circuit bending
n.— «The creative short circuit, or the technique that I call circuit bending, is a form of hardware hacking or modding, but with two important differences. First, whereas hackers usually know something about electronics, you don’t need any real knowledge of electronics to circuit-bend. Second, while most people hack an instrument with a particular goal in mind—such as increased frequency range or cleaner outputs—the circuit bender works improvisationally and has no idea where the trail will lead. In circuit bending, the instrument shapes itself by telling the bender what it can do.» —“The Art of the Creative Short Circuit” by Qubais Reed Ghazala Electronic Musician Jan. 1, 2003. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)