New Fangled Contraptions

One thing I've gotten into as a result of knowing my roommate Anthony is watching video's from SIGGRAPH. The name stands for "Special Interest Group on GRAPHics and Interactive Techniques." It's basically a gathering for all sort of newfangled (mostly cool looking) contraptions, all for the sole purpose of giving us that interactive screen from Minority Report. Or something like it.

For example, take a look at this electronic gadget called "ants in the pants" which seems to simulate having carnivorous beetles crawling around your skin.



Sure, this may have great applications for video-games or therapy treatments, but also as an extremely imaginative torture device should they choose to add crickets into the mix.

Eghhhhhhhh... crickets.

Or check out awesome interfaces like this (you might have to fast forward a quarter into it to really appreaciate what they're getting at):



Or somewhat disturbing animations like this:

BLIND SPOT
by Dragonzaur

Most SIGGRAPH animations are oddly enough about technology suppressing nature, or nature overcoming technology, one of the two. But every once and a while something totally new shows up.

This last video, from the 2004 SIGGRAPH, absolutely blew my mind the first time I watched it.



Yeah, that was completely computer animated.
Is there any point to it?
Probably not.

But man does it look realistic.