Affinity: Virtual Laboratories for Professionals

Affinity combines virtual and physical environments to increase collaboration, productivity and mitigate environmental stress.

The Problem

Inhabitation of the virtual environment is at an all time high. According to Jane McGonigal, the earth’s population chooses to spend 3 billion hours a week gaming within a virtual environment. At the same time global education standards are falling, productivity is decreasing, and mental disorders related to the lack of physical and emotional activity are rising. Disciplines have become so specialized, and so esoteric, that members of different fields struggle to communicate and collaboration suffers. The relationship between the physical and the virtual is limited, for now, by the restriction of the screen. It is difficult to inhabit virtual space within a physical one without the use of projection. Conversely, the transference of physical objects into the virtual environment requires relatively simple technology that many people already possess. As Humans we possess 4 skins. First is our physiological skin that contains our organs and fluids in addition to mitigating toxicity within the body and temperature without. Secondly, we have our clothing which works with the first to provide comfort and safety from our environment. This skin also provides us with a medium with which to present ourselves based on our personality. Thirdly, we have the spaces which we have created for ourselves to dwell within - architecture. Lastly, we have our technology that we have grown to depend on to do a myriad of tasks for us such as tell us directions, connect us with counterparts, etc. However, each of these layers we surround ourselves with remains very separated from the rest. How then may we take advantage of our freedom within a virtual environment to teach, produce, and treat? How can architecture - our third skin - become the platform upon which we bring our virtual realities into the physical reality? By creating a composite material out of our third and fourth skins can we finally create a space in which all information is shared and understood? An environment that promotes development while adapting for those which require additional support?

The Solution

Virtual Space: AffinityVR

 My proposed solution to this problem involves two spaces, a virtual environment (VE) and a physical environment (PE), both autonomous in their own right but also integrated. The VE, named AffinityVR behaves as a massively multi-player online role playing game (MMORPG). Game play in AffinityVR exists within a world divided into a large number of labs. These labs are accessible to the user by piloting his or her avatar through corridors or by returning to the lobby. The lobby is the users home within the VE. Within the lobby the user has access to names and descriptions of all labs and who is currently participating in them. The purpose of the lobby is to expose players to topics currently under development which they may not have heard of prior. Similar to the homepage of TED (http://www.ted.com) where lecture topics are presented in cloud view and are refreshed at random, and in index view by category, AffinityVR will allow players to view all the labs within the game and choose their entry point into the world and maintain affiliations with multiple projects. In addition to the labs there is a common area where people can go to ask question from other players, seek positions within project teams, or look for players with specific talents for current projects. 

Lobby Space in "Super Mario Bros. 3"

Lobby Space in "Genesis"

 Objects 

There are a number of objects that come together to bring functionality to AffinityVR. These objects currently consist of characters (user piloted and non-player characters (NPCs) or Bots), machines (virtual robot simulators, virtual electron microscopes, virtual surgery equipment, virtual hadron colliders, etc.), Maps (environments or scenes), and data-sets (encyclopedic databases accessible by all characters). NPCs are characters which are controlled by artificial intelligence (AI) and contain data-sets specific to their character. 

Players may work directly with NPCs when experience is needed from other disciplines and players with that knowledge are unavailable. 

Physical Space: AffinityPR 

The physical counter part to AffinityVR, AffinityPR, exists as a research and development (R+D) hub. These hubs, or Affinity Spaces, act as the port between the two realities and therefore is the place where virtual objects become physical until advances in hardware allow for less dependence on specific locations. The primary program of this hub is thought of as a maker space, complete with all the digital equipment needed to perform exercises from any field. These spaces also act as a physical analogous to the VE complete with offices, labs, and communal spaces where users can work and interact within the physical realm.

Interface

To successfully merge our architectural with our technological skin a system of intricate and highly advanced interfaces is implemented. These interfaces are comprised of a combination of hardware and software. Transference of light and sound between realities is the most simple and can be achieved through many consumer products already available. Transference of mass and intelligence is much more difficult and requires some technology with limited availability or technology that currently only exists in theory. 

