Dorkbot London 95

Dorkbot is a strange social gathering — they says the gathering of the people doing strange things in electronics.       Superficially it is the Geeks gathering yet in reality, some people are overlapping with computer hacker, anarchist, social activists etc etc. sometime a kind beyond the ordinary brain.  Its mean, for certain situation, they are quite resorceful and effective people.

==== Jem Finer ====

“Longplayer and Supercomputer: Keeping things going”

Both a question and a proposition. Both are projects which would welcome wider collaboration and the ingenuity that Dorkbot may bring.

longplayer.org / supercomputer.org.uk / @jemfiner

==== Emma Winston ====

“Tell Me I Can Fix This On My Own: songwriting with code as a non-programmer”

How accidentally live-coding an album let one woman fall back in love with learning to program, and how (maybe) it can do the same for you.

emmawinston.me / deerful.com / @deer_ful

==== Nicola Plant ====

“Parallax”

Parallax is a movement-based interactive VR artwork. The audience communicate with one another by intuitively performing hand expressions and gestures that sculpt a shared malleable object existing in the virtual space between them.

Dr Nicola Plant is a movement artist, coder and researcher with a PhD in Media Art and Technology at the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, Queen Mary University of London.

nicolaplant.co.uk / @nicolaplant

==== Petre Brownell ==== (aka greenman)

(Sorry I couldn’t find the info’ of his talking — Somewhat the implication of Net system to the business system or their relation as he himself is an entrepreneur = aske him please)

 >>> theorganization.com

==== Nicola Plant ====

“Parallax”

Parallax is a movement-based interactive VR artwork. The audience communicate with one another by intuitively performing hand expressions and gestures that sculpt a shared malleable object existing in the virtual space between them.

Dr Nicola Plant is a movement artist, coder and researcher with a PhD in Media Art and Technology at the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, Queen Mary University of London.

nicolaplant.co.uk / @nicolaplant

==== Annie Tådne ====

“Boberg 1”

Boberg 1. is a hands-on interplay between material and computational properties, where music is composed through visual means. In a performance, physical objects are translated into sounds and controlled through manual calibration.

tadne.se

They are the regulars, friends. —– (Those photos were taken by the 100year oled Kodak Vest pocket camera lens on Nikon Z7 = sorry about the focus,  it was to scueez its pantograph )

I’ve been with them —– gosh, over 15 years ! ? 

.

Dorkbot gathering #87

 Dorkbot is one of the most peculiar social group.

 As its motto says, it is the gathering of the

 people doing strange things with Electricity.

 Other than some Core-members taking care of

organizing the meeting, there is no membership kind, but just a mailing list. = If you

are interested in, just visit their site and join them (free).

After a bit of lapse, their gathering got back to the monthly base,

and this one was for the February.

The first speaker was James Auger and he talked about Robot things and

“Somewhat a kind of kinetic Sculptures” = kinetic mean, having some mechanism

with certain electronic controls. = hence, doing strange things with electronics.  😀

And, he is teaching it to the grown-up students and going to be a Phd !

James Auger is a designer, researcher and lecturer whose work examines the social, cultural and

human impact of technology and the products that exist as a result of its development and application.

His PhD topic is Why Robot? Speculative design, the domestication of technology and the considered

future. James is also a partner in the Speculative Design practice Auger-Loizeau, whose projects have

been published and exhibited internationally, including MoMA, New York; 21_21, Tokyo;

The Science Museum, London and the Ars Electronica festival, Linz, and

are part of the permanent collection at MoMA.

The second speaker was Tim Hunkin.  Since he has been running Fun Arcade,

with “Strange Game (?) Machine” he was THE genuine Dorkbot tribe.

Tim Hunkin is an English engineer, cartoonist, writer, and artist. He created the

Channel Four TV series and Science Museum gallery The Secret Life of Machines, which

explained the workings and history of various household devices.  He has just launched

a “new London arcade of home-made coin operated machines built by enthusiasts”:

www.novelty-automation.com
twitter: @NovAutomation

The third speaker was Restart Project.

The Restart Project is a London-based social enterprise that encourages and empowers people

to use their electronics longer, by sharing repair and maintenance skills. Through community

and workplace events we create engaging opportunities to extend the lifespan of electronics

and electrical equipment.

twitter: @RestartProject

And the last presenter was Pollie Barden.

