itp 2008
Games
Simon Stabs Game Channels Your Inner Bishop
9:45AM Benny Goldman | Remember that scene in Aliens with Bishop and the knife? ITP student Aram Chang made a nerve-racking game out of it. In Simon Stabs, you and your opponent take turns sticking a “knife” between your fingers, making a pattern that must be mimicked by the other guy, who then adds to it. You only have a few seconds to stab; one false move and you lose—hopefully just the game and not any fingers. I tested it out, and as you can see from the video, I’m no android. And I didn’t even have the added pressure of Bill Paxton screaming like a sissy. In case you forgot how the pros do it, Bishop’s clip is below. [Aram Chang; ITP 2008] More »
Gadgets
Inventor Demos Soft Pneumatic Exoskeleton, a Good Getaway Suit
8:45AM Wilson Rothman | We caught a quick glimpse of the Soft Pneumatic Exoskeleton before, but here inventor Che-Wei Wang demonstrates it on himself, explaining how the system gives added power to limbs at key moments. He can power it with a mini scuba tank or one of those CO2 cartridge for pellet guns, but the usage is limited by the capacity of gas you can carry. Ideal scenarios he says include hard landings—dudes involved in “parkour” street jumping could use it to avoid ripping up their kneecaps. Wang says future applications include a memory mode, where a famous athlete wears it to capture some signature manoeuvre that some punkass non-athlete can then copy, just by donning the same model exoskeleton and jacking the software. How’s that for Johnny Mnemonic meets The Matrix meets Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure? [CWWang.com; ITP 2008] More »
Games
