Siftables
Putting information in the palm of your hand
Overview
Siftables are independent, compact devices with sensing, graphical display, and wireless communication. They can be physically manipulated as a group to interact with digital information and media. Siftables provides a new platform and OS on which to implement tangible, visual and mobile applications.
We have manufactured and distributed a few hundred siftables; an external community of designers and researchers is actively building applications for them. Siftables was originally designed and built by David Merrill and Jeevan Kalanithi at the MIT Media Lab. Patent filed.
Selected Press
- Rethinking display technology (Boston Globe, 7/27/2008).
- Honorable mention in ID Magazine's Student Design Review (Sept / Oct '08 issue).
- Goodbye GUI, Hello TUI (Media Magazine, 6/2008)
- MIT's Siftables let you juggle your data… for real (Engadget, 3/15/2008)
- MIT's Siftables, the Domino-Like Computer (Softpedia News)
Technology
Siftables has undergone three hardware iterations and multiple software iterations, and now includes a Python API for simplified application development.
- dual AVR microcontrollers
- OLED displays
- 3 axis accelerometer with onboard data processing
- infrared transceivers and custom data protocol
- 64Mbit external flash memory
- Bluetooth Radio/Wireless networking
- Python
- C/embedded firmware
- plastic soft mold fabrication
See also David Merrill's Siftables page.
Swivel Design
Design for social business intelligence
Overview
As Design Chief at Swivel 2007 - 2008, Brent Fitzgerald led design and architecture of the world's first social, web-based business intelligence and analytics platform. Work included user research, information architecture, interaction design and coding, information visualization, and visual design.
Tiny Icon Factory
200,000 tiny icons and counting...
Overview
Tiny Icon Factory is an online gallery and studio for creation of 13x13 pixel, black and white icons. With over 200,000 anonymous and uncensored contributions in under two years, Tiny is an ongoing exploration of creative expression. Lovingly built by Brent Fitzgerald in collaboration with Luis Blackaller in the Physical Language Workshop at the MIT Media Lab.
Press
Tiny has been featured on Lifehacker, Digg, Del.icio.us, Flabber.nl, StumbleUpon, and other design blogs and news sites. Also included in the Delight by Design show at the MIT Museum.
Technologies
Tiny uses modern, standard web technologies and practices. Both the interface and the backend are simple and lean – critical qualities when you're serving up over 20,000,000 icons a day to Digg users.
- XHTML/CSS
- Javascript/AJAX/JSON
- Ruby on Rails
- RMagick
- MySQL
- Apache with proxy balancer
- Mongrel cluster
- RSS feed of new icons
Extensions
In collaboration with Anita Lillie, we also experimented with transferring these small images to physical media by burning a small set of icons into cherry wood using a laser cutter. See also the Woodbits blog entry.
Connectibles
A tangible twist on social networking
Overview
Connectibles applies tangible interface design to social networking. Connectibles allows users to represent and interact with the people in their social network using physical keepsake objects. The overarching goal is to examine how a set of devices might naturally and harmoniously interface the physical, virtual and social worlds. Developed by Jeevan Kalanithi in the Object-Based Media group at the MIT Media Lab. Patent filed.
Technology
The Connectibles network architecture instantiates a fully tangible, peer-to-peer TCP/IP framework, allowing synchronous communication across large distances among many users.
- AVR microcontrollers
- OLED displays
- sensors (e.g., force sensors, proximity sensors)
- Python
- C/embedded firmware
- hardware-to-TCP/IP P2P network
- custom topology discovery protocols
- felt, plastic and wood fabrication
Promiserver
Trust, commitment, and labor in the highly connected society
Overview
Promiserver is a web-based service and toolset for creation of lightweight contracts – dubbed promises – that are written as code. The service providing a generalized tool and forum for dynamic creation, binding, and evaluation of promises.
The project explores new models of collaboration by offering a sensible, lightweight, and agile promise system as an alternative to traditionally heavy legal commitments. Developed 2005 - 2007 by Brent Fitzgerald at the Physical Language Workshop in the MIT Media Lab.
Technologies
Promiserver is a pure, standards-compliant XHTML/CSS/Javascript-based interface over REST-based XML and JSON APIs.
