approach, an educational theory that emphasizes the role of active learning and experimentation in the learning process. This approach is one of the key elements that make Lifelong Kindergarten projects accessible and easy to use for people of all ages.

While the Lifelong Kindergarten group’s work is primarily focused on how technology can be used to support creative learning and playful expression, it also overlaps with the field of tangible user interfaces (TUIs). TUIs are a type of user interface that uses physical objects or devices to control and interact with digital information or systems. This can include interactive tables and walls or physical objects such as buttons, knobs, and other controls that can be manipulated by the user.

MIT Media Lab edited by Edwin Lang

Museums and science centers are increasingly incorporating TUIs into their exhibits to enhance the visitor experience. By using physical objects to control digital information and systems, visitors can engage with the exhibit in a more intuitive and natural way. For example, an exhibit about physical forces could be build with a TUI that allows visitors to explore different forces and motion by moving physical objects on a table and visualizing the effects.

Hiroshi Ishii (2008)

One of the key aspects of TUIs is the use of physical objects to control digital information and systems. This is something that the Lifelong Kindergarten group’s approach also involves, as it is based on constructivism, which emphasizes the role of active learning and experimentation in the learning process. This approach makes learning and digital interaction more accessible and tangible, especially for children and others.

References:

interactions: experiences, people technology; Volume XIX.1 2012
Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play; Mitchel Resnick; 2018
https://tangible.media.mit.edu/vision/
https://courses.media.mit.edu/2015fall/mas834/index.html

by edwin.lang -

Exploring local networks

In this blog post, I want to discuss an interview I conducted with Richard Dank, the lecturer of Design with Code for CMS. I will briefly summarize our conversation regarding local hands-on exhibits and the role of programming.

It is important to separate actuators and visualization as they do not occur in the same program. Every program has its own advantages and disadvantages, and it is crucial to understand the boundaries of the project and use cases in order to carefully choose the appropriate tools for building hands-on exhibits.

Projects often aim to provide unexpected outcomes, which can create additional curiosity. For example, Richard Dank shared a project in which pedestrians could trigger the projection of “Kunsthaus” by pressing the button of the traffic light in front of the building. Most pedestrians did not realize what they were doing, but their actions unintentionally changed the mapping. Only a few noticed this.

Programming, specifically using Processing, allows for the integration of microcontrollers on a larger scale while ensuring a clean visual mapping of the setup. Data from microcontrollers can be further processed using other tools such as PureDate, but the spatial arrangement and data flow can be controlled using Processing itself. Although this process is not visible to viewers, it greatly assists the artist in setting up and testing exhibits.

In the second part of this blog post, I will focus on artists based in Graz. I will stay in touch with Richard Dank as our brief discussion about interactive experiences and programming marked the beginning of a local network of freelancers who share a passion for art, technology, and society. I would like to mention a few inspiring people and places that Richard Dank referred to – I am excited to meet some of them during the next semester.

Richard Dank

The following link leads to some projects related to “interaction”.
http://richdank.com/4a/projects/index2_de.php

in|filtration

This project is well documented and gives insight into the process of developing an interactive installation.
https://www.researchcatalogue.net/view/711664/711665

Reni Hofmüller

She concentrates on art in technological contexts and explores the relationship between art, technology, and society.
https://esc.mur.at/en/bio/reni-hofm%C3%BCller

Reagenz

In this place not only projects are being developed and realized but also publications in contemporary art, focusing on sound and installation art as well as intermedia experimentation.
https://reagenz.at/

Note: Especially the work from Hanns Holger Rutz and his “transmedia” approach got my attention. https://www.sciss.de/

Paul Frick – “bildermehr”

The homepage is currently under construction but might show some interesting works with focus on haptics.
http://bildermehr.at/

by edwin.lang -

Defining my vision – a short essay

Hands-on exhibits are interactive experiences that are designed to engage visitors and facilitate learning through exploration and experimentation. These exhibits can be found in museums, science centers, and other educational settings and often use a variety of technologies, such as computer displays, sensors and robotics to create interactive experiences.

