Two walls, 48 computer screens, 10 Web cameras -- and 15 Duke computer graphics students.
Put it all together, and watch what happens this fall on the massive tiled "media wall" at the Link in Perkins Library.
Students in Robert Duvall's advanced graphics class are developing programs this semester that will allow students and faculty to interact with and display data in new ways on the display, one of fewer than 100 installations of its kind in the country.
The media wall -- installed by Duke's Visualization Technology Group as part of the Visual Studies Initiative -- is driven by a 104-core computing cluster and allows for real-time display of high-resolution images. The technology opens new possibilities for interactivity, artistic exploration and real-time visualization, said senior research scientist Rachael Brady, who oversees the group.
The Web cameras, positioned on the ceiling, can be programmed to detect viewers' positions or movements and use that information to influence what's represented on the screen. For example, an aquarium depicted on the wall can be programmed so that fish "follow" an observer.
"With the computers driving this exhibit, you can imagine artwork that could detect someone standing in front of it and begin a narrative. Animations within the screen could ‘notice' a viewer's presence," said Todd Berreth, a research associate with Duke's Visual Studies Initiative. "Up to this point, the exhibits have been more like complex slideshows -- but the wall is much more than a collection of monitors that can display a big picture."
Recent displays have included photos from the Rare Book, Manuscript and Special Collections Library's Sidney D. Gamble collection; excerpts from a 20-minute video work, "Occulted"; and a selection of photos taken by Duke students of their international experiences in programs like DukeEngage.
This semester, Berreth and a committee of faculty, staff and students are soliciting project ideas for the wall. The only caveat: No marketing allowed.
"It's not intended to be a billboard," Berreth said. "We're looking for visually innovative projects related to teaching, learning and research at Duke -- particularly those that take advantage of the wall's interactive capabilities."
They're hoping Duvall's class can help. Teams of students are exploring different interactive options -- from games to three-dimensional animations based on viewers' movements -- and the programs they develop then can be shared with other students and faculty who want to create their own projects on the wall.
"We're hoping to make utilities that can be reused by later classes," Duvall said. " We want to make it as easy as possible for students to do this, even if they're just programming for the first time or have a minimal understanding of how the display technology works underneath."
Duvall's students will test their programs on a smaller-scale version of the wall at Smith Warehouse -- but the opportunity to create interactive content for display in the Link has already inspired the class.
"Students will put more effort into something their friends will see than something that's just for an instructor's eyes," Duvall said.
The Link offers a central location and new medium for the Duke community to share digital content in new ways, Berreth said.
"This generation that's coming up is savvy in generating digital content. They're not passive observers," he said. "The Link is a great public venue for faculty and students to show off their work to a broader audience."
Students and faculty are invited to submit their project ideas to Berreth's group at mediawall@duke.edu. Find out more information about developing projects for the Link media wall on the group's wiki.