Fiberwonk Recalls ENIAC

My father was a taciturn statistician.  A time and motion expert in the US military.  I recall the wonderment in my father's voice when he described his trip upon returning from a secret destination.  Somewhere in the US there was a  huge cavern under a mountain.  We knew that.  We didn't know where.  He would tell us about huge machines housed there that could figure out everything.  He lit our imaginations telling us how wonderful our world would be when we were adults and had kids of our own.

Now we know a bit more.  Not the details. But we do know he was talking about the late 1940's first Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer financed by the US Army.

We can all relate to how incredible the prospects must have seemed (and still do) at the potential for artificial intelligence.  As interesting is the potential in the stories and ideas told to small children by their parents.  Those tales generated such curiosity in us, his four children, that each studied mathematics and three went on to life-long careers.  Fortunately he lived to know that.

As for potential:  I really do think that words spoken to small children REALLY do make a difference.  Yes, actions too.  But those stories that are replayed in little people's heads are very powerful.

Fiberwonk Recalls ENIAC
Commercial cottons, found objects.  18" x 18"

Artistic potential



What interests me is seeing how my young grandchildren, Ruby, Marli and Araluen approach their drawing activities. I give them the pencils, pens or crayons and don't impose criteria usually. However for this exercise I asked the older two to draw within the assigned space on the white fabric. They also kindly gave me permission to use their work in my work. It is a privilege to watch my grandchildren realise their potential. Will their artistic potential blossom further in the years to come?

Artistic potential- detail

9 3/4"w x 26 1/4" [25cm w x 66.5cm]

Materials: Cotton fabric, fabric crayons, paint and pens, batting, thread.

Techniques: Drawing, colouring, machine quilting. 





Biology, Puzzles, and the Hidden Potential of Online Gamers

For 15 years, Scientists at the University of Washington's Biochemistry department had been struggling to fully understand the enzyme structure for viruses such as HIV/AIDS. But even with the help of powerful computers, they were unable to create a working model.

Finally in 2011, they decided to take a new approach. Dr. Firas Khatib created a video game called Fold it.  The game requires players to figure out a protein structure, given certain parameters, tools and information that the scientists had figured out thus far. They put Fold it on line and challenged gamers to find the solution, hoping that human brains could do what computers could not: think intuitively and creatively in 3 dimensions. The puzzle was available on line for free, for a period of 3 weeks. 

The idea paid off. Gamers figured out the structure in just 10 days. 

In fact the gamers' solution allowed scientists to refine the model for a protein enzyme structure, which has contributed to research in anti-viral drug therapy, causes and cures for cancer and immune deficiencies and environmental work on bio-fuels.

“The ingenuity of game players,” Khatib said, “is a formidable force that, if properly directed, can be used to solve a wide range of scientific problems."
I love the idea of looking outside one's own circle of influence to tap into new ideas (new viewpoints, if you will). Serious research scientists are always looking for new sources of information and ways to interpret data. 

Until the invention of the internet, there was no way to access such a large, diverse group of "thinkers" and ask them to work simultaneously on a single problem. Now we have a world full of strategists, puzzle solvers and curious minds, all with the potential to become virtual research assistants (or maybe test subjects). Who knows where the next break through will come from?

(detail)

Title: Control
Technical Details: Finished size 18" x 18"
Depicts a close up view of an Xbox game controller
Hand dyed cotton and batik fabrics, cut and layered via raw-edge applique, sewn together using hand-guided machine stitching, with rayon and polyester thread

Cauldrons and skillets

The letter Tet reminds me of my childhood, when my family sent me to Hebrew classes – I never learnt very much, but I still remember some of the letters.  In Hebrew the letters are in their great majority, consonants – the vowels are sort of ‘given’ - with a few exceptions, particularly the letter “I”.  When young children and adult beginners learn to write Hebrew, there is a phonetic system by which the vowels are represented via lines and dots under the consonants – but that is removed as soon as possible, and all ‘normal’ writing is written without the phonetic vowels. And of course Hebrew is written from right to left – not left to right.

ALICIA = אלישיה

Actually, my name – Alicia – in Hebrew, is not that deprived of vowels. Although it starts with A – Aleph – that letter usually stands for an H, rather than for an A.  The last letter is also an H. The two ‘I’s are there in this case, but the last A is not.  However the presence of an H at the end indicates that there is a vowel at the end, rather than a consonant. 

ALICIA = Алисия

I once studied Russian too – a different alphabet again – no problem there of lack of vowels, indeed there are too many of them!  You may notice the A at the end of the word is different from the A at the beginning of my name.  And the grammar is hellish!  Again, I remember some of the letters, and I still can sort of ‘decipher’ the words, but cannot understand the meaning…

Anyway, going back to the shape of the letter Tet, it immediately got me thinking about a current project I have, making quilts for an exhibition next year with the South West Textiles group in the Museum of Somerset, Taunton, UK – quite a prestigious place.  Each artist has to select an object from the museum as a starting point for their work.  

I chose to work with cauldrons and skillets, of which the Museum has a very large collection. Cauldrons are round, with a Tet-like shape, while skillets have long handles. There is an amazing room in the Museum where cauldrons hang from the ceiling – black vessels illuminated by red light.

There used to be many foundries in the area making iron and bronze cooking vessels, church bells, etc, active mostly from the 14^th to the 19^th centuries.  And notice - cauldrons have three legs, not four.

However, to be able to work with their graphic shapes, I went to their research department for help, and have now acquired a collection of great photographs of cauldrons and skillets.  Plenty of material to work from!

Cauldron of the more usual shape 

Cauldron of an unusual shape, more Tet-like

Long-handled skillet

I don’t know yet how the cauldrons will relate to exploring hidden possibility and potential, but I shall investigate!

Alicia

(With thanks to Google Translate….)