Chaos Computer Club - archive feed

A few of us struggle with completing projects. They pile up, often literally. A multitude of unhelpful feelings follow. Project management tools help but never seem to address what really holds us back. We start a new project, and the pattern repeats. You are invited to break this cycle. Come gain a deeper awareness of what stands between you and the future-you who finishes what they start. Leave with an alternative perspective of space and time, some solid strategies for overcoming barriers, and the confidence that your next project will be different. about this event: https://c3voc.de

In 1939 World War 2 started and the British Council—Britain's shiny new organisation for overseas cultural relations and propaganda—inherited the suddenly-closed tourist board's film-making department. Tourism films are no use in a war, so the Council turned their topics towards more cultural content as a softer kind of propaganda. Thus began a decade of film production that would have phenomenal overseas impact but be almost totally forgotten in Britain. Between 1940–1950, the British Council produced over 120 short documentary-style films about life in Britain covering sports, manufacturing, landscapes, art, architecture, public healthcare, the justice system, democratic process, public institutions like the National Trust and the BBC, and more besides. A far cry from the Ministry of Information's rigid style, this collection features some of the earliest works by winning cinematographers Geoffrey Unsworth (2001: A Space Odyssey, Cabaret, Superman), and Jack Cardiff (A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus, The Red Shoes). Distributed to over 100 countries worldwide, the films are stunning, dated, funny, and bizarre by turn. They depict beautiful countrysides, optimistic cities, strong industry, forward-thinking social structures, and hardworking, happy people. They depict exactly the popular image of 1940s Britain that persists to this day... That may not be a coincidence. In this talk I'll cover the history and development of this film collection, how it was shaped, who saw the films, their staggering success, and their untold global legacy. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Should we really be trying to make our tech indistinguishable from magic? Is there dark magic in tech? And what does that have to do with a teleporting duck in a classroom?! We often hold creating 'a magical experience' as a key goal for design - it's fun, engaging, sometimes even playful, and it makes complex things look simple. But technological magic has a dark side too, especially when trying to help people learn and feel confident about technology. By its nature, magic you experience is not under your control: it's a trick, and you're not supposed to be able to understand it; magic is inscrutable, and for many, that's disempowering. In designing the BBC micro:bit and surrounding tools, we've thought a lot about the balance between the positive and the negative sides of creating of a magical experience. This talk will reflect on our struggle to balance technical authenticity and honesty with the need to provide a high quality experience that excites and inspires students. It will explain how we attempt to present simple, understandable analogs of more complicated, magical technology in order to help students gain a sense confidence with the tech around them. However, it will also look at how we've resorted to using our own bits of (nearly) invisible magic to make this all work nicely in a classroom. Through this discussion we'll look in detail at the presentation of the micro:bit's IO, the way the micro:bit's USB interface works, the microphone privacy LED, the web-based compiler and the simple radio communication. Finally, I will look beyond micro:bit at how using this concept of balancing transparency and magic can help us build better, more trustworthy tech. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Sound effects are often heard but not explored. In this talk I will explain what goes into the process of creating video game sound effects, the way they impact a scene and how the smallest changes can make a massive difference to video games. Join me as I show you how I create sounds for video games, why sound matters and helps players immerse themselves into the game's story and world. about this event: https://c3voc.de

