Remember when Dr. Roger told us about how this class will change the way we look at the world and we will have a series of spark moments? Well today was that spark moment for me. I can honestly say that today’s discussion scared me in more ways then one. What is happening to our society! We are becoming so obsessed with technology and the world of virtual reality that we are forgetting about the real, physical world we live in. We are losing touch with the people around us and distancing ourselves from reality all together. I am not saying that technology is entirely bad. I rely on the Internet for communication, research and entertainment and I also never go anywhere without my cell phone in hand, but technology is getting to be frighteningly crazy. For example, I heard today in class from a fellow classmate that Nintendo’s Wii is coming out with a virtual remote that you place on your head. The device reads your mind and if you are thinking that the character should turn left it will turn left. I didn’t believe it, so I decided to look it up online. What I found was a head tracking device for the Wii that allows you to feel as if you are in the action. Meaning, when you move your head to turn or look at something in the game, you will feel as if you are actually there.
http://wii.qj.net/Grad-student-creates-Head-Tracking-set-up-with-Wii-remote/pg/49/aid/110256
It was actually fascinating and I have a lot of appreciation for the guy who thought this all up, but why do we as a culture keep wanting everything to be more realistic? We want to actually feel like we are in the game and escape reality. I link this idea to Eco’s theories of reality and fantasy. Eco discusses that in our culture today people favor simulations over reality because reality can be disappointing. Does technology keep advancing to save us from the pain and troubles of real life? Do people really not know how to deal with reality anymore? Perhaps eventually technology will make it so that people don’t even have to deal with reality. This brings me to the most disturbing thing I heard today. The Internet game called second life was discussed in class. This game allows people to create an avatar or character, build a house, meet people, get a job and even go to universities and sit in on a class. Sounds like a fun game, right? The problem is that this has become more than a game to many people involved. It has become an actual second life! Real American money has become involved. Now, people can sit at home and made money selling virtual reality clothing and other merchandise. They can meet other characters and date and even get married. I have this horrifying picture in my head of people quitting their jobs, sitting at home on their computers and “living out their lives.” This is not living! This is not reality! Living life is interacting with real people everyday and building relationships. Real life is having a real job and dealing with real people. Living life is physically walking down the isle of your wedding and having children. These people who seriously live in the online virtual world think that the “second life” they are living is better then their real lives and reality. This is just heartrending.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
WouldntULike2Know- 2/28
In our breakout discussion groups today my group discussed Poster's position on virtual reality becoming reality for many. Through websites such as Second Life, one (being obsessed with the cult of the new) can, in essence, create a "newer, faster, better" self. What is so scary is that people have become so obsessed with this virtual community, that they have found ways in which to make a profit in this virtual world and to make their "old reality" (aka- their actual lives) better. "The culture is increasingly simulational in a sense that the media often changes the things that it treats transforming the identity of originals and referentialities. In the second media age, reality becomes multiple." (538)
By creating a better alternate lifestyle in the virtual world, I have to question the extent to which people are beginning to abandon thier lives and responsibilities in the real "old" world. If, this virtual life will mimic the progress and infiltration of daily existance similar to that of the telephone or the internet revolution on such a grand scale, how long will it be before we are all plugged into this virtual life. This thought process is shown in The Matrix and I find myself growing increasingly creeped out by this possibility. And, if we become so plugged into this virtual world, which differse drastically from our own because of the physical limitations this world presents, what, then, are the capabilities of the individual within the new reality, which is limitless?
By creating a better alternate lifestyle in the virtual world, I have to question the extent to which people are beginning to abandon thier lives and responsibilities in the real "old" world. If, this virtual life will mimic the progress and infiltration of daily existance similar to that of the telephone or the internet revolution on such a grand scale, how long will it be before we are all plugged into this virtual life. This thought process is shown in The Matrix and I find myself growing increasingly creeped out by this possibility. And, if we become so plugged into this virtual world, which differse drastically from our own because of the physical limitations this world presents, what, then, are the capabilities of the individual within the new reality, which is limitless?
NewYorker - 2/28
Today's class was unique. I liked getting into small groups to discuss the reading, only because majority of us were able to comprehend it on our own, so discussion flowed well. Had we done this with an article we barely understood, it wouldn't have gone so well because we would be passing around these ideas wondering if they were correct, or not even spoken at all because we wouldn't know where to begin. But breaking down this article by dividing sections to groups worked really well here. I liked discussing with people on a personal level their own technology experiences and habits. I had a really good discussion with one group about the idea of AIM/instant messaging, online dating, facebook, e-mails, etc. We all agreed that these were awesome forms of technology, and we all use them everyday. They provide either instant gratification or the possibility to remain in touch with people. Texting and IMing are instant and fast ways to get in touch with someone, usually over something simple or quick, or just to answer a question. However, we did realize that all these forms of communication are impersonal. Will this somehow hinder our social skills and our people skills? What if we forget how to act in a face-to-face conversation or meeting, because we are so used to typing and speaking over the internet, which sometimes causes a lack of filtering becuase we are detached from the other party, that we feel more comfortable expressing ourselvs. We even touched on online dating - yes, it can be a good thing, but have we gotten so lazy or so busy that we cannot go out and meet people in person? I am still unsure how I feel about that whole phenomenon.
