Pheromonics | Processing Workshop Prague

[.] BRIEF

Communal species in nature coordinate themselves through rules based on local sensing-feedback logics, resulting in global behaviours and artifacts which exhibit an embedded complexity and intelligence well beyond the capacities of the single individual. Some of these species build also artifacts (that are both dwellings and infrastructures) that are inextricably intertwined with the metabolism of the individual and the group at once. Such amazing sophistication though stems up from the iterative application of very simple behavioral rules.

In the Pheromonics workshop we will explore agent-based behaviors with focus on stigmergy, the strategy many species use to exchange information through the environment by means of a read-write process (often implemented via a chemical agent such as a pheromone). We will implement our strategies using Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) in the Processing programming environment (with eventually a little excursion in a 3D modeling package such as Blender for modeling/rendering).

[.] OUTPUTS

Digital format presentation/video animation/interactive piece.

[.] Daily Schedule
Day 01
– introductory lecture: emergent complexity – embedded intelligence and behavior based construction
– introduction to Processing
– programming basics (variable types, functions)
– data structures (array, arraylist)
– introducing control: loops & conditional statements
– math basics (vectors, trigonometry)
– user interaction

Day 02
– OOP: classes and objects
– extending Processing: libraries
– iterations: particles and agents
– implementing behaviors

Day 03
– basics of 3D Mesh modeling in Blender: modeling an environment
– implementing stigmergy: reading/writing to an environment
– interface design

Day 04
– tutorized personal project

Day 05
– tutorized personal project

Day 06
– final presentation

[.] Tutor
Alessio Erioli
www.co-de-it.com

[.] Dates
From 16th to 21st June 2014

[.] Language
English will be the main language of the workshop.

[.] Fee
250 EUR

[.] Registration
For further information and payment instructions, please register under recodenature@gmail.com, www.recodenature.org/contact

The deadline for registration is 11th June 2014.
The workshop has a maximum of 16 places available and will be activated with a minimum number of 9 participants.

[.] Location
Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague
Náměstí Jana Palacha 80, 116 93 Praha 1
Czech Republic

[.] Eligibility
The workshop is open to students, teachers, PhD candidates and young professionals.

[.] Notes
Students, teachers, PhD candidates and young professionals need to bring their own laptops. Please ensure we don’t take any responsibility for items lost or stolen during the workshop. Accommodation and travel expenses aren’t covered by Re.Code.Nature or Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague.