Tweenbots by Kacie Kinzer:
Given their extreme vulnerability, the vastness of city space, the dangers posed by traffic, suspicion of terrorism, and the possibility that no one would be interested in helping a lost little robot, I initially conceived the Tweenbots as disposable creatures which were more likely to struggle and die in the city than to reach their destination. Because I built them with minimal technology, I had no way of tracking the Tweenbot’s progress, and so I set out on the first test with a video camera hidden in my purse. I placed the Tweenbot down on the sidewalk, and walked far enough away that I would not be observed as the Tweenbot––a smiling 10-inch tall cardboard missionary––bumped along towards his inevitable fate.
The results were unexpected. Over the course of the following months, throughout numerous missions, the Tweenbots were successful in rolling from their start point to their far-away destination assisted only by strangers. Every time the robot got caught under a park bench, ground futilely against a curb, or became trapped in a pothole, some passerby would always rescue it and send it toward its goal. Never once was a Tweenbot lost or damaged. Often, people would ignore the instructions to aim the Tweenbot in the “right” direction, if that direction meant sending the robot into a perilous situation. One man turned the robot back in the direction from which it had just come, saying out loud to the Tweenbot, “You can’t go that way, it’s toward the road.”
The Tweenbot’s unexpected presence in the city created an unfolding narrative that spoke not simply to the vastness of city space and to the journey of a human-assisted robot, but also to the power of a simple technological object to create a complex network powered by human intelligence and asynchronous interactions. But of more interest to me, was the fact that this ad-hoc crowdsourcing was driven primarily by human empathy for an anthropomorphized object. The journey the Tweenbots take each time they are released in the city becomes a story of people’s willingness to engage with a creature that mirrors human characteristics of vulnerability, of being lost, and of having intention without the means of achieving its goal alone. As each encounter with a helpful pedestrian takes the robot one step closer to attaining it’s destination, the significance of our random discoveries and individual actions accumulates into a story about a vast space made small by an even smaller robot.
(via consultinglesbianfriend)
Source: tweenbots.com
Microsoft, 2011
Do we have displays that enable that sort of floating bit off of the screen hologram effect?
This, this video so much. Goddess, I want tech like this. The way we interface with things today is so primitive, so basic. I could do so much more with things like this. I want this yesterday, but in reality it’ll probably take years or decades to see a world like this :(
Source: future-drama
Source: szymon
An Exciting New iPhone App for Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Folks!
Planned Parenthood of the Southern Finger Lakes’ LGBT Health and Wellness Project, Out for Health, is pleased to present their Pee in Peace App! This app is designed to help transgender, gender non-conforming, and other individuals who do not readily fit into expected and conventional norms of gender presentation, easily locate single stall or gender neutral bathrooms in Ithaca, New York!
The idea for this app came about after a survey conducted by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission found that nearly 50% of respondents reported having been harassed or assaulted in a public bathroom. Because of this, many transgender people avoid public bathrooms altogether and can develop health problems as a result. It has become Out for Health’s commitment to work toward removing the barriers to accessing safe bathrooms.
About the app:
Pee in Peace is the premiere interactive map of MOST single stall and gender neutral restrooms in Ithaca, New York. Because public restrooms can pose some risks (from cleanliness to safety), Out for Health has done the work for you so you can pee in peace! For anyone who needs quick and easy access to a private bathroom - from caregivers for people of a different sex, to anyone who just prefers a private place, and especially for transgender and gender non-conforming people who may have a specific need for safe and private restrooms. Everyone deserves a place to pee in peace, right here in Ithaca, New York.Features:
- Interactive map of nearby single stall and gender neutral restrooms.
- GPS ‘near me’ search for the closest bathroom.
- Quick access to walking or driving directions to get you there fast!
- List includes when restrooms are open and key features, including if the restroom is accessible.
- Notes section provides special directions for restrooms at local college campus locations.
Out for Health is also working toward adding more locations!
If you know of a restroom that should be included please use the feedback button in the app to alert them!Requirements:
- Location data is used to provide walking and driving directions to restrooms and is not collected or stored by the app
- Network connection is required to update locations and availability
- Network connection is required to provide driving and walking directions
About Out for Health:
Out for Health is Planned Parenthood of the Southern Finger Lakes’ LGBT Health & Wellness Project, providing outreach, education, and information to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) people, their health care providers, and the community at-large about the importance of inclusive, welcoming, and respectful care for LGBT people. Planned Parenthood of the Southern Finger Lakes takes pride in assuring that their diverse patients and communities have access to the sexual health, wellness services, and information they need. They proudly stand side-by-side with their LGBT communities as fellow activists, allies, and people committed to health, wellness, and social change.
See, now this is one of the many reasons I want a smart phone. I would totally use an app like this and help it add locations in my area if I had a smart phone.
(via raggedyanndy)
Source: thecsph
AR15 by ThomasWoodson.com on Flickr.
Guns make me hot. :I
Guns are hot, as is technology in general. As long as it isn’t used to harm people, it stays sexy too.
Source: p0litical
