experiment in progress - final video

Research - Decoding Odors

The world is made of atoms. Those atoms connect to make molecules and molecules are what we smell. Though we know almost everything possible about molecules, we don't have an exact answer on how is smell written into molecules? And how do our noses interact with scent molecules? Til now, there are a few proposed theory on how the nose works.

The prevailing theory:
First refined in 1952 by John Amoore at Oxford University, proposes that the shape of a molecule determines its smell. eg, a rose molecule smells like a rose molecule because its shape is coded precisely for the nose to interpret this way. How it works is that the shape of an airborne molecule (the key) fits into complementary odorant receptor proteins on the outside of the nasal cell (the lock).

Vibrational theory
In 1996, Luca Turin, a biophysicist at University College London, states that molecules in every substance generate a specific vibration frequency that the nose interprets as a distinct smell. The vibration frequency of odor molecules is converted to smell recognition via a form of electron tunnelling with the help of receptors in the lining of the nose. The vibrational theory suggested that the way we smell is similar to the way we hear, but instead of music get the chemical melody of scent.


This diagram shows the receptor neurons in the nose that convert odors to electrical signals that the brain can interpret.



Read more on the original article

experiment in progress - particles

I've animated the particles that represent the binary code using blender, there's 3 different movement, each one suggesting different information encoded.

experiment in progress - avocado

The avocado took quite some time to rot. I've put it in a plastic bag and expose it to the sun to increase it's rotten process. For it to go from fresh to rotten, it has took a total of 5 days.

email to expert - Professor White

Professor Liu has suggested that I should try to contact Professor Murray White. So I've send the same email that I send to Professor Liu to Professor White, and still waiting for his respond at the moment.

Respond from Prof Liu

From:	James Liu (James.Liu@vuw.ac.nz)
Sent:	Sun 4/05/09 5:47 PM
To:	'jackie chow' (jac_msgurl@hotmail.com)

interesting idea jackie, but way outside my expertise! maybe try murray white who researches perception? and i am flat out right now.

best

james

Dr. James H. Liu
Deputy Director, Centre for Applied Cross Cultural Research
School of Psychology
PO Box 600
Victoria University of Wellington
Wellington, New Zealand
FAX 64-4-463-5402
Phone 64-4-463-5153

Manmade

After the hand in of submission one, we were all told that we lack proof to support the scenario that we are creating in regards of the team project. Here's a research on the man-made factor that has created problem to our nature and environment. Hopefully it will gives enough proof and supportive fact to our scenario.

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All organisms depend on their environments for energy and the materials needed to sustain life. However, the human activities have inflicted harsh and often irreversible damage on the environment and on critical resources. Looking at the current situation, the heavy demands on the groundwater have resulted in serious shortages in more than 80 countries, containing 40 percent of the world’s population. Forests are being destroyed rapidly and some critical forest types will be gone in a few years. With them will go large numbers of plant and animal species, which lead to serious effect on medicinal and other health care benefits. A four-year report by the world health organization warned that the change of ecosystem, including changed biodiversity, may also contributes to the spread of new diseases like bird flu and SARS, as well as influencing the risk of transmission of diseases to human. The environmental changes are already affecting human health and the effects could grow rapidly over the next 50 years.

As the earth is finite, its ability to provide food and energy is finite. Its ability to absorb wastes and harmful materials is finite. Looking at the rate of how human exploiting the earth natural resources and do not take environment responsible behavior into serious concern, lack of basic necessities and the spread of new diseases would become a significant cause of human mortality. Equate foresee that in 40 to 50 years time, the world population may deplete to one third of current population.

When the collision between human beings and the natural world is at the verge where it is no longer able to sustain life, for survival human will have no choice but to turn to science and technology to save what is left of humanity.

email to expert (social psychologist) - Prof Liu

From: jackie chow [mailto:jac_msgurl@hotmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, 4 April 2009 6:04 p.m.
To: James Liu
Subject: professional advise seeked for my current research

Dear Professor Liu,
My name is Jackie Chow. I'm a 4th year digital media student from Victoria University. Currently I'm undertaken a group project that focuses into future and technology.

Our group envisions that 80 years in the future, when earth is no longer suitable for human to live in, mankind will have to turn to science and technology for survival. Here's our group philosophy.
“We envisions a future were Hybrid-Enhanced humans will evolve to survive within their environment. There will become a time when computing power will equal that of the human brain. It is at this time in the year 2089; that survival of the Hybrid humans will involve a transformation of the self. While having the standard methods, the Hybrid generation will have abilities to communicate, transfer information and energy in methods that will be less demanding on the resources of the planet.”

As a group of 7, each member have their own individual area to research on that relates to the group philosophy. My area of focus in this project is on our most primal senses – smell. How human senses will evolve and what this evolve sensor contribute to human survival in the future.
I believe that 40 to 50 years in the future, the collision between human beings and the natural world will be at the verge where it will be no longer able to sustain life. To maintain human survival, I foresee the importance of the balance between human and the environment. Hybird human senses will evolve, to a state where the Hybird generation will have the ability to perceive an advance level of understanding of the environment and surroundings, communicating between each other to harmoniously share the world in a fair and equal basis.

In order to complete the project to a con vincible level, we will need comments and suggestions from experts and professionals. It would be a great help to me and my group if we can get your help and support throughout our project.


I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thank you.



Regards,
Jackie Chow

Equate Philosophy - individual part

The collision between human beings and the natural world is at the verge where it will be no longer able to sustain life. To maintain human survival, we foresee the importance of the balance between human and the environment. Hybird human senses will evolve, to a state where the Hybird generation will have the ability to perceive an advance level of understanding of the environment and surroundings, communicating between each other to harmoniously share the world in a fair and equal basis.

Project description

Name of my project - decode the experiences
key word - experience
description - My experiment look at how human in second life can decode and understand the story and meaning behind objects through smell.

My individual project is looking at the evolved sensors, focusing on smell.

our five senses allow us to understand and stay connect with the things around us. Of all our senses, smell is our most primal. Living organisms, our nature and environment, the things and objects around us, they all have stories behind them. However in physical world, we don’t have the ability to decode everyting that we come across. We smell the smells, we know what type of smell it is, like or dislike, familiar or not so familiar, but we can never have the ability to fully understand the information encoded in the smell, or what the smells is really suggesting, the story and meaning behind it. 2nd life has provide us a world with the ability to decode, digest and understand every single information encoded in the smell which is sturcture by binary codes, letting us to know the true meaning of it.

Therefore, what second life has contribute to us is the improvement in our smell sensory, enhance us with a more advance understanding of our nature and environment.

decode the experiences - storyboard

Film a banana from day one, when it is fresh and green, to black and dried out.

Then, film a man blowing different color’s chalk out from his nose, and reverse the film for the effect suggesting a man sniffing in particles.

The idea is that throught the different color and flow/movement of the chalk it portrays the emotions of the banana that is embedded in its smells at that particular stage of time.

technology and environment-expert questions

some questions for the experts in the field on technology and environment that i’ve come up with:

1) What do you think is the biggest concern now for the environment that may led to population depletion or even human extinction if the condition continue to get worsen.

2) Can you foresee the connection between human and technologies in 80 years from now?

3) Do you think 80 years in the future, with all the technologies advancement that have either improved or degraded our living conditions, human will be perceiving things differently from current?