17 September - A call for help from the inhabitants of Fomalhaut bNew!!
Could the message be a call for help from the inhabitants of Fomalhaut b, a planet that dissolved after an asteroid collision?
"I thought of a request for help from the inhabitants of a small planet that they would have liked to save but which unfortunately no longer exists." Thank you Rosanna D'Agostino for the fascinating theory around the "Star Map".
Graphic artwork: Rosanna D'Agostino.
22 August - Holograms and other physical representations
Members of the Discord community continue analising the header and footer of the message, creating holograms and other physical representations of what looks like a star map. A decoder is converting the star map into soundscapes. Although a community of 200-300 people is online at any given time of the day, posts in the interpretation-chat become fewer as people take a much needed break or a mental pause from the decoding process.
9 August - More 3 D forms are explored
Updates on the decoding process: More 3D forms are explored, could the message be something meant to be reconstructed in the real world? Various generations meet to find possible meanings. Is the message meant to be read on a sphere?
7 August - A variety of ideas are still being explored without a specific direction
Updates on the decoding process: a variety of ideas are still being explored without a specific direction. Some of the interesting experiments include more physical representations of the message through paper maquettes. The community questions if the message resembles a riddle. Humour glimpses into the chat.
1 August - Some decoders are taking the message into physical forms
The interpretation chat on Discord has been very active over the past few days. Some decoders are taking the message into physical forms, sketching the numbers down or creating origami. Folds and symmetries are tested to reveal the possible content of the message. Literary references from science and poetry dot the interpretation chat.
25 July - Creating a performance within the current performance
Members of the Discord community suggest creating a performance within the current performance, inspired by the decoding process. New treads emerge, exploring sonification possibilities of the message, analysing the header and footer and more. Another member of the community suggests creating a Wiki to structure all ideas and hypotheses presented so far. The interpretation-chat now exceeds 10,000 posts and it is becoming increasingly challenging to summarise all ideas and meanings created around the message. Many hours have been spent on the decoding process...
18 July - Chat GPT is used to interpret the message, producing some electronic poetry
Chat GPT is used to interpret the message, producing some electronic poetry: could the message say "do come here...enjoy the journey"? Other members of the Discord community continue exploring the theory of Cellular Automata; some interesting conversations take place; Sleepless Nights are spent finding an interpretation.
15 July - The theory of the message being a cellular automata is revived
The theory of the message being a cellular automata is revived. A new thread for this theory is started. Could the message be a quest for help from the character in Calvino's novel, in the language of cellular automata?
12 July - Discord community continues exploring 3D renderings of the message
The Discord community continues exploring 3D renderings of the message. Some theories directly link the message to Calvino's novel. One decoder suggests going back to the original data. Could the message be a reply to the Arecibo message? Some people keep decoding the message while on holiday.
5 July - Raising questions
The technical questioning continues raising questions on the possible sensory tools of extraterrestrial beings; on the decoding and interpretation of a cuneiform clay tablet versus that of an alien signal; on the artistic, performative role of all participants in the decoding and interpretation process.
29 June - Some playful suggestions arise
The community on Discord debates whether the message has been completely misunderstood from the start. Suggestions are made to start looking at the raw data from scratch. Some playful suggestions arise: could the message be a recipe for an interstellar omelette?
28 June - Dynamic interpretations
The Discord community presents various visual and dynamic interpretations of the message as Star Map/ Cellular Automaton. The header and footer are the centre of attention. New threads are created to help organise ideas emerging from the process.