Also, the issue of freedom of speech came up in the reading, and brought up in class - which turned out to be intense. This is a very sensitive subject, because everyone wants the right of freedom of speech, but no one wants to be negatively affected by it - so where do you draw the line with it on the Internet? Who owns what's out there? Who gets to say if a website is abusing this right? There will never be clear cut answers to these and other questions, it will all depend on a particular situation at hand, and will always be an issue as long as the Internet and print for that matter, are still around.
Also, the issue of freedom of speech came up in the reading, and brought up in class - which turned out to be intense. This is a very sensitive subject, because everyone wants the right of freedom of speech, but no one wants to be negatively affected by it - so where do you draw the line with it on the Internet? Who owns what's out there? Who gets to say if a website is abusing this right? There will never be clear cut answers to these and other questions, it will all depend on a particular situation at hand, and will always be an issue as long as the Internet and print for that matter, are still around.
Sgt. Pepper, Poster
Probably the most interesting thing about Poster's article, "Postmodern Virtualities" to me was when he made the connection between today's technological advances and the emergence of the urban, merchant culture of the Middle Ages. During this height of change in the Middle Ages, people were forced to act differently and people were treated differently. "Interacting with total strangers, sometimes at great distances, the merchants required written documents guaranteeing spoken promises and an
'arm's length distance' attitude even when face-to-face with the other, so as to afford a 'space' for calculations of self-interest." (534). Such a change in the way their society does business caused the people to change their personalities, "to act and speak in new ways."
Similar change in personality in today's society can be attributed to the emergence of technology. Where the people of the Middle Ages implemented an "arm's length distance" approach to speaking with other people, with telephone, the internet, etc. it has become much more than an arm's length. We rarely speak to each other face to face anymore. As it affected the people of the Middle Ages in that there was a growing lack of trust, I think that same lack of trust is happening here and now, and at a much bigger level.
A contributor to that lack of trust is the mass media. As Poster points out, much of technology's way of getting out information is one-sided. Those mass media stations who make TV shows, control news channels, radio shows, etc. are only produced by those with the means of producing them, leaving the mass media industry with a very narrow viewpoint. As Critical Media majors, it is our job to address these issues, and it will be interesting to see where our trust goes.
'arm's length distance' attitude even when face-to-face with the other, so as to afford a 'space' for calculations of self-interest." (534). Such a change in the way their society does business caused the people to change their personalities, "to act and speak in new ways."
Similar change in personality in today's society can be attributed to the emergence of technology. Where the people of the Middle Ages implemented an "arm's length distance" approach to speaking with other people, with telephone, the internet, etc. it has become much more than an arm's length. We rarely speak to each other face to face anymore. As it affected the people of the Middle Ages in that there was a growing lack of trust, I think that same lack of trust is happening here and now, and at a much bigger level.
A contributor to that lack of trust is the mass media. As Poster points out, much of technology's way of getting out information is one-sided. Those mass media stations who make TV shows, control news channels, radio shows, etc. are only produced by those with the means of producing them, leaving the mass media industry with a very narrow viewpoint. As Critical Media majors, it is our job to address these issues, and it will be interesting to see where our trust goes.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Cuckoo Poster
Technology…what would we do with out it? Our generation revolves around technology, many of us would be lost if it were to be suddenly removed from our society. We wouldn’t know how to communicate with each other or function. Majority of us may become hermits who sit in side not knowing what do we ourselves. After reading Posters article I started to think about my life before technology, especially before having my cell phone. Now whenever I do not have my cell phone I don’t really know what to do, I feel so isolated from everyone. I am so dependent on it and even though I can use another phone to call people I don’t really know anyone’s numbers. The only numbers I think I know are my friends who had a cell phone before I did. It was not until this past break that I knew my little sisters numbers, I would always have to look them up or ask them. I middle school before I had a phone I would walk around town with my friends on the weekends and after every place we went to I would have to use a phone and call my mom to tell her where we were going next, now we can call each other whenever.
Now so many people don’t even talk on their cell phones, rather they send text massages in order to communicate. It is easier because you are able to send mass text messages so that you don’t have to call five different people. For me it makes life easier at times because I don’t always have time to talk to someone so by texting I can ask them what I need to ask them and get a direct response without all of the chitchat. Now that my Dad knows how to text we send text messages to each other rather than talk on the phone. She prefers not to talk on the phone as do I because I don’t always have the time to sit down and talk but through texting and can send someone a text message on my ways to class.
We have all these different ways of communicating without ever talking to someone. People are now using the Internet to have meetings. Through having a camera on your computer you can have a conversation with someone and see them but be in a completely different country. We also have such things as AIM where you can have a conversation back and forth without ever really talking to each other.
Our class is a great example of using technology to communicate. We all post our response to readings and class discussion to communicate what we got out of class. Technology in this aspect has helped us because we are able to share our thoughts easily between each other. Before the Internet we would have to write papers conveying our ideas, but with that only our teacher would read what we wrote rather than the entire class. It speeds up the process of trying to understand certain readings because now we are able to read what others had to say about it or vise versa.
Now so many people don’t even talk on their cell phones, rather they send text massages in order to communicate. It is easier because you are able to send mass text messages so that you don’t have to call five different people. For me it makes life easier at times because I don’t always have time to talk to someone so by texting I can ask them what I need to ask them and get a direct response without all of the chitchat. Now that my Dad knows how to text we send text messages to each other rather than talk on the phone. She prefers not to talk on the phone as do I because I don’t always have the time to sit down and talk but through texting and can send someone a text message on my ways to class.
