Checking the Winter Blues

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I began organizing my thoughts and ideas in my notebook. Research I would collect for my literature or to include in my project, was color coded for teal in my notebook. I color coded items of information were needed for computational or future programming reasons. In my quest I learned about Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the principles of Lightbox therapy, how lights can be programmed in lux, a potential the type of lights and Ardunio board, different ways to code data, bee dance patterns, traditional dances, and brainstormed names.


 What did I learn....

 Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)


Seasonal Affective disorder is a form of depression that tends to present itself during the fall into the winter (also but less often in the spring and summer). Those most at risk of this disorder are: having clinical depression of bipolar disorder, being female, age, family hisotry, and living far from the equator. Symptoms begin mild and worsen over time. Symptoms  are listed by Mayo Clinic as:
  • Change in appetite or weight
  • Sleep problems
  • Lack of energy
  • Diminishing sex drive
  • Body aches or pains
  • Memory loss
  • Inability to make decisions
  • Problems concentrating
  • Low self-esteem (feelings of worthlessness or guilt)
  • Lack of interest in or enjoyment of activities
  • Suicidal thoughts


Phototherapy Light Box



The purpose of the light box is to produce light equally as powerful as the sun, in lux (filtering UV rays). The light helps regulate the circadian rhythm (pattens of when the body know to go to sleep and wake up), by producing serotonin and suppressing the hormone melatonin. These lightboxes help produce the neurotransmitter serotonin  that is responsible for arousal in mood, memory and learning, appetite, sexual drive, social behavior, and temperament regulation.  The light goes through the eyes hits the retina which sends impulses to the hypothalamus (brain), which is responsible for body clock function (circadian rhythm).

 It is also important to note that one can overuse the light box. Overuse can led to irritability, agitation, and sometimes mania in a small percentage (1%). This is important to note when designing and programming the lights. 
All of the lights

 The lights that are used in the actual light therapy boxes are based on lux in the lights. The boxes tend to produce at least 10,000 lux. People use the light boxes in various ways (i.e. glasses or room lamp), but they are to have them directed towards their eyes and can spend 30 minutes up to 1 hour sessions a day. 

 In learning this, I beganlooking at different types of Arduino boards I could use and I came across a feather. A feather can be programmed just like an Arduino board, but it allows me to have a bluetooth connection with a device. In making my sculpture interactive, I am brainstorming on different forms of communication (i.e. button, third party software application, motion, sound) between human and machines. Also the LED orientation matched the design I was looking to emulate from my Afrofuturism research.

 I began collecting formulas to calculate and code lux for a photocell from Adafruit.com.


 Inspiration Corner

 I have been looking into how other programmers have researched emotions. I also had the pleasure to attend Trevor Paglen's show at Metro Pictures in Chelsea for Inquiry based Art and Design (see pictures below). The show contained several sections of his work, but my interests in his artwork revolved around coding facial expressions and expressed emotions. He would use numbers and the locations to grid and indicate certain expression. This helped me brainstorm different ways I can collect input to trigger an output with lights on my project.
Picture Retrieved from https://thenewinquiry.com/invisible-images-your-pictures-are-looking-at-you/

Picture retrieved from http://artviewer.org/trevor-paglen-at-metro-pictures/
The Bee Gees

 I have begun exploring different bee wags that have been used to express locations of flowers to the rest of the hive. They are interesting and I even found a diagram that included a honeycomb, helping me to image how light could move in a circle to emulate certain movements. I thought it would be interesting to explore bee movements as a way to bring awareness to myself. Also, if I do find something of interest this could be a nice way to bring awareness about the shortage of bees currently.
 I have also been looking at different  traditional dances from various African tribes. I want look into different content to see if there was anything I could use to further deepen the meaning of my project. Especially since an Afrofuturism theme is intended for the base display of the sculpture.

The Name Game
I even explored potential  names for the my project based on its purpose....
Sun Ray

iJoy

...more to be discovered
  

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