Group 11 – Crows: Kelvin, Yoon, Fay, Rain, TQ
During our first group meeting, we shared ideas for creating artifacts based on different stories, and ultimately decided to focus on the Plague story. Kelvin proposed the idea of a mask with captions to assist those with hearing impairments in communication. However, we decided to create a helmet with improved functionality instead. Initially, we planned to have the infected people wear the helmet, but later decided it would be more effective for the crows to use it. The helmet has a mouthpiece that displays messages based on the user’s speech, allowing others to read what the crows are saying. It is also designed to help the user hear more clearly. Since the infected can only use their eyes, they can also read the messages conveyed by the crows. Additionally, we created a detector to identify whether a person is positive or negative for the infection, to prevent mislabeling of those in a vegetative state as infected. The goal of these artifacts is to improve communication and accurately identify those infected with the disease.
I think both the helmet and detector are successful inventions that function as intended. The helmet provides benefits such as sound amplification, caption creation, and protection against infection. However, it does have some limitations such as the inability to convey facial expressions, potential discomfort for the wearer due to its weight and bulkiness, and the possibility of inaccurate captioning for individuals with speech impediments or accents. As for the detector, it effectively identifies individuals with the stone disease or those in a vegetative state. Nonetheless, its ability to detect accurately may decrease over time due to wear and tear, leading to potential malfunctions and inaccuracies. It’s also worth noting that the detector only detects the stone disease and is not capable of detecting other illnesses or conditions.
The team initially planned to create a half-face mask, but found that cardboard was not suitable for the task. We decided to make a helmet instead, which worked well and was duplicated. We also added a detector, inspired by airport security, and created open boxes with slits for captions. The team’s concept was to design a helmet that would address the issues caused by wearing protection suits during the global spread of a viral plague. Elderly people, in particular, found it difficult to communicate due to hearing problems and the barrier created by the suits. We aimed to create a helmet that would incorporate detection, protection, and communication features. A sensor would be inserted into the helmet to detect verbal information, which would then be translated into text and projected onto the helmet’s shield. The helmet also would have a microphone and sound amplifier to enhance communication. To protect the user from infection, a radar transmitter would be attached to the helmet to detect infected individuals and release disinfectant matter externally. The goal was to help people with hearing difficulties to communicate better and reduce misunderstandings, while also protecting the user from infection.
In the beginning of the group project, it was very difficult to gather because we all had very different schedules. We also had one of the team members who lived far away from the dorm so we had to distribute the work and had to spend a lot of time individually on given tasks. We split into two groups: one focused on creating the script and the other worked on designing cardboard artifacts. We remotely communicated to ensure we were aligned on both the script and design aspects. During this process, Kelvin and TQ showed great leadership and dedication for the group.Kelvin managed to organize all the meetings for us and TQ led the team while conducting the materials. On the last day, we decided to create an additional helmet and detector to supplement the ones we had already made. To complete the task, we divided the team into another separate group. One group concentrated on the cardboard construction, while the other wrote captions for the helmets and added finer details through painting. After several rehearsals, we had solid preparations for the performance.
Performance of “The Mirror”
The overall performance of “The Mirror” was very interesting. Among all the performances, it was the only one where every scene was an object-centered play. This made the audience immersed in the play and strongly spotlighted their invention . Their story derived from the novel “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. The main artifact of the play was the “Mirror”, which functioned as the emotional relief to the people in the city. The female actors were very natural and enthusiastic with their acting which enabled the audience to figure out the function of the artifact clearly. The story showed that the emotional relief and happiness that the “Mirror” gave was coming from the sacrifice from an individual who was trapped inside the “Mirror”. The individual inside the “Mirror” was being used as an emotional trash bin for the people in the city and eventually couldn’t handle the suffering. The story ends by the individual escaping the “Mirror”. The idea of an artifact and their certain group performance of utilizing the stage was amazing. The only suggestion would be meeting the criteria of the assignment. Although the performance was well-prepared, the theme of the story seemed to be focused solely on replicating the theme of the original novel. It would have been even greater if the artifact was related to the technology or background of the original story, rather than the idea and theme of the story.
