Kristopher Overholt » Fun

Plotting data on videos – A useful way to convey qualitative and quantitive information

koverholt — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:49:44 +0000

Every once in a while, someone makes an impression on you that lasts for a lifetime. It sticks with you every single time. This is one of those, although a bit on the nerdy side, it is one that can change the way you present information in a very meaningful way.

I was once sitting at the NIST annual fire conference, going about my business, and someone working on a project regarding the structural response aspect of buildings on fire showed a video in their presentation. No big deal, right? Normally, we get cool fire videos, then some plots, and so on. Sometimes the plots are interesting, sometimes they are default from Excel with the ugly legend and all – with no story to tell.

But not this guy. He showed a video with real-time plots superimposed over the video showing the exact real-time structural response of the structure overlaid on the video in a plot. “AMAZING!” I thought. And it stuck with me. A useful way to convey synchronous information. People love videos, why not tell the qualitative AND quantitative story at the same time?

So I started working in grad. school on fire problems, and naturally, soon thereafter, I was scheduled to give a presentation. As most of my real creative coding and writing work happens of hours between the hours of 1 AM and 6 AM, I wanted to make this happen. I REALLY wanted some real-time plotting action in my presentation. No Excel templates for me! So I stayed up for a couple nights and worked on a way to use MATLAB to make this plotting dream a reality: I worked on importing videos, messing with frame rates, tons of images, and so forth. And soon thereafter, it happened. I had a working script.

I used it to show plots of large-scale fire tests with actual and predicted flame heights vs. time as seen here:

And I used the script to show the predicted flame heights on a small-scale test in an amazing way that just about anyone can relate to, fire-crazed scientist or not:

From anyone who has seen the videos firsthand, the response has been amazing. This is a great teaching and communication tool, and surprisingly enough, I haven’t found any existing program or tool that does this. And so I am sharing the videos and script here for anyone to use to better convey information.

My next steps are: 1) to convert the script to Python (since I am now almost exclusively using Python+numpy+scipy for my graduate research and daily work instead of MATLAB, and 2) to make the script into a cross-platform and easy to use tool.

I’m providing the code in its raw and uncommented and unedited form. It generates a number of images with plots superimposed on them, and then it is trivial to use a program to stitch them together into a video. I used Quicktime’s built in method. Sorry, too much current work going on finishing my MS thesis and Master’s degree to clean up the code, but it’s a brutal use of the “release early, release often” ideal! Hopefully someone can make some use of it.

So, here are the linked .m files:

http://www.koverholt.com/scripts/ssPlotVideo.m
http://www.koverholt.com/scripts/fireplotVideo.m

Enjoy! And please leave your comments or ideas!

Cape Cod Weekend Escapade

koverholt — Fri, 08 May 2009 01:37:05 +0000

After 18 graduate hours down, another semester, two conferences, my first conference paper, Katie joining me up in Mass., and tons of other milestones for my life, it’s nice to sit back and just relax, reflecting on all that has happened.

On the last weekend in April, the weather went from 30 degrees to 85 degrees for a magical couple of days. Me and Katie capitalized on this and ran a 2 day random trip to the east coast of Massachusetts, to check out all of the hype around Cape Cod. The map below shows our roundabout route from Worcester to Plymouth, Sandwich, Provincetown, South Yarborough, New Bedford, Newport, Jamestown, Wickford, and back home.

To sum it up, it was amazing! Some pictures from the trip show the highlights! To view the full album, click here.

View Larger Map

From Cape Cod Weekend Escapade

Not So Green Hill Park

koverholt — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 23:47:19 +0000

At Green Hill Park a mile or so from my house, where the hills are more white than green.

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View full album.

Festival Hill in Round Top, TX

koverholt — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:00:44 +0000

Some pictures from a cool experience in January when stumbling through Round Top, TX at a place called Festival Hill:

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From Round Top Church

Link to entire album

Don't let the sun go down on your grievances

koverholt — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:56:25 +0000

There’s a song that I listen to by Daniel Johnston called Don’t let the sun go down on your grievances

Whenever I listen to it, I am reminded of my grandfather, Jesus Gonzales, born 1908. It paraphrases something that he knew, something deep. It was to clear your mind of any toils or stress from the day that just passed you by. Jesus, or Apa, was married to Margarita Gonzales for many, many years, and he rubbed off on more people than I’ll ever know. He was one of the happiest men that I knew, in one of the happiest marriages I will ever know, ever.

He was a simple man who simply loved life. That feeling and mission I can certainly share with him. He told me to never go to bed angry, at anything. This is before computers, before we began to live in a life surrounded by computers and overwhelming days. He was never too busy for anybody, including you and me.

So I paraphrase him, as Apa wouldn’t mind, and say not to let the sun go down on your grievances. Sleep well, tell the one you love that you love them, and breathe in all the we have. Thanks Apa. I miss the days where I would go “fishing” and hunt for the raisins in my Quaker Oats oatmeal.

