A “computer” was originally the name of a profession, consisting of performing repetitive calculations on a piece of paper. Computers were humans, and the calculations were mostly necessary for running simulations for science and the military. American scientist Lewis Fry Richardson devised a ‘Forecast Factory’ – a huge spherical building consisting of 64000 mathematicians, each of them doing his or her bit of calculation for simulating weather, just a bit faster than reality could.
While scientists were very interested in simulating the existent universe, artists became interested in possibilities of creating nonexistent universes; Universes perceivable through sound, light or other common media. But is there a way to peek into these worlds directly, or to at least minimize the layers of translation? Can code be used as a medium? Is there a medium that inherently contains and runs the code?
Apart from this, c0d3l4b is also interested in possibilities of alternative computing architectures, such as bio/chemical computers and software running on humans and physics. Also we are interested in the computer as an artist.
These are some of the basic questions proposed by the c0d3l4b. Practically, the time of the lab sessions is divided in three parts:
— a free coding part during which each student working on code of his or her own choosing, with a focus on sharing ideas and mutual problem solving. Some of the software environments commonly used in the lab are Max/MSP/Jitter, Processing, and OpenFrameworks. Arduinos and Ipsons with various sensors often visit the lab.
— a second part is dedicated to a longer-term research project, for which the entire c0d3l4b team works on one project that should be presented outside the lab. During the year, c0d3lab will offer two global research projects, divided into smaller segments that will be evaluated regularly.
— the third part will consist of monthly discussion/theoretical/evaluation sessions. Students are always more than welcome to offer their own ideas about the ongoing projects, on the smaller as well as long term scale.
The labcoaches are Nenad Popov and Marcus Graf. For more info and previous research topics please refer to http://codelab.interfaculty.nl/
