Stelarc - Ping Body

More info: Originally, ping is the word used to describe the sound generated by sonar equipment in submarines. Such sonars make sounds that sound like “ping“; the distance to another object is measured by the time it takes this sound to echo back. Within computer networks pinging is used to determine whether a connection is “up“ and how good it is. Stelarc employs pinging as a control mechanism for his body: his body movements are not caused by his own nervous system but by an external data system. The data is generated by pinging randomly at some thirty Internet domains and measuring the spatial distances and the time the signal needs to travel. The variation in ping values depends on both the distance and the level of traffic on the Net. The data thus collected is used to trigger a multiple muscle stimulator that activates muscles by tiny electrical currents. In this way activity on the Net is converted and used to set a body in motion.