A lot of products use accellerometers as a proxy for sleep it's cheap and can provide good data. For me though, I wanted to monitor my brain and the Zeo sleep tracker is basically the only one of its kind. The Zeo is a headband with three pads on it. These pads are woven with metal, which makes good electrical contact with the skin without being as annoying to place as the electrodes during my sleep study. The Zeo is not a medical device and won't give as accurate results as a clinical sleep study, but it is very good for what it does. The Zeo divides sleep into a number of types: awake, REM, light and deep sleep. The headband uploads its data over Bluetooth to my mobile and from the mobile up to the Zeo website. It's pretty easy to set up and use, but I've had great difficulty using it during Brisbane summers on those hot sultry nights every extraneous bit of clothing just increases the discomfort. The Zeo website makes it trivial to download all of the data in a simple, detailed format, which is perfect for my use.

Now that the Basement lab is set up and we finally have a handle on our the contamination issue that set my plant cultures back in the early stages of cultivation, I have made up a new batch of media. (I have to say that preparing media and sterilising jars is not one of my favourite jobs). The basic ingredients for the media include: Murashige and Skoog Medium with BA and some PPM (plant preservative mixture  to reduce fungal contamination) and Agar. This time around, I am hoping to propagate African Violets and have ordered some leaves from Jane's African Violets.  They should arrive tomorrow and I will be able to start culturing.  It will take about six weeks until I can sub-culture the specimens and I am planning to document the entire process.  Hopefully it will all work without any further mould/fungus issues.  Exciting!

After spending the best part of three months in The Edge's basement, the time has come to release The Edge's latest creation into the wild! The Mobile Media Lab has been in development since late 2012 and has taken the combined brains of our programming team and eaten most of  the output from our 3d -Printer, so I thought I'd put together a quick Q&A to introduce the project. What is the MML? Physically - its a box. A very strong, portable waterproof box that contains the essentials for a mobile multiuser media creation lab. The current MML spec is eight iPad minis, a macbook air, a custom charge/sync station and various other bits and bobs, software and hardware in a Pelican Storm IM2500 case. Conceptually - to take a line from the official project outline; The Mobile Media Lab (MML) project is run by The Edge, State Library of Queensland and aims to develop a regional model of community responsive content creation for young indigenous participants in Rockhampton, Queensland. Practically -  it means that The Edge is outreaching to provide opportunity, expertise and equipment to do its part in fulfilling the State Library of Queensland's mission.  Output from the MML will range from complete video and music production to digital art, storytelling, web publishing and more. Hang on - isn't that just a bunch of iPads in a road case? What makes it special? While the hardware is essentially off the shelf - the key part of what makes the MML a 'lab' rather than just a charging box is the emphasis on multi user creation, robust media sharing, and expert devised workshops and  training programs. The lab will leave The Edge with content and workshops preloaded and expert assistance available.   And we spent a lot of design time getting everything into a carry-on size case. And printing things out on our 3D printers. So why iPads? Why not a few laptops - surely a more productive experience? Or android tablets? Running workshops for years on various creative subjects -  we have come to realise that a large part of almost any workshop can be thought of as 'point and click' time where the facilitator is going through menus, ticking boxes, opening and shutting windows. In short -dealing with the basics of a GUI and OS.   Part of the joy of small screens is that most of this has been stripped away by necessity and  the app and OS designers have thought long and hard about how best to do this. If you want to take a photo on a pad or phone device - you touch a picture that represents an camera - no mouse point, double click to open programme.  This is a trivial example - but a photo editing/retouching app like snapseed or a sound mangler like samplr make incredibly complex  manipulation of pictures and sound as close to intuitive as possible. To the point where I feel old just thinking about how hard it used to be to get these kinds of results!  It feels obvious that in a few generations time, having a screen that you can't touch will be the unusual thing, so why buck the trend?   iOS over android was a fairly straight forward choice in the initial planning stages. Android couldn't take the realtime audio requirements of the kind of apps we need to use. Finally, form factor and weight considerations means an iPad based lab can actively engage between 8 - 16 participants, with a carry on luggage size amount of kit.  While it is possible to carry 6 laptops and assorted support gear, or load a roadcase with a sound system into a van, lugging around so much gear is bad for our backs and eventually for the gear itself. This time we took a modular approach, built around 'add-on packs' that can be community sourced and provided, or even built as part of MML workshops or The Edge's programming. Who is it For? The lab is part of a framework for engaging young indigenous people in media creation in regional Queensland.  Our initial engagement in Rockhampton will be based around working with Durumbal Community Youth Services, who have graciously offered their workers and facilities for us to start our workshops and training series.  Rockhampton Regional Council  and Creative Capricorn will help us put the lab into the community, supplying booking system, space to work and contact and links with existing creative types. Also ABC Open Capricornia is keen for their participants to use the lab for their various exciting projects. Where is it going to be in use? Currently the lab has been travelling between The Edge and Rockhampton, with a couple of excursions for testing to Stradbroke Island (working with the outstanding folk from SLQ Kuril Dhagan) and to the Mini Maker Faire in Adelaide. What is the future? By June this year we anticipate the MML will be in full use in the community, with all training and hand over complete, and the lab will be living in Rocky.  We will provide in-person training and continual development. At the end of the process The Edge will make freely available DIY plans to create a MML and in the process we will have moved on to Version II - stronger, faster, smarter, and maybe even smaller than before.  Along the way we will be working with other parts of SLQ Over the next few weeks I'll be going into details, exploring the design process, the parts, the build, the software, the apps, and the workshops - keep an eye on this space.            