We have all these different ways of communicating without ever talking to someone. People are now using the Internet to have meetings. Through having a camera on your computer you can have a conversation with someone and see them but be in a completely different country. We also have such things as AIM where you can have a conversation back and forth without ever really talking to each other.
Our class is a great example of using technology to communicate. We all post our response to readings and class discussion to communicate what we got out of class. Technology in this aspect has helped us because we are able to share our thoughts easily between each other. Before the Internet we would have to write papers conveying our ideas, but with that only our teacher would read what we wrote rather than the entire class. It speeds up the process of trying to understand certain readings because now we are able to read what others had to say about it or vise versa.
July-->Mark Poster
Technology has advanced just like the years. Mostly all sources of information come from the television, computer, telecommunication, consumer electronic, and publishing. Since this era has been created and currently active by Americans, its basic structure is based on the United States’ theories of life. Like Mark Poster stated, “The dominant use of English on the Internet suggests the extension of American power as does the fact that e-mail addresses in the United States alone do not require a country code.” It’s not just about a code that should be required by Americans, it’s more of a favorable operation that the United States holds toward little people. The only reason why the United States is capable of do this is because it is considered to be a prosperous nation when compared to other countries. This thought creates dominance amongst “other” countries that are unfortunate.
To elaborate on the advancement of technology, it has been converted into “virtual reality,” which signify multiple realities or take many forms. If a family wants to build a house to meet their own requirements they can take a virtual tour of their masterpiece to get the actual filling or image of the house. Also, theme parks like Disney World often have rides for younger kids who don’t meet the rollercoaster standards and these rides are consider as virtual rides. The kids walk into a place that is pitch black then they put on these magical goggles that are computer generated and watch everything happen right before their eyes like, being on a rollercoaster, in a movie, or acts put on by famous characters (Spider-man ride). Technology has gone too far with trying to dub reality through computers; I understand that these activities provide one with multiple encounters in society, but why confuse the mind with falsification.
One theorist that reference Poster’s notions is Baudrillard. Baudrillard supports these ideas through two terms: dissimulation and simulation. These images reflect a presence but absence is the main function. Virtual reality is an image that masks the absence of reality because one performs as if these creations of reality are taking place for real, when they are not.
To elaborate on the advancement of technology, it has been converted into “virtual reality,” which signify multiple realities or take many forms. If a family wants to build a house to meet their own requirements they can take a virtual tour of their masterpiece to get the actual filling or image of the house. Also, theme parks like Disney World often have rides for younger kids who don’t meet the rollercoaster standards and these rides are consider as virtual rides. The kids walk into a place that is pitch black then they put on these magical goggles that are computer generated and watch everything happen right before their eyes like, being on a rollercoaster, in a movie, or acts put on by famous characters (Spider-man ride). Technology has gone too far with trying to dub reality through computers; I understand that these activities provide one with multiple encounters in society, but why confuse the mind with falsification.
One theorist that reference Poster’s notions is Baudrillard. Baudrillard supports these ideas through two terms: dissimulation and simulation. These images reflect a presence but absence is the main function. Virtual reality is an image that masks the absence of reality because one performs as if these creations of reality are taking place for real, when they are not.
ChittyChittyBangBang Poster
It is interesting to see the continuous exploration of postmodernism in each article we read, there are so many different avenues to take. In Poster's, "Postmodern Virtualities", I found his discussion of "virtual communities" to be intriguing. It really reminded me of Umberto Eco's, "The City of Robots". Both articles explore the progression from what we consider "real" and "virtual/imaginary" and the influence that technology has on this. Eco talked about how technology now can imitate reality as we know it and do it better therefore we embrace this "fake" reality. Poster talks about how people can reinvent themselves and maintain "fluidity of identity" forming "virtual" communities on-line.
"...the internet and virtual reality open the possibility of new kinds of interactivity such that the idea of an opposition of real and unreal community is not adequate to specify the differences between modes of bonding, serving instead to obscure the manner of the historical construction of forms of community" (Poster, 542).
The internet gives people the opportunity to encode our identities and avoid certain social struggles. "Without visual cues of gender, age, ethnicity and social status, conversations open up in directions that otherwise might be avoided" (542). This is a chance to bond with people that you might normally not interact with due to the divide in our society.
Is this a good thing? Does this make "virtual communities" tighter knit and accepting than "real communities"? Is living in disguise through the use of technology beneficial in any way? Does it help us in our "real" communities? Is appreciating modes of communication/technology such as the internet and places like Disney more than real life and real interactions detrimental to our society?
Communication systems are ever-changing, when does the line between "real" and "fake" diminish?
"...the internet and virtual reality open the possibility of new kinds of interactivity such that the idea of an opposition of real and unreal community is not adequate to specify the differences between modes of bonding, serving instead to obscure the manner of the historical construction of forms of community" (Poster, 542).
The internet gives people the opportunity to encode our identities and avoid certain social struggles. "Without visual cues of gender, age, ethnicity and social status, conversations open up in directions that otherwise might be avoided" (542). This is a chance to bond with people that you might normally not interact with due to the divide in our society.
