What would a tree say if it could talk? Aside from “Get off my lawn”? The guys at EOS magazine decided to try and find out by hooking a 100-year-old tree in Brussels up to a heap of technology and running the results through custom software to give the tree a “voice”.
The tree was hooked up to a fine dust meter, ozone meter, light meter, weatherstation, webcam and microphone, and using its own Wi-Fi hotspot, uploads the findings to a remote location, where the results are run through custom-built software and turned into words. Those words are then automatically broadcast onto the internet, via Facebook, Twitter and the tree’s website.
It’s a fun little adventure, but it’s completely limited by the human thoughts that go into translating the results into words. The site currently says that “trees never complain on rainy days” – I can’t imagine trees ripped up roots and all during torrential downpours resulting in floods wouldn’t want to complain as they’re swept away, drowning…
[Talking Tree – Thanks Tom!]