You knew exactly how to live life, and we all learned from you to pass it on and on.

Don’t let the sun go down own your grievances:

Don’t let the sun go down on your grievances
Respect love of the heart over lust of the flesh
Do yourself a favor: become your own savior
And don’t let the sun go down on your grievances
And when you wake up in the morning
You’ll have a brand new feeling
And you’ll find yourself healing
So don’t let the sun go down on your grievances

Humorous happenings from the WPI Police Log

koverholt — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 00:26:00 +0000

Everyone enjoys the stories from police logs, ranging from loose chickens in some towns to even sillier things in others. Sure, crime is serious, but thanks to making police logs public, much humor is to be found. Here are a few of my favorites fom the WPI campus police log.

Saturday, November 8, 2:04 am: Male on Boynton St. who appears to be intoxicated. (Hmm, checks timestamp, yep, got ‘em!)

Saturday, November 8, 3:17 pm: Officer speaks to young kids skateboarding in the East Hall parking garage, advising them to move along. (Classic, need I say more?)

Sunday, November 8, 12:02 am: Caller reports group of students playing with fire in a can in West St. parking lot. Officer dispatched, individuals advised. (Advised of what? The joys of playing with fire?! It wasn’t me I swear!)

Sunday, November 9, 1:00 am: Pumpkin thrown at SNAP van from balcony on West St. Officers check, find smashed pumpkin, no people on balcony. (Pumpkin taken into custody.)

Sunday, November 9, 1:53 am: Caller reports female playing music and singing out of her window in Founders. Female is very loud and keeping students awake. Officer dispatched, locates student; singer advised to be mindful of other students. (Ahh, I was hoping he would join in! We need more public singing!)

Sunday, November 9, 3:27 pm: Feces found on floor of Morgan Hall restroom. Custodian en route. (It is the only room with a drain.)

Tuesday, November 11, 2:10 am: Caller reports having vomited in Stoddard A. (What a nice guy; classy. Would love to hear the call.)

And there you have a window into my world at WPI. Leaping pumpkins, public singers, and bodily fluids fill the police log. Now laugh along with me, lest you be advised to move along, you damn kids!

How to remove yourself and your thoughts from this world

koverholt — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 05:35:16 +0000

“… and television on all over the place is leading to a steady dumbing
down of the American public and a corrosion of basic critical thinking in the population.”

- Jamie Raskin, American University law professor, November 2004 on the Democracy Now! radio program

Flickr user sandymichelle

Just this past Sunday I had to kill my television – in the best sense of the word. You know: denounce, unrecognize, and the such. It was really stealing away any free (and productive) time that I had. I mean, the idle brain cells spin out of control and zoning out in front of TV after a long day of work leads to: not caring about what you eat, not thinking critically about other great things in the world, not spending ol’ fashioned time with your family or friends. (Lots of great, original articles about Killing Your TV)

I remember about 4 years ago when I came across a similar “Turn Off Your TV” site online in the form of a podcast. And the 2 people were talking on and on about trans fatty acids. I was so compelled as to what they were saying I remember typing as fast as I could to take notes and replaying parts and looking up health terms and the such. Learning. Critical thinking. Sharing. I went on to write an article in the paper at my school and was excitedly telling everyone about my findings. I continued to look up more and more information – I was addicted to knowledge. Just a few minutes ago, I just finished my meal of baked chicken, couscous, and black bean soup with tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, and garlic. And I know that most of that motivation to eat healthy as I do today came from that little audio finding 4 years back. Now it allows me, 4 years later, a chance for me to just sit and enjoy a meal – in peace and quiet – and experience the flavors of life one by one. Hmm, there was life before TV.

I kept running past the idea that parents talk to their kids about 28 minutes a day while the average adult watches 2.5 hours of television per day. Hmm. What are we doing to ourselves? Now, I’m not being anti-fun here, entertainment is great, and I make it through most of my day with a humorous outlook on life. But I see people ignoring food as they eat, sitting silently among family or friends, just gazing. Paying lots of money – to be advertised to constantly and have this machine suck away brain cells.

Flickr user janz87

I also came across someone who said – if aliens came to visit us and checked out the layout of our homes, they would think the television is some sort of god of ours, as our entire houses are arranged around the careful placement of the television set. And then comes the arguments about using a DVR to save time. Of course, it is better than just mindlessly watching channels and surfing without barriers, but there are other ways to go about getting your fix without paying a crapload (ahem). But I can think of many better things to do anyway! I don’t think you’ll lose sleep at night or have regrets on your deathbed – just wondering and wishing that you you had watched more TV.

Flickr user chrisdonia

On another note, it is awesome to see change and progress going on all around the world, from the recent election all the way down to the small world of fire protection engineering. Every time I watch one of the videos about technology and change in this era – I get all giddy and warm on the inside. It’s true.

