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TED Talks, Theo Jansen creates new creatures

Theo Jansen creates new creatures

I would like to tell you about a project which I started about 16 years ago, and it's about making new forms of life. And these are made of this kind of tube -- electricity tube, we call it in Holland -- and we can start a film about that and we can see a little bit backwards in time. Narrator: Eventually these beasts are going to live in herds on the beaches.

Theo Jansen is working hard on this evolution. Theo Jansen: I want to put these forms of life on the beaches.

And they should survive over there, on their own, in the future. Learning to live on their own, and it'll take couple of more years to let them walk on their own. Narrator: The mechanical beasts will not get their energy from food, but from the wind.

The wind will move feathers on their back, which will drive their feet. The beast walks sideways on the wet sand of the beach, with its nose pointed into the wind. As soon as it walks into either the rolling surf or the dry sand, it stops, and walks in the opposite direction. Evolution has generated many species.

This is the Animaris Currens Ventosa. (Applause) Jansen: This is a herd, and it is built according genetical codes, and it is a sort of race, and each and every animal is different, and the winning codes will multiply. This is the wave, going from left to right, you can see this one.

And now it goes from -- yes, now it goes from left to right. This is a new generation, a new family, which is able to store the winds. So the wings pump up air in lemonade bottles which are on top of that -- and they can use that energy in case the wind falls away, and the tide is coming up, and there is still a little bit of energy to reach the dunes and save their lives, because they are drowned very easily. (Laughter) I could show you this animal.

(Applause) Thank you. So the proportion of the tubes in this animal is very important for the walking. There are 11 numbers, which I call the 11 holy numbers. These are the distances of the tubes which makes it walk that way. In fact it's a new invention of the wheel. It works the same as a wheel. The axis of a wheel is staying on the same level, and this hip is staying on the same level as well. In fact, this is better than a wheel, because when you try to drive with your bicycle on the beach, you will notice it's very hard to do. And the feet just step over the sand, and the wheel has to touch every piece of the ground in between. So 5,000 years after the invention of the wheel, we have a new wheel. And I will show you in the next video -- can you start it, please? -- that very heavy loads can be moved. There's a guy pushing there behind, but can also walk on the wind very well. It's 3.2 tons. And this is working on the stored winds in the bottles. It has a feeler where it can feel obstacles and turn around. And that stuff, you see, is going to it the other way. Can I have the feeler here?

OK. Good. So, they have to survive all the dangers of the beach, and one of the big dangers is the sea. This is the sea. And it must feel the water of the sea. And this is the water feeler. And what's very important is this tube. It sucks in air normally, but when it swallows water it feels the resistance of it. So imagine that the animal is walking towards the sea. As soon as it touches the water you should hear a sort of sound of running air. Yes! So if it doesn't feel, it will be drowned, OK? Here we have the brain of the animal.

In fact, it is a step-counter, and it counts the steps. It's a binary step-counter. So as soon it has been to the sea, it changes the pattern of zeroes and ones here, and it knows always where it is on the beach. So it's very simple brain. It says, well there's the sea, there are dunes, and I'm here. So it's a sort of imagination of the simple world of the beach animal. Thank you. One of the biggest enemies are the storms.

This is a part of the nose of the Animaris Percipiere, and when the nose is fixed of the animal, the whole animal is fixed. So when the storm is coming up, it drives a pin into the ground. (Laughter) And the nose is fixed, the whole animal is fixed. The wind may turn, but the animal will turn always its nose into the wind. Now another couple of years, and these animals will survive on their own. I still have to help them a lot. Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen.

(Applause).

Theo Jansen creates new creatures 西奥|詹森||| Theo Jansen erschafft neue Kreaturen Ο Theo Jansen δημιουργεί νέα πλάσματα Theo Jansen crea nuevas criaturas テオ・ヤンセンが新たな創造物を生み出す Theo Jansen tworzy nowe stworzenia Theo Jansen cria novas criaturas Тео Янсен створює нові створіння Theo Jansen 创造新生物 西奧·詹森創造了新生物

I would like to tell you about a project which I started about 16 years ago, and it’s about making new forms of life. 我想告诉你一个我大约16年前开始的项目,它是关于创造新生命形式的。 And these are made of this kind of tube -- electricity tube, we call it in Holland -- and we can start a film about that and we can see a little bit backwards in time. ||||||||电管|||||||荷兰||||||||||||||||向后|| 这些是由这种管子制成的——我们在荷兰称之为电管——我们可以开始一部关于它的电影,并且可以稍微回望一下过去。 Narrator: Eventually these beasts are going to live in herds on the beaches. 旁白|||||||||群体||| 旁白:最终这些生物将会在海滩上成群生活。

Theo Jansen is working hard on this evolution. 西奥||||||| Theo Jansen: I want to put these forms of life on the beaches.

