As sad as it sounds, most of us experience the world through photographs. Now MIT software engineers are taking that idea literally and mapping Flickr photos to regional maps in The World’s Eyes project.
Most of us don’t appreciate all the processes involved with our OS’s boot sequence; we’re far more interested in watching that status bar fill. In this visualization of the Linux boot sequence, each function is a node, and each line connecting the nodes represents a call, direct branch, or indirect branch. The image itself was created via logarithm interpreting the process as electrical signal, so if we’re reading this correctly, it’s almost as if you’re looking at the brain pathways that boot Linux (oh you computer science junkies will have a field day with that analogy). [Flickr via MAKE]
Using the same principle as the LED strobes that enable fine-tuning of turntable rotation speeds, this DIY “Acid Machine” synth has a cool way of visualising its sound: A rotating disc printed with a special pattern isolates a thin radial disc depending on the frequency of a strobing LED that corresponds to the note played. You can use it to tune the synth itself (as seen in the beginning of the following video) for traditionally trippy early-Aphex acid tones, or to squeeze secrets out of your enemies once they’re sufficiently hypnotised by the spinning visualiser. Yes, relax, and stare into the wheel…
