The big thing that attracted me to RISD (other than their crazy ass mayor, of course) was their focus on the physical aspects of digital media. And so it was with much delight that I found myself enrolled in one class in which we are hooking up wires to simple circuits to sensors to our computers, and another in which we are flowing virtual creations into wood, plaster and resin (so far). I've already mentioned the interplay I've come ot understand between Illustrator blends and plywood; now I'd like to talk about the sensing, electronics side.

Bringing physical labor to digital work

Traveling and working has taught me, among other things, that no matter where I am or what I am doing, I am at a computer with a little mouse and keyboard and backache of the wrong sort. Maybe its just the overprivileged white boy speaking, but I want some calouses that don't come from the gym. When I lift a heavy file, I want to feel it. When I save something, I want to have to really nail it down hard so it stays where I want it. I want to have to generate the elelctricity needed to run any process before that computer will let me run the process.

So physical computing as physical as it gets. You run around a room to move the mouse, pull a lever to open objects that increases resistance the larger a file is, smash a sensor with a mallet to save, and the bigger the file, the harder you have to hit it. And all this time I am pedaling a bicycle to generate the energy to keep ths thing running.

I was delighted to realise that this idea could be fit perfectly into one of my assignments (this is the number one quandary of art students: turning an assignment into something you want to do anyway), but as my exploration of what is involved has progressed, the plan devolved to such a degree that I am not so sure I really want to do it any more.

First I am told that a bike-powered pc is not something I can achieve, and I realise I don't even know where to begin regarding the "heavy" files. I have no idea on the Operating System side, and no idea on the output/ physical side.

So I'm looking at catchy names and theory that feels like little more than rationalizations of the fact that all I have in mind now is slapping around a computer!

Presented with the challenge of redefining ourselves - our whole selves, not just fingerface* - to a computer, I'm still thinking screens and buttons.

On the one hand, I know well the pitfalls of going down a technology route just because its new and you can. In this regard, I can justify a glorified button when I could be mapping subtle human gestures to who-really-cares-what because look-the-computer-is-responding-to-ME on the other side. On the other hand, I am dissapointed that my thinking is still so wedded to computers as we know them. Especially as I am sure someone will map a subtle human gesture to a computer in

Its strange how I allow myself to think so freely in some ways, but am so conservative in others. Sorta like how I nickle and dime over medium or large (sorry, thats "Grande" or "Esperanza") but go out and drop over a grand on a Kayak I have noplace to store. And then realise I can't find a car-rack for my vehicle!.

Anyway.

My glimmer of hope is the Information Ecosystem, though I can't think how I could make an installation of it have anything more than a cursory nod to the actual assignment.

*This illustration was scanned from Physical Computing, by Dan O'Sullivan and Tom Igoe, which is an amazing book. Inspirational, easy-to-understand, practical - and its about electronics and computers and programming breadboards and basic stamps and circuits and stuff I never even heard of before! Easy top ten of academic technology books I've read. It should be on your shelf next to Dust or Magic.