The Sky Project Constellations

By: Samantha Diamond, Grace Dungavell, Rebecca Giesbrecht, Paola Gracile

Throughout the ages humanity has looked to the stars to find meaning in life, and they have found a consistency that has bridged generations and cultures. The night sky appears endless; the stars are eternal symbols in which people immortalize themselves through their own heritage.

Cultural interpretations of constellations celebrate local legends and myths. Many different cultures around the world attribute unique histories to the constellations, often in similar fashions. In this display we offer a glimpse into the perspectives of Babylonian, Hindu, African American, Egyptian, Greek, Native American, and Christian cultural interpretations of the stars.

Viewers could interact directly with the SmartBoard to test their knowledge of the constellations. Various modules included a Trivia Game and a challenge to turn the constellations into their respective Zodiac animals - which is a lot harder than one might think!

Ptolemy's Observatory allowed viewers to interact with a different type of computer mouse than they were perhaps used to. The model included a dial made from a cross-staff that users could twist and point towards one of three different constellations.

Depending on which constellation the cross-staff was pointed towards, a computer monitor would change to provide background information on that constellation.

The BASIC Stamp module is a microcontroller developed by Parallax Inc. which is programmed using a language called PBASIC. It is called a “Stamp” simply because it is close to the size of an average postage stamp. By linking a potentiometer and a button to a microcontroller board base, we have created Ptolemy’s cross-staff to allow visitors to interact with four familiar celestial formations. Visitors are able to select a formation about which they want to learn more. This representation of an ancient Greek observatory adds another dimension to the user-directed learning experience that our group is striving to create.

The SmartBoard programming was designed using the accompanying Smart Notebook software. All of the content was custom designed by the group members.

Components used:

• SmartBoard
  

• BASIC Stamp Controller

Computer Programs used:

• PBASIC custom code
  

• Smart Notebook

As digital historians, the group members were always looking for innovative ways of presenting history to the public. It is always challenging to present a historical topic fairly because there are often so many different interpretations. By using the SMART Board and creating Ptolemy’s Observatory, the group has found a way to easily present many different cultural interpretations of constellations and other important celestial formations.

Acknowledgments

Vickie Russell of Blended Ink

References

Beck, Roger. A Brief History of Ancient Astrology. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2007.
Bobrick, Benson. The Fated Sky: Astrology in History. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005.