And they should survive over there, on their own, in the future. Learning to live on their own, and it’ll take couple of more years to let them walk on their own. 学会独立生活,他们需要几年的时间才能独立行走。 Narrator: The mechanical beasts will not get their energy from food, but from the wind. 旁白:这些机械兽不会从食物中获取能量,而是来自风。

The wind will move feathers on their back, which will drive their feet. ||||羽毛|||||||| 风会移动它们背上的羽毛,从而驱动它们的脚。 The beast walks sideways on the wet sand of the beach, with its nose pointed into the wind. 这个野兽在海滩湿沙上侧着走,鼻子朝向风吹的方向。 As soon as it walks into either the rolling surf or the dry sand, it stops, and walks in the opposite direction. |||||||||海浪|||||||||||| 一旦它走进翻滚的海浪或干燥的沙子,它就停下来,朝相反的方向走。 Evolution has generated many species. ||产生|| 进化产生了许多物种。

This is the Animaris Currens Ventosa. |||动物机器|奔跑的|风筝 (Applause) Jansen: This is a herd, and it is built according genetical codes, and it is a sort of race, and each and every animal is different, and the winning codes will multiply. ||||群体||||||遗传的||||||||种族|||||||||||||繁殖 This is the wave, going from left to right, you can see this one.

And now it goes from -- yes, now it goes from left to right. This is a new generation, a new family, which is able to store the winds. ||||一代||||||||||风 So the wings pump up air in lemonade bottles which are on top of that -- and they can use that energy in case the wind falls away, and the tide is coming up, and there is still a little bit of energy to reach the dunes and save their lives, because they are drowned very easily. |||||||柠檬水|瓶子|||||||||||||||||||||潮水||||||||||||||||沙丘|||||||||| (Laughter) I could show you this animal.

(Applause) Thank you. So the proportion of the tubes in this animal is very important for the walking. ||比例|||||||||||| There are 11 numbers, which I call the 11 holy numbers. These are the distances of the tubes which makes it walk that way. In fact it’s a new invention of the wheel. |||||发明||| It works the same as a wheel. The axis of a wheel is staying on the same level, and this hip is staying on the same level as well. |轴||||||||||||髋部|||||||| 车轮的轴心保持在同一高度,这个臀部也保持在同一高度。 In fact, this is better than a wheel, because when you try to drive with your bicycle on the beach, you will notice it’s very hard to do. 事实上,这比轮子更好,因为当你试图骑自行车在沙滩上时,你会发现这很难做到。 And the feet just step over the sand, and the wheel has to touch every piece of the ground in between. 而脚只是在沙子上踩过,而轮子必须接触到之间每一块地面。 So 5,000 years after the invention of the wheel, we have a new wheel. And I will show you in the next video -- can you start it, please? -- that very heavy loads can be moved. There’s a guy pushing there behind, but can also walk on the wind very well. It’s 3.2 tons. 它重3.2吨。 And this is working on the stored winds in the bottles. 这依靠瓶子里的储存风力工作。 It has a feeler where it can feel obstacles and turn around. |||触角|||||||| 它有一个感应器,可以感知障碍物并转身。 And that stuff, you see, is going to it the other way. Can I have the feeler here? ||||preliminary inquiry|

OK. Good. So, they have to survive all the dangers of the beach, and one of the big dangers is the sea. This is the sea. And it must feel the water of the sea. And this is the water feeler. |||||水位探测器 And what’s very important is this tube. It sucks in air normally, but when it swallows water it feels the resistance of it. ||||||||吞咽||||||| So imagine that the animal is walking towards the sea. As soon as it touches the water you should hear a sort of sound of running air. 一接触到水,你应该听到一种空气流动的声音。 Yes! 是的! So if it doesn’t feel, it will be drowned, OK? 所以如果它不浮起来,它就会沉没,明白吗? Here we have the brain of the animal.

In fact, it is a step-counter, and it counts the steps. ||||||计步器||||| It’s a binary step-counter. ||二进制|| ||two-state|| 这是一个二进制计步器。 So as soon it has been to the sea, it changes the pattern of zeroes and ones here, and it knows always where it is on the beach. ||||||||||||||零||||||||||||| 所以只要它到达海边,它就会在这里改变零和一的模式,并且它总是知道自己在沙滩上的位置。 So it’s very simple brain. 所以它的脑子非常简单。 It says, well there’s the sea, there are dunes, and I’m here. ||||||||沙丘||| So it’s a sort of imagination of the simple world of the beach animal. Thank you. One of the biggest enemies are the storms.

This is a part of the nose of the Animaris Percipiere, and when the nose is fixed of the animal, the whole animal is fixed. |||||||||动物|感知者|||||||||||||| 这是Animaris Percipiere的一部分鼻子,当动物的鼻子固定时,整个动物就被固定了。 So when the storm is coming up, it drives a pin into the ground. 所以当风暴来临时,它会把一个钉子打到地面上。 (Laughter) And the nose is fixed, the whole animal is fixed. (笑)鼻子固定了,整个动物就被固定了。 The wind may turn, but the animal will turn always its nose into the wind. 风可能会变化,但动物总是会把它的鼻子朝向风的方向。 Now another couple of years, and these animals will survive on their own. 再过几年,这些动物将能独立生存。 I still have to help them a lot. 我仍然需要帮助它们很多。 Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen.

(Applause).