The GCP Basket Observer
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WHAT IS THIS?  It's a Java applet that displays in near-realtime (10-minute delay) the behavior of a network of random event generators (REGs) located at host sites around the world. The network is maintained by the Global Consciousness Project (GCP) and has been running since August, 1998. Random numbers from the REGs are collected via the Internet and archived on a server in Princeton. The Basket Observer gets a new chunk of data at regular intervals, and displays it as changing blocks of color, one for each REG device in the network. The size and brightness of the blocks represent deviations from the expected value for 200-bit trials collected at one per second from each of about 50 instruments. This display cannot generally be interpreted to represent the composite network response to events in the world.

The current version requires Firefox, IE5.5+, NS4.7+ on non-Mac platforms; IE5.5+, NS6+ on Mac. And you must have Java enabled. Other browsers haven't been tested and older browsers may not work. We would appreciate a note with detailed information if you have problems.

WHAT CAN IT DO?  Four modes are available for this display on the GCP website: (Number 1 is on by default.)

1. The squared, normalized deviation from the expected mean (Z²) for each egg is shown as a rectangle with size proportional to the departure from expectation. The Z² value is shown at the top, with the egg's ID number.

2. The cumulative history of each egg's behavior is plotted as a random walk with steps computed as Z-squared minus the expectation (Z²-df). This display is available with a one-second or one-minute resolution. Brighter background colors signify larger deviations.

3. The "coherence" of the eggs at a specific time is calculated as the sum of squared deviations (Z²) across all the REGs. This is displayed as a filled circle that grows larger and smaller in proportion to the sum.

4. The "Stouffer Z" of the eggs at a specific time is calculated as the squared mean deviation (Stouffer-Z²) across all the REGs. The display is the same as for coherence.

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?  The GCP is an international collaboration involving about 75 scientists, artists, and business people. Roger Nelson, of Princeton, is the creator and director of the project. The Basket Observer is an example of the collaborative contributions: Dick Bierman of Utrecht and Amsterdam designed the display and his graduate student, Jeroen Ruuward, programmed the first version. Nishith Singh, of India, added some refinements, and the development has recently been taken over by Taylor Jackson, of Vancouver, BC.