Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Polhems mechanical alphabet will get new life at the Technical Museum – IDG.se


Imagine themselves, walking around in a mine and play their way between the aisles. It can become a reality at the Technical Museum in Stockholm. They have namely been awarded 7.775 million dollars for technologies historical research with new digital techniques and experiences of museum collections. Starting in January draws three projects started together with Umeå University that will eventually reach the public.

– One of the projects is to 3d scan Christoffer Polhem’s mechanical alphabet. We will be able to print it and make it mobile. It may well be used to teach the fundamental laws of mechanics, says Sofia Seifarth, director of the collection, documentation and research on the Technical Museum.

Technical Museum
Christoffer Polhem’s mechanical alphabet. Photo from the Technical Museum’s archives.

The project combines digital technology and the humanities. By digitizing large quantities of material it opens up completely new possibilities for analysis. Researchers at HUMlab at Umeå University shall during the three years digitizing archival material and objects from the collections. The aim is to provide research new perspectives, develop digital methods and increase knowledge of the history of technology, people and the environment.

– If one exposes a large source material, such as texts, and make them searchable researcher can find new connections , you may see groups of people you have not seen before. It is something that otherwise takes a very long time. What do you get sight of, then, that one does not have with traditional research, she said.

Read more: Super Mario as cross stitch and crochet video games hats when the Technical Museum showcases computer games art

Museum of Technology grants to the project is not least their large collections , they become the starting point for research. Here are drawings, texts, old gadgets, maps. The list goes on. A large part of the project is about gameification, mining environment, where visitors can play their way through the industrial revolution.

 

 - There is a pilot project, it is innovative. But I absolutely believe that there could be a trend-setter for the second museum. We have to meet a young, ‘digital bred “audience. So we hope that the digital spilling over into the material and creates an interest in technology and science, says Sofia Seifarth.

The project draws in again next January and will last for three years. The money is distributed by the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation and the Royal Academy of Letters.

 

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