The basic lab was straightforward. Here’s my individual video.
The creative portion was less simple. Tim, Florica, and I worked on the a project together again. We are a nice little team. Our idea was to use Tim’s joysticks as the variable sensors and produce some sort of flashy light display. But we decided instead to modify the code and make use of the monitor feature in the Arduino environment to make a text based “love meter.” Figuring out which sensors corresponded to which pins was tedious. The code also gave us several problems, but Tim’s expertise helped us be successful. See this video here.
I need to remember to bring in my own wire cutters and remember to ask Greg about ____ (something) drill bits.
Observation- Part 1
So I noted several people using technology this weekend . . . Saturday the 10th.
– I wake up to my roommates’ noise… alarm, cell phone ringtone, television, music.
– Laundromat at Frankin and St Johns. People are watching tv, purchasing tokens, and using washers and dryers.
– Franklin stop in BK (2/3, 4/5 lines). People using machines to charge their MTA cards. People swiping their cards. One machine not in service.
– Train not too full. 3 people in my view listening to portable music devices. 1 person seemingly checking text messages or playing a game on his cell phone.
– Atlantic/Pacific station in BK. Switching to the D to Manhattan. Radio announcement says something I cannot understand. People are using Ipods.
– East Village. More people using cell phones and Ipods walked in the street. Streetlights, walk/stop signs. Cars driving around.
– Friend’s apartment. I use the buzzer to say “Yee.” Door automatically unlocks and I take elevator up. Television, music, wireless internet.
– Nothing new after 19:00h.
Observation- Part 2
I’m in Manhattan on the northeast corner of Houston and Broadway. There is a woman standing on a sidewalk facing west. She looks uptown, straight ahead, and around. She waits. Cars begin to slow. She steps forward, looks up and stops. The sign she watches changes – red hand becomes a white human outline. She steps forward and looks at the moving car closest to her. It stops. She takes a small, quick step back. She crosses the street. Meanwhile, she is wearing earbuds and carrying an Ipod. As she steps from the street to the sidewalk across the street, she looks down at the Ipod, adjusts it with her hand, and continues walking.
~7 Steps
. look around and at light signal
. wait
. step forward
. look at car
. react
. walk
. adjust handheld device
There are three devices (street signs, car, Ipod). The car “listens” to the street signal once and the woman once. The woman “listens” to the street signal twice, the car once, and the ipod once. The ipod listens to the woman once. The street signals do not listen to their surroundings. They are not interacting since they are preprogrammed?
After further reflection, it seems to me that perhaps the street signs are not so interactive, or that there are too many bodies included in this observation. There are two people, one of which is in control of a car. This person responds to a predefined light signal. The other person responds to a light signal as well, but moreso the car, since a reaction to safety takes priority over a reaction to a light indicator. The ipod also plays into the equation as it could potentially have disrupted the woman’s attention to the walk light signal and the vehicle.
The improvement for the scenario I think would be both functional and aesthetically pleasing. Perhaps we could remove the poles and signals for walking, and insert devices in the actual crosswalk. As cars have red and green lights, people would too, but they could simply view downward instead of up and around. Also, these lights would be triggered not only in sequence with the traffic lights, but also by the speed and weight of oncoming cars, thereby also indicating to the passenger if it is safe to step into the street.