I began my brainstorming process by trying to come up with ideas surrounding things that make people nervous. This included a box where a spider jumps out, an eyeball who’s pupil moves back and forth, and teeth that chatter. I then moved on to the idea of Nervous “Ticks” which would be a line of bugs that would move and vibrate. Unfortunately, these ideas didn’t include the user in initiating this experience. I then observed our professor attempt to turn off another project and instead began to speed it up. I then came up with an idea to use a remote and a false button where the user would believe they are in control of the start/stop process, but instead the holder of the remote was controlling the motor.
I struggled coming up with ideas and decided on creating a little fan that would project some substance out of a volcano.
I constructed the volcano using quick drying cement and poured it into the gap between two differently sized funnels. After a few hours, the cement cone successfully made it out of the funnels all in one piece. Unfortunately, just as I tried to lift the volcano, it crumbles into pieces in my hands. Fortunately, I had hot glue and for the most part, the cracks were later covered by the “lava” or red paint.
I had to decide on a projectile that when “erupting” that was light enough for the fan to blow out. I went to Target and picked up some glitter.
The “nervousness” aspect comes from the user’s inability to control the situation. I placed a fake on/off switch at the base to give the user the impression that they are starting the volcano. If timed right, the user will see the glitter come out and attempt to stop the flow. The feeling of unrest that the user experiences as they try to stop the glitter unsuccessfully is the ultimate goal. Thank you!