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LAUGH app creates art for space

Sibahle Malinga
By Sibahle Malinga, ITWeb senior news journalist.
Johannesburg, 13 Dec 2016
The most popular laugh on the app will be sent to the International Space Station, says Gravity Ideas' David Perrott.
The most popular laugh on the app will be sent to the International Space Station, says Gravity Ideas' David Perrott.

Famous Israeli 3D artist Eyal Gever in collaboration with Platoon, Knut Studios, Cape Town start-up Gravity Ideas and Nasa's Made in Space division, has introduced the #LAUGH mobile app.

According to Gravity Ideas, the app was a solution to a creative brief put forward by Nasa's 'Made in Space' division to Gever. Made in Space is calling on space enthusiasts to send their artistic endeavours on a journey to space. Responding to the brief, Gever, the visionary behind the project, decided to create the #LAUGH mobile app.

Through the app, users can capture the sounds of their laughter, have it visually represented in a soundscape, name the laughter and upload it to a social media platform, where other users can listen to, like it and share it. The partners have called on people around the world to submit their laughter and stand a chance to have their laugh sent to the International Space Station.

After a month the most popular laugh will be chosen, based on a model that looks at the number of plays, likes and shares, adds the start-up.

Gravity co-founder David Perrott says, "Nasa recently space-shipped the first zerogravity 3D printer to the International Space Station. Although its main function is to help astronauts build tools and spare parts in case of emergencies, Nasa's Made in Space team seized the opportunity to do something pretty special."

"Gever's incredible idea was to create an easy-to-use app that collects and collates people's laughter from around the world in the form of soundscapes. The app then relies on users liking, playing and sharing it to select 'the world's best laugh'. The winning laugh will be sent to the International Space Station, 3D printed and sent out into space as a celebration of our common humanity", explains Perrott.

Gravity Ideas assisted with the research, testing and iterative development of the app, which is currently available only on the Apple iOS platform, he continues.

"All too often today, when we think about ourselves and others, we define ourselves by difference. In a world defined by difference - different points of view, different histories, different languages, and different lived experiences - it's hard to think of there being anything that is truly universal. But, there is, and it's laughter! Laughter is one of the few forms of social communication that behavioural scientists and anthropologists have consistently found across cultures. Laughter truly is a global good," concludes Perrott.

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