Concept:

I am really fascinated with Elon Musks Neuralink research which hints at the possibility of humans being able to communicate through a chip implanted in their brains. Currently being tested on pigs, the quarter-sized implant connects to the brain with tiny wires and has the potential to cure blindness, paralysis, deafness, and mental illness. This got me thinking that in the future, with a piece of technology of this sort, humans could communicate with each other non-verbally. If the chip is able to read a part of the brain and then send that reading to another person’s chip, it could simulate “mind-reading”.

To demonstrate this idea of communication I projected two brains onto a wall, and when certain parts of the brain are touched they send messages to the other brain. The concept of messages is shown with simple, colorful animations that float between the two brains.

Tech:

For this project, I used conductive string hidden behind poster boards and copper tape as the touchpoint, that was connected to my MakeyMakey kit on the ground, below the view of the camera. This is what the set-up looked like without the animations projected onto it.

The animations were completed using Wick Editor. Here is what the setup looked like with the projections and the surrounding room which you cannot see in the youtube video:

After filming my interactions I wasn’t satisfied with how the project video looked so I edited the video in iMovie to fix the colors and to add sound effects. Adding these sound effects really helped tie the animations together, translate the idea that this is a future concept, and emphasize the motion in the animations.

This was my final max patch where the triggers for the videos were set: