Armed with a Ph.D. in Computer Science, Bioinformatics in particular, and a mercantilistic training, I am now advising computer science and design students in their interdisciplinary projects. Pretty soon, I will also start to teach selected areas of computer science and electronic music for beginners. With my participation in the FabAcademy, I will improve my manual skills and learn the vast array of techniques that a FabLab offers. I am also looking forward to be able to teach what I have learnt and to build playthings for our five-year-old son and our baby son. Although I have some elementary electronics skills, I need much more practical training that I will have for sure during FabAcademy.
As a piano and synthesizer player, I am interested in novel interfaces for musical expression (NIME): how can I build tangible musical interfaces that help me to more efficiently compose music, that allow me to express myself, and that show the audience how the music they are hearing is being produced? The skills that I acquire during the FabAcademy will enable me to finally approach such projects.
July 2016: Through FabAcademy, I have gained confidence that I can now tackle also more complicated projects. I would love to build an electromechanical (video) game completely in our FabLab and present it at the next Maker Faire. Ideally, it would be a father-and-son/mother-and-daughter project that can be copied with some patience. I have watched numerous videos on YouTube by people who have refurbished old pinball machines, electromechanical games, or operate a museum with electromechanical oddities. I am still in awe of all the craftsmanship and emerging possibilities.