In response to the little unexpected infestations that have occurred in the basement since starting my project, I have decided to produce a work that comments on the unanticipated discoveries that often occur when working with living organisms.  Tentatively titled, A Cabinet for Unexpected Life, the work will most likely consist of a furniture installation incorporating documentation of the mould contamination that spread through the kombucha and into my plant cultures, as well as living cultures of pond life and fruit flies. In preparation for the development of this work, I have started to set up some actual fruit fly cultures.  The initial fruit fly colony established itself in some minced beetroot I was using to produce plant paints.  They were really thriving for a while, but I have decided to select a more established medium to maintain them. After trawling the web for ideas, I have made up two preliminary types of fly food based on recipes from The Bug Farm : Recipe #1: 2 x bananas, 2 x cup rolled oats, 1 cup water, 2tbsp vinegar (to reduce mould growth), 1 tbsp sugar and a pinch of yeast Recipe #2: 6 x tbsp instant mash, 1 tbsp vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 x pinch of yeast I will add more information about the success of each recipe. Let's hope the flies like their new food.

I decided to have a look at my cheek cells and spit under the microscope.  I've been feeling a bit sick with flu, so I was interested to see if there is any difference from previous viewings and also to look for bacterial presence.  I was shocked to see crazy fungus contamination on the slide. OMG!  No wonder I've been feeling so terrible. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMhR8iaZfrE&feature=youtu.be I must admit, I had a bit of a freak out...but then thought about it and came to conclusion that it was more likely that the slide was dirty or contaminated than myself. Indeed, I once had SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) images taken of my skin, boogas, ear wax and menstrual fluid only to find no evidence of bacteria or other organisms!!!!  I was really surprised.  It was still pretty cool to see my bodily excretions this close up! Although I was really disappointed not to find evidence of strange crawly creatures like this: Then again....probably good that I don't actually have scabies! The notable absence of bacteria and other microflora was however, quite perplexing especially given that we are outnumbered by an estimated 10:1 by non-self cells in our bodies.  There are a few possible reasons for the absence of bacteria and other microbes:  The samples were collected at home and processed later at Uni.  This may have resulted in microbes moving on to greener pastures. The preparation process washed surface elements from the surface of the samples.  (This is probably more likely as I do not have much experience with sample processing and may have been too rough with my pipetting). It also seems that that the majority of microbes occupy the interior spaces of our body, rather than just the surface. Indeed, a large number of non-self cells are located in our gut.  These bacteria are super important to ensure efficient nutrient processing and digestive health.  I remember hearing Dr Karl talk about poo transplants (or fecal bacteriotherapy) on Triple J.   Apparently, receiving a 'reverse enema' of poo from a healthy 'digester' can help individuals with chronic diarrhea and other digestive issues caused by 'bad' bacteria.  Gross...and yet kinda cool!  (I have yet to find someone who want my poo - I do offer whenever anyone complains about stomach problems). Anyway...after checking my cheek cells again with a clean slide, it turns out that everything is A-OK! Nothing to worry about and no evidence of bacteria or other creepy things.  (The black dots are spots on the camera lense!) My Edge colleagues can breath easy....for now...

