Mycorrhizae
Nov 2022 - Dec 2022
Mycorrhizae is an interactive exhibit highlighting the hidden communication between plants, mushrooms, and the underground forest ecosystem, known as the Mycorrhizal network.
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In an increasingly digital world, the connection between humanity and nature is breaking down. To bridge this gap, we started with the following question: "How might we use technology to create stronger connections between humans and nature?"​
Design Process
We conducted interviews in order to better understand a range of relationships that people may have with nature, to gain a thorough understanding of the key needs in our project’s problem space.​To synthesize our findings from our qualitative data that we gathered from interviews, we analyzed our data using a 2x2 matrix and journey map to identify recurring themes in our users’ needs, in order to understand the core problems in our problem space.
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We then conducted secondary research on existing products and research in order to understand what problems have been resolved, and what opportunities exist.
Following this, we then ideated 100 solutions on sticky notes, and synthesized the solutions by seeing if there is an overlap in any of the potential ideated solutions, in order to focus on the compatible needs of all of the stakeholders that may be addressed.
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Initial Sketches and Concept Generation
Following our project ideation and categorization, we then voted on which concepts to generate sketch prototypes of, and illustrated each of our concepts to demonstrate how they may resolve the key needs in our problem space.
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Final Concept:
Mushroom Communication
Scientists hypothesized that, just like signals sent by the human nervous system, fungi transmit electrical signals through these hyphae. Mushrooms use these electrical signals as a means of communication and as a way to react to their surroundings. Each tree in a healthy forest is connected to others through this network, allowing trees to share resources like water and nutrients. ​
Our interactive experience helps users understand the extraordinary intelligence of the Mycorrhizal Network, a symbiotic relationship between fungi and plants. There will be three mushrooms, each with a unique AR marker. The goal is to connect the Mycorrhizal Network by arranging the mushrooms and the two plants close enough to one another, such that ripples created by each mushroom and plant overlap to visualize mycorrhizal communication. Upon achieving this overlap, a sound of mushrooms communicating will be generated.
Concept Render
Building the Form
Our form was built out of CNCed foam, and micro-landscape terrarium decor.
3D printing Mushrooms
Object Tracking and Animations
We used object tracking to detect the mushroom’s placement on our project’s form. Animations were created using Javascript in Processing. One of the major technical challenge that we faced while object tracking was to detect the cartesian coordinates of our mushroom AR markers, and mapping the coordinates correctly with the projections. Due to the different location of projector and camera, creating the mapping was a challenge.
Final Showcase
Placing the mushrooms in the mushroom garden.
Ripples created by each mushroom to visualize mycorrhizal communication.