Thurs. 3:30 PM - 6 PM
Instructor: Tom Igoe
email: tom.igoe@nyu.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays 10 AM - 6 PM. email me for an appointment in advance.

• Introductions
• Central themes and questions
• Assignment: review intro to physical computing notes
• Reading: Brand, Jacobson, or Wilson
• Writing: Respond to the readings and the intro discussion

Week 2: Jan. 30

• Continuation of intro discussion: questions, digressions, etc.
• Introduction to the PIC and PICBasic Pro
• Digital in and out, ports, programming environment
• Assignment: first PIC program: get an LED to light in response to a switch. Due week 3.
• Reading: Read PICBasic Pro Manual; MicroEngineering Labs' developers resources; read PIC data sheets for the 16F87x, 16F84A

Week 3: Feb. 6

• Continue PIC discussion: Analog, more on registers

Week 4: Feb. 13

• Continue PIC discussion: Serial
• Assignment: stupid PIC trick. Due week 6
• Writing: first responses due today

Week 5: Feb. 20

• Conclude PIC discussion: questions, techniques, etc.
• Assignment: pick your groups for Final Project. Due week 7.

Week 6: Feb. 27

• Present stupid PIC trick
• Assignment: final project concepts. Due week 7.
• Journal: document your stupid PIC trick
• Reading: Motor chapters from Robot Builders' Bonanza

Week 7: Mar. 6

• Discuss final project approach & organization methods
• Tell me your groups and present final project concepts
• Tom to make final group assignments if necessary.
• Motors and motor types
• Assignment: revise final concepts as necessary
• Journal: stupid PIC trick documentation due today
• Journal: Document initial concept
• Reading: Boston gear Gearology book online, Flying Pig

Week 8: Mar. 13

• Finish final concept presentations and/or present revised final concepts
• Mechanics: simple machines
• Assignment: Working output system. Due April 10.
• Journal: Initial project concept write-up due today

Spring Break

Week 9: Mar. 27

• Present progress reports
• Embedded Networking: General concepts
• Reading: SitePlayer manuals (alternate TBA)

Week 10: Apr. 3

• Writing about your work; presenting your work
• Present progress reports
• Intro to SitePlayer (alternate TBA)

Week 11: Apr. 10

• Present working output system. Show the sculpture in motion, even if the data gathering is faked for the presentation.
• Writing: Second responses due today. Review your initial response paper. Respond again, taking into account class discussion, reading, and practice.
• Journal: document your working output system, and the presentation thereof; detail work left to be done.
• Assignment: Descriptive posters. Due April 17.

Week 12: Apr. 17

• Journal: Documentation of working output system due today
• Review descriptive posters
• Final progress reports

Week 13: Apr. 24

• Final presentations week 1; outside guests as available.

Week 14: May 1

• Final presentations week 2; outside guests as available.
• Journal: final project documentation due May 6.

In addition to the projects themselves, you should try the basics of each lesson out after class on a small scale, to understand it for yourself right after we've discussed it. This will make the projects you show in class go much more smoothly. It will also make it much more productive when we discuss questions you have about technical details.

Students will work individually for the Stupid PIC trick.

Students will work in groups for the final project. You may pick your own groups of three, but if there are any people not in a group by week 7, I will assign groups. You will develop your group project throughout the semester, coming up with a concept and technical implementation plan, researching technological solutions to the plan, testing for feasibility, and finally, building the project. All members of the group should understand and be able to answer questions on all aspects of the project.

An exception to the group rule will be made for students who are working on a project in this class as part of a thesis, or as part of a group project in another class. If you are working on a project for another class, please give me the parameters of the assignment for the other class in advance, to make sure the overlap between classes is appropriate. As long as the project meets the other requirements for the final of this class, it's okay.

Your final projects may be a part of the end of semester show, dates TBA. Participation in the show is not required, but you must decide either way by April 17. Any projects that aren't making appropriate progress by that time will not be included as part of the show. You will be graded entirely on what you show of your project in class. Your participation in the show, and your project's state in the show, has no bearing on your grade for the class.

For this class, you have to work on projects as you go. There will be too much to do to make it all in the last week or two before the end. I will expect to see regular progress on your projects as each week passes.

