Showing posts with label shimul. Show all posts

Friday, December 18, 2015

11/18 - CATCHING UP Labeling a Circuit Board

circuit board of a wifi router

11/18 - CATCHING UP Tom Igoe

I really love what Tom Igoe has to say in this interview, particularly the bit where he talks about his ex-students. He is asked if they manage to live from their art and what paths are available to them after graduation and he responds that he does not want his students to "think of their careers in such a cut-and dried way." Basically, he says that "pure" artists who work solely in the art world are missing out. He says that those who work at art and commercial work create much more interesting work because "you learn so much from working for and with others that strengthens your artwork" and that "you'd be a fool not to collaborate to work for others from time to time."
This really resonates me because our field is so interdisciplinary. Many of us want to have careers that don't really fit in the art world but would also prefer to not be cookie-cutter commercial workers. I think it is heartening to know that someone else agrees that the most interesting work comes from those who do not think so black and white. I hope to have a commercial job someday in which I can utilize all that I have learned from studying art and hopefully,t hat will make me that much better.

11/18 - CATCHING UP Online Sensor Presentation

11/18 - CATCHING UP All Manga Exercises

Manga Guide 1 Pg 1-36
Calculate how much it costs to use five common appliances that you use every day in your home for 24 hours. Please let me know the applicance, its wattage, amps and volts of each appliance and how you calculated cost. You will need to go to GRU or look at one of your electric bills. How many of those appliances can you plug into one outlet without tripping a breaker? Please do this mathematically rather than through direct experience.

19" TV 150 W 60 Hz
Sharp Microwave 1000 W AC 120V 60 Hz
GE fridge
Kenmore dryer
240V 30 Amps
Kenmore washer
120 V 15 Amps

I cannot calculate the cost because I do not get a separate electricity bill at my apartment. It is included with my rent.

Two can be plugged in without tripping a breaker.

Manga Guide 2 Pg 36-80
1. Document yourself creating some static electricity and post to blog. Use the triboelectric series to decide which materials to use to generate static electricity.

2. Contrast the speed of an electron with the speed of electrical motion in one sentence.
3. Briefly explain the relationship between resistance and energy. Use an example from your house.
4. What is the difference in AC and DC current? Give and example of each from your daily life. If you get shocked,
5. Determine the equivalent resistance of a 6.0 Ω and a 8.0 Ω resistor if …
a. … connected in series.
b. … connected in parallel.
Check out this exhibition where artists use electricity in their work.https://www.samuseum.org/files/Generally-Electric-Tour.pdf

I create some static electricity here by rubbing together a blanket that is fresh from the dryer. I decided to do this after remembering how static fuzzy blankets get after coming fresh out of the dryer.

An electron's speed is much slower than the speed of light (less than 1% of the speed.)

Resistance halts or slows the speed or flow of energy. Appliances that work with heat, such as hair dryers, require a lot of resistance so they don't overheat or use too much energy.

AC means alternating current while DC stands for direct current. The difference is the direction in which the current flows--direct goes in one direction while alternate goes both ways.

The equivalent resistance of a 6.0 Ω and a 8.0 Ω resistor if connected in a series is 14 ohms and if connected parallel, 3.4 ohms.

Manga Guide 3 Pg 90-116

What is the relationship between heat and electricity. Please provide a metaphor. Heat is produced with electricity flows through an electric resistance, like how heat is produced when we eat and digest food. Electricity generates heat because of the thermal vibration in something.
Why is it warm near an incandescent light bulb? Incandescent light bulbs emit light and heat through thermal emission (infrared rays are emitted and then, as the temp rises, so does visible light.)
What is a superconductor? What are they used for in real life? You may have to look this up. How could one make a metal a superconductor? A superconductor has zero electrical resistance and can conduct electricity almost perfectly. One example of a superconductor is superconducting magnets that are used in MRI machines. Metals must be cooled extensively in order to become superconductors.
What is Ampere's Law? Ampere's Law is when magnetic fields are generated in a circular pattern when current flows in electrical wire.
If current of the same size flows in the same direction in two electric wires placed side by side, what happens? The electric magnetic fields with become one large magnetic field and the wires will be attracted to each other.
What happens if current of the same size flows in opposite directions in two electric wires placed side by side? Opposite directions in the flow of the current will make them resist each other.

Manga Guide 3 Pg 156-195

What is an example of a semiconductor device? A thermal resistor
Why is silicon used in the manufacture of semiconductors? The purity of refined silicon is 99.99999999999%. The silicon crystal also doesn't have any freely moving electrons so electricity will hardly pass through it.
Discuss the difference using an example of the difference between and N-type and P-type semiconductor. N-type means that there is a negative electrical property as opposed to P-type, that has a positive electrical property. Electrical conductivity increases for P-tpe semiconductors.
In your own words describe what a diode does and the role of N and P type semiconductors. A diode is when a p-type semiconductor and an n-type semiconductor are combined to form a p-n junction.
What is rectification? Rectification allows current to flow in only one direction.
What causes color in an LED? Give and example of what causes a particular color. The wavelength of the light emitted depends on the raw material of the semiconductor. InGaN creates a high-brightness blue color in an LED.
What is the relationship between base current and collector current in a transistor? Base current is the current that flows from the base to the emitter whereas the collector current is the current that flows from the collector to the emitter (which flows when the base current flows.)
What are the advantages of a transistor over a switch? Unlike a regular switch, a transistor has no physical contact and won't fail from being worn out. Also, it can be turned on and off rapidly so control can be fine-tuned.

