This is a link to the flip book animation on YouTube.
http://youtu.be/Mx6IOtmCLgM
Gates, Zuckerberg: Kids, learn to code VS A Silicon Valley School That Doesn’t Compute
I know it's not part of the assignment, but reading Gates, Zuckerberg: Kids, learn to code I was instantly reminded to an article I read in my Frontiers of Communications class A Silicon Valley School That Doesn’t Compute and I had to compare and contrast the radically different views expressed in these articles.
While "Kids, Learn to code" is suggesting that we are not requiring students to learn to program, the result being that "the United States is lagging behind other countries in developing future software engineers."
However "A Silicon Valley School That Doesn't Compute" suggests that such technologies inhibit creative ability when introduced at an early age. Instead, they prefer to have their students learn programming and other things from their technologically advanced parents, most of whom are directly tied to major electronics companies like Apple and Microsoft.
While creative ability doesn't translate directly into programming talent, it's interesting that executives at these similar companies subscribe to dramatically views in the introduction of technology to students.
Personally, I believe that a mix of both are required. While learning to program is a skill I believe everyone should possess because it teaches logical thinking, basic mathematics and organization skills, I also believe that allowing a computer to consume you is a trap. As someone who myself longs to live in the worlds I create myself, I sometimes feel myself detached from reality, even when I am the one creating the consuming environment.
So I believe that programming is important, but perhaps it should be taught after the creativity is fostered in children. Because a programmer/techie/nerd without imagination, is going to have a tough time succeeding.
While "Kids, Learn to code" is suggesting that we are not requiring students to learn to program, the result being that "the United States is lagging behind other countries in developing future software engineers."
However "A Silicon Valley School That Doesn't Compute" suggests that such technologies inhibit creative ability when introduced at an early age. Instead, they prefer to have their students learn programming and other things from their technologically advanced parents, most of whom are directly tied to major electronics companies like Apple and Microsoft.
While creative ability doesn't translate directly into programming talent, it's interesting that executives at these similar companies subscribe to dramatically views in the introduction of technology to students.
Personally, I believe that a mix of both are required. While learning to program is a skill I believe everyone should possess because it teaches logical thinking, basic mathematics and organization skills, I also believe that allowing a computer to consume you is a trap. As someone who myself longs to live in the worlds I create myself, I sometimes feel myself detached from reality, even when I am the one creating the consuming environment.
So I believe that programming is important, but perhaps it should be taught after the creativity is fostered in children. Because a programmer/techie/nerd without imagination, is going to have a tough time succeeding.
The Strange Beauty of Historic Computers Brought Back From the Dead Impressions
In the article in WIRED The Strange Beauty of Historic Computers Brought Back From the Dead, I was introduced, and reintroduced into many of the precursors to the modern computer.
The first thing I thought of was how totally obsolete they are, and how long it would take one of them to produce the renders I do every day. However, I reconsidered, knowing that many of these computers are used for specific purposes, such as breaking the German codes during WWII. It's interesting to see the role that computers have taken now. Instead of being born out of purpose for something in particular, they fill many general functions, however the most powerful computers are still created for a distinct purpose, so we still haven't left the age of computing innovation built out of necessity.
It is clear that computers do fantastic things today, but consumer computers seem to come with hardware first, and you have to find a purpose (development) later. This could just be my personal attitude however as I always buy the most powerful phone on the market with hardware, without really having a need for that power.
However, as I recall from Triumph of the Nerds the Altair computer was hardware without software, you had to develop your own software, so until stored programs came around, perhaps a different reason for the effect, but similar none the less.
It's fascinating to see the size of the machines, and the power and intelligence required to engineer and use one of these computers, and see now that companies like Apple have adopted the "It Just Works" model.
The first thing I thought of was how totally obsolete they are, and how long it would take one of them to produce the renders I do every day. However, I reconsidered, knowing that many of these computers are used for specific purposes, such as breaking the German codes during WWII. It's interesting to see the role that computers have taken now. Instead of being born out of purpose for something in particular, they fill many general functions, however the most powerful computers are still created for a distinct purpose, so we still haven't left the age of computing innovation built out of necessity.
It is clear that computers do fantastic things today, but consumer computers seem to come with hardware first, and you have to find a purpose (development) later. This could just be my personal attitude however as I always buy the most powerful phone on the market with hardware, without really having a need for that power.
However, as I recall from Triumph of the Nerds the Altair computer was hardware without software, you had to develop your own software, so until stored programs came around, perhaps a different reason for the effect, but similar none the less.
It's fascinating to see the size of the machines, and the power and intelligence required to engineer and use one of these computers, and see now that companies like Apple have adopted the "It Just Works" model.
