Thinking in a new age
The Age of Cybernetics is upon us
"Wheras humans learn spatially first and symbolically second, our computer systems 'learn' or 'process' in the opposite order" -The Spatial Web
Among many other capabilities, computers are outpacing humans in the ability to retain the contents of memory objectively. Starting from a foundation of 1's and 0's, computers' competencies have evolved out from a core of hard, calculated executions of instructions.
Humans on the other side have evolved in complex environments filled with ambiguity, where we must observe the world around us, and create our own interpretations and rules accordingly. Only then do we begin to make calculations, document history, and build systems to keep track of information.
As immersive technologies are among the highest priority of innovations for leading technology companies, Spatial Computing is continually enhancing the computer's ability to perceive the world around it, and continually offering new ways for humans to dig through memories beyond the limitations of our cognitive faculties.
New ways to explore data
We must ditch our 2-D explorers
As immersive technologies are redefining the way we receive information, we now have the opportunity to create new ways in which we explore it. To do this, we must first define what variable we want to explore with respect to. We are all familiar with the File Explorer - that little window on our computer that allows us to explore the files on our computer. Or better yet a Web "Browser", which allows us to explore pages on the web. Media Libraries allow us to explore media content, and Maps allow us to explore the world.
The most common data field used in datasets for any use case is a Timestamp, yet our time-based explorers - our Calendars - do not assist us with the majority of this data. They help us keep track of custom events, but do not do a great job in allowing us to truly explore the bulk of content in our digital world from this common thread.
Sundial
A Volumetric Explorer for Time
Sundial focuses in on this problem of one's own ability to seamlessly explore content with respect to time.
To establish a strong foundation for how this is represented visually, Sundial takes a First Principles approach to the nature of our Solar System. The motion of Earth with respect to the Sun and the Moon have inspired every culture's conception of a calendar. That is the perfect example of humans observing the world around us, and evolving towards a logical system of ordering things, documenting history, and keeping track of information. So now we are simply starting over that process; this time with a completely new canvas.
To achieve this, Sundial takes advantage of the graphical and computational capabilities of a Game Engine to build this highly visual and interactive world. In this environment, the primary experience is exploring event-based data with respect to the Earth's motion around the Sun. Zooming in, users are able to look at various events, data feeds, and highlights to their daily life that make up their Circadian Rhythm. Zooming out, users can see long-term engagements, reflect on the past, and plan for the future with respect to Earth's trip around the Sun.
This goes beyond just Earth though. As humans are on the brink of becoming interplanetary, we need to broaden our minds to think from a new perspective. We won't be able to use the Gregorian Calendar on Mars as there are roughly 669 cycles of day and night for every orbit of the planet around the Sun. In the same way that the creation of time zones on Earth helped coordinate the logistics of transcontinental railways, we need to fundamentally understand why the Hohmann Transfer to Mars will only be open briefly about once every two years. This shouldn't be a capability reserved only to computers. A basic situational awareness on life in the Solar System is critical for humans moving forward, and we believe that building an immersive experience around this into a calendar application - something people use on a daily basis - can help bring it into the forefront of our minds.
Early Access Program
The development of an Alpha version of this product is nearing completion. To sign up to be an early-access user, please register using the link below.