mi-e-metic-self

Saurabh Datta

Other - Giphy API, Azure Cloud computer Visison, Dense CAP API, Python, Processing, raspberry PI, Ubuntu, Arduino, Custom electronics, Motors

mi/e-metic self is an installation that represents a sculptural being, a memetic representation of an evolved us. Where today’s we are so much engulfed with digital services that we start behaving like machines. A behaviour model that resembles to actions/reactions of an arthropod. Although not directly related, In the Neuro-philosophy-1986 by Patricia S. Churchland, she tries to explain basic neuroscience by giving simplified analogies of different nervous systems to machine systems. This was an inspiration for this embodied installation, a metaphor, a slave to the digital media’s consumer culture. I have observed, in my own behaviour and many others that we get very easily succumbed and spend hours on these omni present digital services like, Instagram moments, TikTok [Douyin], WeChat moments, Whatsapp moments and others. Eventually a typical process on those platforms look like this: 1] Watch content. 2] Think something, make a judgment, give a comment etc. 3] Move on to the next. This installation represents an analogy, a somewhat mindless yet judging machine whose opinions are represented by our modern **meme** culture components like GIFs. Those then act as the commentary on the contents. 
 The installation consists of a camera on the sensory map, which observes a Chinese Application called Tiktok [Douyin], a platform where millions of people are posting contents. On the mind layer, the machine consists of an optimised AI engine, running model to translate image/scene to text statements from an Intel NUC running Ubuntu Core. On the motor layer, representing action mechanism, it consist of a micro controller and motor with limits as an analogy to those of our own motor system. And as for the social commentary and personal judgement handling part of the brain, it is represented a small single board computer (raspberry Pi4 connected neurally to the same nervous network of the brain, the NUC system). The thoughts and comments are then loosely visualised on a security CRT monitor by what Giphy’s nearest K means Algorithm returns from the scene statement it receives from the NUC side of the brain. And it continues…