I arrived this afternoon at Ars Electronica and, God, i’m here till Tuesday and have the impression i’ll never manage to see everything.

Two students from the University of Electro-Communication in Tokyo made me laugh to tears with their explanations of SUI (Straw-like User Interface). I blogged it a few months ago but it has evolved a bit.

Now it’s called Conspiratio (detailed explanations in japanese) and it still invites to a virtual experience of the sensations of drinking with a straw.

On a table top, goofy creatures carrying food (mushrooms, ice cream, raw egg, cola, pizza, etc.) on their back are drifting aimelessly. You have to chase the one you want to suck by putting your mug on it. You’re handed a straw (a real plastic low tech one) and you can suck your food. It will make a schlurp or ssssuuu or any sound that correspond to a cola or a pizza being suck (i told you i laughed a lot), plus you feel a different pressure. And of course the volume of your pizza diminishes as you suck it.

Created by Yuki Hashimoto.
Images.