I'm an artist creating interactive installations. The hardest part is devising open-ended interaction, spaces that invite people to reveal their authentic selves, and to connect with those around. But trends in technology have gone in the opposite direction. Whether it's for usability, profit, safety, profit or 'sparking joy', or profit (it's usually profit), 'User Experience Design' was the flavour of the 2010s. Human-Computer Interaction has become a very planned affair. And the more planned it gets, the less room there is for the ambiguous messy bits that make us human. Could it be another way? Presenting... ✯✯✯ Rewilding Human-Computer Interaction ✯✯✯ where, instead of designing micromanaged user experiences, we create open-ended spaces that embrace the unknown, the messy and the human. The ills of the online world are not problems inherent to its users but to systems that prevent those users from existing fully as humans. The solution is not more design, but more wildness. Soapbox aside, I do have a speculative project to share on this front. In a collaboration with artist/AI researcher Panagiotis Tigas, we've been training Variational Autoencoders on improvised dance, and from these devising personalised interfaces that respond to creative movement. The resulting system allows you to move through a 16-dimensional parameter space while following the intuitions of the body. As an entangled black box system, I can't explain how to use it, but it can be learnt by the body through exploration and play. We have it here at EMF as in Latent Voyage, letting you navigate the hallucinatory latent space of an image generating AI. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Every year we collect more data than before, and the tools we use to manage that data are evolving to accommodate our changing needs - but it can be difficult to keep up with all the innovations! This session will give you a tour of what's happening in open source databases, from someone who lives the adventures of open source data in her day job. You will travel from the well-trodden paths of relational databases, through the leafy glades of time series, to the landmarks of search and document databases. This session is recommended for people with an interest in software who want to learn about the overall trends, license changes, rising stars, and which database technologies are here to stay. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Stickers are an essential part of our culture, our values. Stickers are everywhere! But why? This talk will provide serious, evidence-based insights into the newest developments of the evolving discipline „Sticker Research“, including an overview of the the most recent peer-reviewed publications, highlighting the most valuable facts and findings. (And some stickers, of course.) ==> Update 2022-06-04 ~12 am - temporary agenda + Terminology + History of sticker science + Where are we now? Current developments. + Panini-Psychology: only the next hype? + Stickers and Covid: Remote Sticker Operation Center (“RStOC”) + Take-aways (do not include physical stickers) about this event: https://c3voc.de

A demonstration and discussion around amateur paging. This year I will be providing a pager transmitter at EMF that primarily will announce the talk/event schedule (amongst other things yet to be dreamt up over a pint). This talk will give an overview of the specific flavour of pagers used for this system, the hardware used to build the transmitter, the amateur paging network trying to keep this relic of communication alive and some of the more interesting ways of receiving pages (e.g. turning a badge into a pager). Of course this assume everything goes to plan and works as expected, there is a non-zero probability some parts of talk will change from "this is how this works" to "this is how this should work, but this is why it does not". about this event: https://c3voc.de

A talk about how I set up a local CoderDojo club in my small market town; how I gathered together a group of like-minded people to become mentors; how I persuaded the 7-16 year olds of the town to give coding a whirl; how we won over the pensioners' gardening club, who thought children should be seen and not heard; and how over 5 years the kids became mentors and the mentors became lasting friends. about this event: https://c3voc.de

An audience interactive event; where willing volunteers collide with GPT-3 AI to present an informative, intellectual and light-hearted presentation to a receptive crowd. Unfortunately, they don't get to see the presentation before they talk about it! Powerpoint Karaoke will feature a selection of AI titled packs for attendees to present with only a moment to see what they’re about to talk about. The presentations will be interesting but we can't promise they'll be informative! With the rise of crypto-nonsense, washing machines bricked by ransomware and whatever the metaverse is never has there been a better time for people to take the stage and attempt to convince everyone that they know better than the AI overlord telling them what to talk about. Winners will be rewarded with a suitably terrible trophy for display in their office cubicle of choice, praised highly for their public speaking skills, and maybe get promotions by listing ‘Ideation and Blue Sky Thinktalking’ on LinkedIn. about this event: https://c3voc.de

When I first watched Hackers in 1998, the idea of being able to remotely control ships seemed rather fanciful. After working on container ships as an engineer in the mid-2000s, it seemed every more unlikely. We didn't have a full-time Internet connection and all the vital systems were truly air-gapped. But things have changed - ships are becoming more and more connected and complex. As a result, 15 years later, I found myself sat in my pants on the sofa with the ability to control the steering on one of the world's largest cruise ships. We've been able to brick every PLC across tens of oil rigs, pay for food as the captain, and write rude words on the side of the ship. To get to this point, we had to go on a learning voyage across tens of different vessels, including offshore support tugs, super yachts, oil rigs and container ships. Join me on a whistle stop tour of what's on a ship, how it's all connected together, what threats there are and how we find the vulnerabilities. Lots of little tips and tricks that can help anyone examine industrial control systems, understand how they work, and then have a lot of fun with them! Testing work is carried out in my role as Security Consultant at Pen Test Partners about this event: https://c3voc.de

