Compare / Contrast
The Data Fountain
I chose to compare and contrast The Data Fountain in relation to our Drought Awareness Management (DAM) System. The Data Fountain was one of my original researched projects from the Related Work assignment and as so, I took the responsibility of comparing and contrasting it for this one. The project is very much a fundamental piece of research for the development of our own project, and this article with outline not only the similarities and inspirations with The Data Fountain project but also the differences to which makes our project our own.
“In the morning paper, I can read the weather report as well as the stock quotes. But when I look out of my window I only get a weather update and no stock exchange Info. Could someone please fix this in my environmental system? Thanks.” – Koert van Mensvoort
The Data Fountain serves to fulfil the innovative concept of using natural surroundings to display data. In this case it’s the concept of using fountains as information displays to output data – ‘datafountains’. The datafountains are a ‘calmer’ solution to the otherwise chaotic and stressful environment of a stock market room. Through the use of environment; a more tranquil and naturalistic method of displaying data was adopted. This concept was not undiscovered before The Data Fountain, in fact credit is attributed, by the Data Fountain team, to the Next Nature organization. This being a group who actively support the development of a nature inspired culture [link].
In terms of audience experience they consider the experience as part of the term; information decoration for display techniques, that aim for a balance between aesthetics and information value. It is for any person, any human, to be able to use their natural comprehensive mindset to solve the need for finding information about something that otherwise is just displayed on an artificial screen.
Our project uses this concept; through the use of a ubiquitous set-up we intend to show the dangerously low levels of South-East Queensland’s water supply catchments through the use of water fountains to help raise awareness and respect for the current drought we are endearing. However ours take it one step further, through the fact that we are actually using the depleted source itself for its own representation – water. We feel this will greater effect the mindset of people as it adds a greater connection of understanding, then say; just showing figures on an interface. Our ideal end user-experience is to successfully raise awareness to the people of South-East Queensland of the drought we are all facing together as a population through the use of a ubiquitous installation that physically shows the levels of water left in our dams through interactive live datafountains that show important information of our water levels. (More about the Interactive aspect later.)
The technology however will be extremely similar, so much so that discussion has already been opened with the people involved with the Data Fountain to help with certain technical obstacles of our own. Primarily this is in relation to the water pumps and how to control them; which turns out to be by frequency modulators that control the electricity that are being sent to the pumps. It should also be noted that the overall issue of working with water is a risky business and we hope to learn of some already made mistakes to which we can avoid for ourselves!
The Data Fountain team were of course successful in developing a full scale, working model – however our goal for this semester is a working prototype of one fountain that can be controlled by dynamically changing data. One aspect that veers from the original concept of The Data Fountains’ is an interactive addition to the project. The end product would have ubiquitous-styled controls that change the scenario of the live-levels of the dams to other figures – such as what the levels were 10 years ago.
While the Data Fountain project is the key point of inspiration for our assignment, it also only serves as a springboard to our own innovations to which succeed over the Data Fountain’s original conceptual focus, audience experience and technology. At the end of the day we hope to have come up with an innovative piece that truly has a seamlessly effective impression on those that view it – for the better well being of drought stricken South-East Queensland.
References:
The Data Fountain Website
http://www.koert.com/work/datafountain/
Next Nature
http://faq.nextnature.net/
I was always more interested in what bark was made out of on a tree. Richard Gere's a real hero of mine.Sting would be another person who's a hero. The music that he's created over the years - I don't really listen to it. But the fact that he's making it, I respect that.
