LO7 Liz Maday

Jer Thorpe – 9/11 Memorial

The 9/11 memorial displays about 3,000 names inscribed into bronze panels surrounding two pools of water. The placement of these names may seem to be random, but they are actually specifically arranged according to an algorithm that was created by data artist Jer Thorpe.

The algorithm was built in Processing, and was made to accommodate requests by family members to have names meaningfully placed adjacent to other names, reflecting the relationships and connections between the victims. For example, the investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald was devastated by the attack, losing more than 700 employees and people associated with the company. On the memorial, all these names are listed together, encompassing large portion of the memorial. Even within this section, certain names are placed next to each other to indicate close relationships.

The algorithm works by first putting names into large clusters based on the adjacency requests. Then it figures out where to place these large clusters of names on the memorial, filling in the spaces.

I think this is an amazing example of how a program is able to reflect very human emotions and intentions while also utilizing a precision and complexity that is above human ability.