You will be expected to keep an online journal of your work in this class. This should be a working journal: notes on your progress, techniques you discover, sources of information or resources, and documentation of your ideas and their implementation. It can be no-frills HTML, with diagrams and images as appropriate. You may continue this from your physical computing class journal if you wish. Here's a template you can use. Ideally, it will give you a head start on documenting your projects for future portfolio reference, and those who come after you a place to look for advice. Journal links will be added as links to the class site.

Dates when specific entries in your journal are due are noted in the syllabus. You may, of course, add more than is listed above, but those entries and the dates are the minimum expected.

You should document your projects as thoroughly as time permits. Plan in advance, and perhaps as a group, to have what you need to document at least your midterms and finals. Photos, video, drawings, schematics, and notes are all valuable forms of documentation. Show the stages of your project as it develops, the research that goes into it, the changes that your research brings about, and the final project in contrast to the originally envisioned project.

Your journal should be online and text-searchable. No Flash-only journals or other proprietary solutions that search engines can't parse.

Reading & Discussion Responses

At two points in the semester (beginning and two-thirds through), a short (~1000 words) response to the reading and discussion of the course is due. For your initial response, pick one of the texts below and respond to what you have read of it at that point, taking into consideration also the discussion in class. How is it relevant to the material covered in the class, and to your work at large? Think of it as a snapshot of your perspective on the issues we're exploring at that stage. Suggested readings to begin with: Brand Ch 1-7 (they're short), Jacobson ch. 1,6,11,16, or Wilson ch. 1.1 & 1.2. Here are some suggested initial questions to consider on each text.

For the final response, revise or update your initial thoughts in light of further reading, talking, and practice. Feel free to bring in readings and experiences of your own to these responses, in addition to any other books or works that come up in class.

Responses may be handed in on paper or put online as part of your journal, as you prefer.

Participation & Attendance

Showing up on time, engaging in the class discussion, and offering advice and critique on other projects in the class is a major part of your grade. Please be present and prompt. Lateness will hurt your grade, as I use the "ghost rule." Show up late, and you can stay, but you can't talk or ask questions.

Grading:

• Participation & Attendance: 25%
• Stupid PIC trick: 15%
• In-progess presentation: 15%
• Final presentation:20%
• Reading/discussion responses: 15%
• Journal: 10%

We'll be covering various technologies in this class; many of the parts are available at the NYU computer store. Others are available online. A list of parts is available online. Ultimately, you may work with any technology you wish in order to realize your projects; you needn't limit yourself to the tools covered in class.

Below are a some texts I will refer to from time to time during the course. They are not all assigned, but I recommend them for general inspiration. You should read at least one for your response papers.

Information Design, 1st edition . Robert Jacobson, ed. ©MIT Press; ISBN: 0262600358
A series of essays from a number of different fields on information design and interaction design. Some are excellent, some are misguided, but all are worth reading and arguing about.

The Clock of the Long Now: Time and Responsibility: The Ideas Behind the World's Slowest Computer Stewart Brand ©Basic Books; ISBN: 0465007805
A series of essays centering around work on the Clock of the Long Now Foundation and Library. Useful for thinking in the extremely long term, and a good contrast to the usual pace of thinking and writing about technology.

Information Arts: Intersections of Art, Science, and Technology Stephen Wilson ©MIT Press; ISBN: 026223209X
A fairly comprehensive overview of work bridging art and scientific and technological research in the recent past. Good reference of most of the major art/science collaborations of the last decade, and some interesting opinions on where art, science, technology, and critical theory meet, combine, and clash.

Finally, some useful technical references, if you haven't already got them:

Practical Electronics for Inventors, 1st Edition. Paul Scherz, ©2000, McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing; ISBN: 0070580782
An in-depth treatment of electronics, with many practical examples and illustrations. An excellent reference for those comfortable with the basic topics. The use of plumbing systems as examples to demonstrate electric principles makes for some very clear illustrations of how different components work. Good chapters on sound electronics and motors as well.

Robot Builder's Bonanza, 2nd edition. Gordon McComb, ©2000, McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing; ISBN: 0071362967
For those looking to build robot projects, this is a great reference. The author discusses problems often encountered in making robotic systems and the most common approaches to those problems. His chapters on motors are the best I've seen. Not for those who are timid about mechanics and electronics, but great for the curious.

A longer list of books for inspiration and reference is available online at the books link.