In 2009 a TED Talk by David Merrill showed small interactive tiles that talked to each other; an MIT “what if” project from their media lab. Little IoT devices that brought computers, toys and board game pieces together. In 2011(version one) and 2012 (version 2) a commercial version, Sifteo Cubes, was released, but I was unaware, thinking the dream prototype was just that, a dream not a reality. They passed me by… In 2014, the v2 software was open sourced - the inevitable precursor to failure - and the company bought by Drone/Robotics developer for the obvious design skills of the Sifteo team; they had, after all, reverse engineered and reapplied wireless keyboard controllers into one of the coolest toys ever! So, I came to them late. Too late. By 2015, the server the control software required, along with the online marketplace for the dozen or so games that were made, were long gone. The Sifteo cubes I’d just (re)discovered from a desperate eBay sale were now just useless, battery powered bricks. And they didn’t even click together! But I was stubborn. I wanted them to work. These little marvels of engineering and educational design. I had some of the software, a couple of the games, and none of the knowledge. Here’s how I managed to resurrect a legend, who I met, what some of them stole from me, and what I learned on the way about this event: https://c3voc.de

The most profound change in radio technology in 100 years is happening now. Radios are transforming from the spaghetti of mind-bogglingly complex electronics into simple (but very fast) digitisers, and all the hard work is being done in software. Hence the name Software Defined Radio (SDR). Gnu Radio is a simple entry point to the world of SDR, and allows you to quickly prototype different kinds of radios by dragging, dropping, and connecting functional blocks. I'll demonstrate, and show that it's surprising what you can do with a radio receiver. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Join the conversation with Professors Rachel Armstrong and Ioannis Ieropoulos, and artist Julie Freeman, to hear about how the ALICE artwork is a springboard for thinking about a new infrastructure that encompasses nomadic lifestyles, smart plumbing, resource autonomy - moving beyond fossil fuels and working with natural energy flows. This technology has global potential to disrupt energy and wastewater systems. Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled Environment (ALICE) is a "living" installation that communicates with microbes in real time by monitoring their electricity production so we can "respond" to them by feeding them with our liquid waste. Drawing together microbial metabolism, data, bioprocessor systems, artificial intelligence, low power electronics and digital displays, ALICE reveals the inner "life" and naturally-organised, imperceptible realm of microbes around us. To hold these digital "conversations" with microbes, ALICE uses the Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) as a communications platform. MFCs are an organic energy source powered by microbes which facilitate contact between humans and microbes through electrical exchanges. The collected and analysed data can tell us about household resources, as microbes can give us information about our consumption, and reveal what we discard in our waste streams—while also powering our homes and, ultimately, cities. https://alice-interface.eu Come and see us in Null Sector! about this event: https://c3voc.de

Interactive talk on anatomy and diagnostic imaging from the perspective of a radiographer. Using powerpoint presentation and anonymised images from real life cases (plus some funny fakes). - what is diagnostic imaging? - how to understand CT/xray images + basic anatomy - 'normal or not' quiz - Q&A on radiography Some images will depict injuries/anomalies which may be distressing to some. There will be talk of injuries and pathology which may be distressing. Its a lighthearted look into radiography, but radiographers are known for gallows humour. about this event: https://c3voc.de