Thursday, December 17, 2015

11/17 - Final Documentation

11/17 - Final Progress 5

Here are videos of my piece, both while testing it and during critique.
I have a lot of similar things, haha. Just wanted to be thorough

I think I was testing out different speeds with these first 4

During crit

Here, you can faintly see the projection on the wall

11/17 - Final Progress 4

While assembling the interface for my piece, I came to the realization that the lights I purchased to illuminate my projection box were too harsh for the piece and did not work as I intended. I returned to the store in hopes of finding another light source that could be plugged in and placed in the box but came up with nothing that met what I wanted. It was then that I decided to go for a more analog approach. I got some candles that provided exactly the glow that I was looking for. I forwent glue and just melted wax to the bottom of the box and attached the candles that way. This way, I not only achieved the light I was looking for but also had the added bonus of candles, which I think tied in with my concept well.

Speaking of my concept....basically, I wished to create a machine that paints my thoughts in shadows. The thoughts that plagued me as I was making this piece just so happened to be thoughts about validating myself as a Muslim. With everything that has been going on in our country's politics recently as well as the many ISIS attacks around the world, there has been a resurgence of fear amongst Muslims that has not been so prevalent since the months after 9/11. I used to be bullied for my faith regularly. I used to have to reassure complete strangers that neither I not my family were threats. I was used to it for such a long time in my youth but in the comfort that a liberal college atmosphere allows, I forgot what it felt like to feel constantly persecuted...until the past few months.

The four words carved onto the inside of my projection box (so as to project in a readable way on the wall) reference a specific incident in the 8th grade when a classmate called me a terrorist in front of the entire class. Fed up with the constant bullying, I angrily told him "I'm not a terrorist!" and (I am now ashamed to admit) punched him. It was a defining moment in my life, to be honest. I had never gotten physical with anyone before and that was the moment that I snapped and succumbed. From that day on, I learned to ignore the hate and take solace in the positive people I have around me. Recent hate crimes have been making that so hard so I thought that maybe if I created this box that depicts my justifications for myself over and over and over....maybe I would find some of the solace I found then---without the violence.

The candles that I added to my box are meant to represent memories. The memories I had in the days, months, years after 9/11. The memories that other Muslims around the country had of that time period. The memories that are now suddenly reemerging with full force. The fact that everyone else who is not a Muslim does not remember us, or how we too suffered. I'm glad that the string lights didn't work out because I don't think I would have loved my piece half as much if not for those candles.

12/17 - Final Progress 3

I decided that in order to create my rotating projector "drawing machine" that I would utilize my access tot he FabLab's laser cutters. Here is a pic I took during one of my late night/early morning laser cutting sessions (crocheting at 3 am is my new hobby)

I had sheets of fluorescent green and translucent grey plexiglass that I thought would be perfect for creating the interface for my piece. I used a website that allowed me to enter in dimensions and export a pdf to use on the laser cutter. Here are the dimensions for one of the three boxes I made. There was this one to hold my perfboard and arduino, a cube for the projection, and a tiny cube to hold the light sensor.

Before I cut anything though, I had to think of what I wanted my piece to project/draw. I was trying to think of what a revolving, lit up box would imply. I like the idea that this revolving box could represent the thoughts running through my head as of late and in turn, could tie in with the rest of the work of I've been making this semester about Islam. I settled on writing the words "I'm not a terrorist" on the sides of the box, a declaration that I have not felt so compelled to make in over a decade. More on this concept to come...

I bought a myriad of other supplies to construct my interface with, didn't take pics unfortunately. But I got some string lights that I thought I could use to illuminate my projection box, epoxy for the plexi, etc.

12/17 - Final Progress 2

This post details the process I went to coming up with my circuit for my final project. I basically wanted to merge my previous mini projects and create a motor that reacts to light information.

Here is a picture of my workspace

Here are some close ups of the motor and the photocell

Here is the finished circuit on the breadboard

Here is my soldering station and the finished soldered product

I wasn't able to do the fritzing yet because I have a chromebook that doesn't allow me to donload programs. I can only do what is on a browser or whatever is an app in the chrome store. I hope my images are enough to show you what the circuit looked like.

Video of the stepper motor alone revolving

video of the final motor that reacts to light

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

11/25 - Mini Project 2 Final documentation

Monday, November 16, 2015

11/16 - Mini Project 2 Process 3

Testing by turning a desk lamp on and off. Will probably bring a flashlight to class or else use the lamp.

11/15 - Mini Project 2 Process 2

Finished circuit with photocell, LEDs and servo motor + enclosure attached to motor covering up photocell

11/15 - Mini Project 2 Process 1

I redid the circuit for my first mini project because I figured that I should start there and then add on the motor afterwards. Here you can see that when the light source is removed by me placing my finger on the sensor, the LEDs go out.

11/15 - Mini Project 2 Ideation

For the mini project "movement," I really wanted to expand upon my first mini project that worked with a photocell. The first one reacted when light shone upon it, lighting up the LEDs underneath the cover I made. With this one, I hoped to create a piece that not only lit up but also moved. I decided to utilize a motor, specifically a servo motor, to accomplish that.

((all of this also is me working up to my final project -- an unconventional drawing machine that "draws" with light and shadows))