·

“Passing Through” Timelapse

passing-through-timelapse

Amazing timelapse video by Kristian Ulrich Larsen and Olafur Haraldsson combines beautiful landscape of Iceland, the words of Nicola Tesla, and great computer graphics.

The text used for the narration of “Passing Through” is part of a speech scientist and inventor Nikola Tesla delivered in 1893 at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Though today less known than figures like Edison and Einstein, Tesla was more or less the father of much of our modern technology, since he among other things developed the foundations of the European electrical system based on alternating currents and the principles of wireless radio communication.

At the time he was deeply influenced by the Austrian physicist and philosopher Ernst Mach, believing that the world should be conceived as a whole where everything is interconnected influencing each other. And that energy is a force that runs through everything be it inorganic matter, organisms or human consciousness. According to this line of thought every single action has universal consequences, not unlike what the father of modern chaos theory Edward Lorenz in the 1960’s termed ‘the butterfly effect’.

Passing Through from Olafur Haraldsson on Vimeo.

“Like a wave in the physical world, in the infinite ocean of the medium which pervades all, so in the world of organisms, in life, an impulse started proceeds onward, at times, may be, with the speed of light, at times, again, so slowly that for ages and ages it seems to stay, passing through processes of a complexity inconceivable to men, but in all its forms, in all its stages, its energy ever and ever integrally present.

A single ray of light from a distant star falling upon the eye of a tyrant in bygone times may have altered the course of his life, may have changed the destiny of nations, may have transformed the surface of the globe, so intricate, so inconceivably complex are the processes in Nature. In no way can we get such an overwhelming idea of the grandeur of Nature than when we consider, that in accordance with the law of the conservation of energy, throughout the Infinite, the forces are in a perfect balance, and hence the energy of a single thought may determine the motion of a universe.”

Nikola Tesla “The Electrical Review, 1893″

Shooting location: Iceland

Music: Division – Moby

Narration: Frank Stubbs

Sound editing: Yossi Karutchi

Consulting: Mette Mikkelsen, Niels Peter Skou, Barnabas Wetton, Kolding School of Design

Share:

Commenting rules and guidelines

We value the thoughts and opinions of our readers and welcome healthy discussions on our website. In order to maintain a respectful and positive community, we ask that all commenters follow these rules:

  • Treat others with kindness and respect.
  • Stay on topic and contribute to the conversation in a meaningful way.
  • Do not use abusive or hateful language.
  • Do not spam or promote unrelated products or services.
  • Do not post any personal information or content that is illegal, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these rules. By commenting on our website, you agree to abide by these guidelines. Thank you for helping to create a positive and welcoming environment for all.

One Comment

  1. I read the Chicago Tribune magazine July 22, 2012 article on fireflys. I remember so clearly that it was supposed when we understood how fireflies make cool light we would duplicate it and have no loss of heat light.
    Well, the article said that the firefly’s brain has to call for the release of nitric oxide to disable the mitochrondria so oxygen can get to the peroxisomes to make the light. The oxygen is added to ATP and luciferin which are bound to an enzyme luciferace. Once oxygenated it becomes a compound and an acid which are released from the luciferace as photon particle emissions (light) occurs.
    Now that is not simple.
    It seems to me that is indicative of our science: open door, find ten new doors. I see our advance as being awash in so much minutia that we have slowed to a crawl. Will there be any new advance? How? nuclear is a dead end. Solar should have saved us but where is it?

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *