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West World

-What do you think the themes are?

After watching the opening sequence, I first thought that the show may have something to do with the human body or functions of the body.  Also, something that sticks out to me is the idea of using the parts of the body with lights to create a kind of landscape and tricking our eye.  The human experience controls and shapes the way we see the world so in "WestWorld" There is some type of hyper reality.  Many themes of machines, industry, replicating the body and other objects come to mind.

-How does the director of the opening sequence of Westworld (Patrick Clair) achieve meaning?

The Director, Patrick Clair, achieves meaning by the deconstruction of the human body and other objects we see in the opening. There's even a horse being built Layer by layer.

-What cultural tropes does he use?

In the opening credits we see tons of cultural troupes. We see canyon landscape of the Midwest in America, we see a piano and automatic piano machine which was popular in saloons during the western times of the country and a revolver being put together by machines. All of these are clues to the world we are about to be introduced to. It's pretty specific to a time during the united states too because nowhere else in the world had this aesthetic as a main cultural feature.

-And to what effect?  

Every object in the opening sequence is broken down in some way and shown its insides. As if everything can be created so long as you know how to build it. We even see the insides of people and the structures of their bodies being built layer by layer. It's obvious that the show is going to be dealing with some sort of idea that involves building or creating objects.

-What do you think is going on? Although we’re being introduced to the main story (a theme park inhabited by ‘hosts’ (robots) where wealthy guests pay to live out their fantasies), we are also being introduced to a complex narrative about reality.

In this episode we are being introduced to the world of Westworld. It’s an amusement park set in the western themes era and full of synthetic life that people can literally do anything they want to without any consequences. We see one of the first robot's named Doloris being questioned and looked at for a possible malfunction. Since this is a scifi television show I can guess that the subject matter is going to heavily focus on these synthetic humans and their journeys and growth. In this world technology has advanced so far that they can almost replicate the human body minus the mind.  People are paying to come to this world to become heroes, villains, killers, rapists, murderers, partiers and everything in-between. We are introduced to a ton of humans that could fall into all of these categories. West World really brings out the true nature of an individual because there are no consequences and anyone can get away with practically anything.  

-“Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality?” What is the significance of the question? And her answer?

This question is aimed at Doloris and possibly to us? We see jumps in time so it could possibly be her memories, but she shouldn’t have memories if she is being wiped after events occur. The creators want to see if Doloris has any weird responses and possible changing in her programming or a glitch of some kind. This is obvious foreshadow to the real plot of the show and that the robots may be acting weird and developing on their own.

-Where and when is Westworld located, exactly?

We aren't told when or where West World takes place. I have my own theory though that it is underwater. People have to travel there and they have no contact to the outside world kind of like how a cruise works. It would make perfect sense if this was the case because they are completely surrounded and no one can steal any technology or anything along those lines. Also, it protects their world because it's so secluded underwater that it won't change unless the company wants it to.

-Is the glitch accidental? Or is Ford advancing the hosts’ consciousness on purpose? If so, why?

I think Ford is leaving little pieces in the robots and allowing them to slowly evolve.  He wants to create life and to advance the human race because that would be the logical way we would by combining technology with our minds. They are the next step.

-How much does Dolores know at this point?  

Doloris has all the memories inside of her. She just has her programing changed and memories erased so she can be put back in the story again. She has flashbacks as well so that we know that she does at least have access to them even if she can't control them.  

-What is the Man in Black’s actual mission here, where is he going?

To solve the real puzzle of the game. At this point we don’t know the real puzzle of the game though, but its apparent he has been visiting West World for a long time and caught on to something that other players haven't caught on yet.  He knows something that we don't and it might be connected to Doloris and the strange phenomenon that has been going on with the robots.

-Is anybody else that we assume is a human actually a robot? Or vice versa?  

Perhaps some of the visitors are robots in disguise to trick the incoming humans and to make their emersion into this world that much crazier. They would think someone was human and tagging along with their activities and then boom they turn out to be a robot and the human has a really hard time telling the fakes from the real people.  