In my opinion, one approach to designing and implementing hands-on exhibits is the principle of Lifelong Kindergarten, developed by the Lifelong Kindergarten group from the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This approach is based on the idea that learning is most effective when it is an active process of constructing knowledge instead of a passive process of receiving information. The principle of Lifelong Kindergarten emphasizes hands-on, experiential learning, and encourages learners to actively construct their own understanding of new concepts and ideas through exploration, experimentation, and problem-solving. Mitch Resnick who is leading the Lifelong Kindergarten group says that school and the rest of life should become more like Froebel’s kindergarten – driven by what he calls the “Four Ps”: Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play. More details of his theory can be found in his book called Lifelong Kindergarten, Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play and maybe I will write a separate blog post on his principles in the future.[1][2][3]

In the context of hands-on exhibits, the principle of Lifelong Kindergarten can be used to design interactive experiences that are engaging and effective in making learning more fun and exciting. This might involve using technologies such as openFrameworks, Processing, Unity3D or vvvv – toolkits and programs that can be used to create interactive media and visualizations. [4][5][6]

Another related concept is the philosophy of serious games, which refers to the use of games and game-like approaches for the purposes beyond entertainment. In the context of hands-on exhibits, this philosophy can be used to create interactive exhibits that use game-like elements to teach specific concepts, engage visitors in problem-solving or decision-making activities. [7]

In my opinion the principles of Lifelong Kindergarten from MIT and the philosophy of serious games can be combined and a useful approach when designing and implementing hands-on exhibits. Especially in the context of science, technology and society, which I want to focus on, one can develop exhibits that are engaging and effective for playful learning to raise awareness and explain complex problems, difficult to talk about.

References:

[1] Lifelong Kindergarten, Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play; Mitchel Resnick MIT Media Lab; 2017

[2] Experience And Education; John Dewey; 1997

[3] Tüftel Akademie – Fortbildungstag IV (https://bildungsserver.berlin-brandenburg.de/fileadmin/bbb/themen/Medienbildung/Schulorganisation/praesentation__scratch-robotik_junge-tueftlerinnen.pdf)

[4] https://processing.org/

[5] https://openframeworks.cc/

[6] https://visualprogramming.net/

[7] https://klimakommunikation.klimafakten.de/showtime/kapitel-13-du-musst-nicht-immer-reden-spiele-kunst-literatur-und-humor/

by edwin.lang -

A short Reflection on Mind Maps

Before I continue with more concrete blog posts about my research topic, I want to emphasize how important this first research stage was for me. I now have a mind map connecting all my interests, forming the basis for future research and specification. This process took way longer than originally planned and while my last blog posts gave only a short summery of the current state of the mind map, most of the time has been invested into exploring new sources. I will constantly add new sources and structure the mind map, but the current state already gives me good insight and a basis for future work.

As someone who is constantly seeking new knowledge and understanding, I have now learned the value of allowing myself to go down rabbit holes and explore my curiosity. While it’s easy to get caught in algorithmic rabbit holes, I try to stay focused on what feels meaningful and resonant to me. This exercise of organizing and categorizing information has not only helped me to strengthen my critical thinking skills but also to analyze and make connections between different topics.

I often tend to have the desire of reinventing the wheel but as Steve Jobs famously said, “creativity is just connecting things.” – and that’s what I tried with this mind map.

Because WordPress strips my iframe tag I will link my Miro Board here:
https://miro.com/app/board/uXjVP407Veo=/?moveToWidget=3458764541666492603&cot=14

by edwin.lang -

Exploratory Research – Follow Up

This blog post is a follow up to my previous post and focuses on additional collected sources for my mind map. This will also be the last blog post giving insights into my exploratory research stage as I will focus on clustering the topics to get deeper insights into intersections and further research on topics already on the min map. During the week I added 34 new sources to my mind map which gives a total number of 60 sources.

Note: Since all notes on the mind map are linked to their sources and are used for structuring my research interests only, I will not provide additional information or references on all topics at the end of this post.

What has changed
I added sources to the topics “Generative Art” (which I renamed to “Design with Code”) and “Media Didactic” – focusing mainly on the topic “Media Didactic”. Moreover, I found an article about exhibits in the New York Hall of Science and added it to “Institutions”, giving insights into the mechanics of the work being done behind the scenes. [1] Finally, I added two blogs about technology, society and critical making and a book about mathematical principles behind our physical world including possibilities of creating a digital world out of it. [2][3]

exploratory research – mind map

The Human Perception
In the following paragraph I want to talk about multi-sensory perception, as the human perception is the bases for every interaction. When we speak about hands-on exhibits, the visitor first has to perceiving his environment. This is being done via multiple sources of sensory information derived from different modalities like vision, touch and audition. Some sources derive from different modalities but provide information about the same object. For example, a flying bird can be seen with eyes or heard with ears. This phenomenon can also be described as redundant sources of sensory information and is used by our brain to interact with the environment in a purposive fashion. [4]

Now let us connect human perception with the ability to learn vocabulary!

