Artist's Device Makes Pedaling Harder When Housing Becomes Unaffordable
Justin Blinder's Ground Truth device makes cycling physically more demanding as housing prices rise.
Artist and technologist Justin Blinder developed the Ground Truth device in 2020. The device is designed to make cycling physically more challenging when housing becomes unaffordable.
Blinder conceived the idea for the device while working as a food delivery cyclist in New York. He quickly observed significant disparities between neighborhoods that were geographically close but felt vastly different economically and psychologically.
"I really started to kind of become a bit more aware of how different neighborhoods, often right next to each other, could feel very economically and psychologically very far apart, even though it's just really within close proximity," Blinder stated.
The Ground Truth device connects to a bicycle and adjusts resistance based on real-time housing price data. In areas with high housing costs, the resistance increases, reflecting the local economic conditions.
The device aims to link physical exertion with societal inequality, prompting discussion and awareness of economic disparities within urban environments through a tangible, personal experience.