tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post115256843116992777..comments2023-06-19T08:47:45.704-04:00Comments on brand-x design: some thoughts on the cricket construction kit.l. nicholshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14650424874063920952noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post-1152652298481251482006-07-11T17:11:00.000-04:002006-07-11T17:11:00.000-04:00or maybe sculptanisms? artineering?or maybe sculptanisms? artineering?l. nicholshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14650424874063920952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post-1152652235115646112006-07-11T17:10:00.000-04:002006-07-11T17:10:00.000-04:00one of the guys from tats cru (the graffiti/mural ...one of the guys from tats cru (the graffiti/mural guys who was here for an artist in residence program a few months back) said that i'm welcome to come work at this community center in NYC that he works in/helps run, as well.<BR/><BR/>mel king is a good idea. i think several small, manageable groups would be good to start with. people i could work with very hands-on and interactive. not so large that i can't talk to each individual and get their feedback.<BR/><BR/>i don't know what to call it. in some sense, i feel that calling it sculpture takes away from the mechanical/moving aspect. but i feel that calling it construction or mechanisms or robotics lends itself to a different connotation and that there won't be as many girls who would be interested just from hearing the name. consculption? sculptotics? english has too many connotations.l. nicholshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14650424874063920952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post-1152651883105913092006-07-11T17:04:00.000-04:002006-07-11T17:04:00.000-04:00before she stepped out in the rain...I agree. I w...before she stepped out in the rain...I agree. I would love to find another work for temporary peer mentors (TPMs)as I believe that this is an important class of people who help us on our way and who have been mostly overlooked in the literature. <BR/><BR/>re finding groups to interact with: we discussed a small group on our farm and possibly a group at the computer club house. You could also ask Mel King. i am sure he would love to pull together a group at his place. I think it would be really fun to find a group who wanted to play a lot and grow their abilities in this area-- do you call it sculpture?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post-1152629480021182882006-07-11T10:51:00.000-04:002006-07-11T10:51:00.000-04:00you're right. it is easy to romanticize open, una...you're right. it is easy to romanticize open, unaided creativity. and, true, mentors have a profound impact. but i also think that peers have an equally profound impact. or maybe peers as temporary mentors... if that makes any sense. i mean... just comparing to my own experiences (seeing as that's what i know best), i know i've been deeply affected by those around me, but mainly my group of friends who were all like "screw class, let's go make cool things." which, granted, is probably not the best course to take in MIT undergrad if what you care about is your grades. but i wouldn't be me had i not done that. i think what's important, though, in some sense, is that it not be only one mentor talking down to a group of people, and that it's also important to build a sense of independence from always needing a mentor.<BR/><BR/>maybe i should say that i really want the street to find its own uses for things, and that i want to leave it as open as possible for them to do so. and i would also like to help to build some sort of community around this, to aid in them sharing their own ideas... in mentoring each other.<BR/><BR/>i've been trying to figure out what the next best step is, and most of the time, i think it's working with a group of students, and getting their feedback on the process. incorporating what they would like to share with others.<BR/><BR/>i was also thinking more about this idea of a wiki/blog. particularly, the way myspace is shaped, where everyone has their own page, but is part of a larger community. maybe something like that where everyone has their own blog/space for personal ideas, and a wiki repository for information that the community contributes to. i don't know if that made any sense. like... the wiki is the hub of general information that people think is useful to have around, and the blogs carry all the specific information of individual projects. and you could search through the larger community for specific projects... and maybe there could be suggested similar projects to look at.<BR/><BR/>hm. anyway. your thoughts are appreciated, and good to hear.l. nicholshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14650424874063920952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18595769.post-1152580602571254852006-07-10T21:16:00.000-04:002006-07-10T21:16:00.000-04:00Laura,I definitely get your drift... construction,...Laura,<BR/>I definitely get your drift... construction, just go out and do it... many of us believe that this is the only way to discover who we are and what we can do <BR/><BR/>however I also am a little cautious.. there are several moments in my experience when mentors made a profound difference.. my grandfather gave me some opportunities that were unusual, but that is another story. The person I want to reflect on at the moment is Ricky Leacock. He, along with Ed Pincus, created the film section at MIT; people (students) came to make a movie - a special kind of movie. The students who came had a dream; the dream changed by virtue of the community but Ricky in a funny way could not see this change. He did not think of himself as a "teacher"; rather he thought of himself as a "filmmaker". A woman who met Ricky only recently and I got into a discussion about his teaching. She imagined he was a good teacher, but in the traditional sense. I counterd that... Ricky spent most of his teaching hours talking about and showing his own films; I had to stop him in order to make sure student work was seen. he gave great dinner parties for his "tribe"; students rotated, some coming more frequently than others. One learned through watching his work, listening, admiring, dreaming. I do not believe that any of us would have become as good as we became without his examples. I do not think he would have been as good as he became had he not worked for the Army during WWII and for Flaherty. Each example strengthened his dream of what filmmaking could be (remember it had yet to be fully invented - techinically or formally). <BR/><BR/>What I am trying to suggest is that it is easy to romanicize open, unaided creativity. We all come with lots of it. However honing it requires entering into a learning cycle and learning has inputs as well as outputs. This is not to say, you need to follow a specific receipe, but it does suggest that we are often inspired by people who are on one hand like us and on the other hand very different, which is the nature of human life. Witnessing potential activity allows us to expand our imagining to an ever broader or more focused palette of possibility. You would probably not be who you are without the mud time play in your childhood and MIT's Mechanical Engineering program. <BR/>Is the kit which engages our intutions the right way to go... definitely. Multiple input by people who play with it in the early phases will make it better and will allow you closer insight into the nature of the kit (vocabulary of the distributed group of early adopters -- fun, classy etc). With each step you will become surer about the direction you are taking. But do not rule out the idea that "the street finds its own uses for things" and that mentors or shape shifters as they are sometimes known as come in various guises but if they are true also affect the course and impact of your discovery.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com