Puck Music: Electronic Hockey Puck

March 10th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

Puck Music is a soundscape composed using hockey pucks and hockey sticks. Each hockey stick acts as a different musical instrument when they move the hockey pucks on the floor. I am presently working on this piece for my Dataflow Programming class at ITP.

The following are some images of the puck’s construction and the Pure Data syntax that I am using to program them:

View photos and documentation of the project »

Reading and Writing to the VDIP1 USB Host Controller using Arduino

March 4th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

The VDIP1 USB host controller is a worthwhile extension module for anyone working with the Arduino microcontroller. The ability to integrate USB inputs/outputs with your Arduino microcontroller means that you can interface it with practically any USB device, creating even more exciting possibilities with Arduino. Another valuable integration feature that the module can provide is the ability to increase Arduino’s memory capacity using any USB memory drive.

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Cupping Time by Adi Marom and Jason Safir

March 1st, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

A timepiece that indicates the passage of time in a cup.

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Interactive Memory Box

February 26th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

The box, fashioned from wood salvaged from the home where I grew up, holds and preserves memories from my youth.

Memory Box reveals the recollections I have from my childhood through an interactive memory box. The memory box gives the user the ability to discover my childhood past through a montage of personal photographs, depicting images of my youth and significant others in my life. By utilizing these historic images as miniature push button switches, distinctive sounds and LED lights promptly respond to the user’s input. These animated responses reflect my own personal impression of the selected images based on my memories of them.

Hockey Puck Pong Controller

February 11th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

A hockey puck can be an engaging networked object. For the second assignment in my Networked Objects class, students were asked to develop intriguing input devices for a networked pong game using the WIZnet module. (more…)

HIV Test Package Design

February 10th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

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Jaw-Dropping Statistics

February 2nd, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

For inspiration to help develop an idea for a semester long project, my Mainstreaming Information class was asked to present three examples of “jaw-dropping” statistics that highlight a particularly surprising situation or trend. I think much can be said about the following shocking data that affect our planet both environmentally and socially:

The Basic Problem with Coffee Cups

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Stir it Up!

January 31st, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

This was a physical computing improvisation assignment I did for my Networked Objects class. The idea was to be able to control a video by stirring a coffee mug. Random, huh? We do very weird things with technology at ITP.

Little Orlando

January 14th, 2009 | BY JASON SAFIR

Little Orlando is a toy doll that was inspired from the main character I used in my interactive video project He Don’t Got Game. The 3D character, Orlando Florida, was modeled using Maya and was then printed using a Z Corp rapid prototyping machine. In upcoming projects, I plan to use the 3D character in stop motion animations and as well build him into an electronic voodoo toy.

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The Joy of Technology

December 23rd, 2008 | BY JASON SAFIR

The Joy of Technology is a playful video installation that uses both humor and drama to emphasize our intimate relationship with technology. The satirical character inside the cardboard television set responds to the user’s operation of technology. An electronic razor grows hairs on his face, a pencil sharpener rotates him and tears his shirt, a stapler pokes staples onto his forehead and leaves shatters all over the television glass, and a blow-dryer rotates the screen. All these actions affect the character’s overall appearance once all the technologies are shut off. In addition, the character can also be placed into different settings by turning the television’s rotating knob. Some of the programming that the character is placed into includes a news broadcast, a courtroom and outdoor settings.

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