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Ted Talk  Zeynep  Tufekci

" The problem is that we no longer know how these complex algorithms work anymore". We aren't programming intelligence anymore we are growing it and we are slowly losing the ability to really understand how these things work. Zeynep says that there was a programmer who decided not to publish a system he created to pick up on social media post to determine the onset of mania before clinical symptoms. This is honestly insane. If you have ever seen the movie minority report then you'd understand the crazy levels that something like this could reach. I didn't know they could do things like this honestly. These algorithms are controlling political agendas and manipulating the outcomes and it needs to change. Digital technology needs to be restructure in the way its developed.  These functions are controlling and organizing our values and using us as the product for the powerful. This is pretty concerning considering that the majority of our life is on the internet and social media and its used and connected to practically everything we do. There will have to be a change and the right answers wont easily be found, but if we don't do something now then it'll only get worse.  The fact that Facebook targets its ads for specific people to change their thinking is pretty ridiculous and should be looked at. I know there was recently a big court case with Facebook concerning some data issues, but I'm not fully aware of everything that went on. I think people are starting to catch on and will eventually want answers and solutions to fix these problems to insure their safety from being targeted online. Arguments, battles, elections and social values can all be manipulated in a way to pits everyone against each other when in reality that isn't the case. It’s the algorithms and the powerful controlling these issues for their own gain while the people have to suffer the consequences. It's a trust and privacy issue in the modern age especially with all the new technology constantly coming out it's going to become harder for the public to trust and want to participate in nee mediums, gadgets, social medias etc. I’m surprised these companies haven't been sued by the people yet. I'm sure as time goes on it'll become more of an issue the public will actually care about and the government will step in and something will end up happening even if it takes awhile.  

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Device : Youtube

YouTube is a video website where you can upload any content you create.  With the newer generations and the abilities of the internet, YouTube has become a very poplar source of entertainment. I was born in 1991 so I grew up with tv being a main source for getting anything video related as entertainment. Most people use tv for their news and tv shows etc, but that has all changed in the past few years. The use of TV is slowly fading away and the internet and platforms like YouTube are becoming more popular. Personally, since I moved out of my mom's house when I was 18 I haven't had cable. I just have the internet and I just watch what I want online. YouTube has content made by people that you can subscribe to and follow and watch just like a tv show, but you get to choose what you watch and don’t have to follow tv station times. I grew to hate TV because of all the long ads and scheduling and I just felt like it was a waste of money to pay for cable. YouTube is a way to break the necessity of watching television for news or entertainment or anything. There's something more personal about following a youtuber because it's just a normal person and not against studio or corporation and this is one aspect that attracts so many people to the platform. Having the feeling of being connected or getting a more personal experience speaks to the younger generations more than televised tv shows. The way we perceive media is evolving and so are the forms in which they are presented. It's all part of the human experience and evolution of what works and what doesn't. Things will phase out and be replaced because they are outdated and TV is one of those formats that will soon be obsolete unless they adopt a new structure that the internet follows. I know more and more people that are using Television less and less as the years go by. Most of my friends haven't had cable in years and use YouTube or streaming services to get their entertainment when it comes to video content.  YouTube has content ranging from literally everything so there is something for everyone unlike TV and it's all there at the click of a button with hours and hours and hours of material for you to enjoy. It’s also reachable by every device that we pretty much use today as well. Cell phones, laptops, pc, consoles and more.

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Call Your Mom

Playtest explores the idea of augmented reality and using our own psyche to augment the world around us for a video game. The episode opens up with the main character Cooper leaving home due to some family issues that he doesn't want to deal with at the moment. He goes on this trip around the world to make new memories sand experiences, but throughout the first 10 minutes there is a ton of video game references. He's playing a video game on the airplane, video game graffiti and goes on a date with a girl who works in the video game field. The idea of escaping reality is entirely what the first 10 minutes is about. Cooper is running away from his dad's death and the fear of confronting his mother who he has no idea how to talk to. A horror game that creates as it goes based off of your own fears is an insane idea.  You could seriously traumatize someone, but this company in this episode decides to try and perfect this tech.  While he is in the game or augmented reality we see constant images that we previously saw before the game started. When he first shows up to the game studio we see the image of the house in the painting with the light on that we see during the game and that Cooper mentions that he notices.  There's flashbacks to the bully in high school that he mentions to his date where the scar on his shoulder is. The bully appears in the estate to scare him and is disguised as a creepy person.  HIs date shows up at the estate and tries to warn him, but he just thinks that she is part of the game and she eventually stabs him in the same spot where his scar is from the bully in high school. Constant foreshadowing in the first 10 minutes that last throughout the rest of the episode. The smallest details and incidents go into the survival horror game. Digging into your deepest fears to project them into our reality is an extremely scary and dangerous idea. In the episode we learn that what the video game studio is doing is illegal and they got denied a patent to the technology because it was considered dangerous. By tapping into your brain and all your memories and fears they can create a literal hell for you. Literally the scariest survival horror game ever.  Everyday life and our past go into how our reality is viewed by us. The unknown, impossible and subconscious would all go into this augmented reality and create a world that is truly terrifying. In our everyday life we have views that have been shaped by our past and experiences. It's not the same as augmented reality, but there is a type of alteration to how we view and see things as an individual.  Our experiences directly affect the way we navigate through the world and when you add an element of augmented reality to that then it'll become a hyper reality, but only to the person who viewing. This will greatly change the way we interact with the world and each other. Seeing things that aren't really there could have a massive negative effect on society.  In the episode Cooper can't determine what is real and fake until he grabs her face and she's physical, but she ends up being fake. This creates massive confusion and leads him towards breaking down and not trusting his surroundings.  He wakes up from the test and is told that it was all just 1 second of being connected to the system, but he felt the pain and everything. Him waking up is also part of the augmented reality and he wakes up again screaming mom and they can't stop the program which leads to him dying.