Is this a good thing? Does this make "virtual communities" tighter knit and accepting than "real communities"? Is living in disguise through the use of technology beneficial in any way? Does it help us in our "real" communities? Is appreciating modes of communication/technology such as the internet and places like Disney more than real life and real interactions detrimental to our society?
Communication systems are ever-changing, when does the line between "real" and "fake" diminish?
kMO, Poster
Dependency in any form is eventually going to become a detrimental habit. As a nation we depend on certain things to facilitate our tasks. Today, it would be nearly impossible to find someone whose life hasn’t been altered or affected by technology.
Poster refers to the progress we are making in the virtual reality device sectors of our internet. To be completely honest, THAT TERRIFIES ME. The game “Second Life” scares me out of my mind. The thought that there is an entire world mimicking the one we currently live in is for lack of better words, out of this world. I mean who is to say that warfare and murder existing online (with people under the influence that they are playing against real people in real-life places) is not actually a form of murder. Yes, I understand that technology connects people from around the world but is it possible that we are taking things too far…
The term “virtual reality” bothers me. Poster talks about the fact that “movements in virtual reality are not quite the same as movements in “old reality”: For example one can fly or go through walls since the material constraints of earth need not apply.” That statement in itself is more than enough proof that there really isn’t that much “reality” to the virtual world. I am not so naive to believe that people don’t find pleasure in removing themselves from the "real life." I’ll admit, I do it too sometimes but I can still find my way back into reality...However, there is an alarmingly high number of people who simply find themselves stuck in the virtual world…
Poster refers to the progress we are making in the virtual reality device sectors of our internet. To be completely honest, THAT TERRIFIES ME. The game “Second Life” scares me out of my mind. The thought that there is an entire world mimicking the one we currently live in is for lack of better words, out of this world. I mean who is to say that warfare and murder existing online (with people under the influence that they are playing against real people in real-life places) is not actually a form of murder. Yes, I understand that technology connects people from around the world but is it possible that we are taking things too far…
The term “virtual reality” bothers me. Poster talks about the fact that “movements in virtual reality are not quite the same as movements in “old reality”: For example one can fly or go through walls since the material constraints of earth need not apply.” That statement in itself is more than enough proof that there really isn’t that much “reality” to the virtual world. I am not so naive to believe that people don’t find pleasure in removing themselves from the "real life." I’ll admit, I do it too sometimes but I can still find my way back into reality...However, there is an alarmingly high number of people who simply find themselves stuck in the virtual world…
Bella (poster) response to starfish
Starfish, I really liked your post so I decided to base mine off of yours. You talked a lot in your first paragraph about life before our modern technology–What DID people do before cell phones? How did people survive before the Internet? In my life, everything I want and need is a click away. I feel anxious when I don’t have my iPhone in my pocket to check my email after every class. I mean, what if I had a new email, or God willing a new Facebook post…. Life before technology seems to me, “A vague, uncharted nebula”. I can remember the day my family got our first computer, the first time I used AOL. Poster said, “Electronic media are supporting an equally profound transformation of cultural identity. Telephone, radio, film, television, the computer an now their integration as “multimedia” reconfigure words, sounds and images so as to cultivate new configurations of individuality” (Poster 534). All of these have completely redefined our culture and our personal identities. Where would I be without my Facebook? Particularly interesting to is the college setting: we are on the cusp of freedom, but not quite there. I rely heavily on technology to keep me in touch and up to date with family. Yesterday, I had pictures of my new baby cousin emailed to my phone, followed by a video chat with my family later that evening. You asked, “Is technology helping or hindering us?”. For me, personally, technology helps me. If it weren’t for technology, I wouldn’t be at Rollins. I would have been too scared to go so far away from home, but knowing that my parents were a click or a phone call away makes the distance so much easier to handle. With technology, I have the entire world in my hands, or on my lap, for that matter. You wrote, “If technology does everything for us, how can we exist as human beings?” I’m afraid that without my technology….I wouldn’t exist.
romulus Poster
"At that point practices of the exchange of commodities required individuals to act and speak in new ways". When I was a young boy, around the age of twelve coming to terms with my sexuality, I was able to venture out on the internet to reach out to others who were dealing with the same. Living in a predominately minority and working class environment, homosexuality was not seen or spoken of outside of schools. In the beginning, there was one site xy.com that allowed me to connect with other gay youth. This was a big deal being part of a highly traditional immigrant family, whose impressions of the world were molded not by living in the Bronx but by the media. Seeing that reality can be altered to fit my desires. Formerly isolated by distance and lacking presence in the common culture, was eliminated by mass communications. This is true for the gay community as a whole. Finding support and then networking has enabled a queer (mixed feelings about the word) culture to flourish globally. The advancement of gays have been remarkable since I was that boy. Being proud of who you are is a trademark of the community.
While stereotypes still exist on what a gay person looks like and acts that is superficiality and ignorance. My mother did not speak to me for weeks when I came out this past summer, fear of rejection was internalized in me. A society that tells individuals to be ashamed of who they are is irrational and absurd. My dislike of tradition stems is that it serves to protect one thing whilst shunning the other. Sexual liberation and equality have not been completely realized within the United States. A country founded by the religious prude of Europe has proven to be offensive and downright ludicrous against all but white males.
Straight men and gay men do get along in my experience, but looking at through a greater cultural context, masculinity is in the process of being refined.
