Geek In Me

By Evan Ackerman via ohgizmo.com

I know I am 3 days late, but still…
I’m not sure what it is about fish that inspires people to create technologically bizarre fish tanks to try and elicit some sort of deeper meaning from their movements. This particular example is the Rythmfish system, designed by Sangmin Bae. Webcams surrounding the tank record the movements of the fish, and the images are combined with data from flow sensors inside the tank which measure the currents generated by the swimming fish. The results are translated (somehow) into an audiovisual, uh, something, which is performed through an LCD screen and speakers mounted on the tank. The designer says: “even if the fish can’t speak and express its feelings in a human way, it has an energy and communication skill in its own way. Vibration is the medium of interaction, and I chose it for its universality in the physical, emotional, and spiritual realms.” Hm. I wonder if the fish feel the same way, or maybe they’re just trying to figure out what the heck all this weird electronic stuff is doing in their tank.

By Evan Ackerman via ohgizmo.com

The Infinity Aquarium, subtitled “swimming around in circles,” was designed by BCXSY Design Studio to create “a visual metaphor to life in the fish bowl.” If that’s what life is like, I don’t feel so bad about being totally lost most of the time. I’m not well versed enough in hyperspatial pandimensional neogeometry to even hazard a guess as to what shape this in fact is, and to be completely honest, I can’t even tell from the pictures where all the sides and corners are. But forget about me, what about the fish? It must be like they’re permanently entrapped in an endless series of incomprehensible rooms, corridors, and dead ends…

Poor goldfish. Nobody really respects their intelligence. They get kept in tiny little aquariums, fed occasionally, and otherwise ignored. But, they’re capable of so much more. Three second memory? Think again. With the R2 Fish School, you can use simple operant conditioning and positive reinforcement to train your fish to perform tricks, including basketball, football, soccer, slalom, limbo, and other amazing feats.
Remember, the R2 Fish School isn’t just about making your life more exciting… It makes your little fishy friend’s life more exciting too. It’s $30 from Amazon.
via ohgizmo.com