Well....we are finally getting somewhere with setting up a functional lab space in the basement at The Edge.  Last week I cleaned all the surfaces and mopped the area to try and limit the further spread of a fungal infection that had permeated through the kombucha cultures.   It was sad to watch the lovely thick mats of kombucha being discarded.  That is unfortunately just the way it often is with biology and particularly microbiology - moist, warm and nutrient rich environments are highly favoured by fungus and bacteria. I am hoping that we can keep the contamination at bay as I start working with my micropropagation plant project.  I almost have all the required materials and hope to start plant culture in earnest next week.  We are just missing the Agar.  Fingers crossed that it will arrive in the next few days. I have started working on cultivating sweet potatoes. They form plants and roots very easily.  So far I have been able to generate numerous clones from a single potato, simply by removing stem sections with rooting buds.  I am interested to see whether I can also induce root and shoot formation from very small plant sections. As part of this investigation, I am hoping to start documenting this cloning process as part of an evolving exhibition upstairs.  I will start with a single potato stem and cultivate the maximum number of clones each week.  I am interested to see how many clones I may be able to achieve in the last three months of my position.  As my skills progress, I might even be able to cultivate thousands of individual plants from miniscule cuttings. Fun!

Phil and I have been working on our game, Mojo, for a couple of months now and we’re proud to announce that the first alpha build is complete. Although most of the core mechanics have been implemented, as well as a lot of the art, we’re keeping the testing in-house for now. Don’t worry though, as soon as we have the game in beta, we’ll make the it available to more people. If you want the chance to try it out, make sure to follow us on Facebook. This is not the only news we’re revealing today however. Some of you may be aware that we’ve kept an important feature of our game secret, but after successfully testing it we’re excited to share it with you here. For those of you who’ve had suspicions, speculations or even visited the fortune teller, the wait is over! A player will be able to use the camera of an iOS device to scan barcodes which will magically transform into usable in-game items. We’re hoping to make it work on various Android devices too but for now, we’re sticking to iPhones and iPads. When applying for the residency we knew that this was something we wanted to try out, the idea had been collecting dust in the form of a design document for over a year waiting to be made. The challenge was to adapt the idea so that we could apply the use of barcodes to a type of game we both enjoyed. Another challenge was to fit the scope of our game into the fairly tight timeframe of the residency, considering we are only a two person team. We love the idea of letting players interact with the real world while playing the game and believe it adds an entertaining element to the gameplay. There have been very limited games that have used barcodes, especially the mobile markets so we’re really excited to see how people are going to respond. So, the next time you go shopping and you're bored, you can gather powerful ingredients for your witch doctor! Finished a can of soda? Just devoured your favorite chocolate? Scan the can or wrapping before you trash it and you'll get some extra ingredients to use when you mix your next potions!

