Journal 2025-04-10

I've been cycling through my subprojects.

I couldn't find the right phrase for the current state of my work. Several loosely-coupled subprojects, but all need to work to a certain level before I'll have any genuine utility overall. Not "chicken & egg", "Catch 22"... Skimming material by Carlos E. Perez (@IntuitMachine on Twitter) yesterday I found the perfect word : tensegrity - thank you Carlos! He used it in the context of cognition in AI agents, which in principle is what I'm working on. The interdependence of my subprojects is exactly the tensegrity shape, if applied with a slight #:tilt.

Guess what, of course I have an anecdote about tensegrity!

I had a brief trip to the UK in December and knowing my cousin writer, mentor, artist and theologian, Mary Jo * was over from the US wanted to take her some token little pressie. (* That's an old blog, she's a serial new-blogger, I'll check for her latest).

I found something I thought suitable. A very rough little tensegrity sculpture I made a few years ago, when the Intersocials went all buzzy about such structures. I'd made the commonly-seen frame shape out of some wood scraps, about 20cm^3 overall, a kind-of two T shapes pointing in opposite directions with cords in between. But it only worked if I pressed down at a point on the top T. Ok, needs a weight. Looking though shelves... yes! A little toy plastic man about 15cm tall, I think I found in the road years ago. Has leg joints so he could sit. Dressed in what appeared work clothes. It took some balancing, but it worked. What's more, on this frame it brought to mind the classic poster of NY construction workers having their lunch sitting on girders high in the sky. Not quite complete, my man had his forearm held out like he was holding something. I did think a bag of chips would be good, but then he had hand in the position of holding, a flag..? Serendipity struck again, the man looks rugged, touch of the Village People. Obvious really, he needs a rainbow flag. A bit of paper, felt tips and a toothpick later, this little sculpture was complete.

Except, having been sat on the shelf for a couple of years - an active position in this house - it was a bit worse for wear. So I replaced the string with nicer cord. Then, realising I was only taking hand luggage to the UK, I needed to make this thing collapsible. So I numbered the glued joints, pulled apart, cleaned up and drilled little holes to take pegs. All set.

TBC...