The Data Monster came from Intel Labs' research into Kids, Data and Play. Several prototypes were built to allow kids to visualize data, and combine data streams playfully to explore new relationships. Joshua McVeigh-Schultz, during his PHD internship in the lab, came up with the idea of physically personifying data. I took over the project on his departure and built the Data Monster into an open-source kit that anyone can build at home with low-cost parts. The Data Monster has sensors and responds to people and things it sees, but it also listens to data streams online to determine it's mood and behaviors. A Data Monster can get excited or angry about twitter trends, traffic data, or any public data stream. The project is meant as a provocation into how we encounter, use or don't use, or are effected by the data streams generated all around us. Josh modified the kit design to build a data-responsive microphone at USC: http://joshuamcveighschultz.com/audiencebot-microphone/
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