BioCyberKidzz, Maribor

Workshops leaders:

Monika Pocrnjić (SI)

Assistants:

Dr. Špela Petrič (SI), Dr. Marc Dusseiller (CH)



Workshop
BioCyberKidzz (no Translation for title)

Authors: Monika Pocrnjić, Marc Dusseiller, & Špela Petrič

Short Description (please translate and use english and slovenian
Hacking the human body has become commonplace and many people have body modifications such as tattoos, piercings or even advanced medical prosthetics. Simple and playful body hacks that allow enhancing our human performance can be made with just few and cheap materials, such as cardboard, magnets and LEDs. In this playful laboratory setting we will investigate with the children: hearing with a Bio-Acoustics Ear and hacking their touch perception by the Magnetic Finger or a Disco-on-a-Fingertip and finally explore a Photosynthetic Skin.

Glossary

 * Body Augmentation - a deliberate modification of the body to change or improve its properties/performance.
 * Biomimicry - imitating a shape or phenomenon found in nature.
 * Body Hacks - playful modifications of the human body using easily accessible materials.
 * Enhanced Sensory Perception - the ability to sense things better than we usually do or beyond the five senses (touch, sight, sound, smell, taste)
 * Photosynthesis - the biological process of turning light into energy rich organic compounds, found in algae, plants and some microorganisms.
 * LED - Light Emitting Diode, an electrical component that turns an electric current into light.
 * Permanent Magnet - a material that produces a magnetic field, a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron.
 * Sodium Alginate - a ionic polysaccharide from brown algae that turns into a gel when you mix it with bivalent calcium ions.

Main Used Materials
(group with subtitles)

General Tools
 * paper & pencils
 * scissors
 * various tapes
 * aluminum foil
 * kitchen paper towel

Bio-Accoustic Ear
 * cardboard
 * stapler (incl. staples ammo)
 * elastic band

Magnetic Finger
 * super small super magnets
 * Band aid - tape (micropore)

Disco-on-a-Fingertip
 * 3V CR2025 flat battery
 * various LED, coloured
 * RGB blinky LEDs
 * electric wire

Photosynthetic Skin
 * Sodium Alginate (NaAlg)
 * Calcium Chloride (CaCl2)
 * micro-Algae (artemia-mix)
 * brush
 * containers
 * water (hot)

Author(s)
Monika Pocrnjić (SI), Dr. Marc Dusseiller (CH), & Dr. Špela Petrič (SI)

Title of the workshop
BioCyberKidzz

Workshop Description for catalogue / web-site (1500 characters)
A body hack is a usable technique to improve a person's life or physical capabilities. Hacking the human body has become quite commonplace. Many people have body modifications such as tattoos, piercings or even advanced medical prosthetics. Simple and playful body modifications that allow enhancing our human performance can be made with just few and cheap materials, such as cardboard, magnets and LEDs. The Bio-Acoustics Ear amplifier can augment a directional perception of sound. With a Disco-on-a-Fingertip we can modify our fingers into torches, disco lights or fluorescence detectors and we can augment our touch perception and add a new sense of magnetism by building body extension’s such as the Magnetic Finger. Or finally, by mixing algae with agar or other jelly we can make a Photosynthetic Skin. These body modifications will be observed and recorded in The Lab Book. The children will be introduced to a playful laboratory setting where the lab becomes less of an intimidating space but more an environment to spark their curiosity.'

The BioCyberKidzz workshop has been developed as a result of HackteriaLab 2011 by collective brainstorms of many individuals and communities, that are devoting their rich experiences in creating alternative crossovers between art and science. It has been invited to festivals such as Ars Electronica 2011 and others. The workshop is presented as part of the BioTehna project initiated in 2012 by Kapelica Gallery and Hackteria | Open Source Biological Art. BioTehna is a platform fostering curiosity and encouraging experimentation and research in the field of life sciences through creative and innovative combinations between nature and technology and the inspiring guidance of artists and researchers.

tags: Body Modifications, Enhancing Human Performance, Super Heroes, from Stellarc to Special Olympics

Workshop Description for leaflet (500 characters)
Hacking the human body has become commonplace and many people have body modifications such as tattoos, piercings or even advanced medical prosthetics. Simple and playful body hacks that allow enhancing our human performance can be made with just few and cheap materials, such as cardboard, magnets and LEDs. In this playful laboratory setting we will investigate with the children: hearing with a Bio-Acoustics Ear and hacking their touch perception by the Magnetic Finger or a Disco-on-a-Fingertip and finally explore a Photosynthetic Skin.

Participants age
5-14, appropriate for youngsters over 14 as well

Schedule (number of days)
Tuesday, 27. November 2012

9:00 - 12:00 (3 hours), session for school class + 17:00 - 20:00 (3 hours), open for wider audience (number of participants in the afternoon session limited to 12, reservations in advance required)

Bio for catalogue / web-site (1000 characters without spaces for a catalogue)
Monika Pocrnjić (SI) is an artist and a teacher. She studied art education and is interested in biology, physics, electronics and working with children. In her projects she explores the interaction and impact of organic and inorganic substances. She makes interactive installations and workshops. Shes a collaborator and tutor currently active in Maribor.

Dr. Špela Petrič (SI) is a researcher and artist. With a background in biology and biochemistry, she works at the intersection of art, science and technology and is interested the many biological phenomena that influence society and our perception of the human species. She is currently studying Transmedia in Brussels.

Dr. Marc Dusseiller (CH) is a transdisciplinary scholar, lecturer for micro- and nanotechnology, cultural facilitator and artist. He works in an integral way to combine science, art and education. He is Co-Founder of SGMK (Zürich) and Hackteria | Open Source Biological Art, a global community bridging bioart, DIYbio, hackerspaces and science.

http://www.dusseiller.ch/labs/

BioTehna: The workshop is presented as part of the BioTehna project initiated in 2012 by Kapelica Gallery and Hackteria | Open Source Biological Art. The BioTehna project is supported by a grant from Switzerland through the Swiss Contribution to the enlarged European Union.

http://www.kapelica.org/

http://www.hackteria.org/

Images for catalogue / web-site (3-5 illustrations with credits in jpeg or tiff, 300 dpi)


Disco-on-a-Fingertip



Bio-Accoustic Ear



Workshop table

Photo of artist for catalogue / web-site (in jpeg or tiff, 300 dpi, with credits)


Monika



dusjagr aka Marc Dusseiller



spela

High-res pictures
Photos: hackteria | cc-by-sa, download high-res from dropbox.

Bio-Accoustic Ear amplifier
This is a biologically inspired simple hearing amplifier built with cardboard that augments a directional perception of sound.

Disco-on-a-Fingertip
Seeing with your finger? Let's try to modify our fingers into torches, disco lights or fluorescence detectors!

Magnetic Finger
They will build body extenstions that will augment their touch perception and add a new sense of magnetism.

Photosynthetic Skin
Mix algae with agar or other jelly and pour over the kids :-)


 * Na Alginate
 * CaCl2
 * micro-Algae (artemia-mix)
 * brush
 * containers
 * water (hot)
 * Kitchen paper towel

The Lab Book (mbe leave this out...)
Recording observations is an important aspect of laboratory life. This module will teach them to collect and record data.

Review from Ars 2011
you can download it here