This could also be implemented as a smartphone app running in the background..
Sure, but how would I distinguish a 5-minute-interval vibration from the myriad email notification vibrations?
Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
61–70 of 106 posts
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#62Earlier quoted context omitted.
With the same money you can buy a Pebble, and I'm sure that someone could easily write a Pebble app that vibrates every 5 minutes.
I have not been able to find a good solution to having a personal vibrating timer with me. Requirements: Easy to set so no frictional cost to starting a pomodoro for instance. Does not beep. Keeps vibrating until silenced rather than vibrating once and then stopping (I don't notice these).
Pebble has a timer app that meets all your requirements. I use it for pomodoros, laundry, steeping tea, cooking rice, etc. Unbelievably handy.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#63Anybody that wants one of these: this looks like it would be /trivially/ easy to build. An attiny85 and a vibration motor would do it. The only "hard" part would be fitting a battery in this form factor. Go to your local hackerspace during some open hours, and tell the hackers you want to build one of these. I bet they'll do it with you! (Hell: I'LL do it with you if you come down to heatsync labs [in Phoenix])
Would it be possible to make a fully analog version of this by tearing apart an old kinetic watch?
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#64Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not a hardware person; could you explain to me why a watch battery wouldn't work in this case. Is it just too low power?
It would work! A cr2032 is a super common "coin cell" battery that we use for all kinds of stuff. The "problem" with this is how long it will run for. A watch battery, or a coin cell doesn't have much current capacity.
You can also get specifically low powered attiny chips as well, so a cr2032 would be more than sufficent to power it for a number of months.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#65Why would anyone pay money to get interrupted every 5 minutes? I would pay money not to get interrupted every 5 minutes.
Yeah, I was thinking "hey, spend a day trying to get anything done while my kids are around" pretty much works the same way.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#66This must be a gag, or the worst example of western opulence I could possibly think of. Seriously, an electronic gadget made to disrupt your day every 5 minutes. I think this requires a better explanation of the purpose before I take it seriously. Right now all the marketing speak combined with the banality of this device makes me think it's the perfect april fools but a few months too soon. Let's assume it's for rea…
I think you're misunderstanding the experience.
I'm sure it would seem interruptive the first few times. But after that, it would become familiar. If you've ever lived near a clock that ticks or chimes, it eventually becomes part of the background, a subtle reminder of the flow of time.
Your approach to consciousness, to get lost in pleasant things and to be oblivious of unpleasant things, is one way to be. But other people are after different things. Plenty of people want a better sense of the flow of time. Note, for example, the popularity of the Pomodoro Method.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#67From TFA: > Oh, and no, it's not waterproof, so don't shower with it. Water resistance just seems to be a requirement these days - even my Pebble which I'd never wear in the shower is water resistant so when I am forced to react to a bath incident, I don't worry about the watch, and my kids instead. Sounds like a pet project - maybe they should hire a real watch designer who can get them from hobby to actual product…
They clearly say it's an alpha product, an experiment. Shipping 50 is how they find out whether they should hire a real designer.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#68This reminds me of feelSpace[1]. It is a belt which has vibrating motors all around it and a compass. I believe the point is to give you an extra "sense" which after you have worn it enough you incorporate with your other senses. [1] - http://feelspace.cogsci.uni-osnabrueck.de/
That in turn reminds me of magnet implants which are an interesting (and a little odd) concept. http://www.iamdann.com/2012/03/21/my-magnet-implant-body-mod...
Two guys I know through the local hackspace have had this done.
One is a cable/internet tech, and claims that it may have saved his life - you can't perceive voltage potential, but you can "sense" current flow.
He was standing in a puddle of water, and was reaching towards the inside of a cable box on a house, and "felt" current flowing through it. Investigated, and found that the line into the box had been rubbing against a household electrical wire, and had worn through the insulation on both, causing a short that was carrying power through the box.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#69Why would anyone pay money to get interrupted every 5 minutes? I would pay money not to get interrupted every 5 minutes.
Don't ever try to become an entrepreneur.
Re: Durr: A shivering unisex bracelet that investigates our perception of 5 minutes
#70How can I achieve this with my Pebble?