- Ruby on Rails
- REST API (JSON and XML)
- Custom, ruby-based promise domain-specific language (DSL)
- Javascript/AJAX drag/drop and live feedback while coding promises
- XHTML/CSS
- Promise status RSS feeds
- MySQL database
- Apache with proxy balancer
- Mongrel cluster
Related projects
Synaptic Bliss
An immersive audio/visual experience by Aziz+Cucher
Overview
While at New York art/technology atelier EYEBEAM, Jeevan Kalanithi collaboratively edited and designed "Synaptic Bliss," a large scale, four channel video and sound installation by artists Aziz+Cucher. The piece debuted at Villette Numerique in Paris, and has been shown in Madrid, Barcelona, Tel Aviv and New York. We also created a 3D simulation of the piece to explore the New York installation.
Technology
Synaptic Bliss was created chiefly from digital video that was then heavily composited and edited at EYEBEAM's moving image studios.
OPENSTUDIO
An experiment in creativity, collaboration & capitalism
Overview
Running from 2005 - 2008, OPENSTUDIO was an experiment in creativity, collaboration & capitalism created by the Physical Language Workshop led by John Maeda at the MIT Media Lab. Participants created and sold artwork in an online marketplace using a virtual currency.
OPENSTUDIO was a collaboration among Burak Arikan, Luis Blackaller, Annie Ding, Brent Fitzgerald, Amber Frid-Jimenez, Kate Hollenbach, Kelly Norton.
Technologies
- Ruby on Rails
- XML-RPC API
- Java Servlets
- Java WebStart applications
- PostgreSQL
- Javascript/AJAX
- XHTML/CSS
Bar of Soap
Predictive, grasp-sensitive handheld device
Overview
The Bar of Soap is a grasp-sensitive handheld device, aware of how a person is holding it. The device incorporates machine learning techniques that deduce the user's intentions from gestural and touch sensor input. The Bar of Soap was developed to explore new ways of interacting with handheld devices and off-device media.
The Bar of Soap research is led by Brandon Taylor, in collaboration with Jeevan Kalanithi, Matt Adcock, Quinn Smithwick and Dan Smalley. Developed in the Object-Based Media group at the MIT Media Lab.
Press
- Bar of Soap: "Grasp Sensitive" Device Guesses What You Want It To Do Next (Wired Gadget Blog, 12/03/2007).
- Seven Innovations That Will Change Your Life (PC Magazine, July 2007 Issue)
- "Bar of Soap" Prototype Detects Intent from Your Touch... (Boing Boing Gadgets, 11/28/2007)
Technology
The Bar of Soap prototype consisted of touch-sensing wrapping around the entire device as well as pattern recognition built for a low power, low speed embedded CPU.
- AVR microcontroller
- Bluetooth Radio
- ITO Transparent Capacitive Sensing
- 3 axis accelerometer
- Bistable LCDs
- MATLAB
- Statistical/Machine Learning techniques including:
- Principal Components Analysis
- Fisher Linear Discriminants
- K-nearest neighbors
- Parzen Windows
- Bayesian Classification
- General Linear Discriminants
Educational Media Design
Design and development for Stanford University
Overview
Interaction design and development by Brent Fitzgerald spanning 2001 - 2004 at the Stanford School of Medicine. Topics including epidemiology, immunization management, clinician best practices, physiology, biomedical innovation; developed with SUMMIT, Stanford Biodesign, Glaser Pediatric Research Network, and PATH.
Technologies
- Java
- Apache Cocoon
- Apache Turbine
- Velocity
- XML
- XSLT
- XSL-FO
- Perl/CGI
- Flash/Actionscript
- XHTML/CSS
- Javascript
Foodstckr!
Social shopdropping app for foodies/vandals built in only 24 hours
Overview
Foodstckr is a rapidly developed web application prototype that lets people create their own food labels to then print and place on food in grocery stores. Winner of the MIT Simplicity Consortium Winter 2007 "24-hour build-a-thon" competition.
Hacked together at the MIT Media Lab by Brent Fitzgerald, Jeevan Kalanithi and Brandon Roy.
Technologies
- Ruby on Rails
- Javascript
- adhesive mailing labels
Yummy Tag Timeline
Folksonomy timeline exploratory visualization
Overview
Yummy is a dynamic, interactive visualization for exploring the Del.icio.us bookmarks and folksonomy. Users can enter their credentials and drag the timeline to see their bookmarks change, revealing trends over time. Created by Brent Fitzgerald.
Technologies
Yummy is a simple, one-page application, with a Rails backend to retrieve the user's full bookmark history.
- Javascript/AJAX/JSON
- XHTML/CSS
- Ruby on Rails
- Del.icio.us REST API (XML)
- FastCGI