Script
Functions of the helmet:
- Caption function
- Sound amplification function
- Infection function
- Detect the infectious (by radar)
Description of the “helmet”:
The Plague spread virally around the world. People have to wear protection suits to protect themselves from being infected. However, the protection suit forms a physical barrier in people’s daily conversations. Especially the elders, many of them have tinnitus, which makes it harder for them to communicate with each other. And the decrease in the immune system makes them have a higher possibility to be infected, Hence, we plan to design a helmet that has detection, protection, and communication features all in one. We plan to insert a sensor within the helmet to detect the verbal information of the user. Then, the helmet will translate those verbal signals into textual information and project the information on the shield of the helmet. Also, the microphone inserted in the helmet can get sound signals. The sound amplifier inside the helmet can make sounds more clear. This design may help those elders and people with hearing disabilities to better express their ideas and reduce misunderstandings in daily conversations. To protect the user from being infected, there’s a radar transmitter attached to the helmet. It will detect the infected person by sending radar signals and receiving signals. Once the helmet detects the infected person, the helmet will release disinfectant matter externally.
Actors: a narrator, 2 “crows”, an old man, a vegetative person (the old man’s son),
Scene 1
Narrator: The plague has swept the city. It’s highly contagious, hard to detect, and has no cure. The effects have been devastating. In order to minimize infections, the Emergency Management Institution has issued protective suits, but they are not always effective or convenient. For instance, the suits can only physically segregate each other without any functions to sterilize. And for the elders who suffer from hearing loss, the heavy and airtight suit makes it even harder for them to communicate with each other. These weaknesses and non-inclusivity of protective suits lead to a tragedy …
(two crows knock on the door)
(the old man opens the door)
Crow 1: At the request of our superiors, we’ve come here to check if anyone is infected in this residential district.
The old man: Sorry, I can’t really hear you. I’m 80 y/o now. I have been suffering from hearing loss for more than ten years. This heavy protection suit makes it almost impossible for me to talk with other people.
(the crow raises his/her voice and with some gestures)
Crow 2: We’re here to see if anyone is infected. We’ll just go around your house. If everything’s fine, we’ll leave. OK??
(two crows ignore the old man and rush into the house)
The old man: Wait! What are you doing? This is my house! Get out of here!
(two crows spot the old man’s son, who is a vegetative person)
Crow 1: Seems like we’ve already found one infected guy. Let’s move him outside.
(two crows start moving the old man’s son)
The old man: What are you doing? Leave my son alone. He’s disabled. He’s a vegetative person!
Crow 1: Then give me his ID. Let me check it in the disability information base.
(the old man frowns)
The old man: First of all, I can’t hear what you’re saying. Second of all, I don’t care what you’re saying. Just leave my son alone! He’s disabled!
(Two crows have eye contact and tacitly move the old man’s son outside)
Crow 2: Sorry, we’re just doing our job. If he can’t move, talk, or physically react to the outside world, we assume he is infected.
Scene 2
Narrator: However, if they put the smart helmets on, this tragedy won’t happen.
(two crows knock on the door)
(the old man opens the door)
Crow 1: At the request of our superiors, we’ve come here to check if anyone is infected in this residential district.
(the old man carefully reads the caption projected on the shield)
The old man: Oh sure! You can come inside.
(two crows walk inside)
Crow 1: Look! Is he infected? It seems like he can’t move.
(crow 2 scans the boy)
Crow 2: My radar detector shows that he’s not infected.
(the old man reads the caption)
The old man: This is my son. He ran into a severe car accident two years ago. The doctor said he would be in a persistent vegetative state forever. So he can’t react to the outside world anymore.
Crow 2: Sorry to hear that! Can you tell me his ID number so that we can check it in the disability information base?
The old man: Sure. It’s 12345678.
Crow 2: Got it! He’s in the information base. Hope you can stay safe during this pandemic. Take care!
The old man: Thank you! Bye!