HeroMachine

Anne Schmidt __aschmidt@gsd.harvard.edu__ Brad Crane __bcrane@gsd.harvard.edu__ Ling Fan __lfan@gsd.harvard.edu__
 * Delete Machine**

The internet creates heroes, which eventually manifest themselves outside the medium. A bottom-up, participatory structure is the basis for these hero- creation processes. At the same time heros are purposely being consumed, meaning employed and used in a variety of contexts. The withdrawl of (digital) attention and the practice of censorship may dissolve heroes. // Hero // in our sense of the word is a dynamic status obtained through both, appearance and disappearance in the internet. In several countries, government and authorities censor and monitor internet usage, by employing increasingly sophisticated means of control. Internet users situated in such restrictive conditions invest tremendous efforts to bypass censorship and reveal manipulated content. Grassroots heroes like e.g. Ai Weiwei became well-known because of their posing provocative questions and their criticism on authorities, which subsequently caused their disappearance - both virtually and physically. However, originally the hero is not elevated into its hero-status by employing Western values and criticism within authoritarian regimes (e.g. China, Iran). Rather posing the question, what an individual means to a larger society, especially those societies that are not open and transparent, will reveal why. Our project situates itself in a specific cultural and political context, seeking to: • Creating and consuming heroes • Communicating between different heroes’ provocative questions • Obseving the appearance and disappearance of heroes



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 * Project Video:**


 * Project Patent Application:**
 * [|Hero Machine Patent Form (Midterm)]**


 * Project Design Proposal and Brief:**
 * [|Hero Machine PDF (Midterm)]**

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 * Powerpoint Presentation:**
 * [|Hero Machine PPT (Midterm)]**