1.1    Purpose

The purpose of The Rhythm of Hailstones is to help choreographers create dances when they no longer have any ideas for dance routines. Using the “Hailstone Theory” and logarithms, this project will rearrange the eight counts from a dance and create many more dances. The “Hailstone Theory“ is a mathematical theory, which uses two equations to create a random sequence of numbers that terminates at one. Windows Movie Maker” is used to build a video of the dance to assist the viewer on what each move looks like.

1.2    Background Research

Dance is an art form that has become common throughout the years [1]. Even though there are many types of dance that exist today, more are yet to become popular as well. Some people say dance itself can work magic [2]. There is not a limit as to the different types of dances performed, or even the amount of dancing that occurs on a daily basis. Everyone dances. Dancing can be a baby moving around in it’s crib, a couple competing in a ballroom dancing competition, or even a shy teenager dancing alone in their room [3]. Dancing is not only about the movements occurring, but also about the music. Music contains certain accents. The choreographer, the creator of the dance, often compared to the director of a play, is in charge of choosing what movements to place when those accents occur in the music [4]. If the dance does not go along with the music, then the overall effect the choreographer is trying to portray to the audience is lost [5]. The choreographer must undergo a large amount of pressure. If the dance does not flow correctly, does not go with the music, or does not use imagination and creativity, the choreographer has failed [5].

There are still many more directions where dance can be explored. Choreographers continue to search for new ways to make the audience enthusiastic about watching their performances and their creations. As time continues, many choreographers run out of new and exciting ideas [6].

There must be something done to help choreographers overcome a type of “writer’s block”. The function of this project is to assist choreographers in creating a dance. After placing one dance into the program, the output will be phenomenal because it is a breakthrough in dance technology. The choreographer will be able to have numerous dances created by simply using one set of eight counts in the computer program making it easier to design an innovative dance.

1.3    Scope

The user selects one of four different computer programs created for the four types of dances previously selected to use as examples for the numerous dances in the world. The user inputs a number between 50 and 100 into the computer program to begin the process. The computer program uses the “Hailstone Theory” to establish whether the number is even, or whether it is odd. If the program finds the number to be even, the number is divided by 2. If the number is determined as odd, the program then multiplies the number by 3, and then has 1 added to the product. A sequence of numbers will continue until reaching 1and will always end at 1 [7]. In that sequence, each number corresponds to an 8/4 count video clip. After the sequence is displayed, the user will then use “Windows Movie Maker” to create a visual aide of the newly created dance routine.

For example, the user wants to create a Jazz routine; the user opens the Jazz computer program. The user next enters 64, which is within the 50 to 100 range. Since 64 is an even number, it is divided by 2. The result is 32. The process continues until it reaches 1. Then, the program takes log of each number in the sequence. Once the log is found, the choreographer views the sequence and places the eight-count video clips, which corresponds to the data obtained from the C++ Program. The video clips are viewed in “Windows Movie Maker”. The user has just created a visual aide to assist them on learning the new dance routine.

1.4    Computer Program

Members of the team are using a C++ computer program to create up to fifty separate dance variations based on the primary dance. With the assistance of logarithms, the previously created music-based “Hailstone Theory” has been used to rearrange the sets of 8/4 counts in dance routines. In order to see the results, “Windows Movie Maker” is included in the project to show the user what the dance actually looks like after it has been run through the computer program.