While stereotypes still exist on what a gay person looks like and acts that is superficiality and ignorance. My mother did not speak to me for weeks when I came out this past summer, fear of rejection was internalized in me. A society that tells individuals to be ashamed of who they are is irrational and absurd. My dislike of tradition stems is that it serves to protect one thing whilst shunning the other. Sexual liberation and equality have not been completely realized within the United States. A country founded by the religious prude of Europe has proven to be offensive and downright ludicrous against all but white males.
Straight men and gay men do get along in my experience, but looking at through a greater cultural context, masculinity is in the process of being refined.
Starfish Poster
Poster’s article discusses the advances in technology over the years and how as a postmodern society, we have become a culture entirely based on technology. It is hard being a product of the postmodern society myself, to imagine a world without technology. What did people do before the cell phone was invented? What did people do before email and the Internet was available? The fact is, people did survive without technology. There was life before the cell phone and the internet. We, as a society, have become so depended on technology that we can’t even imagine living without it.
Poster’s writing made me think a little bit more about a concept I had always believed. Poster talks about Narratives in cyberspace. It has become popular for people to blog and share ideas with people they do not even know. Bulletin boards and posting websites like BLOGGER.COM have become increasingly popular. Communicating over the Internet via email and aim has as well. I had always believed technology had taken away people’s social skills and abilities. Because of technology (internet), we no longer have to pick up a phone or talk to someone in person. We can avoid being social all together, which is frightening. This poses an interesting question. Is technology helping us or hindering us? Eventually, everything will be computerized (the enlightenment) and we could probably live in our homes for the rest of our lives without stepping foot outside. Technology is meant to make our lives easier. We are the cult of the new. We want everything bigger, faster and better. Even though advances in technology are great, I believe there should be a limit. If technology does everything for us, how can we exist as human beings?
Poster’s writing made me think a little bit more about a concept I had always believed. Poster talks about Narratives in cyberspace. It has become popular for people to blog and share ideas with people they do not even know. Bulletin boards and posting websites like BLOGGER.COM have become increasingly popular. Communicating over the Internet via email and aim has as well. I had always believed technology had taken away people’s social skills and abilities. Because of technology (internet), we no longer have to pick up a phone or talk to someone in person. We can avoid being social all together, which is frightening. This poses an interesting question. Is technology helping us or hindering us? Eventually, everything will be computerized (the enlightenment) and we could probably live in our homes for the rest of our lives without stepping foot outside. Technology is meant to make our lives easier. We are the cult of the new. We want everything bigger, faster and better. Even though advances in technology are great, I believe there should be a limit. If technology does everything for us, how can we exist as human beings?
NewYorker -Poster
Poster had a valid point when he was talking about the First Amendment being carried over to the Internet (pg 538). At first glance, it should seem that the freedom of speech rule would apply to the Internet, blogs, homepages, etc. And at the emergence of the Internet, there was absolute freedom of speech throughout cyberspace. However, recently, many sites have been shut down and people have been prosecuted and charged. There are thousands of hater web sites, devoted to certain people, religions, or subjects, that say very harsh things. Now, technically, according to the Amendments, that is allowed - everyone has the freedom to say what they want. But this I think has taken it to a whole new level - it is generating hate, and bad energy amongst web browsers. Even people who stumble across the sites by mistake, they don't want to see that negative page. These pages have caused many problems. Even recently on Facebook, which is actually a very strong vessel for freedom of speech, a group was created promoting hate toward a sorority on campus. And again, technically, that person who started it has a right to say what they want, but if you are part of that target sorority, it is very hurtful to see a group dedicated towards something that you are a part of. People began to see it, and people started protesting - nevertheless, it got taken down eventually. So it's hard, because freedom of speech goes both ways, and each of us has the power. We can use that freedom for good, and promote positive messages, or we can use it for bad, and promote negative and hateful messages. Either way, it is a catch-22 because you want to speak your mind and see if anyone out there in cyberspace agrees with you, but you never know who you are going to offend.
kaymac poster
When I was in fifth grade I had a penpal via email. It was my fifth grade teacher's niece (so no weird creepy guys...). That was my first experience with email correspondence. The first computer that my family owned had a black screen with green type. There was only a word processing program and a flight simulator game that let you take off, fly, and then land.
I couldn't help but laugh when reading this article because it was talking about the Internet back in what? 1993? I think that they were foreshadowing social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace and even lesser-known ones like Purevolume, although that focuses more on music.
I think that this quote sums up what is going on in the internet of our world.
"...the internet and virtual reality open the possibility of new kinds of interactivity such that the idea of an opposition of real and unreal community is not adequate to specify the differences between modes of bonding, serving instead to obscure the manner of the historical construction of forms of community" (Poster, 542).
With these social networking sites, our communities have changed. Instead of of a letter taking forever to reach somebody (I just sent a letter to Vancouver three weeks ago and it finally reached its recipient yesterday), you can have the assurance of instant contact with somebody in China. There's no excuse of the letter getting lost in the mail, you know that the recipient will receive it instantly.
So would Myspace and Facebook be categorized as this "unreal community"? I beg to differ, because I think it has created a different type of community that's not unreal. It can't be categorized as real in the sense of meeting up with somebody in a coffee shop and having a physical conversation, but I think that the type of interaction in social networking sites has created a new kind of community that has yet to be defined.
