Ethan Ham's net-based Email Erosion project materializes the potentially destructive (though perhaps also beautiful) force of email. When users send an message to the program, it generates a sculpture made out of biodegradable, starch-based foam. The content of the email determines the dimensions and shape of the sculpture, and the entire process can be viewed online, via webcam. Ham's site also archives previously-sent emails, alongside images of the sculptures generated by them. Partly a poetic statement about telepresence from afar and partly a humorous opportunity to turn spam into art, Email Erosion is a collaborative and timely illustration of the brute force of communication. - Marisa Olson