Playing with text (first try)

I wrote an extremely simple python program that orders lines of text by the length of each word in the line.

import sys
for line in sys.stdin:
line = line.strip()
words = line.split(" ")
words.sort(key=len)
print " ".join(words).lower()

import sys

for line in sys.stdin:

line = line.strip()

words = line.split(" ")

words.sort(key=len)

print " ".join(words).lower()

I ran The Metamorphosis through it:

gregor’s flesh, lodged remove no-one apple dared the it so in to
suffered reminder remained injury. visible there had his he of as a
condition serious seemed month, there than more his and for it a
current despite gregor, father remind enough that even his his to
revolting treated member family could form, not who was and sad be a
contrary, family enemy. there duty was the to as on an as a a
revulsion patient. patient, swallow just and him for any be to be to

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Meeting Pigeons and Their Caretaker

Last night Ben, Ken & I met with a friend who raises and cares for pigeons on the roof of his apartment in Brooklyn. I was struck by how beautiful the birds were compared to feral street pigeons.

Here’s a picture that Ken took of two pigeons preparing to mate. Pigeons mate for life, although they are apparently willing to trade partners if you stick them together alone in a box. The white pigeon is a male, the other female. Both of these pigeons had previous partners who passed on.

More to come soon…

Coding an Emotion [Ecstasy]

Here are three attempts to represent the emotion of ecstasy in code.

This is my first attempt – most people I showed it to found it difficult to look at. It represents a continuous experience of ecstatic hallucination. You probably shouldn’t click play if you are prone to seizures.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/86160167 w=640]

For my second attempt I tried something more soothing. The user has to hold the mouse down for the effect to kick in. Click here to see the full sketch.

My third attempt is an iteration of the second. I tried to add an element of time – the boxes will begin to shake, then become ecstatic and after a few moments will return to their original place on the screen. The user can also incite a frenzy by clicking. Click here to see the full sketch.

Pigeons of New York

I’ve teamed up with Ken Amarit and Ben Gullard to work on a project about the pigeons of New York. The pigeons we are accustomed to seeing in city streets are the descendants of domesticated rock pigeons, brought to American in the 1600s by settlers, but with a history of human symbiosis that reaches back at least 5000 years. They are considered an invasive species, but are uniquely suited to city life, thriving in urban environments that resemble their original rocky habitation. They live well with humans, succeeding when we do, feeding off our waste, and perhaps as a result are marginalized and maligned by most.

We intend to interview a pigeon trainer in Brooklyn (who wishes to remain anonymous), and will also reach out to Glenn Phillips of the New York City Audubon Society, as well as members of New York City Pigeon Rescue Central.

Our project is still somewhat undefined but we’re interested in investigating new ways for people and pigeons to interact, primarily through play.

Here are some fun facts about pigeons:

Both males and females incubate pigeon eggs as well as secrete a nutritious fatty milk for their young.
Pigeons mate for multiple seasons (some say for life).
In some cities pigeons are given contraceptives.
In some cities people steal pigeon eggs and replace them with dummy eggs.
Pigeons are hunted by peregrine falcons, another city transplant.
Pigeons do not migrate but they have an excellent sense of direction.
Pigeons can fly at up to 60 miles per hour.