Motion synthesizer

October 8, 2003 12:34 PM

This animation shows that biologically and socially relevant information about a person can be conveyed in biological motion patterns. You can adjust the moving figure in four areas: male/female, heavy/light, nervous/relaxed, and happy/sad. While I was intrigued by the concept, I'm not completely sure that the moving figure conveyed the state I had intended.
(I found using 'lines' provided a clearer image of someone walking)
posted by darsh (13 comments total)

That's remarkable. Nice link!
posted by frykitty at 12:47 PM on October 8, 2003

[this is good]
posted by Espoo2 at 12:49 PM on October 8, 2003

Neat. For some reason the "heavy happy female" setting reminds me of the robot from this movie.
posted by gottabefunky at 12:56 PM on October 8, 2003

You should try a nervous, light, happy male. He doesn't walk - he does the crack version of an Irish jig.
posted by Perigee at 1:04 PM on October 8, 2003

I tried a heavy, nervous, happy female - and it came out kind of jaunty.

To me, anyway. YMMV
posted by Dipsomaniac at 1:07 PM on October 8, 2003

But does it dance?
posted by homunculus at 1:14 PM on October 8, 2003

Interesting to watch the fade from male to female while it's going. So all I need to do to change from one to the other is move my elbows out or in, and, um, change the size of my hips?
posted by soyjoy at 1:39 PM on October 8, 2003

That was tres cool. You were right, darsh, the lines made it way easier to see. Was it just me or did the nervous male seem to barely move his hips as opposed to the relaxed male? Hmm....
posted by Lynsey at 2:38 PM on October 8, 2003

I wonder what would happen if you tried modelling people from different cultures, or different age groups?

It is my observation that walking styles vary from nation to nation.

I'd love to see Japanese school girl vs Tongan policeman vs Brazilian sambista.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 2:55 PM on October 8, 2003

This is great! It's amazing how I can scroll in the exact walks of people I know.
posted by TimeFactor at 3:35 PM on October 8, 2003

sad, thin, relaxed women are sexy, it seems ...

on preview: just like TimeFactor said - one super-annoying woman I know sashays just like light, relaxed, happy.
posted by bonaldi at 4:42 PM on October 8, 2003

It's incredible how strongly I recognize the meaning of a bunch of moving dots. We all have a region in our brain that is specialized for recognizing faces. I wonder if maybe we also have one that is specialized for recognizing body movements and the emotions that they convey.
posted by fuzz at 5:48 PM on October 8, 2003

Set it strongly male, and you can get some rather scary robotic-deathdealer-from-the-future sort of motions. Robocop Terminator sorta thing.
posted by five fresh fish at 5:59 PM on October 8, 2003