In recent years automatic machine translation has dramatically improved in performance, with the availability of neural networks and huge amounts of data. Why does it work, and more importantly, when does it break? What kinds of language are machines terrible at translating, and is there anything we can do about it? What might change in the future? Come along to learn which aspects of a Universal Translator seem relatively plausible, which seem next to impossible at the moment, and some machine learning explanations for why the Enterprise's computer might not convey the gory details when a Klingon is insulting you. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Over my time in academia, I've endured a number of existential crises whilst learning about the concepts within philosophy that are required in order to undertake academic research. I figured that, if I'm going to spend the rest of my life constantly questioning my existence and reality itself, why not share this experience with others, too? A problem shared is still a problem that keeps you awake at night staring into the abyss unable to function. But hey, at least now I'm not alone. In order to explain these theories and share my recurrent episodes of screaming WHYYYYYYYY at the universe, I've collected a number of memes and references over the years to convey concepts such as what is it to 'exist', why the scientific method is just as 'made up' as anything else, how we define 'truth' and lots of other tasty things to create a pervasive, disjointed feeling that you just can't seem to shake. Join me in this journey and then we can all go and sit by the lake and have a good cry / scream / rock back and forth because what does it all mean and what even is real anyway and I'm off to go eat a cake because while I can't actually prove if the cake is a lie or not I'm convinced it is damn tasty and I NEED TO FEEL SOMETHING OTHER THAN THIS EXISTENTIAL UNCERTAINTY FOREVER OKAY? about this event: https://c3voc.de

Meet the Board, ask questions, discuss topics, have fun Meet the Board, ask questions, discuss topics, have fun about this event: https://c3voc.de

The B2Space satellite launch solution is based on the “rockoon” concept (rocket + balloon), and will comprise of a stratospheric balloon, which will lift a self-operative platform from which the launcher is deployed. A solid propellant rocket will deliver the satellites into the required customer orbits (Within Low Earth Orbits [LEO] ), which are orbits with altitudes ranging from 200km to 1000 km, approximately). The talk will describe the concept and the steps taken to develop the rockoon project. about this event: https://c3voc.de

As cringe as I often find it talking about myself, this seems to be the thing about my background that amazes people I mention it to. I spent 6 years failing to do a CS PhD, co-founded a (failed) fin-tech startup and watched the 2008 credit crunch from the inside of a multi-billion dollar hedge fund. Thanks to a chance meeting with an artist (who was hanging a door at the time), I rediscovered both my childhood love of drawing and a joy in the tech that I had started to hate. I'll talk about failing and reinvention; imposter syndrome; being neurodivergent; my experiences of the commercial world and the art world; finding a space in which you feel comfortable – but not *too* comfortable; and the power of collaborating. about this event: https://c3voc.de

The hurdy-gurdy is an ancient musical instrument (10th century) with drones and melody strings bowed by a rotating wheel, played by pressing keys which contact them at different points. It featured in TV series such as “Black Sails” and “Walking Dead” as well computer games. A major barrier is that they are very expensive at thousands of pounds each and built to order with lead times of over a year. Rather like bagpipes, they are loud. For pipers, practice e-chanters are available while nothing similar exists for the hurdy-gurdy. The Digi-Gurdy project started as a 3D printed version of the keyboard part of the instrument in isolation, with some internal electronics, for my own personal use to learn a few tunes on. After posting on Thingiverse, a website for sharing 3D printed ideas, I had many requests from people asking me to build them one. This open-source project has developed through many variations which I would bring to the talk, resulting in an all laser-cut wooden full-size hurdy gurdy design with a realistic crank handle system and a detachable playable keybox for travelling. It is an electronic device, with correctly placed keys, that outputs data via the industry standard MIDI communications system for electronic musical instruments, via a USB cable to an attached or wirelessly paired phone or iPad running suitable MIDI player software. It is a low-cost way to enter the Hurdy Gurdy world and allows practice anywhere using headphones, thus preventing eviction or divorce! about this event: https://c3voc.de

