In William Gibson’s seminal cyberpunk novel Neuromancer, computer viruses were more than just malicious bits of invisible code. They were terrifying three-dimensional AIs that darted through the Matrix like monsters. The famous Chinese icebreaker program used in the novel is described as a kind of chrome wasp, viciously penetrating data networks and replicating, hivelike, as it devoured information.
I’ve always enjoyed that particular visual, and often think of it when
I read about the latest virus making the rounds. In reality (or virtual
reality, anyway), viruses are just strings of code -- not particularly
scary to look at. But a Romanian artist and MIT researcher has taken
measures to bring about a more Gibsonian future. His project brings to 3-D life the various viruses, spyware, worms that
so plague us. The "malwarez" images -- artistic and scary -- are built by feeding
the raw code of viruses though a set of algorithms and into 3-D
modeling programs. Pretty creepy. I’d like to see the other side of the struggle -- images of the antiviral and protection programs that combat viruses. In any case, what a cool idea...
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