Hardware:

Oculus Rift VR goggles (HUD) equipped with binocular imaging sensors are used to immerse the user in the VE while allowing the user to switch between VR and AR modes. While in either mode these additional sensors allow for gesture based control of the virtual environment and position tracking within the PE. A state of the art workstation computer is required to link the HUD to the server containing the VE. These servers may be either on-site or in the cloud (discussed further under software). Future versions may be able to operate on mobile devices thanks to the transparency of the Android operating system. Headphones with microphones are used to transfer sound between realities. Cameras and imaging sensors are used for 3D scanning of physical objects into virtual meshes, facial recognition, skeletal tracking, and teleconferencing. RF arrays and fiducial markers embedded within the architecture provide position tracking within the VE. To transfer objects (those with mass or those which contain an event or motion) from VE to PE a collection of digital technology is used including 3D printers, CNC routers, robotic arms, drones, etc. Any machine that can be controlled remotely using digital technology can potentially be connected to the system and controlled through simulation of its virtual counterpart. 

Oculus Rift Virtual Reality Goggles

Software: 

Development of AffinityVR is performed in C# .NET 4.0. All virtual objects are created in Autodesk Maya and compiled using Unity3D Pro. The application received from Unity3D Pro may run on independent workstations but Affinity can only be played in single player (single player interacting with NPCs) this way. To achieve the massively multi-player effect we desire, Affinity will be submitted to Steam, an online gaming community created by Valve. Within Steam users will log in with their Steam username and password, download Affinity and create their profile. Control of hardware will be achieved through integration of product specific libraries within Unity3D Pro using C# .NET 4.0, and if necessary, C++, Python or Java depending or hardware manufacturers specifications with their software development kits (SDKs). Affinity will incorporate consoles within game play to operate a large number of work related software such as, Autodesk Maya, Rhinoceros, Catia, Mathematica, Autodesk Revit, Visual Studio, Eclipse, Modo, zBrush, Processing, etc (if there is industry specific software you feel would make a positive addition to Affinity please contact our design team. We welcome every suggestion). These consoles provide Affinity with the primary means of virtual creation. This also allows for every aspect of Affinity to be fully customizable by the users. 

Language

Overcoming the esotericism of contemporary disciplines is one of the most difficult tasks for Affinity to accomplish. This project will rely on a diverse set of icons specifically designed to be used in situations where words do not convey the correct interpretation. Research for the development of these icons will look to the evolution of the Hanzi (pictographs used in Mandarin) from informative paintings to a recognizable set of characters.

 Affinity Applied

Development of Affinity began with an intensive analysis of games, game theory and game evolution. Lessons learned from these studies will be used to inform game play that relies on the aspects of discovery, exploration and play that contribute to learning and development. Problem solving, pattern recognition and crowd-sourcing attributes also are intended to increase the success of this platform. It is our vision that AffinityVR act as phase 1, allowing users to take advantage of the platform from where ever they are currently located. Phase two of the project will requisition a hub either through partnering with an existing maker space or construction of a dedicated hub (not within the scope of this fundraising effort). Within phase one AffinityVR can be implemented within existing businesses to allow its employees access to the collaboration within either on an office-wide or a world-wide network. Businesses can use this platform to increase employee productivity, imagination, and mitigate work related stress through customization of their work environment. Medical clinics can use this platform to develop environments for the treatment of patients through cyber-therapy and potentially remote treatment with the advancement of robotics. Schools can use this platform for distance learning and sharing of resources and facilities. Individuals can use this framework for job searching and support of kitchen-table innovation. 

Please visit our Kickstarter campaign preview to make comments or suggestions!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nelslong/549059587?token=79b7252f

Jackson Memorial Columbarium

A little late but here is some images from my thesis work together with the synopsis I used for its presentation:


This project is sited on the north half of Smith Park in downtown Jackson, Mississippi. It consists of 8,800 square feet of program devoted to memorializing the deceased. The cremains are housed in 1,700 individual niches throughout the complex. Multiple levels of privacy are achieved through the assembly area designed to host funerary services - and which also contains columbaria - family sized chambers, and the main columbarium.