The Mayflower Autonomous Ship is a fully autonomous, AI powered research vessel, that will at the time of this talk will hopefully have completed its primary mission to cross the Atlantic from Plymouth UK, to Plymouth Massachusetts without any human intervention or control. The AI captain installed will guide the ship across the Atlantic, avoiding obstacles, plotting courses around the weather and balancing the many variables needed to safely cross one of the most dangerous oceans. As well as it's main goal to cross the Atlantic, it will also be operating a number of data collection and ocean science experiments to help researchers better understand our oceans, as well as developing new technologies to help automate science at the edge. This talk, will give a history of the Mayflower Autonomous Ship, a look into the exciting science conducted aboard including our Whale Song detector and Electronic Tongue, and how everything is brought together using open source and a great team. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Travelling by rail in most of the world is one of the safest forms of transport you can take, and in the UK even minor collisions make the news. But it wasn't always quite that way... This talk will be a potted history of the safety of the railways in the UK and Ireland, starting from the early days when signalling was thought of as an inconvenience, and anything with wheels on it which sort-of went round went on the track. Eventually, the railway companies learned the benefits of adopting safer methods of working (sometimes requiring some encouragement from the law), leading to the introduction of some Victorian methods we still use today. Finally, we look at the more modern era with the railway losing its way with privatisation, and onto the current time, where computers and paperwork solve everything. Perhaps. Featuring: Swiss Cheese, Charles Babbage vs. Brunel, working too hard, forgetting where you put your trains, losing your religion, a dark and stormy night, drunken driving, a loose screw, shifting foundations, and more. No previous knowledge of the rail industry is required. The talk will cover some recent fatal accidents at a high level. about this event: https://c3voc.de

It is very common for businesses with small teams to use cloud services to synchronise their work, stay in touch etc. All of these can also be achieved using open source software. However, making the different open source applications to authenticate through a single mechanism is somewhat challenging. In this presentation, I will cover the use of LDAP to authenticate cloud services like Nextcloud and Rocket.Chat. I'll cover 389 Directory Server to provide the LDAP service. It is very common for businesses with small teams to use cloud services to synchronise their work, stay in touch etc. All of these can also be achieved using open source software. However, making the different open source applications to authenticate through a single mechanism is somewhat challenging. In this presentation, I will cover the use of LDAP to authenticate cloud services like Nextcloud and Rocket.Chat. I'll cover 389 Directory Server to provide the LDAP service. about this event: https://c3voc.de

4 lightning talks about different mathematical subjects 1. *A tip for when to take risks in board games and in life*. I will give an insight into how Google's AlphaGo AI chooses its next move, and give an example of a game that seems biased against you, but you actually have a slight advantage. 2. *Teaching a robot to tell jokes*. I will introduce the concept of factor graphs and describe an application of them to joke generation. 3. *The twitter bot that is playing the longest possible game of chess*. The World Chess Federation has some rules to prevent games from going on forever. I will outline a proposal by Tom Murphy VII for the longest possible legal chess game, and show the Twitter bot that I made to celebrate this achievement. 4. *A little theory of abundant numbers*. Abundant numbers, e.g. 12, 60, 360, are useful as they have many factors. I will show you how common these numbers are and how to find them. about this event: https://c3voc.de

This talk tells the extraordinary story of Muriel Howorth - science fiction author, choreographer, gardener and amateur nuclear physicist. Far away from the cares of Britain's Atomic Weapons Establishment, Howorth worked from her home in Eastborne in the early 1960s on an astounding DIY atomic experiment. Her aim was to solve world hunger. Sarah Angliss shares rarely seen archival material as she tells Howorth's story and considers the potential of citizen science and the perils of techno fixes for complex societal problems. This event may contain references to giant mutant vegetables. about this event: https://c3voc.de

It began with buying an old Datatrak navigation receiver, and ended in the reverse-engineering of an entire navigation system -- one that had been dead since 2014. A demonstration of how a 1980s navigation receiver was reverse-engineered to component level, and the structure of the network analysed to protocol level, using the data stored in the receiver's battery-backed RAM. Includes sections on how land (not satellite) radio navigation works, PCB reverse engineering, how old recordings of the signals were recovered, and the design of an Arduino shield to generate new Datatrak signals. An ongoing project of interest to PCB and software reverse engineers, and radio enthusiasts. about this event: https://c3voc.de