GrassrootsMapping
Marcus

Overview

This is a completed workshop with NuVu Studio in the Boston area on April 12 - April 23. The workshop was held at the Beaver Country Day School: Google Maps link

Other curricula are being developed around the Grassroots Mapping tool set; see Curriculum Development. For notes on how this went, see Nu Vu Notes

Saeed documented the whole workshop on the NuVu blog with some great photos; check them out!

Activities

Introduction and first flights: April 12

We’ll begin with a quick overview of the Grassroots Mapping Lima project and the growth of the GM community since December 2009. Then, as soon as possible, we’ll begin flying. Try to follow the instructions online, and write down what’s hard to understand or find.

Once we’ve all flown, we’ll use Cartagen Knitter to make digital maps from the images we capture.

Students: Create a new page with your map and notes here:

• The map we made on Tuesday morning is here: BCDS map on Cartagen Knitter

Site Selection: April 13-4

This is a brief exercise where we’ll each choose a site where we think a grassroots map would be useful or unique. Think about how an alternative map, produced in a grassroots or DIY manner, could play a social, political, or environmental-advocacy role.

If possible, we’ll try to fly at these sites; but don’t be limited to places near Boston. We can prototype here and try to connect with more distant communities, even outside the US. Also, consider looking on the Home Page at the existing projects which need help.

Students: Add your selected site here:

• Boston, charles river- Mariah- the charles and the view of boston from cambridge is so beautiful and i think it would be a good place to fly because there’s not much to get in the day.
• Boston Macy’s Parade-Vanessa-I think it would be cool to take images of the parade and the procession of people. The aerial images might be very interesting.
• Copley Plaza-Hayley- I think the buildings and streets would be a good view. I do also like the Charles idea though.
• (example site) - (example student name) - (description of reasoning) - (link to site on Google Maps)

Nu Vu Sites

Rig Competition: April 13-16

• Intro: Tuesday April 13th
• Present and discuss rig and photos: Friday April 16th

A major feature of this workshop will be the Rig Competition, where students will be asked to prototype and document more advanced camera ‘capsules’ for balloon and kite photography.

Each student will create their own rig design and build several prototypes to be voted on, based on the criteria in the Rig Competition description. Use photos, videos, drawings, etc. to document the process on this wiki.

Students: Create a new page with your entry here: * Site Selection Hayley Yudelman

• Mariah Rig
• Vanessas Rig
• Hayley’s rig is at the Hayley Yudelman page

Advanced Flight Systems: April 16-23

• Intro: Friday April 16th
• Present proposals and prototypes: Monday April 19th
• Demo final projects, last round of review: Thursday April 22nd
• Final presentations & review: Friday April 23st

As a final project, each student will choose a more advanced technique for taking aerial photography. Each student will document/photograph/narrate the process and add it to the wiki. Choose from the following:

See Advanced Projects for suggested projects.

It would be great if each student chose a complimentary final project so we could combine them into an advanced flight system at the end.

Students: Create a new page with your entry here: * Site Selection Hayley Yudelman

Final presentation

Your final presentations are due on Wednesday. Prepare 10 slides about what you designed and built during the workshop, covering:

• project name, participants
• what you set out to do
• why your project improves on existing techniques
• what specific new ideas you prototyped
• how you tested your design
• for each test, where/how long/how it went/what went wrong/what you learned/what you changed in the next test
• illustrate with photos and drawings
• conclude with advice for future designers who tackle this problem

Prepare a PowerPoint, PDF, Keynote, or whatever to present on Wednesday. Saeed and I can advise you as you put it together, just ask.

Student Presentations

Vanessa on aerodynamic balloons Mariah on hot air balloons Hayley on RC airplane mapping Danielle on helium-filled kites Julian on mapping Skyline Park in Chestnut Hill

Participants

• Jeffrey Warren - instructor
• Saeed Arida? - instructor
• Mariah Shore?
• Vanessa Lecky?
• Hayley Yudelman
• Danielle Bynoe
• Julian Fialkow?

Extras

• Flickr photos for ‘grassrootsmapping’ - upload documentation photos and link to them from your project pages, and/or upload them to Flickr and tag them with ‘grassrootsmapping’
• Hydrogen Balloons
• Essay Service writing entry for the next essay exhibit for ‘grassrootmapping’ and Nu Vo Workshop