Today I've photographed the loading bay.

The main wall space (two solid side walls and false wall over the shutter) will be approx 9m x 3.5m. Haven't measured the height accurately yet though - need a ladder!

I've been thinking about where to place my progressive shots within the space. I like the idea of having them over the archway of the entrance. In that way I make the best use of the wall space for the large image, making it totally immersive, and catch people as they turn to leave with something new.

I've made some sketches of potential use of the space and emailed them through to Nev, my printer, to give him some idea of the challenge he is up against! They've not come out very clearly here but hopefully they will give him come idea where I am coming from and help him work out the technical stuff!

Went for a walk on the beach yesterday evening and watched the starlings darting about.

It was good to get a bit of a natural perspective of my project. I'm getting so deeply into computer-swarming that I tend to forget where it came from.

They really were beautiful and inspiring. Reminded me how annoyingly-good Robert Hodgin is - his Birds is spot-on. perhaps I can evolve this project somehow using the published videos? I definately like the visual style of flocks - will focus on this I think.

Photos aren't mine by the way - they are from the Regency Square Area Society.

I went to this talk last night, with a view to thinking about and discussing robot's capacities to imagine, as this is a simillar intagiable concept to love.

We watched scenes from 'Bladerunner' and 'A.I.' in small groups and discussed them in small groups. We discussed the concept of conciousness a lot, which was relevant to my project, but mainly the evening was focused on ethics rather than creativity.

Today I've been looking for a swarm system to build my project on.

I found this Java system by Christian Borgelt which is quite interesting, but not random enough for me. The swarm seems to situate around a central oval. I want something more random; more natural.

It was interesting to think about the interactivity inherent in a swarm system: each of the particles is programmed to interact with the others.

I've been to see Mary today about my code problems.

She says that it's unlikely I could hack a particle system to get different letters to swarm. They are built to circulate one particle, not different ones. It seems that I either forget the idea completely or look at other ways of creating the same end visual.

Mary has suggested that I use Photoshop to map the letters over a still of a particle or swarm system. This is a really good idea and something I feel really comfortable doing. I have to use the knowledge I do have to solve the problem, rather than panicking about the knowledge I don't have; I just have to approach the problem differently!

Now I need to find a swarm system!

HOORAY - Mary Harrison has agreed that I can use the MSU loading bay for my project! Now I can finally start making!!

Am having a bit of a worry about my project. I emailed some code through to Mary that I've been working on over the last week or so. It's the most relevant visually to ideas of swarm and hive mentality, but I just can't get it to run (see pic!).

I've updated all the code so that it is compatible with the newest version of Processing (which we have). Adam mentioned that it could need custom libraries and if it does, I'm stuck, because no-one publishes these - only the code!

I really need to confirm a location for the project too. I've been chasing Paul round for weeks trying to talk to him about it, but he's got so much teaching on I can never find him!

Generally feeling pretty anxious about the progress of the project.

Made this quick mock-up of my project. Just trying to show the swarming of code - it won't be in these straight lines in the final project.

For the last few days I've been playing with code from Robert Hodgin's site Flight404.com, especially the stuff focusing on particles.

Managed to find a kind of hidden section to the site, with a list of sketches and their code. I can't get the majority to work in my version of Processing. I think I'm missing some custom libraries and unless someone gives me that I'm stuffed.

Got a couple of things to work though:

The top sketch takes an image and cuts it up into a selection of little squares, blanking some out with white. Each time you click on it it changes. Reminds me of the stuff the Adam is doing with photos.

The others are particle systems, which I'm thinking about trying to map onto an image somehow. Jared Tarbell maps particles onto grids so I guess it would possible theoretical to map them onto a photo using the colours, for example.

Have just had an email from a friend of mine who is doing Music Informatics.

Was talking to him about my project the other day and it turns out that he's just been doing a course dealing with a lot of the questions my project has been inspired by.

He has sent me through a load of readings which should be really helpful for my critique, as well as informing my project at this stage.

Mary has also found me some good readings, one of which takes Walter Benjamin's work into the digital domain. As I mentioned him in my essay last term this is an excellent lead on from that.

Have just had my lunch and found a flyer for Brighton Science Week. Has some cool and relevant things on for my project on, like 'Can Robots Love?' and a 'Catalyst Club' talk on the relationship between Science and Art.

Today I've been looking into hex editors. They allow you to view and edit the binary data that makes up a file, rather then the interpretation of that file by an application. In a sense, then, they allow you to see the purest, most basic form of a programme - the raw data.

As this is what my project is trying to visualise, within the 'imagination' of the the computer, it makes sense to use this data. I am trying to show how the computer could 'think' or 'create' and I like the idea that the project could be recursive - an image of itself; an image of code built using code.

The project aims to deconstruct the code, to interpret it in a different way, or to re-imagine it.

Like the interactivity offered here, and the fact that it makes technology accessible. It's bringing sci-art into the built environment.

Mary isn't keen on my ideas around neural networks, as it's overdone, so I'm moving on to looking at swarm systems and hive mentality.

I'm looking into data visualisation through Information Aesthetics, which is really inspiring, but I don't have any data to visualise! I need to look into ways of getting some data.

I need to think about colour, shapes and forms. I'm still keen on the visuals of circuit boards so am trying to think of ways of incorporating elements from them.

Both Paul and Mary have talked with me about spreading my project around MSU, leaving 'traces' of the experience in different places. I have to think about how I could make this work.

Hooray! I have a new space for my work!

Came in firsy thing this morning and spoke to one of the photographers, Penny, about a space she was due to use - the MSU loading bay.

Turns out she isn't using it anymore so I'm free to go ahead!

Have just had some bad news.

Rob, my partner, has talked to the tool hire guy at his work and he reckons that doing the stairwell will be practically impossible, and certainly dangerous, without professionally-fitted scaffolding. This, obviously, is way out of my price range, not to mention really inconvenient.

Feel a bit crushed. It's the weekend so I'm going to have a think about what I can do, and start sourcing alternatives on Monday morning :(

At least I can stop bugging everyone about risk assessments for a couple of days though!

I've made some mock-ups of the project in situ to help Mary and Andrew visualize what I'm looking to do. The images aren't my own, but I wanted to give them a feel of the immersion I'm trying to create.

Have made up this page of imagery surrounding neurones, which is what I want to base the visual of my project on. You can see the similarity between these and the images of Jared Tarbell's work I posted the other day.

Emails have been flying back and forth all day between myself and Sue Carter - the uni's health and safety officer. Apparently I need to get a risk assessment done by someone for the stariwell. Need to talk to Paul about this.

As I'm using ladders I've emailed the Health and Safety people on campus to see if I need 'ladder training'!

Met with Mary an hour ago to talk through my submission and how I can show that my project fits the rules.

Feeling confident and happy that I can articulate to the examiner where I'm coming from through the PDF. Will have to physically hand-in my project though (some big paper is coming to the undergraduate office!).