Hey SWARMSTERS,

the truck will be on the road in a few minutes!  Congratulations on all your hard work; we have six working orbs, four fully outfitted for autonomy, two autonomous sequences which can be activated directly by joystick, and a good start at the mother node integration which we can build on at the playa!

You rock, swarm rocks, and open your minds to where we can go from here….

New SWARM Stickers

They even blogged about our project, :-)

The next time you see a menacing orbular robot bearing down on your position, ask us for a sticker! It will show your (hopefully!) undying support for our new robotic overlords.

People really liked them.

Read about it in Engadget, CNet and Laughing Squid. :-)

First up, we’re going to Yuri’s Night at NASA Ames (http://sf.yurisnight.net/) Saturday April 12th from 2pm-2am!! They’re so excited to see us that we even got nice billing on some recent invitation emails. Groovy!

Next… we’re performing at this little music festival thing in SoCal. You’ve probably never heard of it. It’s called Coachella. Yessire! That’s right, 6 shiny metal orbs will be bounding around at the Coachella Music Festival (http://www.coachella.com/) Friday April 25th-27th! And us swarm-herders get to rub elbows with a bevy of music and art greats!

There’s talk about the orbs rolling to other festivals but it hasn’t been totally lined up yet so I don’t want to set the bar too too high. :-)

If SoCal is too far to go to catch orby delights, you’ll ALSO find us at Maker Faire (http://makerfaire.com/) Saturday May 3-4 in San Mateo.

Keep em rollin’!
Lee for SWARM

While NASA is still bragging about teleoperated robots such as DEXTRE, DARPA continues to push the boundaries on autonomous robotics.

That’s because NASA nerds (or, well, two of us here at Ames, and technically, I’m a contractor) make autonomous robots for fun in our free time!

Auto choreographing, music composing, and light show generating orbs of gleaming aluminum!

Come see Orb Swarm at Yuri’s Night!

Legs? PFT! Legs are SOOOOO Precambrian era!

Who: Those mavens of lipstick and accelerants, The Flaming Lotus Girls

What: A Gallery Show Fundraiser for the FLG’s!

When: Friday, November 30th, 2007, 7pm-1am

Where: Somarts Gallery 934 Brannan Street, San Francisco

Why: Because YOU want to see more super giant fire art!

Come join the hot ladies (and gentlemen) of the world-famous Flaming
Lotus Girls fire art group for an evening of art, flame and fabulous
outfits.

Over 40 different photographers and a handful of local artists have
donated their art for a silent auction benefiting the FLG’s, so they
can continue their quest for world domination through stainless steel
and kerosene.

The rest of the world deserves to see The Serpent Mother in all of her
168-foot majesty. Come enjoy the all the art and make this and other
amazing projects possible!

See more at http://www.flaminglotus.com

And also this the very next night:

The Blue & Green Ball – fundraiser for Todd Blair
Saturday, Dec 1st
SoMarts Gallery
934 Brannan Street
SF, CA
8pm – 1am
$10

Todd Blair is an artist extraordinaire, producer, curator and teacher
at California College of the Arts who needs your help. Todd was
injured in a tragic forklift accident in September at an arts festival
in Amsterdam where he was working as part of the Survival Research
Labs team. His condition remains serious and his recovery long. Todd
is still in recovery at a hospital in Amsterdam.

The “Blue & Green Ball” fundraiser for Todd will be held Saturday,
December 1st at SomArts Gallery, 934 Brannan Street, San Francisco,
CA. The event will take place from 8pm – 1am, entry fee is $10.

Entertainment will include DJ Vordo, Gibson Pearl Bellydancing, Art by
the Flaming Lotus Girls, Electromechanical, robotic, and interactive
art and more! There will also be a Live Auction of selected Fine Art,
Talent, and Collectibles. As part of this event, there will be a Shopping
Bazaar- including lots of unique crafts and art. Food and cocktails will
also be available.

Event website: http://srl.org/shows/events/todd/

]]> http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/11/14/more-swarmy-goodness-on-the-way/feed/ 0 http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/11/09/swarm-at-the-flg-fundraiser/ http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/11/09/swarm-at-the-flg-fundraiser/#comments Fri, 09 Nov 2007 07:04:45 +0000 Jonathan http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/11/09/swarm-at-the-flg-fundraiser/ A little too early to confirm, but there are rumors of a serendipitous SWARM at the Flaming Lotus Girls fundraiser. Should be a great time for a good cause, so see you there!

]]> http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/11/09/swarm-at-the-flg-fundraiser/feed/ 0 http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/07/07/more-playa-pics/ http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/07/07/more-playa-pics/#comments Sat, 07 Jul 2007 19:55:31 +0000 Jonathan http://blog.orbswarm.com/2007/07/07/more-playa-pics/ It was too hot to think, let alone point a camera straight, but I did get a few pictures:

The playa crew

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Geek Week camp Note 40-ft tower for the microwave link to Gerlach

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Breakfast for everyone!

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Hacking on the playa. Note specialized desert hacking gear: extra monitor, spent pyro, box of whippits (likely spent as well), sunglasses, insulated coffee mug.

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Danger Ranger’s mobile wifi rig, plus orb.

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