There’s a giant conversation going on. And it doesn’t depend on power or money or anything. Just a passion – a want. I think of how one person that I know revamped and forever changed the world of fire modeling by utilizing a couple of free tools to bring together thousands of users who were all previously working in dark corners. I think of how a few scratches I made on a notebook one night turned into a tool that hundreds of fire model users use every week – and I think of the next step, and the next, constantly progressing. I think of those that are “too busy” to participate in this movement and think this is only for nerds and computer people – and how bad I want them to participate.

I came to the conclusion that the two ideas I speak about here are interrelated. Apathy and social sloth. Here’s what I think: no one is any more busy than anyone else. Some of us just want something more strongly than others. And that used to be okay, praised even – when the dark corners were predominant. But now, everything is public – the world pushes upon itself.

Don’t be “too busy” watching TV or sitting out on this big movement – wherever you are or whoever you are. This is big. Join in anytime.

Why Do I Chase Fire? (and video)

koverholt — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 05:27:50 +0000

Three fire engines and a ladder truck just blared by my house going southbound on the street and stopped about two blocks away. What a beautiful sound of the QO2 siren screaming by on a chilly city night. It takes me back to a few years ago, hearing the fire dispatch alert going out, gearing up in seconds at the station with 45 pounds of firefighter bunker gear, and peeking around each street corner as the truck leaned away from the turn – not knowing if there would be a small car fire or a huge commercial building fire. Terrified people waiting with nobody left to turn to as their family members are endangered by the power of fire. Their life history, photo albums, accomplishments, and material possessions having flames licked at them and could be vaporized into an ashtray within only a minute.

That blaring sound is why I do what I do. And people ask me, why do I like this field so much? Fire is mesmerizing, fire is better understood each day that passes by, but still greatly misunderstood. Fire is extremely useful. Fire is extremely devastating. Fire has context to define its will.

To me, understanding the dynamics of a fire dancing and licking around can be like trying to understand the psychology of billions of different humans. It can be like trying to catch something running away by using differential equations and fluid dynamics. It can be like painting a picture for hours or days and the end product is something that sticks with you every day for the rest of time.

It is like playing on a sports team and working with your family when working in the lab. We work for 3 hours on setting up temperature sensors and calorimeters and even more hours discussing and brainstorming in a room boiling over with a mental flood of science, passion, logic, deduction, and induction. All about fire. Then we burn our creation in 1.73 minutes and forever destroy it, releasing yet another drop in the endless pool of ongoing knowledge.

Here is a video that exhibits a very successful test burn from today. The box is filled with small plastic cups and packed like one that would be shipped. We set up instruments inside to measure the fire size, temperature inside at different places, cameras to record the flame standoff distance, and a ton of other information.

I guess in my version of 1984, things make sense in this way: fire is knowledge, community is power, and intuition is freedom.

This is why I do what I do.

2,000 Miles Nearby

koverholt — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:32:01 +0000

I haven’t updated the blog in a bit since I didn’t have actual internet for a while there, but all is exceptional here in Worcester, MA.

I’m outside in the setting sun in my makeshift office in the 60 degree weather in mid-August. And as Eetion would say about my temperature preference, I’m right at home. As Brenda would say about my mind and soul, welcome home. As Marcos would say about my outdoor adventures and motorcycling, I’m in a great place. And as Katie would say about my craziness and passion, I’m in my element. And as my mother would say, I’m too far away.

Everyone has had a huge impact on my transition, from my sick grandmother’s prayers from a very long way away to some new found friends at WPI to the greatly helpful faculty at school.

Hopefully friends and family can come and join me soon while I follow the trails of my passion in this weird and pleasurable experience and location.

You can see the entire photo albums here: the 4-day trip up here and the first day in Massachusetts doing high-pointing in New England.

Thank you to everyone and I will see you soon. Look for some exciting updates to come with my new found Internet connection.

And as always: peace, love, and happiness to all.

Robocop 4 and My Childhood Exploding Like an Inifinite Ammo Gun

koverholt — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:16:06 +0000

Forget global warming. Forget The Muppets.

This is the time when something great is happening from my childhood.

They seem to be making a sequel to Robocop. In this case, I am an optimist: it will be great. It has to be. Unlike Robocop 3. Seriously – they have gone to ask Darren Aronofsky, who directed Pi and Requiem for a Dream – OH GOD.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3ifcce08ba05c71072018830821bb10d71

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RoboCop#2010_film

Maybe it is the fact that my father showed me this movie at a key age. How old was I, 5? 7? This key age is when something gets implanted into your mind and takes over the remaining 70 years of your life in a very reserved spot in your head.

ROBO! Greatest cast, twisted humor, lines, EVER! Can’t wait to see you again, buddy.

And now some quotes that remain at the forefront of my memory 24/7:

“Don’t worry Lois, we’re only human”

“Oy, mack, *blast* *blast* *blast*, thank you… for not smoking”

“Dead or alive, you’re coming with me.” [...] “Dead dead”

“I don’t like cops, so cops don’t like me.”

“They made this… to honor him. Your husband is dead. I don’t know you.”

“Can you do that dad!”

I’ll stop now.

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