disinformation | survival research laboratories: post-apocalypse now!

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survival research laboratories: post-apocalypse now!
by roy christopher (royc@frontwheeldrive.com) - November 09, 2000

Remember the evil toys from the movie Toy Story, the ones with all the mis-matched parts from other toys, all rearranged into new strategies of purpose? Imagine those same toys built to life-like scale: in car-lengths instead of lego-lengths, built with military surplus parts and armed with military surplus weapons. Now picture no-holds-barred warfare between these bastardized giants of the scrap heap. A skirmish between screaming, fire-breathing, chewing, burning monsters bent on hate for one another and devoid of concern for their human overseers.

Welcome to the post-apocalyptic world of Mark Pauline's Survival Research Laboratories. Pauline and company have been building and destroying such machines since 1978. They collect surplus military parts and "repurpose" them into massively dangerous and destructive robots and then stage arena-like, free-for-all wars among them. On-looker beware:at an SRL show, control is a relative concept.

Since Pauline and his renegade band of electrical engineers, robotics experts, computer scientists, machinists, etc. started just over twenty years ago, a diverse second generation has sprung up to both expand and continue SRL's original vision. These vagabond troops of post-now artistic vision present glimpses of possible quantum futures by combining full-scale exhibits, installations, man/machine experiments, spectator participation, web interaction, telepresence and of course the aforementioned mechanized melees - including teams of robot-builders who stage battles between their machines.

Take a look at the sites below and see how the future is being built and destroyed.

Research by roy christopher usery (royc@frontwheeldrive.com)

Survival Research Laboratories
The official home of the big daddy in the realm of renegade robotics. Don't believe the rumors. Go directly to the source. Here you can find news on the latest performances, videos, images, interviews, SRL list server, etc.

Experimental Interaction Unit
Eric Paulos, SRL's second in charge and his newest conglomerate. He and his EIU colleagues research the interaction between man and machine on many levels, not excluding the nefarious.

Eric Paulos' SEEMEN Archive
Roboticist maverick Eric Paulos has collected together some interesting past SEEMEN shows at this archival Web site.

Peoplehater
Another insanely brilliant robotic art group. Check the photos.

The Centre for Metahuman Exploration
Through various applications of telepresence, the Centre for Metahuman Exploration has developed a series of installations that challenge the very foundations of the concept of physical location. Dig through the Projects list.

Stelarc
Stelarc is an Australian-based performance artist whose work explores and extends the concept of the body and its relationship with technology through human/machine interfaces incorporating the Internet and Web, sound, music, video and computers.

Institute For Applied Autonomy
Formed in 1998, the Institute of Applied Autonomy creates cultural artefacts and social technologies to effect social determination and critique authoritarian power structures. Like, graffiti-spraying robots run amok!

Society of Robotic Combat
SORC is a resource to provide education and information about the design and construction of competitive robots. Peruse this site and find merchandise, a mailing list, a forthcoming ezine and all the latest news in the robotic competition world.

Amorphic Robot Works
Amorphic Robot Works was formed in 1992. ARW is another San Francisco based group of artists, engineers and technicians working together to create robotic performances and installations.

Matt Heckert
SRL alumnus, Matt Heckert makes mad machines and mad noise. This is his official home. Lots of nice pictures of his work.

BotBash
Ah, BotBash . . . Here you'll find the 411 on all past and recent BotBash robot combat events, including pictures, event rules and regs and even videos.

Robot Wars
The Robot Wars site includes a streaming webcast of vicious robot battles. Definitely worth a look.

Lightening On Demand
Lightening On Demand are specialists in largescale Tesla Coils, Lorentz Guns and other lightening and plasma devices.

Bill Vorn and LP Demers
This is Bill Vorn and LP Demers' 'Robotic Art' Info-page. It describes their installation work using interactive multimedia and robotic systems.

Large Hot Pipe Organ
The Large Hot Pipe Organ (LHPO) is an electronically controlled, propane powered musical instrument, which produces percussive tones by exploding propane/air mixtures inside of open ended steel pipes.

SEEMEN
As it says on the site, "A collaborative of some forty odd art drop outs and extreme technology inventors who enjoy exploring their taste for the dark side of applied engineering in robot/kinetic art."

Mutoid Waste Company
Yet another robot-art troop.

Eric Hobijn
Erik Hobijn developed the concept of the techno-parasites as a reaction to the lack of attention paid to the small elements of our technical environments. The transparency of human-machine interfaces or of computer software means that we are caught unaware when the technology is dysfunctional or disrupted. Hobijn's mission is to increase this awareness.

La Fura Del Baus
This is the official Web presence of La Fura Del Baus. Poke around through his collective's pile of wild and weird projects.

Tesla Coil Mailing List
Need to build a high-powered Tesla Coil for your next family gathering? Subscribe to this list and learn all you need to know. Check out the image gallery from people on the list.

Team Minus Zero
TMZ's official site includes their history, current projects and pictures of some of their combat-ready, mechanical beasts.

Disinformation Dossier on Nikola Tesla: Man Out of Time
Check out the Disinformation dossier on Nikola Tesla: Man Out of Time.

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