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Fight Club Assignment

1.)What is the relationship between the narrator and Tyler Durden? 

1.The narrator and Tyler Durden are the same person. Throughout the movie the narrator is talking about what has already happened because he personally experienced it even thought he was two personalities. He only remembered half of the time because while he was Tyler he wasn’t conscious, but by the end of the movie through a series of events both of his personalities finally became whole again and he remembered what really went on. Tyler represents all of Jack’s suppressed emotions and urges that eventually manifest and take control. At first jack is completely unaware of any of this and thinks he met a cool new friend that is helping him out and is ironically doing things he kind of wish he had the courage to do. Throughout the film Jack starts to notice little things and the slippage of time he has been losing. There is a tug of war at this point between Jack and Tyler for control as the sole personality. Jack shoots himself in the face to fully get rid of Tyler and show he is in control. Afterwards he comes to grips with what he has been doing as Tyler and quickly understands the gravity. Hes with Marla and tells her that she met him at a strange time in his life.

2.)What is the role of the character, Marla Singer in the movie? 

2. Marla is the catalyst for Jack to overcome Tyler. Shes a real person and she doesn’t need another personality to cope with her problems. She just learns to deal and overcome them. She could be the strength and realization that he needs to overcome his own issues and be a stronger person. Without Marla, Jack probably never would of beat Tyler and gained his sanity back. She was completely different from jack and that is what drew him to her. It could of been that deep down he knew that he needed to be saved and was hoping she was the one to do it. There’s a scene where Marl just walks into his house and Jack is shocked and stunned that she knows where he lives and just walks in. “Tyler isn’t here. Tyler went away. Tyler’s gone.” He has no memory of the night before when he was “Tyler” and its as if shes invading his mind. Shes the constant reminder that something is wrong with him and that he needs to do something about it.

3.What does Fight Club stand for? 

Fight Club stands for fucked up things that society does to its people. The mundane life cycle, a 9-5, constant capitalism and bombardment of crap we don’t need can really drive someone to become the way Jack is. Jack is the way he is because he is extremely unhappy with his life. hes forced to work a job he hates and gets no sense of accomplishment out of. Constantly buying new furniture all the time because of being constantly bombarded with new things that the media says he needs to be happy. He snapped and lost his shit. He was so cramped and repressed that Tyler was created because he needed to be set free and not be controlled by a society that doesn’t care about it’s people. Also, his plan to blow up all the buildings and set the credit to 0 was a way of freeing people and not being controlled by a bunch of numbers in a server in a building. 

What is Project Mayhem? 

Project Mayhem is a cult like organization that act like a militia to train and try and bring down modern society. Project Mayhem s the ultimate trigger for Jack to fully lose himself. He tries his hardest to put a stop to it, but he himself set it up and put fail safes to prevent himself from doing it.

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Matrix Quote Analysis

• "I'm trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it."   

The term “ you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink” reminds me of this quote from the Matrix. Its an older saying, but I've heard her say it many times when I was younger. It’s an idea that has always been around and just worded differently depending on the person who said it and where they came from.  You can explain or show anything to anyone, but it is them who will have to make the jump to actually listen, act and do said thing. They have to personally be interested or have an intent to better themselves or be open for a new idea or to take a chance for whatever that thing is for them to actually do it. This is why when ever someone recommends anything to anyone and they don’t always look into it. In this situation Morphious is trying to show Neo the real world outside of the simulation he has been living inside unknowingly, but its Neo’s choice to actually walk through that door. Once you go to the other side it might be impossible to go back to who and what you were. For Neo it would be leaving his simple life with not too much worries in order to be really alive in the real world and try and save humanity. Most people won’t be open to new ideas unless they actively search it out and make the effort. This is also where the red pill and blue pill come into play.  You take the red pill and you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.  You take the blue pill and the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. Neo has to make the choice to take the red pill that he eventually does. No one can do it for him. Taking the courage to possibly experience something out of your comfort zone can be very difficult and no one can make that decision for you. You also have to be ready to make the decision and be comfortable with the possible consequences that come with that choice. Neo leaves the world he thought to be true and now has to live in the real world that has basically been taken over by machines and is a giant wasteland. The new stress and living conditions is drastically less than being inside the matrix, but he is actually free in this world. 

