Algorithms

I really appreciate the idea of drifting as a science. Living in Center City often presents me with 50 different ways to get to a destination, allowing me (depending how urgent my plans) to wander through many smaller side streets and in new mini neighborhoods. I would love to participate in one of the algorithms described in the article, it sounds like a fun adventure. However, I don’t know what outcome the experiment conductors are looking for? Are they setting up experiments to see if people create patterns? Or are they looking for how people decide where to wander? Again, this sounds like a fun idea, but I don’t know what the point is beyond entertainment.

Algorithmic Psychogeography--Laura Napolitano

This is an interesting article because it talked about reacting to one's surroundings based on a few simple rules. Algorithmic Psychogeography has a certain outcome based on how you respond psychologically to your physical surroundings. This would be an interesting exercise to try in class, but it would definitely be very time consuming. I think something like this could only be attempted in large cities like Philly or NYC because if it was done in suburbs or rural areas, there wouldn't be much change from one turn to the next. Adding a video camera that picked up what the participant sees and hears would be an interesting aspect of the experiment as well.