SMU student uses 'musical fruit' to demystify computers

Christian Genco is on a mission to demystify computers one banana, lemon and pineapple at a time.

Genco, a senior at Southern Methodist University, has gained a following by playing his musical fruit everywhere from school campuses and TV studios to technology and science conferences.

Following his own curiosity, he sought out new technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology called a MaKey MaKey that allows him to attach wires to edible items that elicit notes when he takes a bite. He has chomped out the national anthem, among other tunes.

But as much attention as the whimsical fruit project has attracted, it’s only part of Genco’s larger message: Technology can be fun, and you don’t have to be a computer science wizard to experiment with it.

He is scheduled to speak Monday at a technology event at the University of Texas at Arlington and at a semiconductor conference in May. His presentations have attracted audiences from hard-core scientists to school children.

Genco said people sometimes take complex technology for granted — and have taken themselves out of the equation. “The rapid progress of technology is creating gaps in society much more quickly,” he said.

He and the inventors of the kit that he used to bring his fruit to life say people should be more involved in knowing how computers — even that smartphone that they carry every day — really work.

Devices like the MaKey MaKey and the new Raspberry Pi, a $25 mini-computer on a circuit board the size of a credit card, provide a hands-on way for kids and others to get involved in technology.

The basic MaKey MaKey unit — which created a surge of interest among students, artists and technophiles — was designed as a back-to-basics input/output device that leaves the rest up to the creator’s imagination. The fact that it is simple makes it approachable, Genco said.

The unit, described by its creators as an “invention kit for beginners and experts doing art, engineering and everything in between,” turns everyday objects into buttons.

The kit includes the MaKey MaKey, a USB cable, alligator clips and connector wires. The creator looks for items to use for input and decides what the device should output.

In Genco’s case, fruit is the input, music is the output.

He used the GarageBand program on his computer, and instead of using the computer keyboard to play the piano he hooked up the MaKey MaKey and the fruit. When he touches a piece of fruit, he makes a connection and the computer thinks the MaKey MaKey is a regular keyboard so it plays the musical notes.

Genco tells audiences that everyone should learn even basic computer programming.

Eric Rosenbaum, an MIT doctoral student who co-created the MaKey MaKey, said society is becoming mere consumers and passive observers of technology, not active participants in creating with it.

He said that Genco, who recently visited the MIT Media Lab, understands the vision behind the MaKey MaKey: That the world around you is one big construction kit of possibility.

Genco, an SMU President’s Scholar majoring in computer science with a premedical specialization, also is passionate about music, dance and theater and he used his time on campus to find ways to blend them all. He worked with a group of students on an experimental theater piece that melded body motion technology with a dancer’s performance.

“It’s boring if it’s just engineering,” he said.

Though he’s graduating in May and has been accepted to medical school, Genco is deferring admission for a year to pursue a book that he’s been asked to write on accessible computer programming.

Marc Christensen, SMU’s dean ad interim of the Lyle School of Engineering, said Genco is both a skilled presenter who plays to the crowd and a serious scientist.

“When you see a student rising to their potential with no end in sight, it’s very exciting,” he said. “College is about finding your path. He is an example of what can happen when you reach out and take advantage of it.

“Christian is a great ambassador who is blazing a trail. I can’t wait to see what he can do.”


AT A GLANCE: Genco to speak

Christian Genco will speak Monday at TEDxUTA, a local, independently organized event of the TED program, which is a nonprofit group devoted to bringing together the worlds of technology, entertainment and design. TEDx programs feature talks, demonstrations and performances that are live or include videos.

Monday’s inaugural UTA event is sold out, but it can be viewed online starting at 1:50 p.m. at

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