Brett Peterson

Category: Physical Computing

  • Safe Cracking at the ITP Winter show

    After an exhausting couple days/weeks/months, I presented my safe cracking game at the ITP Winter show on December 17th & 18th. I’ll be updating my blog with photos, videos, and code shortly. But first, I’m going to take a nap. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email me!  

  • Bubble Rider – my first complete game in Processing

    I just completed my first full game in Processing! It’s called Bubble Rider and you can play it here: Play Bubble Rider It’s a pretty simple game; you control a green and blue bubble as obstacles wiz past them. I’ll probably tweak it to make it more fun and have the difficulty ramp up nicely, but…

  • Design Meets Disability

    Reading Response to excerpt from Design Meets Disability by Graham Pullin I really enjoyed this weeks reading assignment about the design of tools used by those with physical disabilities. Pullin describes how most assistive devices are designed to draw as little attention to the device as possible. Prostheses illustrate this example clearly; they are usually flesh-colored…

  • Let’s get ready to RUUUMMMBLE!

    A few assignments ago in physical computing, I had the idea to make a thumb wrestler with a homemade force detector. I’ll talk about that more below. Ever since that lab, I’ve used what I’ve learned to build onto that project adding LEDs, a servo, and a piezo buzzer. Here’s a short video demonstrating the…

  • The Phantom of the Arm

    I read an excerpt of Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See by Donald D. Hoffman that spoke to the fact that there is evidence our brain constructs what we see and touch. The chapter discussed medical studies that were performed on patients who had limbs amputated but could feel the sensation that the appendage…

  • Physical Computing hits and misses

    Physical Computing’s Greatest Hits (and misses) -Tom Igoe I loved looking through this list of different types of physical computing projects. Some were very inspiring (mechanical pixels, fields of grass), and others I’ve seen many many times. what I really like about both the mechanical pixels and fields of grass are the scale and response given…

  • Maker Faire NY 2012

    On Saturday I volunteered at 2 booths for Maker Faire NY. I’ve been to the faire in California 3 or 4 times, but this was my first in New York! It was a ton of fun and I got to meet and work with great people. First up was the Nerdy Derby. The idea was…

  • Week 2 Observation

    For this assignment, we were asked to pick a piece of interactive technology out in the wild, and observe people using it. I chose something that frustrated me at first, but as I’ve now memorized the actions needed, it no longer bothers me: The MetroCard vending machine. The first issue I found (and observed others…

  • Enter the Arduino

    Bike safety lights – Arduino switch from brett peterson on Vimeo. This lab assignment was to make something using a digital switch connected to an Arduino. I thought of a system that would turn on lights attached to a bag when you put it on. I think if I were to do another iteration, I’d…

  • Ketchup Switch

    ketchup_switch from brett peterson on Vimeo. For last week’s assignment we were asked to create a simple switch that, when closed, would turn on an LED. After watching my daughter spread food all over her highchair tray one night, I decided to try and use ketchup. Peep the video above for the results. I wasn’t…

  • Physical interactivity?

    I really enjoyed both readings on interactivity and the current and future states of interactive design ( chapters 1 & 2 from The Art of Interactive Design and  A Brief Rant on the Future of Interaction Design ) Both pieces encouraged me to think about what interactivity really is and what makes a good interaction. How…

  • Physical Computing blog

    To see blog posts associated with my Physical Computing class for Fall 2012, please click “Physical Computing” under Categories.