Quiet Storm: Outcome presentation
I just returned from Villamalea, where I presented the Quiet Storm: Music for Insects project to the town’s residents. We finalized the setup on the Protiberia farm to livestream the beetles. Every hour, the beetles are exposed to a 5-minute piece of music played through a bass shaker mounted underneath the crate they live in. Because they do not hear, they perceive sound through tiny hairs on their legs. When they feel this music, the beetles become more active and engage more in mating. In between sessions, you can listen to their movements through a microphone inside the crate. We only use 5-minute tracks to avoid overstimulating them.
The goal is twofold: to improve the reproduction rate of Tenebrio molitor and to consider the beetles as sensitive beings who can also be exposed to art, just as humans are. Our futures are intertwined.
On Thursday, we held an in-person event at the town hall. Laura presented the company and the benefits of insect farming; Victoriag talked about the benefits of this sustainable protein and how it can be used in human food; I presented the Quiet Storm project, and Pablo talked about the use of frass. During the Q&A, people asked many questions, showing great interest in sustainable agriculture and art-science collaborations.
After the presentations, we offered food enriched with 5% mealworm protein. It did not affect the taste, showing its potential as a future protein source. It was well received. People could also listen to the livestream, and we brought a box of beetles with a speaker underneath so they could see the setup in detail (the beetles seemed happy with their night out in town).
Although the project will formally end, we will continue the experiment to study its long-term effects. I’m very happy with the collaboration with ProTiberia and grateful to In4Art and Studio Other Spaces for their support.
The Hungry EcoCities project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101069990.
#startseu #hungryecocities #soundart #sustainability #tenebriomolitor #artdriveninnovation #TechInnovation #futureoffood
The goal is twofold: to improve the reproduction rate of Tenebrio molitor and to consider the beetles as sensitive beings who can also be exposed to art, just as humans are. Our futures are intertwined.
On Thursday, we held an in-person event at the town hall. Laura presented the company and the benefits of insect farming; Victoriag talked about the benefits of this sustainable protein and how it can be used in human food; I presented the Quiet Storm project, and Pablo talked about the use of frass. During the Q&A, people asked many questions, showing great interest in sustainable agriculture and art-science collaborations.
After the presentations, we offered food enriched with 5% mealworm protein. It did not affect the taste, showing its potential as a future protein source. It was well received. People could also listen to the livestream, and we brought a box of beetles with a speaker underneath so they could see the setup in detail (the beetles seemed happy with their night out in town).
Although the project will formally end, we will continue the experiment to study its long-term effects. I’m very happy with the collaboration with ProTiberia and grateful to In4Art and Studio Other Spaces for their support.
The Hungry EcoCities project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101069990.
#startseu #hungryecocities #soundart #sustainability #tenebriomolitor #artdriveninnovation #TechInnovation #futureoffood