Grid Art "Sunburst Daisy"
The choice for my Grid Art project was one that took lots of research. Originally I really wanted to go with something luminicent. Unfortunately my options of glowsticks or glowing fluid in cups were both too expensive for a broke college student (upwards of $300), as well as my idea for individually powered and assembled LED diodes (upwards of $500). So I decided to go with something that I could do for almost free. Paper...
Paper is a resource I can get for free from Reslife as I am an RA, and Painters Tape came with it. I decided to recreate a digital image with "pixels" of paper. I chose my favorite modern artist, one who inspired me to pursue 3D Digital Art, Ryan Bliss, founder and sole contributor to Digital Blasphemy.
Next step was to reduce the number of colors in the image. I set the image mode to index to specify the exact number of colors in the image to twenty. From there I manually brought it down to 15 in order to preserve the colors I deemed important. Unfortunately there were a few colors I was missing, so being a poor college student I biked nine miles to Michaels to buy colored paper. After a long bike ride, complicated by my pedal spontaneously falling off I arrived to find that they did not have the colors I needed, so I sacrificed two more colors, one of which was disappointing to me very much as it was the dark teal on the outer rim of the flower.
I took a few pictures of the work and pulled it into Photoshop and flipped it horizontally, then the whole piece vertically. While the quarter image can stand on its own, I wanted to see how it would look pieced together as I intended, it is fairly symmetrical, and I figured this would work "good enough". It came out fantastic as you will see below.
Click Here to see a video I made to demonstrate my process. Please forgive the crude, unscripted nature of the video. I hadn't slept in days because I had to finish the project before the resource room closed for spring break, I was pulling all-nighters all week to finish and had no time for that :D
Triumph of the Nerds Impressions
Definition of nerd is a little mean "boys who would rather struggle with an electronic box than with a world of unpredictable people." The way they portray nerds is offensive. No doubt there are these types of 'nerds', but we are not all like this. We don't all drink mountain dew, and we're not limited to boys, I know plenty of female nerds.
It is interesting to look back at things like the Altair, and everyone thinking it is impossible, when we have essentially supercomputers in our phones now. Our modern perspective is amazing that instead of thinking that it can't be done, the issue in the industry is what do we do next, as we're running out of ideas. Instead of saying we can't do it, we're saying, we'll get there some day.
The majority of the film was stuff we have already covered, the transition of technologies from vacuum tubes to transistors etc... It was interesting seeing the heads of companies talk about their creations and their impacts on the world.
It is interesting to look back at things like the Altair, and everyone thinking it is impossible, when we have essentially supercomputers in our phones now. Our modern perspective is amazing that instead of thinking that it can't be done, the issue in the industry is what do we do next, as we're running out of ideas. Instead of saying we can't do it, we're saying, we'll get there some day.
The majority of the film was stuff we have already covered, the transition of technologies from vacuum tubes to transistors etc... It was interesting seeing the heads of companies talk about their creations and their impacts on the world.
Violence In Video Games
Violence in video games is a very controversial topic in the entertainment industry. I especially agree with Sid Meyer when he says "On one hand I'm a game designer and I believe in freedom of expression [...] we're artists and we're allowed to create. On the other hand I have a twelve year old son who plays video games and I'm very concerned"(1). I do believe that as artists and creators, we should have the right to create the worlds we imagine, regardless of their content, and I would be one of the first to jump behind the ratings as many of the game companies did, as an excuse to publish more violent games.
Senseless Violence In GTA
http://www.kollewin.com/blog/grand-theft-auto
I feel like this video is a little old to express some of the real issues that I see in violence with video games. Games like GTO and the like where it shows a character in a more realistic world, doing things that are possible and horrible. It is this kind of violence that I am opposed to. I feel that video games, regardless of that minors can't by M rated games, is like minors getting alcohol. It's going to happen and it should be a consideration. I would like to see something happen in this realistic realm like what happened in television, where there should be an underlying positive moral theme. Games that glorify senseless violence in the name of greed and baseless hatred are the true issue. Games like halo are a games with a objective to survive, or save their people from some evil. Even the extremely recent StarCraft II Heart of the Swarm where you play the "Evil" race the Zerg, you are fighting to destroy a more evil dictator character. Although you use an evil alien race and slaughter the good guys you played in the first iteration of the game (Wings of Liberty), you are still fighting evil. There are still the themes of love, prejudice, and learning embedded in the game. In one cinematic after fighting the army defending the dictator, led by a good man and good soldiers just doing as they are told, fighting what appears to be the "evil" queen of blades, you kill the general, but he begs you let his retreating soldiers live. After telling the general you won't, she calls off her forces and let them run. These are the games I would like to contribute to in the future.
