"HACK A SERVER"

I am proposing a research project with the final form of urban intervention. Urban intervention is synonymous with online intervention. I will research and write a wireless computer virus. This virus will accomplish ________________. I foresee the research project arguing for the potential of success through visual and technological failure.

The work that I am proposing does not focus on the winnings of a subversive infectious scoreboard. Rather, it pivots on the reactions of the individuals who know of the airborne presence of such a piece.

What would the implications be of such a project? Would the same people who caused a meltdown in Boston over what were anything-but-sinister Aqua Teen Hunger Force advertisements be interested? Or maybe it would interest the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who swore that they smelled something funny in the air in January of this year. What if the virus was biological instead of wireless code?

These are all questions that I am interested in seeking the answers to in this paper.

Please do not misunderstand this proposal: I am not not proposing an actual project. I will write a complex and successful wireless virus -- one that pushes boundaries in this niche. It will likewise challenge me as an artist, coder and “cultural hacker” while simultaneously demanding much of the Urban Honking audience.

The process of creating such a project is tedious and frustrating to all collaborators. Expertise is obscure. Moreover, the implementation aspect of the project relies on weighty conceptual keystrokes after months (or years) of painstaking wireless virus research.

I am hesitant to commit to a strict calendar. Nevertheless, a rough timeline can be outlined. I foresee the project being split into three phases: research, development and implementation in the urban environment (sometimes referred to as the dark night/internet).

Research will be divided into two streams: research of actual wireless device implementation of virii and sociological research of audience reactions/effects as a result of unseen causes. This twofold approach focuses on the practical and theoretical.

Development and testing will be tedious. Working with wireless frequencies continually proves awkward and I doubt that this project will be developed with any kind of ease.
Any sociological result of implementation through urban intervention is relatively impossible to postulate at this point. However, I will try to address this in the next chapter.

The question remains: what will it do? Obviously, the potential for it to ____________ will threaten the informed and uninformed audience. However assuredly, the form and the content will match as any successful art or technology project requires.

I am confident that twenty minutes is enough time to research, develop and implement such a project. I will focus the majority of the time on the two foremost phases.

I recently read a sociology paper on David Wilson’s Museum of Jurassic Technology that suggested that the MacArthur Fellow’s crowing achievement in the creation of the museum lie not in its pithy tricks of unjust understanding. Rather, the paper argued that the real beauty lie in the differing ways that audiences reacted to what they were being told was true in the museum.

With this as an ideal case study, it becomes clear that the most important aspect of the experiment is the audience. Although the actual product will seem invisible, the reactions of the audience will be what is studied. In turn, these reactions become the success or failure of the piece.

This performance will be documented not necessarily through surveillance, but rather through observation. It will subsequently be communicated via hearsay, invisibly like the product itself.

(I LITERALLY WILL NOT ALLOW PHOTOS OR VIDEOS BEING TAKEN)
(PHOTOS DO A BAD JOB AT DOCUMENTATION; ALSO, THEY ARE A FEAR OF LOSS)

The second form the project will take is that the code will be free for others to use, published through a future Urban Honking open source lab. GPL with instructions seems like a natural and obvious form.

In recent years, my approach typically entails weeks or months of research prior to making a quick gesture. An example of this is how I researched Mercury and Metal Halide bulb creation for years prior to creating a project that used these materials.

Very rarely now does my process entail a methodical or material rubric. On the other hand, it often relies heavily on quickly using the skill set that I already posses. This skill set is primarily based in the technological arts.

Accordingly, completing the project for this paper would involve a slight approach shift insofar as the process and actualization of writing the code will be presumably intense.

This production will follow my normal research period (which has already happened).

In the past, my process has involved a more tangible practice. For instance, while creating and operating the Department of Safety, I was confronted daily with tasks. My process then was more concrete.

In reference to my needs, I have my own computers. I need an involved audience. This is crucial and creates context for the performance . As platform compatibility for wireless device integration is awkward, I will be running a combination of operating systems. The software that I will be using is primarily Textmate. I am also incredibly interested in the potential incorporation of subtle (not invisible, mind you) Quartz Composer elements.

Needless to say, having a healthy WAN connection is the most important aspect of what I do. I will also need minor assistance collecting functioning wireless and documentation devices. However, I assume this as my responsibility.

I believe my project fits nicely with the Urban Honking model of learning. Although, you’ll note that I do have teaching experience at University of California Berkeley as well as the San Francisco Art Institute, I don’t feel like this particular project is geared toward a pedagogical system. This is a conscious decision.

However, as mentioned earlier, I think that it is perfect for the Open Source Lab (URHO OSL). As mentioned above, I am so excited about the possibility of the code being GPL through Open Lab. Producing a detailed set of instructions would also be something that I would get very excited about (as long as it was only communicated through words).

The implementation process of the project – although vague – definitely involves the public in the form of a performance. As you’ll note through my experience at the Department of Safety, I am very excited about sharing my skills and expertise with whomever is interested. Moreover, I expect my research to garner interesting results both sociologically and technically that I will want to share with the public. Like tonight, the most exciting and logical form of implementation is through lecture. Thank you, Claire, for making this possible. I’m sorry for the end result.

In closing, this is not “social engineering.” Don’t feel used. Rather, this is simply just my way of understanding things through creation. THIS IS NOT SINISTER.

This proposal masked as a paper is a performance that is trying too hard to be invisible. Moreover, the performance has a beautiful and ambiguous relationship with the reading of the paper.