Biodataviz is concerned with using biology to visualize data. Each tag from a delicious account entered by the viewer are represented by an “amoeba”. The creatures morphology is constructed through bezier curve calculations based on the length of the tag, the popularity of the tag will determine the creatures ability to sense food around it. The same set of tags are then referenced with the New York Times API to create predators. The popularity of the tag with NYT determines the length and the number of the predators tentacles, which allow it to grab its prey, the amoeba. The food for the amoeba is released by a plant suspended in deep water colture, connected through an Arduino to the simulation. The Arduino switches the plants hydroponic systems on and off. When the plant is well it will release food to the system, for the amoeba to feed upon. Both predator and prey spend their energy kinetically and use food to top up that energy. The amoeba by harvesting the food released by the plant, and the predator by praying on it. When a desirable level of energy will be archived the creatures will reproduce, passing along their genes/tags. If a predator have not caught an amoeba on time and its level of energy is too low, it will die. Releasing the remaining energy to power up the hydroponic systems (lights and an air pump) of the plant. There for an ecological system is created, a producer consumer dynamic, ultimately reflected in the well being of a real biology (the plant), a state that fluxes according to taxonomy found on delicious and NYT.
