What do you get when you put the ocean onto the Internet? According to several computer programmers, animators, artists, and the director of MIT's Media Lab, it would look something like this:
I was treated to a private demo preview of TheBlu, a new artistic venture that combines art and entertainment, and had a chance to chat with one of TheBlu's co-founders, Neville Spiteri.
So, what is TheBlu?
That's the question that I had when I first navigated to the website in advance of my preview. The tagline "The ocean on the web" is catchy, but just as the ocean is vast, so is TheBlu. One is greeted with a well produced introduction video along with several links to some FAQs and developer bios. However, the true exploration begins when you actually enter TheBlu and start "swimming" through the vast waters and watch, tag, and interact with the species that appear on your screen.
Immediately upon entry into TheBlu's interface, you are welcomed to an underwater view of a specific region of the world. Different species of aquatic wildlife are all available to be explored simply with the click of a mouse. Exploration is the name of the game as one can use the mouse to navigate through the vast oceans or choose to follow a particular fish as it roams through the waters. You can explore multiple habitats by allowing a fish to travel, and within seconds you'll be transported from the African Coral Garden to the Australian Open Waters. TheBlu operates as a web application that's compatible with all popular browsers and brings a 3D world to your screen.
Social media is a key piece that's immensely integrated into the application. Users are encouraged to learn more about the creators of everything in TheBlu, from rope sponges to razorfish. Clicking on the species reveals a link to the maker's profile, and options to "Become a fan" or "Connect" with the creator become available. Developers emphasize that TheBlu is created and sustained by users, and they want people to connect as they normally do within social media, but at the same time celebrate art, the web, and the Ocean.
As a teacher, I came in with an education lens, and I believe that the classroom is going to be a potential heavy user of TheBlu. The entire experience is reminiscent of an high end science center or modern aquarium exhibit, the kind where there's a large display and you have to wait your turn to try it out. The big difference is that with TheBlu, anyone can explore at any time, all without having to pay the price of admission. Clicking on species reveal information that will only get expanded upon as the community grows, and the encouragement of users to create and design new species also contributes to the learning experience at hand.
Article comments
1 - Bill Scott
David, Thanks for the article. I've asked for an invitation and hope to experience TheBlu soon! I'll comment back afterwards.
2 - David
Great Bill - please feel free to contact me if you don't hear back from them, and I can try to request for you as well.