Demonstrations in perceptualizing data from nature for scientific and artistic purposes

David Rosenboom, Martin Gruebele, and Carla Scaletti will discuss mapping data to sound for applications ranging from scientific data sonification to interactive data sonification, to interactive musical performance making use of data. Scaletti and Gruebele will describe how proteins fold and how sonification can highlight aspects of protein folding that are difficult to visualize. Scaletti will demonstrate an interactive user interface that allows the environment of a protein (for example, temperature) to be tuned, so that one can hear and see, via sonification and visualization, how real-time interaction with data provides insights into a scientific problem like protein folding. Finally, the theme of real-time interaction with data will move from its application in scientific analysis to its application in musical composition and performance. Rosenboom will show how data extracted from the electroencephalograms of individuals engaged in what he calls listening as performance are mapped inside the interactive instruments used in his most recent brainwave music pieces. In one work, Ringing Minds, this includes mapping data from multivariate principal oscillation pattern analysis, auditory event related potentials, and other measures from several brains linked in a kind of “hyper-brain” onto an array of complex resonators inside in a computer music instrument. The event will conclude with a discussion among the presenters and attendees.