Before making the real cardboard thing, we had brainstormed about what to create on Zoom together. And after the discussion, we decided to make a fancy helmet for the article, The Plague, to protect existing people get away from the infected people. This idea is really cool. For the interacting part, which makes this helmet useful and unique, we resolved to let the helmet has a screen that changes color based on the status of the person (red for infected, green for healthy people).
But, in the process of making it, we found that we didn’t have the colored papers and transparent boards to do it. So we had to think of another way to show the states of the person. I looked at the cardboard tube I brought and suddenly thought that we could put this tube inside the helmet, which could be rotated from positive to negative. There was an empty space between the person’s head and the top of the helmet so that we could put it there, which clearly showed the state of the person. And to help others who are not wearing the helmet understand what people wearing it are saying more clearly, there is a speaker for the helmet. And also, there was an AI in the helmet to protect the owner and warn the infected people to get away. When the owners wore their helmets, they can talk with their AI, which is really interesting. This helmet is very in accord with my understanding of interaction which is the communication between humans and computers, and the dialogue should be back and forth. In addition, at first, we decided to make a normal and semicircular helmet just like we know from our daily life. However, during the making process, we found that the angular shape has a sense of the future and is unique, so we changed its shape from a normal round shape to a kind of rectangular shape. After finishing the main parts of the helmet, we found that it was a little bit simple. So, we painted it to red and black casually to express the dead and bloody atmosphere with some palm prints, which is so cool. We also added some handmade decorations, like three horns, a spin button with a skull pattern, and so on, to make it looks better.
I really enjoyed the process of doing this making and performing part. The idea of making a TV by using a recycled box is amazing we also painted it to red, and it can make the whole story clearer, more coherent, and easier to understand.
To make this performance not look like an infomercial, we created a story and act it. Here is our script:
CHARACTERS:
NEWS REPORTER – IIAN
FATHER – VICTOR
KID – REBECCA
MOTHER – HANSA
AI – RITA
FRIEND – LUCAS
[Father watching the news]
Newscaster: Breaking news! Suddenly we have discovered that there is a new virus on the loose. It has been reported that there are 350 cases in the city and is rapidly spreading. Please wear the hazmat suits provided by the government so you don’t get infected by the virus. There have also been reports of these hazmat suits tearing and not protecting people from the virus. So, watch out for your families.
Father: Oh no, I got to do something about this! [starts to build the helmet]
Mother: Honey, what are you doing? You are making a mess. If you want to do something, go change the light bulbs.
Father: I am creating a helmet to protect us from the virus.
Mother: It’s not necessary, we have survived for this long, we don’t need extra protection.
Father: We do, trust me!
Child: Can we see what the helmet looks like?
Father: It’s not finished yet.
Child: Ok we will come back later to see it.
[after a few seconds]
Child: Can we see now, is it ready?
Father: Yes, this is the helmet [holds up helmet]. It comes with an AI device to detect if the people around you are positive or negative, and it will protect you. The design is family-friendly!
AI: Hi, I’m AI.
Child: So is mom going to wear it?
Mother: Oh no!
Child: I don’t want to wear it.
Father: No, you have to wear it to school.
Child: They are going to make fun of me.
Father: I don’t care, you have to!
Child [wears helmet]
Child: Hi!
AI: Hi!
[Child goes to school]
Child: Hi friend!
Friend: Hi, what are you wearing?
Child: I am wearing a helmet that my dad made but I don’t know what it is. I guess it detects the virus.
Friend: It looks ugly.
Child: Yeah it does but I guess it works. What are you up to today? We are 13 years old so we have classes.
Friend: Yeah.
Child: So do you want to play the hand clap game?
Friend: Sure!
Child and Friend [before Child even touches her friend’s hands…]
AI device: Beep, Beep, Beep, Warning, Warning!
Child: Oh no, you have the virus.
Friend: What, no I don’t!
Child: Stay away from me! I am going home!
[At home, father watches the news]
Newscaster: Breaking news! A child has just died! So watch out, these suits are not protective and the virus is very deadly.
Child: Dad, guess what! My friend died today, he had the virus.
Father: I just saw it on the news!
Child: My helmet worked, it detected it and I ran back home.
Father: Oh, good. See, I told you all!
Regarding the other groups’ performance, I really like the first group. This group built a helmet that can show people’s dreams and enjoy them. This idea is really cool because I also want to know my dreams during sleeping that I always forget when I wake up. This helmet is very in accord with my understanding of interaction which is the communication between humans and computers. This helmet is the communication between human brains and computers. When one person wore the helmet, others acted the dream of that person is really funny and real. However, in my opinion, the switch can change from remote control to the button on the helmet, which may more convenient to use. This whole action clearly showed the function of the helmet.