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Simulacrum & Simulation: Assignment

How does the text define Simulacra?

The text defines Simulacra as an image or representation of someone or something else.

How does it define Simulations?

The text defines Simulation as almost an exact copy of someone or something. 

What does the text say about the media and its relationship to physical reality?

“ Abstraction today is no longer that of the map, the double, the mirror or the concept. Simulation is no longer that of a territory, a referential being or a substance. It is the generation by models of a real without origin or reality: a hyper real.” 

These would be the successive phases of the image: 

1. It is the reflection of a basic reality. 

2. It masks and perverts a basic reality.

3. It masks the absence of a basic reality. 

4. It bears no relation to any reality whatever: it is its own pure simulacrum.

What is Hyper-reality?

“hyper reality is an inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality, especially in technologically advanced postmodern societies.”

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Monster Theory

Putting aside Cohen’s discussion, what is a monster to you? How would you define the word “monster”?

Honestly the meaning would be determined on the way it was being used. Majority of the time when I use the word monster literally as monster, like a creature. It can also be used as a horrible person or someone who does things that are so horrible that the only proper label is monster.

What does Cohen mean when he says that “the monster’s body is a cultural body” (4)?

Monster’s can represent wrongs in cultures or society. For example one monster can be related to a specific trait related to that culture. I can’t really think of any off the top of my head that specifically relate to a monster that the majority would know. Also, the every culture has their own myths and legends and monsters that represent different aspects of their heritage.

Which of his other theses resonate with you?

The Monsters polices the border of possible.

I like this idea because each monster in this category represents something different. It also shows the limits of knowing. It warns us against exploring different ways of thinking which is a negative way of thinking in my eyes. Most cultures

Look at his last thesis. How are monsters our “children” (20)?

We create them. We as a society we are the creators of all the monsters that we are scared of because they are by products of us. Every society  and culture is different so the monsters tend to be different.

Cohen ends by asking the question, why do we create monsters? What are some of your tentative thoughts?

We create monsters because we have taboos. There are things that society deems bad so people create concepts and ideas that represent these ideas. Stories and myths pop up to be an analogy for these ideals and monsters are created. 

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Critical Practice postmodern music video

I would say that the band Darke Complex is a postmodern band. They combine many ideas and influences from the pas to create something that has a pretty unique sound. Musically the song has a very Nu-metal vibe with influences of electronic, pop and metal-core. Their sound in itself is really something to pay attention to because a lot of people in the underground stopped being fans because of their new sound while another audience started to chime in and become fans. Evolving and taking in the culture around you to be reincorporated into the art will always lead to a unique expression of what's current. Even though it can be different for everyone depending on where your interest are. The music video for the song "Void" doesn't come across as a metal band music video at all. It's a very pop culture stylized video and looks more like an art gallery than a set for a music video. Typically, heavier or metal influenced bands don’t really have an image represented in this fashion because of the aesthetic most bands have. This is really interesting because we are starting to see other sub cultures influencing other sub cultures and creating a unique sound and image. The visual aspect really seemed to be inspired by pop music videos or hip hop / rnb styled videos. A lot of colors, very simplistic kind of like an art gallery and even back up dancers, which is very uncommon in this genre. A lot of modern clothing trends like a form of hipster street wear and goth inspired fashion are seen on the and members. The combination of everything really is a product of the music scene around us and what trends that have recently taken over the airwaves.  

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PBS assignment

Ideas and who gets to have them?

This topic honestly is all opinion because saying that only certain people are allowed to have an idea if a bit ridiculous. By looking for impactful concepts in media, contemporary art, entertainment, technology, community, the everyday you embrace a more power form of thought in the everyday life. Mike says that "complex ideas are presented as observations had by a single person, and that person is someone with a clear perspective also helps with the ultimate goal of idea channel, to encourage conversation and to get the audience talking." What he is getting is that by presenting his perspective on ideas as observations and not fact that he can get other people talking about their observations and opinions which will most like differ from person to person and get them thinking and having their own idea. Also, everyone is allowed to have an idea because everyone has experiences which leads to ideas, but Mike is aiming more at the idea of who gets to have a complex idea. The combination of complex theories, far out concepts is still open for everyone to chime in on, but as he says it's tough to create a feeling of being welcome to engage with difficult material because it can be really challenging for some. He says that there are 2 categories of the ideas with one being the most well-known professional idea havers that exist and have existed and the people who do the work of applying their thoughts and ideas to a wide range of subjects.  The history of complex ideas makes it hard for everyone to feel like that can have an idea because it wasn't very diverse. It was usually older wealthy white guys, but the foundation was set and still used today is pretty much used all around to this day.  The idea of taking other ideas or observations and using them how you see fit and recreate the idea into something new and into something that may fit their situation or style better. Ideas shouldn’t always be used as a mirror to the real world or exact reflections. They should be taken and combined and evolved into something new for every individual.  

