The study of emergent phenomena generated through the interaction of pre-programmed systems and sentient behavior.
Specifically, this refers to emergent architectural forms and formations arising from the interactions between avatars and scripted objects within Second Life. These scripted objects will take the form of a fluid swarm described in an earlier blog posting on www.interactivearchitectures.blogspot.com. While this particular project does not represent an architecture that will be realized through physical construction (obviously) it will serve as a model for these human/program interactions and future hybrid spatial architectures utilizing Second Life as a virtual platform.
The overall goal of the project is to observe, analyze, and catalog various patterns (both behavioral and formal) which develop through this avatar/scripted object relationship. These patterns will be observed by recording the play of avatars as they interact with the system and with each other. This catalog of patterns and behaviors will begin to develop into a language of interaction that begins to define and outline the relationship between subjects and objects in interactive space. This knowledge may then be applied to future projects that draw upon group behavior to direct architectural kinetic effects.
The project is expected to develop through 4 phases:
1- Responsive to avatar movement and positioning
2- Responsive to specific avatar actions and behaviors
3- Interactive and emergent game play
4- System initiation through events in physical space