I couldn't help but laugh when reading this article because it was talking about the Internet back in what? 1993? I think that they were foreshadowing social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace and even lesser-known ones like Purevolume, although that focuses more on music.
I think that this quote sums up what is going on in the internet of our world.
"...the internet and virtual reality open the possibility of new kinds of interactivity such that the idea of an opposition of real and unreal community is not adequate to specify the differences between modes of bonding, serving instead to obscure the manner of the historical construction of forms of community" (Poster, 542).
With these social networking sites, our communities have changed. Instead of of a letter taking forever to reach somebody (I just sent a letter to Vancouver three weeks ago and it finally reached its recipient yesterday), you can have the assurance of instant contact with somebody in China. There's no excuse of the letter getting lost in the mail, you know that the recipient will receive it instantly.
So would Myspace and Facebook be categorized as this "unreal community"? I beg to differ, because I think it has created a different type of community that's not unreal. It can't be categorized as real in the sense of meeting up with somebody in a coffee shop and having a physical conversation, but I think that the type of interaction in social networking sites has created a new kind of community that has yet to be defined.
BubbaNub : Poster
Currently we have studied numerous aspects in class of what postmodernism is defined by, and yet, oddly enough we have not yet looked at the progress of technology and communication. Perhaps one of the most interesting things in Poster's article "Postmodern Virtualities" is his examination of technology written in 1995. When I think back to 1995, I hear the distinct rumbling and electronic whining of a dial up modem...something that is almost entirely extinct today. The predictions he makes within the article seem obvious because all of them have come true. We now have the capability to communicate seamlessly over the Internet, we have phones that can transmit videos that they have shot, and copper wires have been replaced by fiber optics. As we studied in CMC 200, there are great risks in this. We are becoming more detached with not only the real world but with each other. This advent in communication can actually be considered more of a break down in communication. The majority of Lebanon discusses political and social matters over blogs, that often become heated because we have increasing degrees of separation between us (making us more likely to say things that we would not say in person). Now, the big question to this would be does this separation allow for a more truthful "realer" society to come out or does it give rise to ignorance and bigotry?
Poster also talks about the future of virtual reality devices, being able to diverge into simulated communities from our home computers. If we think about the game "Second Life" this has already begun to happen. Now we have the ability to imagine our own worlds and virtual space, constructing an assortment of verisimilitude that Lyotard warns us about. Just why is this so successful? It is successful because people have begun to hate the real world. They want nothing more than to drift into an environment that they can control and manipulate into something they view as an "improvement on the real". Why stay locked away in your single room apartment working a minimum wage job, when you can easily fly around a virtual world as an artist or superhero who sells virtual commodities. As Zizek puts it, is "America getting what it fantasized about?"
Poster also talks about the future of virtual reality devices, being able to diverge into simulated communities from our home computers. If we think about the game "Second Life" this has already begun to happen. Now we have the ability to imagine our own worlds and virtual space, constructing an assortment of verisimilitude that Lyotard warns us about. Just why is this so successful? It is successful because people have begun to hate the real world. They want nothing more than to drift into an environment that they can control and manipulate into something they view as an "improvement on the real". Why stay locked away in your single room apartment working a minimum wage job, when you can easily fly around a virtual world as an artist or superhero who sells virtual commodities. As Zizek puts it, is "America getting what it fantasized about?"
Bumble: Poster
Technology, technology, technology… all it does is feed into our ever fearful minds in our post-modern world. As we have learned in class, our country is obsessed with fear, everything can hurt us and kill us. Maybe I am giving into this hegemonic ideology of fear, but the internet and expanding world of technology scares me! Mark Poster’s, article Postmodern Virtualities, discusses the social and political implications of having a boom in the internet age. The article claims that the internet has, “gained enormously in popularity…” (Poster 535). Suddenly we are able to encode any possible thing in the world, and the encoded filed have never moved so quickly! It has always scared me how vast the Internet is.
One of the points that Poster makes is about the political implications of having such a vast array of information flooding cyber space.
Endless information from every organization, person, political group, scholarly journals pervades this public space. Just the concept of the internet is spooky in that there is this public space shared by all different cultures across time and space. Once upon a time when the internet was a space only for those who are talented in computers, the information was more readily regulated and it was easier to sift through the valuable and invaluable information. Now it is an open playing field. It can also be influential in the political arena, activist groups and terrorist groups are often posting their ideas, hoping that people will be influenced by them.
Along the lines of Zizek and the age of terrorism, the one thing that keeps pounding in my mind and the postmodern thinker is how the terrorists are using the internet and the super speedy connections to create conspiracy theories.
Well after looking into some research about this, if you look hard enough you can find all of the ways that the internet can be used for terrorism. One of the most interesting things that I found is that each picture in google images is encoded with a series of numbers. It is possible to change one of the letters or several letters in the images without dramatically changing the picture itself. Terrorists are able to communicate with each other right out in the open by slightly shifting these codes. As the technology gets faster and faster it becomes all the more easy to communicate out in cyber space.
As technology increases, does human identity decrease? Already our minds are not capable to do as much as the technological developments. We have delegated certain mental tasks to technology, for example we have delegated our memory to our cell phones. No one remembers cell phone numbers anymore, why should our minds (computers) be working if another faster computer can do it for us!? These communication and virtual realities will impact our world far more than we will ever know!
