“It’s pretty perverse when you think about it: using modern technology to build replicas of obsolete technology rescued from the dump, when these replicas are bound to end up back here at the dump!” (Doctorow. Pg. 34)

Being in the “blue” group, we interacted with the computers and printers first. For me, the feeling in the CAL was partially grounded while partially overwhelming, the mix of fluid language and computer coldness. I was totally in awe of the simplicity of the software and interface used to create the printable objects. I questioned the need for creating and making like this, involving so many facets and gadgets to make a coin. I watched the printer for a while to get a grasp on just exactly what was happening between the two walls of the lab. The machine made an error and I was introduced to the misprint box. This undoubtedly changed the course of my relationship with these machines, to see what happens when they don’t know what’s happening. Calculated chaos?

“This kind of design, we could never mass-produce it”. (Doctorow. Pg. 34)