»ZOMBIAC - Zone Of Monitor-Based Inter-Amnesiac Contact« 
Light Box
Light Box
Keywords
Information
Perry Hoberman >
»ZOMBIAC - Zone Of Monitor-Based Inter-Amnesiac Contact«, 2000
Co-Workers & Funding:
Partner:
Technology
Descriptions & Essays
ZOMBIAC consists of a large number of computer terminals and
workstations, ranging in vintage from the 1970s to the present. Each computer has been "zombified": all the original electronics have been removed, transforming them into mindless "electronic brains". The cathode-ray tube from each monitor has been removed and replaced with a translucent plexiglas surface that conceals a blinding green spotlight that can be switched on and off. Each system is thus reduced to a simplified but powerful binary (on/off) state (which is of course the foundation of virtually all digital computing systems).
Each terminal is mounted on a turntable (controlled by a stepper motor), so that each can be rotated rapidly to face any direction. Sensors in each system allow the monitors to respond to actions of the other monitors, as well as to movements of visitors. At any point, any monitor can begin a "conversation" consisting of semi-random bursts of light and sound. Nearby monitors respond by rotating to face the active monitor, continuing the conversation by emitting their own flashes and sounds, causing other monitors to respond in turn.
These events are varied (using a mix of algorithmic and randomizing transformations) to simulate the cadences of a various kinds of speech (dialogue, conversation, argument, chat, public address, small talk, etc). Small eddies of conversation begin and end continuously, with bursts of activity happening unpredictably throughout the installation. Each monitor is capable of "speaking" to any of its nearest neighbors, thus forming spontaneous groupings that are being constantly reconfigured (somewhat like a cocktail party or an art opening).
As visitors enter, sensors track their movements, triggering monitors to turn to "watch" them. The monitors emit bursts of light and sound, attempting to engage visitors in conversation. If visitors respond by speaking or moving, the monitors will temporarily fall quiet, as the system "listens" to the visitor. When the visitor stops speaking, the monitors respond with new patterns of light and sound.
A number of different sensors are built into each computer assembly, including sensors for proximity, motion, light and sound. This allows each monitor to respond to a variety of stimuli, leading to a seeming complexity of behavior. Speakers built into each assembly emit noise synchronized to each burst of light, consisting of various computer-generated sounds, such as synthesised voices, severely aliased audio files, modem screeches and skronks, etc. Each individual system has its own distinct "voice".
At first glance, visitors might simply perceive an arrangement of
generic workstations. Then, as the monitors spin to face and flash at each other, a perception of a strange kind of community emerges. Finally, wandering through the installation, visitors may have the sensation of a man-made (but nonetheless alien) intelligence listening and addressing them, attempting to communicate, to establish contact.
ZOMBIAC aims to manifest a kind of (fake) artificial intelligence that steers clear of any attempt to communicate meaningful information to its human participants. Certain kinds of dialogue and exchange between us (human) and them (machine) may be possible here - but only on their terms.
(Perry Hoberman)
Literature
Exhibitions & Events