A defense of overthinking Pop culture

Idea channel starts off with saying the has encountered 4 common charges against overthinking. One is that movies are "just movies," video games are "just games." Basically, that these forms of media can be judged from their surface –level content or whatever broad ideas we connect with the medium. Second, going beyond surface level content to find a deeper meaning is opinion dressed as fact and that the only meaning we should look for is that which is objectively verifiable by who is complaining. Third, while discovering deeper meaning and reading too far into something and we are adding meaning to the medium that the creator didn’t intend. The last thing is basically why should we even care to find deep meaning in pop culture.  Every individual has their own meaning and response to things they see and experience and that meaning is objective. In fact this is what makes things useful and meaningful because we get a wide range of ideas and perspectives on a subject which then leads to a new train of thought. Also, this can deeply increase someone's pursuit in meaning while experiencing the world. Mikes says that there is a reason why the Idea Channel uses examples such as Bimo, Dark Souls or even Neon Genesis Evangel ion because they contain theory and philosophy behind their imagery with arguments and defenses for specific ideas. The content of many pop mediums like movies and videos that make people who view or experience them to think about their environment in a different way. A philosophy exercise even though many people may not view it that way. Idea channel thinks that all media is capable of some amount of some type of philosophical work and that finding that media is really prevalent in popular culture.

Thinking with others

Idea Channel contains talking about why they made this show and in this episode they continue with people. Comment responses, including perspectives, have taken a priority for the channel and not technology. They focus on pop culture through its impact on the audiences. Mike talks about critical empathy and he means that on the channel they over think by thinking critically. Critical thinking is also hard to define because its place where many desperate things meet. Many complex ideas or completely separate ideas collide and it can be very hard to grasp everything that leads into the one new idea that is currently in pop culture or the spotlight. " Critical thinking – in being responsive to variable subject matter, issues, and purposes is incorporated in a family of interwoven modes of thinking, among them: scientific thinking, mathematical thinking, historical thinking, anthropological thinking, economical thinking, moral thinking and philosophical thinking." With such a wide variety of thinking all over the spectrum, it can be put to use across many mediums and disciplines. It comes down to thinking about how you think so that you can think better thoughts in the future. It means being aware of yourself and your surroundings so that you can better judge and talk about them. Fully understanding things around can lead to higher levels of thinking therefore allowing more thoughts and ideas to elaborate on what you already think about something and transforming it into something more critical.

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Critical Practice 1 | HCRT-100

Blog Assignment #1

Okay so I kind of agree with the "You Say You Want a Devolution" article, but I disagree with it a lot more. Obviously, trends and aesthetics get recycled from generation to generation so there will be similarities and I know we live in the age of nostalgia and remakes and bringing back old styles, but that is mainly in the mainstream. Not to get all edgy and hipster about this, but a lot of sub cultures are creating their own aesthetics and styles that aren't ever in the spotlight so most people don't see them. Yes, they are going to be obviously influenced by other things, but they are done in a completely new way. For example, look at the aesthetic of skateboarding before 2010 or the punk scene or the hardcore scene. You can go back 30-40 years and see the beginnings of them and they have certainly evolved into something new in the present day. They take the ideas of the past and the next generation will add and create something new. Honestly that’s how the world works. For example, just look at technology, education and science. New things are learned or created and the next generation builds on it creating something new. I feel like the author of this article focuses all their attention on what fashions or aesthetics that are mainly in the public eye or just most popular in this moment. There are so many scenes and styles and just everything that gets overlooked because it's not cool yet, but there is still a big population that does it. Personally, I've been around a ton of people who have styles or dress a certain way that I don't see anyone doing and they reject the aesthetic they see 99% of people copying depending on what trending celebrity or rapper is wearing. The author really needs to open their range of vision to look outside the popular or trending styles. Especially when some of these styles weren't cool at all until a famous person started doing what an underground scene was doing and made it cool and then they get put in an article like this. Everything comes from something though and it's impossible to be 100% original. I think being really original involves taking influences from the past and using in a way that wasn’t done before. There's original ideas popping up all over. You just need to know where to look.