One of the points that Poster makes is about the political implications of having such a vast array of information flooding cyber space.
Endless information from every organization, person, political group, scholarly journals pervades this public space. Just the concept of the internet is spooky in that there is this public space shared by all different cultures across time and space. Once upon a time when the internet was a space only for those who are talented in computers, the information was more readily regulated and it was easier to sift through the valuable and invaluable information. Now it is an open playing field. It can also be influential in the political arena, activist groups and terrorist groups are often posting their ideas, hoping that people will be influenced by them.
Along the lines of Zizek and the age of terrorism, the one thing that keeps pounding in my mind and the postmodern thinker is how the terrorists are using the internet and the super speedy connections to create conspiracy theories.
Well after looking into some research about this, if you look hard enough you can find all of the ways that the internet can be used for terrorism. One of the most interesting things that I found is that each picture in google images is encoded with a series of numbers. It is possible to change one of the letters or several letters in the images without dramatically changing the picture itself. Terrorists are able to communicate with each other right out in the open by slightly shifting these codes. As the technology gets faster and faster it becomes all the more easy to communicate out in cyber space.
As technology increases, does human identity decrease? Already our minds are not capable to do as much as the technological developments. We have delegated certain mental tasks to technology, for example we have delegated our memory to our cell phones. No one remembers cell phone numbers anymore, why should our minds (computers) be working if another faster computer can do it for us!? These communication and virtual realities will impact our world far more than we will ever know!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Elizabeth Byrne 2/26 post class
After studying for today's test, and having a lot of time to think and talk about the readings we have done - the question of reality still seems crazy to me. I am watching the Travel Channel about various modern cities through out the world and Las Vegas is one of the eight "modern wonders of the world". Personally, I had no idea that there were cities that were ranked as "modern" cities. While watching the show I thought back to Dr. Rog's story about Yellow Stone National park and the volcano in Vegas. The show talks about how much money is put into building such things as the volcano and other attractions such as Treasure Island (involving explosions and sinking ships). In an earlier post, I questioned the thought that we have decaf coffee and milk without fat just to satisfy the desires of our culture. After further thought, I do think that our country puts a lot of money into making our culture happy with what we want to see. The family who left Yellow Stone National Park was more satisfied with seeing a fake volcano. I think that with technology today, our culture has decreased in its love for nature and for "real" things. However, the question of real takes me back the difference between original and authentic.
Another thing that I have been learning about on The Travel Channel is the new Eiffel Tower. I don't know much about Las Vegas, but I certainly did not that there was a second Eiffel that is "better" than the first. Due to technology, the one in Las Vegas is more advanced than the original in Paris.
There is also a hotel (i forget the name) in Vegas that could stack 7-8 747 airplanes in it. It has the brightest light on top of along with that of the one on the Great Wall of China. Both of these lights can reach up to outer space.
Las Vegas was described as "a town that will always be on the cutting edge of enginering marvels"
I related this episode of The Travel Channel to Jenks article relating to various types of architecture. Las vegas has various building and attractions that either looked something but were used for something else. Or the Eiffel, which does not represent the same idea's that it represents in Paris. Still leaving with the question- what really is "reality"?
Another thing that I have been learning about on The Travel Channel is the new Eiffel Tower. I don't know much about Las Vegas, but I certainly did not that there was a second Eiffel that is "better" than the first. Due to technology, the one in Las Vegas is more advanced than the original in Paris.
There is also a hotel (i forget the name) in Vegas that could stack 7-8 747 airplanes in it. It has the brightest light on top of along with that of the one on the Great Wall of China. Both of these lights can reach up to outer space.
Las Vegas was described as "a town that will always be on the cutting edge of enginering marvels"
I related this episode of The Travel Channel to Jenks article relating to various types of architecture. Las vegas has various building and attractions that either looked something but were used for something else. Or the Eiffel, which does not represent the same idea's that it represents in Paris. Still leaving with the question- what really is "reality"?
Monday, February 25, 2008
Starfish 2/21
I really enjoyed last Thursday’s class. Going over the exam and doing practice questions was most helpful and I must admit I feel that Braudrillard and Eco are my two favorite readings and discussions so far in this class.
“Was not the framing of the shot itself reminiscent of spectacular shots in catastrophe movies? 231
I look back to the day of 911. I remember where I was when I heard the news and how I felt. I was shocked and didn’t realize the reality of the situation. It was if I felt like it wasn’t really happening because you only see those kinds of things in the movies. I had a click moment in class on Thursday while discussing this idea. I remember one of my classmates in high school smiling and laughing when he had heard the news. I became angry and so did many of my classmates. Why was this is initial reaction to this catastrophic situation? When we discussed the quote, “America got what it fantasized about, and that was the biggest surprise” 233 his reaction began to make sense. This was the kind of thing he saw in the movies and catastrophe movies excite people and are thrilling. For him and many people that day, they got to see their favorite movie spectacles become reality, and I see why this could have been exciting for them. We never believed that something like this could happen to us.