The more matching sensory impressions are involved in the learning process at the same time, the easier it is for the brain to understand and store the vocabulary. According to a research article from the Max-Planck-Society, the movement system in the brain appears to be particularly important – active movement and gestures have helped remembering the vocabulary. Apart from movement, the authors state that pictures have also helped to remember vocabulary better. However, further research must be made. [5]

Despite the fact that this theory sounds very logical and having made the experience that learning is easier combined with movement too, I would like to add that humans can not only be seen as rational beings. In my opinion emotions play a fundamental role – not only when it comes to the process of learning as in one of the articles noted, but also in the way we process and interpret the perceptions of our environment.

References:
[1] https://childrensmediaassociation.wordpress.com/2019/03/24/3865/
[2] https://www.creativeapplications.net/; https://www.holo.mg/
[3] https://natureofcode.com/
[4] https://www.mpg.de/820840/forschungsSchwerpunkt
[5] https://www.mpg.de/8930937/vokabel-lernen-gesten

by edwin.lang -

Finding the right approach for my research

In this blog post I’m going to focus on the topics I worked on during the last two weeks. Inspired from a lecturer I did my research about all the topics connected to my proposed master thesis, that I got in touch during the last year. In the first week I searched for different keywords exclusively, giving me the freedom to dive deeper into very different disciplines without getting lost in detail. The second week was dedicated to clustering, arranging and finally lead to a mind-map.

topics for mind-map

In the following section I want to give an overview of the mind-map and discuss how working with a mind map helped me in my research. The mind-map itself was made with a tool called Miro and shows the clustered topics according the ones mentioned in the upper section.

With the described approach, I want to overcome the pressure I put on me when researching topics. By separating data collection and processing, I want to achieve a feeling of freedom and curiosity that gives me excess to my true interests without being influenced by narratives distracting me. Moreover, this process gives me the freedom needed to switch my focus within topics without the urge of coming to a conclusions, as this will be done later while data processing.

While this is only the clustering of my findings and not all of this year’s topics are on the map, this process truly helped me visualizing my findings as well as showing me potential intersections.

The following blog posts will provide a closer look at the topics including filtering the most relevant aspects and further developing the map.

by edwin.lang -

Media didactic in museums and science centers

Multimodal learning in the context of social and ecological problems

No matter if old or young, exploring and understanding the unknown is truly one of many characteristics defining human beings. Developing hands-on-exhibits that empower users and touch them emotionally through interactive storytelling matters a lot to me. Participants should be encouraged to be curious – to touch, to hear, to try something out!

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.

Confucius

Therefore, I want to explore current state of the art approaches of hands-on and get insight into the latest scientific discoveries in the field of media didactic. By combining my findings, I want to find new ways to raise awareness for social and ecological problems and challenge the observer to rethink the status-quo.

Children ask lots of questions. Their curiosity and thirst for knowledge often seems insatiable – this is the motivation needed for all learning and the driving forces […].

ZOOM children’s museum

The motivation comes truly from my previous bachelor program “Environmental System Science”, as well as workshops, projects and people I met during this time. Experiencing how difficult it is to raise questions of emotional topics, I tried different approaches of science communication. Ranging from podcasts to theater, always trying to combine both scientific evidence and enjoyment. I realized that one should not always force people to talk about problems but rather invite them to a voyage of discovery.

Here I want to show some hands-on approaches that inspire me.
As this collection can be seen as an ongoing process it will be updated from time to time. Maybe this section will also lead to a separate more detailed blog post in the future.

Design Studio: badaboom.berlin
Philosophy: Video
Museum: Futurium
Installation: Video

References:

Das erweiterte Museum – Medien, Technologien und Internet; 2019
Give P’S a Chance: Projects, Peers, Passion, Play; Mitchel Resnick; 2014
Wissenschaftskommunikation – Schlüsselideen, Akteure, Fallbeispiele; 2016
Learning through play – A review of the evidence, The Lego Foundation, 2019