THE FLOATING BOX
PROJECT INTRODUCTION
AKA our team's initial thought process on the "floating box" project.
The future that our team has envisioned has changed for the worst. Because of climate change, sea levels have risen by around 70 meters - floods have completely wiped out coastal locations around the world, including Florida, southern California, and Shanghai. After 50 years, the floods have wiped out at least 3 billion of the population. Survivors of these floods have lost their homes, along with their friends and families. To represent how dire the world became, we’re going to make a time capsule in the shape of a flood survival kit, which will include an interactive waterproof “book” that floats in water, along with other items that were necessary for survival at the time of the floods, as well as personal items (a journal or fidget spinner) that were used to relieve mental ailments and help survivors cope with the trauma of losing their homes.
ARTIFACT IDEA PITCH
We envision the physical artifact(s) would be contained in a box that can float and resistant to acidic seawater. In it, the main text will be a multi-page document with the pages that are waterproofed. On the pages there are messages that correspond to artifacts also in the box. The user could use a blacklight to expose a link to a website on one of the pages that depicts a message on a website, possibly have the mental health aspect on that, maybe a how to guide for dealing with mental health issues. (The idea could be that a civilization, as they were going under water because of climate change, made this box to preserve the culture, as if buried time capsule). I think that if depicting 2050 as a time where survival is the only problem that people have to face could be a good option so the artifacts all depict surviving a post climate change world. (immense flooding and chaos). The culture that is described in the box is one of a poor community that did not have the ability to escape the rising waters via driving and/or flight.
BACKSTORY
Where did the "floating box" come from?
The year is 2069. The A.I. Alexa (created by Amazon conglomerate) decided that the solution to man-made climate change was to kill off 60% of the world's population living near the waterfronts of the world. By seizing control of the Nuclear Arsenal held by mankind, Alexa nuked the ice caps, melting them and flooding the world, causing the Earth's sea level to rise by ~70 meters (230 feet).
Our character, a genderless survivor who goes by the name Alex, wanders the aftermath in what’s left of Seattle, trying to survive and understand what happened. They collect items they find during their journey and store them in a survival box, as well as document their experiences in a waterproof journal.
Technology still exists, but it's practically inaccessible to flood survivors, and everything online is monitored online by the government. To bypass this problem, Alex sets up a password on their website, and it's up to whoever finds the box to decode it and gain access.
MAP OF SEATTLE
PROTOTYPING
A breakdown of our floating box project.
PHYSICAL ASPECT
The floating box itself.
The floating box is both a time capsule and a survival kit. Inside the box are heating pads, a face mask, flashlight, batteries, an energy bar, bottled water, fire starter, Alex's stuffed animal, a first-aid kit with bandages, and finally, Alex's journal. Alex's journal will have a QR that leads to a password protected website, accommodating the digital aspect of our project.
DIGITAL ASPECT
Alex's website.
The QR code on Alex's journal will lead to a password-protected website. On the website, Alex documents their (semi-personal) experiences with the flood and also provides an online guide on how to use each of the survival tools in their box.
BACKSTORY
Who made the floating box?
Alex, the genderless survivor/protagonist in our "floating box" story, was the one who collected the items in the box and created the website, in a desperate attempt to document their experiences and make sure they aren't forgotten in the future.
THE JOURNAL
What makes it interactive?
You are an archaeologist who finds Alex's box centuries later. When you open it, you find a variety of survival tools inside - most of which will probably be absolutely outdated, to the point where no one in present time understands how they work. Alongside the survival tools in the box is Alex's waterproof journal. There will be a QR code on the journal that should link to a password protected website. The reason why it's password-protected is because the government during Alex's time was spying on everyone online, so Alex deliberately hid their website by setting up a password. You, the person reading Alex's journal, will have to carefully read Alex's entries and figure out clues about what the password is. Once the password is guessed correctly, the website will redirect you to Alex's website, where they documented their experiences during the flood and wrote an online guide on how to use the survival kit they created.
THE FUNCTIONS OF ITEMS
As the eschatological background of climate evolution, we set up the protagonist "Alex" and designed the work "floating box" from her perspective and story experience. The box contains a few items that basically survive in bad conditions, including water and energy bars to supplement the body's needs, a mask to protect against poor air pollution, a flashlight for night lighting, and several flashlight batteries. And to prevent the items from getting wet, there are several small packets of desiccant in the box.
In addition, considering the low temperature at night, there are several heating bags inside to help get through the night temperature. Even more, there is a fire starter to help make a fire for cooking or heating. Considering the death of many plants in the last days of the climate, there are still some fruit seeds in the box. There is also a unique item in the box, a pink "squeaky pig." This item can help Alex alleviate psychological anxiety and problems in a climate disaster. The most important item in the box is Alex's diary. This diary records the psychological history and experience of Alex at the end of the climate and is accompanied by a QR code link to her website, which has a more detailed story background and item introduction.
FLOATING BOX ITEMS
The QR Code of project website
Alex's Website: https://floatingbox.co.vu
*Password: 123456
(The website should redirect you to https://survivingtheflood.weebly.com/.)
*Password is just a placeholder for now.
PROJECT FEEDBACK + RESPONSE
Feedback Observation 1:
We saw a lot of feedback on how much people liked how much hands on material we have for our artifact but thing that was critiqued at least twice was that we should have something more “personal” into the box, something I’m deciding to call our “wilson” (from the movie Castaway).
Response:
Find a “Wilson” to add and incorporate. Right now we think we’ve got a cute squeaky toy pig we can bring in. We are also planning to add a photo of Alex’s family members.
Feedback Observation 2:
Some people wanted to be able to interact with the website more as “survivors”
Response:
We may add a blog to the website for people to add their two cents.
Feedback Observation 3:
Someone thought it would be a great idea to add seeds…
Response:
We agree and will see what we can scrounge
Feedback Observation 4:
What would the world look like with the sea level rising that much was a common question…
Response:
Adding a map of the Seattle area our story is set in with 60 meter water rise to the website
Feedback Observation 5:
Website lacks back story, not enough context without the box and specifically the diary to understand the story…
Response:
Adding basic storyline to the website
Feedback Observation 6:
Some people were confused about the QR code and how it will function in the future ...
Response:
Internet satellites are still fully operational in geosynchronous orbit, cell towers that aren’t under water still function on solar power and internet servers above ground also operate on solar so, given a sunny day cellular/satellite based internet should still be up and running.
THE MAKING OF THE FLOATING BOX
November, 2019
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