The inspiration for choosing a columbarium for my final project arose from the desire to investigate surfaces to an extent not previously accomplished in my studio work. This investigation looks into the ways that surfaces project space, and how the atmosphere of these spaces vary according to the ways in which the surface is detailed. After a number of formal iterations, the boundary of these surfaces was defined through a series of moves across the site; excavating earth and exposing subterranean surfaces, and construction, creating surfaces above the site. These moves were based on analysis of the existing context which treated the urban fabric as a type of surface. This fabric became the datum from which surfaces were created above and below according the undulations in the vicinity.

This project relies on strength in its details. I took great care in designing the courses of the stonework so that when two courses meet at a corner their movement is continuous. Furthermore, the way in which corners are handled speaks loudly to the priority of the space. Floors and ceilings were areas of exploration for me. I have decided to keep the floors light and the ceilings dark to increase the perceived volume of the space, and to take advantage of ambient light, as there is no directional light in this design. Doors also proved to be very important, and the variation of them allow me to express importance within the processional aspects of the project.

Because of the nature of this program each space becomes intensely personal to anyone inhabiting it. This had to be considered at every step of the design process. The result of the process is a series of details based on a language of patterns and figural motifs. These details have no embodied narrative, but provide the visitor with objects to project his or her emotions upon. In this way a single set of details allow for a multiplicity of interactions with the user.














The patterns I developed for this project represent my first attempt to include any type of traditional ornament in any of my projects. Therefore they should not be viewed as my final intent for this project, but rather as the beginning of my exploration into a pattern based aesthetic. These patterns were designed in response to the mechanical nature of life. In early drawings I relied Sullivan-esque ornament. While these details may have correctly related to human nature in his time - the symbolism of the seed as it relates to democracy - today’s society is much more mechanical or electronic in nature. I feel that as a society we have moved beyond any purely organic analogies and into a species which must be discussed in terms of technology as well as biology. Therefore my ornament is an attempt to convey our culture in the same way that Sullivan wished to convey his view of humanity.

I felt that it was important to include figural motifs in addition to geometric patterns. Patterns may create an atmosphere themselves, but the human form is so recognizable, and provides such a strong analogy to oneself that their inclusion seemed mandatory in this type of space.

Materiality became a very important factor in this project. More than just the visual aesthetic different materials achieve but what atmosphere do they create? The weight of stone, and it’s coolness to the touch made it important for my primary material. Materials that develop a tarnish or a patina over time, are intensely interesting to me. Stone has this quality, so for an accent or secondary material I looked to bronze because its patina is much louder than that of stone, turning blue or green like copper in the right environments. Bronze also has the ability to be casted which makes it an interesting choice for the creation of reliefs and details. Traditionally such ornament was hand crafted, increasing the cost of the project and eventually contributing to its absence. Casted panels allow for fast economical production while still allowing for traditional pattern aesthetic.

Design for Political Change

"The level of insight and capacity for change in Jackson is nothing short of amazing.  We are a community overflowing with goodwill and creativity. 

During the Thanksgiving Holiday I ran across an encouraging video project called Visible ( ). It’s from the perspective of three young Architecture students studying at the Mississippi State University School of Architecture in downtown Jackson.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfLus4D2rW8&feature=youtu.be

The idea of this project is that community participation is necessary for urban sustainability, which in turn stimulates innovation and productivity.

Week after week I have been offering my perspective of Jackson’s challenges.  I have discussed strategies to mobilize every sector of the community to develop comprehensive solutions. 

I have mentioned time and time again how important it is for the city of Jackson to acknowledge and build on the assets that come from being the State’s Capitol City and only urban community. 

These young people offer their own independent point of view of how Jackson develops sustainable urbanism. 

At the core of their message is the idea that the people who live in the community have what it takes to the build community.

In my administration, everyone's perspective will be respected and everyone will have a seat at the table because it will take all of us to make Jackson great! 

As we move into a New Year and campaign season heats up, I hope you will consider how important it is to have leadership who realizes that the power to change our community rests in the people…all of the people. 

It’s our time for greatness!"

Jonathan Lee

Candidate for Mayor of Jackson, 2013

http://www.facebook.com/notes/jonathan-lee-for-jackson-mayor-2013/community-is-the-key/434839986569738

Southern Outdoor Technologies Blind Design

This past summer I had the opportunity to do some product design for a local manufacturer. Here's the results. Blinds are for sale on their website: http://www.sportsmanscondo.com/sportsmanscondoweb/deerthug.html