The Main Character "Good Guy" In StarCraft II Heart of the Swarm
http://www.youngmanblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Heart-of-the-Swarm-cinematic-1024x428.jpg
http://www.kollewin.com/blog/grand-theft-auto
I feel like this video is a little old to express some of the real issues that I see in violence with video games. Games like GTO and the like where it shows a character in a more realistic world, doing things that are possible and horrible. It is this kind of violence that I am opposed to. I feel that video games, regardless of that minors can't by M rated games, is like minors getting alcohol. It's going to happen and it should be a consideration. I would like to see something happen in this realistic realm like what happened in television, where there should be an underlying positive moral theme. Games that glorify senseless violence in the name of greed and baseless hatred are the true issue. Games like halo are a games with a objective to survive, or save their people from some evil. Even the extremely recent StarCraft II Heart of the Swarm where you play the "Evil" race the Zerg, you are fighting to destroy a more evil dictator character. Although you use an evil alien race and slaughter the good guys you played in the first iteration of the game (Wings of Liberty), you are still fighting evil. There are still the themes of love, prejudice, and learning embedded in the game. In one cinematic after fighting the army defending the dictator, led by a good man and good soldiers just doing as they are told, fighting what appears to be the "evil" queen of blades, you kill the general, but he begs you let his retreating soldiers live. After telling the general you won't, she calls off her forces and let them run. These are the games I would like to contribute to in the future.
The Main Character "Good Guy" In StarCraft II Heart of the Swarm
http://www.youngmanblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Heart-of-the-Swarm-cinematic-1024x428.jpg
Alan Turing
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=alan+turing&FORM=HDRSC2#view=detail&id=393F82C8973EF9AE92E3FF44B2E91BFEEE7E62F1&selectedIndex=29
Alan Turing, a name and a process that I recognized, but did not really know about until recently. After a short video and some of my own research I have looked into who he was, and the fantastic things he did, and what he could have done.
I was aware of the Turing test, a process to determine if a machine is intelligent or not, but I didn't know how exactly it worked. Attempting to teach a computer something without instructing it to know something is something that still hasn't been achieved today, but Alan Turing surely set the fascination and the foundation for attempts to do so. While we see things like "AI" today that can beat champions in chess, and myself to a pulp in StarCraft, these are not truly intelligent. They are actions that react to our actions based on pre-created results. The computer cannot choose to disobey the command and do something else.
It
was interesting to discover that Alan Turing worked on biological
patterns in plants and how they relate to the fibonacci sequence.
Biological computers, something I was tempted to get into in the last
paragraph are something that consumes my interest. If patterns can be
found, in plants, or animals, then computing can take place. We already
know that the human mind is a powerful computer, rendering more
extremely HD frames per second through our eyes than we can render on
computers in months. If Alan Turing hadn't taken his life, my dream of
seeing this happen in my lifetime would be much higher. It's a
disgusting and terrible shame what happened to him. Not only to be
publicly shamed, but to have his life, clearance, pride and happiness
taken away from him for something that should never have been considered
a crime in the first place. Then to be subjected to "treatments" is
something I have felt the touch of, but never truly experienced. The
very thought of such savagery disgusts me as I oppose attempting to
change anyone.
How Walt Disney Made Snow White
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhfp6Z8z1cI&feature=youtu.be
This quick documentary was a look deep into the production methods for Disney animations. It was interesting to find the way that they colored each slide on top of the drawing. Then the over half a million repeats of that last process was crazy. That's a lot of work and it shows in the quality of the animation.
This quick documentary was a look deep into the production methods for Disney animations. It was interesting to find the way that they colored each slide on top of the drawing. Then the over half a million repeats of that last process was crazy. That's a lot of work and it shows in the quality of the animation.
BluBlu
BLUBLU - MUTO Impressions
BLUBLU - MUTO
I was very impressed by this work of stop motion art. As I struggle to complete my own flip book animation, as I have learned with animation in Photoshop, stop motion animation is a hard and painfully long process. To see an artwork on this scale is impressive, and must have taken months to complete.
The environment which they chose to perform this piece in was a fantastic approach, especially when they start to manipulate the setting with the characters in the performance.
I couldn't really follow the plotline other than just abstraction, the inevitability of death, and rebirth of the old. The sound design, while obviously not present while creating the piece was professionally put together, appropriate and pronounced.
Overall the watching experience was an inspiring and entertaining one.
BLUBLU - MUTO
I was very impressed by this work of stop motion art. As I struggle to complete my own flip book animation, as I have learned with animation in Photoshop, stop motion animation is a hard and painfully long process. To see an artwork on this scale is impressive, and must have taken months to complete.
The environment which they chose to perform this piece in was a fantastic approach, especially when they start to manipulate the setting with the characters in the performance.
I couldn't really follow the plotline other than just abstraction, the inevitability of death, and rebirth of the old. The sound design, while obviously not present while creating the piece was professionally put together, appropriate and pronounced.
Overall the watching experience was an inspiring and entertaining one.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)