The Vector Space
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The Vector Space

Design and Programming by Erik Loyer
2005

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This project uses the Flash plug-in, which is no longer supported by Adobe. As an alternative, view the project's video documentation below.

The Vector Space is an “intellectual paint program” in which users draw “vectors,” freehand lines which represent individual essays in the experimental academic journal Vectors: Journal of Culture and Technology in a Dynamic Vernacular. Multiple visual interpretations can then be applied to the drawings, revealing unexpected interconnections between the essays.

Video Traversal

A high quality recording of the work as a user might experience it.


Images

Image 1 from The Vector Space

Users select a project and then click and drag to draw a vector representing its intellectual force.

Image 2 from The Vector Space

Each project has its own look and feel, and project vectors from different issues of the journal can be drawn in the same space.

Image 3 from The Vector Space

Once drawn, vectors can be interpreted in various ways—shown here is the “intersections” display, which shows keywords that intersecting projects have in common.

Image 4 from The Vector Space

This is the “textracts” display, which mixes short excerpts from the text of all the projects together in the same space.

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