Mammal partners up with Theo+Theo for TEDxSydney installation ‘Theory of Mind’

Last month’s TEDxSydney event ran under the theme of ‘unconventional’, and the team from Mammal and Theo+Theo took them at their word. Tasked with an original brief of creating a piece of video, they instead developed a unique installation that they dubbed ‘Theory of Mind’.

‘Theory of Mind’ used volunteers to demonstrate how stories and ideas like those shown at TEDx put your whole brain to work.

WATCH THE VIDEO

The installation combined brain sensors with machine learning and computational fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) modelling. The result was an abstract visualisation of the regions of the brain that activate and encode information when engaging with a TED Talk.

In simpler terms, ‘Theory of Mind’ represented the areas of the brain that light up when enjoying a TEDx talk – by mapping those areas, in real time, onto a 3D cube made of LEDs.

Says Luke Chess, creative partner, Mammal: “It was a fascinating art-meets-science project that the TEDx organisers engaged with immediately. To have it selected at all was fantastic. To be named Artists in Residence in the process was the icing on the cake – an honour.”

Says James Théophane, creative and strategic director, Theo+Theo: “Recent brain research has revealed that we process ideas and stories very differently to previous theories. Working with scientists, technicians, engineers and other partners to help bring this new research to life has been a fascinating and rewarding experience.”

The team hopes to continue their creative collaboration, with further exhibitions of the work planned for the near future.

Concept & Design – Mammal & Theo+Theo

Research and technical assistance – Dr Louise Cole, University of Sydney; Assoc. Prof. David McKenzie, Assoc. Prof. Ernest Somerville and Roxanne Fielding, Prince of Wales Hospital; Cameron Charles, Compumedics Ltd.