We've been fielding a lot of questions of late about the best way to book a workshop at The Edge. We've made some changes from last year, so here's our little how to guide for 2013. On the second Tuesday of each month the program for the coming two months will be available for viewing on our calendar, What’s On blog and EventBrite booking portal. Priority bookings will be emailed to waitlists at this point, but general bookings won’t open until 10am on the third Tuesday. This will give you a week to plan what you would like to attend and set a diary reminder for bookings. You will be able to book one month in advance for intro workshops (ie. book on third Tuesday of February for March intro workshops) and two months in advance for intermediate and advanced workshops (ie. book on third Tuesday in February for March and April intermediate and advanced workshops). Our newsletter, which rounds up all the dates for the coming month, will be mailed out on the third Tuesday of each month. While we make every effort to get it to you in time for when bookings open, we can’t guarantee when it will land in your inbox. We have had reports of up to 6 hours delay from send to receipt, so please also be proactive about checking our calendar on the morning that bookings open. Waitlists and priority booking Once a workshop is booked out we activate a waitlist. We offer waitlists for all workshops that are scheduled to run again. Waitlists serve two purposes; they are the first people we contact to fill places made available by cancellations and those on the waitlist are also offered priority booking next time the workshop runs. Priority booking can be a tricky business. We don’t want a workshop full before bookings open to the public, so for our free, intro workshops we cap the number of people able to be listed on the waitlist. For example, in a workshop that can accommodate 10 participants we cap the waitlist at 5, leaving a minimum of 5 places available when bookings open. This may mean that by the time you go to book the workshop the waitlist is full (which means the option won’t even be available on the booking page). In this instance you will need to keep an eye on our calendar for when the workshop is scheduled to run again and make sure you are quick off the mark to book in when bookings open. Waitlists for our intermediate and advanced workshops are not capped. These waitlists are still used to fill cancellations and offer priority bookings, but we will also schedule additional workshops if the waitlist is lengthy. Group bookings If you have a group of people in your organisation who are interested in attending one (or several) of our workshops, please let us know. We can arrange a custom delivery of the workshop for up to 10 participants at a time that suits you, rather than trying to fit you all into an existing scheduled session. This also means that we can tailor a session combining a mix of intro, intermediate and advanced workshops. Demand for workshops In January 2013 we opened our Fast-Tracked February program, offering over 30 workshops in the space of 28 days. The intention was to give you the chance to catch up on some of our more popular workshops. When bookings opened we had over 3500 hits to the booking pages for our intro workshops alone. There were 190 places available in these workshops. There is a huge demand for our free, intro workshops. We believe it is important for us to continue to offer these sessions free to the public, but this does mean they are delivered at a cost to us. As with any organisation, we have a set amount of resources to deliver our programs and we are currently offering as many workshops as we are able. There are plans afoot to increase our capacity to offer free workshops, but as with any grand plans these things take time. Attending workshops If you are able to book a place in a workshop please remember to come. You have received a place that dozens (sometimes hundreds) of people tried to book. Please so show respect for them and let us know as soon as possible if you are unable to make it so we can allocate your place to someone on the waitlist. If you have not arrived in time for the commencement of a free, intro workshop your place may be given to someone who is onsite and ready to attend. You can email us or give us a call on 07 3842 9400 if you are going to be late. Places in paid workshops will not be reallocated. We welcome your feedback, comments and suggestions and hope you enjoy our workshop program in 2013.

I spoke to Mick and Danielle last week and they were both pretty excited about the prospect of a usable laboratory to enable a variety of workshops or meet-ups for people interested in working across art, science and technology. After searching the web and comparing material costs from a variety of biotech supply companies, I have finally compiled list of basic supplies and equipment and have more of an idea of the costs associated with setting up a basic wet lab at The Edge.  We already have a microscope and  camera thanks to BioScience Catalyst Cameron Wilson, so that at least reduces some of the set-up cost.  So far the list includes: Fridge/freezer Microwave Pressure cooker (sterilisation) Blender DIY laminar flow hood for sterile work DIY incubator Cetrifuge Dissection tools - scalpel, forceps, scissors Beakers (1000mL, 500mL, 250mL) Erlenmeyer flasks (1000mL, 500mL) PPE (gloves, lab coats, glasses) Spray bottles Petri dishes Slides and coverslips Centrifuge tubes (1mL, 15mL and 50mL) Culture vessels Transfer pipettes Test tubes and racks Measure spoons Balance Ethanol Sodium hypochloride Vinegar Agar Distilled water Labels Autoclave tape Cling wrap Aluminum foil With the addition of project specific chemicals and specimens this basic lab could enable a range of low-risk engagements for users including: Micropropagation (plant cell culture) DNA and chlorophyll extraction Isolation of mitochondria and chloroplasts Specimen preparation, staining and microscopy Microbiology (microbial work - bacteria and fungi) Mummification (I have a great protocol for doing this using basic pool supplies) Cameron's Kombucha culture I  am also excited about the potential of linking these elements to other tech projects at The Edge: e.g. plants as gaming controls, microbe or plant based generative visualisations.  As new Catalysts and Residents come through, more elements and workshops could be also added to the list. Today I will finally move away from the computer and catalogue existing supplies and materials.  I also want to look at the available spaces in The Edge basement and look at possibilities for structuring the physical lab set-up.