Pollie is an artist, activist and game designer who has designed games from the mobile platform

to the urban landscape. Firefly is a tagging game that explores temporal memory, and exploits

the balance of collaboration and competition. The action takes place at night. Your first strategic

move is the clothing you wear. Players, wearing Flashing LED badges will compete to see who can

steal the most badges from other players. However, the prize you seek may be your downfall!

[]

I’ve been with this Dorkbot London for about 10 years, so, I’ve been watching

the popularity side of the technology. = understanding and approach of the

people toward the electronic technology.  — Years ago, the presentation of the

gathering were the handmade strange machines and its electronics.  We could

operate the machine and see its function and the way how it was made. — though,

now we got used to fire virtual weapon by pressing a button and see the enemy

smashed over a screen. (I’m guessing = I never played Game)   The operation,

movements etc etc getting more and more realistic and the resolution of the screen

is ever getting finer.  —– but how many of us does know such as a color in the screen

was generated, let alone to simulate it by the LEDs and its control of brightness. —–

I’m not happy with this trend = “Virtualization of the Life, thanks to the Technology”

—– May be I have to write about it in the other post.

—– incidentally, my pieces such as Wire Dragon, the Archer = Cupidon were

first time presented at Dorkbot many years ago.

[]

PS: The Red cast on some photos were caused by the low battery in the camera.

And a moale on the Pollie’s pullover was because of its pattern.

—– strange things would often happen in the Dorkbot.

[]

DorkBoat

Yesterday there was a marvelous boat journey called  Dorkboat organized by the Dorkbot London.

Dorkbot is a group of the people ” Doing strange things with electricity “ —— as their motto

suggests, it is the gathering of the people who is doing with electronics, electricity what so-ever

to show off or discuss what so-ever about their free-minded creation.

Naturally, some are purely digital electronics /

computer programmed graphics or music.

And some are involving kinetic mechanism with

electronic control.

As the group is completely open to anybody

some are doing it alongside of his or her profession

with profound expertise, but some time

utterly an outsider of electronics came up

with very witty approach of an invention.

—

Me to join the group was, again a sheer coincidence.

Somebody a friend, happened to know the member

introduced me to the Dorkbot London as I’ve been

making a lots of funny kinetic sculptures and designing lots of electronic devices.

I liked their motto and my approach —– making the things which are utterly useless but fun,

was exactly matched and found a common ground.

Since then, virtually all of my public exposure such as to French TV, news paper or BBC

were happened with the Dorkbot.  ( Gathering can be seen only for the members, which mean strict

Health and Safety Regulation which is always our headache, can be avoided )

—-

On the boat from Westminster Pier to Kew, we saw the presentation of many funny devices ——

” Mocking bird can be seen as a  recording device (since they can repeat human words ! )” or

ever hilarious  J.Rarson’s game controller, and some music performances  etc etc.

It’s funny to think, the people who follow rigid and rational Physics and Electronics rules

still able to conceive such utterly useless nutty idea 😀   —–  This is THE creativity.

—-

Event was coincided with the farewell award giving for the departure of one of the founder

Alex McLean / formidable  experimental Programmer, as his family is moving out London.

I wish his family’s ever happier life in new location

and his creative projects to ever more flourish.

—

Odd News

Strangely you may think though, I have appeared in the BBC News Site,

but not as Yoshizen, but aka /  Yoshi Imamura, demonstrating

” Psycho-kinetic Motor “ and in the video clip ” Pendulum Clock “

made out of computer HDD, and above all, the figure of the

” Buddha-2009 ” also appeared ( with the rotating light as his heart ).

http:// news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8125259.stm

(or Click top right column / ASSOCIATE / BBC News)

—————

I’m going to put the Buddha-2009’s full picture in this blog

in near future, though just give you a brief explanation how and why

the Buddha was depicted in this manner.

——- More than 20 years ago, I saw an image of a stone carving of

Buddha in his asceticism practice, almost skeleton like figure from

Gandhara, and I was deeply struck by it.

So that when I decided to create Buddha’s stature 7 years ago, I designed

to make him like a skeleton of which the head is a clear glass sphere

as the Buddhism stands on the selflessness.

The heart shows perpetually changing pattern of light, since

nothing stays permanent. —– etc (all the Buddhism teachings

are symbolised and depicted in here)

——-This is a sample of the Zen Buddhism in action, not in talking.

And my way to the Nirvana.