reflections on the judging criteria

• presence both on the website and in Second Life

    In the original SFIA performance the speakers were fixed, though they provided quadrophonic sound to better simulate movement.  Preliminary demonstrations show that the spatial characteristics of the sound system in Sl offers a similar if not superior verisimilitude, as much as that term can be applied to such a simulation.  In the
this wiki's design section we propose small wireless speakers on concentric tracks, like a mobile, with three options for interaction: manual, with the user moving the planets by hand to marked spots in their orbits; semi-automatic, similarly and having motorized single-board computer controlled speakers with motors; and a fully automatic orrery, with user interaction achieved in all options also by walking around (input) and hearing how the sounds change (feedback).    

• relate to the core theme of technology in art, film, or music

        Until the advent of easy to use sound composition software and hardware,
        the audio "visualization" of kepler's laws and the music of the spheres was
        unavailable in any physical form consonant with the actual movement of the planets
        in their orbits.  It is only because of the availability of modern computing technology
        that we can now appreciate Kepler's imagination.

•     educational core principle

        The structure of music and the relationship of the movement of physical objects
        to sound is one of the core principles to be explored in this exhibit, as well
        as astronomy and orbital dynamics, and fundamental mathematical principles. Further, the history an development of the conception of space and time from the Greeks, to Kepler and contemporary views.

•  the "spirit of silicon valley"

        Abraham and Viotti are among the unsung heroes influencing computing today.
        They have both been involved in various technical projects around Silicon Valley and                 the Bay Area.