I love the whole idea of how we as American’s tend to capture reality, box it up and make it better because it is s truthful. Dr. Rog’s volcano story was amazing and unbelievable. What are the odds of seeing that family twice in two different locations? It is almost as if it was fate that brought you to see them, because for you this was such a “click” moment. The story was a perfect example in class to describe how we as American’s tend to favor fake reality of real reality because of our impatience and our disappointment with certain aspects of reality. As much as I love Disney and the spectacles of Las Vegas, I feel a little uneasy and saddened about the volcano story. How can a fake volcano going off compare to the real thing? There is beauty, spectacle and wonder in the world around us that is natural and I am worried that we as a society are starting to forget this.
“Was not the framing of the shot itself reminiscent of spectacular shots in catastrophe movies? 231
I look back to the day of 911. I remember where I was when I heard the news and how I felt. I was shocked and didn’t realize the reality of the situation. It was if I felt like it wasn’t really happening because you only see those kinds of things in the movies. I had a click moment in class on Thursday while discussing this idea. I remember one of my classmates in high school smiling and laughing when he had heard the news. I became angry and so did many of my classmates. Why was this is initial reaction to this catastrophic situation? When we discussed the quote, “America got what it fantasized about, and that was the biggest surprise” 233 his reaction began to make sense. This was the kind of thing he saw in the movies and catastrophe movies excite people and are thrilling. For him and many people that day, they got to see their favorite movie spectacles become reality, and I see why this could have been exciting for them. We never believed that something like this could happen to us.
I love the whole idea of how we as American’s tend to capture reality, box it up and make it better because it is s truthful. Dr. Rog’s volcano story was amazing and unbelievable. What are the odds of seeing that family twice in two different locations? It is almost as if it was fate that brought you to see them, because for you this was such a “click” moment. The story was a perfect example in class to describe how we as American’s tend to favor fake reality of real reality because of our impatience and our disappointment with certain aspects of reality. As much as I love Disney and the spectacles of Las Vegas, I feel a little uneasy and saddened about the volcano story. How can a fake volcano going off compare to the real thing? There is beauty, spectacle and wonder in the world around us that is natural and I am worried that we as a society are starting to forget this.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
kaymac 2.21.08
"America got what is fantasized about, and that was the biggest surprise." (Zizek, 233). I could not have put that into better words myself. Here we are, fantasizing about planes blowing up and landing on The Strip, dramatic reenactments of past and future wars, and money laundering and drug cultures, just to name a few. We glorify the actors and the people they play, therefore we glorify the actual people whom those actors represent.
So when these actual events that we have glorified so much actually take place, we call it surreal because we don't want to take responsibility for our actions and for what we have done to those images. And because these events and images are so surreal, we don't know how to act around them and therefore do not have the proper reaction. I mean, look at Katrina and New Orleans. Was there a plan somewhere in city hall that had a directions on what to do just in case the levees broke? People think that just because it happens in films, it can't happen to them (including romantic-comedy films) because nothing can live up to having the right music and camera angles at the right time, having their hair perfect even though their plane almost crashed to the ground, and things of that nature.
It's true. We are destroying ourselves in our films. Not only are we actually killing off people in the films (you ever notice that in Jackie Chan films you rarely ever see the fate of a random ninja he beats up?) but we are destroying our perception of reality. Our visions of reality are so skewed by now that when reality actually does occur it doesn't register and we don't react. Think of how many images and representations of starving children you've seen. Or even better, how many images and representations of Briney Spears going nuts have you seen? If you look into it, Spears is an actual person going nuts because of the public eye upon her 24/7. Imagine if you're mother went nuts and locked you up with her in your house, not allowing anybody else to see you while cops were outdoors? Instead of wondering why all of this happened, we laugh at the (soon to be) Saturday Night Live skits and John Stewart comments (personally, I really hate Britney Spears. What a waste of human).
So where are we going to go from here? I don't think we have as a species have ever realized our realities and maybe that's why we've become "higher" than animals with our buildings and agricultural systems and animals have just been happy living their lives, not getting hit by cars.
So when these actual events that we have glorified so much actually take place, we call it surreal because we don't want to take responsibility for our actions and for what we have done to those images. And because these events and images are so surreal, we don't know how to act around them and therefore do not have the proper reaction. I mean, look at Katrina and New Orleans. Was there a plan somewhere in city hall that had a directions on what to do just in case the levees broke? People think that just because it happens in films, it can't happen to them (including romantic-comedy films) because nothing can live up to having the right music and camera angles at the right time, having their hair perfect even though their plane almost crashed to the ground, and things of that nature.
It's true. We are destroying ourselves in our films. Not only are we actually killing off people in the films (you ever notice that in Jackie Chan films you rarely ever see the fate of a random ninja he beats up?) but we are destroying our perception of reality. Our visions of reality are so skewed by now that when reality actually does occur it doesn't register and we don't react. Think of how many images and representations of starving children you've seen. Or even better, how many images and representations of Briney Spears going nuts have you seen? If you look into it, Spears is an actual person going nuts because of the public eye upon her 24/7. Imagine if you're mother went nuts and locked you up with her in your house, not allowing anybody else to see you while cops were outdoors? Instead of wondering why all of this happened, we laugh at the (soon to be) Saturday Night Live skits and John Stewart comments (personally, I really hate Britney Spears. What a waste of human).
So where are we going to go from here? I don't think we have as a species have ever realized our realities and maybe that's why we've become "higher" than animals with our buildings and agricultural systems and animals have just been happy living their lives, not getting hit by cars.
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