Project Mammoth is an interactive hologram installation designed by Brock University's student team during the 2021/22 term. Spanning eight months of production, it raises awareness for biodiversity loss and the impact of human activities on marine species. The installation combines 3D design, sound design and interactive programming to create a unique, educational experience.

As part of our third-year capstone project, our group was tasked with creating an interactive project; our goal was to deviate away from making a game, as many cohorts before us had done. Collaboratively, we selected to focus on designing an interactive installation that would integrate DIY hologram technology, something that hadn't been done before in the history of the program.

Noting the variety of demographics and audiences that we could target, we chose to explore raising awareness on critical issues in a more visual manner that encourages people to learn at their own pace. In a world where climate change and biodiversity loss often go ignored in favour of economic and financial problems, we believed a hologram would be a suitable way to educate the public about the state of endangered marine life.

To better understand how to approach our goals in the context of a hologram, we researched existing methods of awareness for biodiversity loss and interactive projects about our topic, focusing on educational solutions. Our research outlined that over 41,000 endangered species existed; 7,000 were considered critically endangered, with 2,270 of them being marine species. It was also noted that media on endangered animals failed to showcase species that were less popular or known about, which influenced our decision to target the world's oceanic and polar regions.

Through a joint effort between the research and modelling teams, eight (8) marine species were selected for the installation. We chose to utilize a low-poly modelling style, relying on texturing and weight painting to define appearance details that make the animals recognizable.

In order to properly apply the physics of holograms to the installation, it was required to make the models appear as if suspended in mid-air. This proved to be a challenge with the environments, as we wanted to provide context surrounding the habits of our selected animals while simultaneously avoiding breaking the illusion. I was tasked with creating the base design for environments, as well as creating environments alongside the modelling team. We opted for a dome-based design, which solved the issue of objects entering the invisible "screen" of the hologram from the sides.

The hologram is operated through a Flick motion sensor and Raspberry Pi, which is connected to a Python program written by our coding team to switch between animal visuals. The installation team performed several physical tests to create a system that would control the hologram. Gestures such as moving one's hand from the left to the right/up and down were selected, as they mimic motions people were already familiar with (ex. swiping right on a phone to see the next photo = swiping right for the next visual). As a result, younger audiences would also be able to interact with the hologram in a simple manner, lessening the confusion on how the sensor board worked.

Project Mammoth's visual identity was designed to encapsulate a playful approach to the biodiversity awareness and education. We envisioned our project as something that would cater to audiences of all ages, as opposed to presenting itself solely as a hologram experiment.

The team's decision to select a mammoth as the project logo stemmed from the extinction of the elephantid genus Mammuthus, a mammal species which ultimately disappeared during the Holocene epoch due to climate change and human hunting. While mammoths are not classified as marine species, the team felt it best represented our mission: to educate viewers on animal endangerment and encourage action through awareness — all in hopes of avoiding the extinction of the animal world. Thus, Project Mammoth was born... however, our internal team mascot ended up being the polar bear ^-^

The following individuals are recognized for their contributions to the Project Mammoth installation: Thank you to Dr. Aaron Mauro of Brock University for his support and guidance throughout the project, and to Alison Innes of the Brock News for her photography.