GROUP THEORY / WE'RE HAVING MUCH MORE FUN is a multi-dimensional project built on the phenomenon of capillary wave motion. The performative aspect occurred in the Gulf of Alaska and involved the production and dissolution of a 4096 ft.² floating structure built from 128 sheets of 1/2" plywood over the course of 14 hours.

A surface quasi-elastic light scattering spectrometer was built to measure characteristics of capillary wave motion in a two-phase system of deionized water and hydraulic fluid. Capillary waves are sub-microscopic waves that exist at the surface of any calm liquid, even one removed from normal environmental vibrations. The random thermal motion of molecules beneath the surface gives rise to extremely small surface waves, which behave much like oceanic waves–they propagate with a certain velocity and wavelength, and are affected by the presence of other materials on the liquid surface.

Coherent light from a laser diode is focused onto a grating set at roughly 45°, which splits the laser beam into two paths. The forward beam is imaged onto the liquid sample, reflects from the surface, and is gathered at the detector. At this point, the second beam path recombines with the reflected beam, serving as a reference by which to measure the interaction between reflected beam and liquid surface. The signal that this heterodyning provides is a time-dependent voltage fluctuation. A Fourier transform and power spectrum analysis of the signal provide information about wave velocity and the damping effect that the hydraulic fluid layer exerts on the water surface. The very functional spectrometer is nonetheless full of error from thermal noise,
electromagnetic noise,
vibrational noise,
etc.

NO GODS NO MASTERS (or managers)