Ignite Talk

Linked below is the last project I did for my College English course, and hopefully it was a great conclusion to one of the best English courses I have taken so far, in terms of creative thinking.  I hope this idea of limitless creativity doesn't go away in the rest of my college experience, but here's the video of my presentation.  Enjoy, and ignore the constant whacking of my leg with my hand.  I had no clue I did that until now, I don't even remember doing it during my presentation.

Publication- The Force of Fiction

Force of Fiction Magazine

One of the things I worked on recently was a magazine where all the call to papers that were sent to my group were all put together.  I was surprised at how good it looked, and how it came out.  We only had to put all the Call to Papers in it, but I decided that was too boring for me, so I slid in two fun articles into the front portion.  The link is above the picture, and the fun articles are called "The Console Wars", and "Star Wars Returns".  Both got really good feedback, and were really fun to write.  I guess they came from my growing obsession with the xbox one, which came out on Nov. 22nd.  I wanted to watch the countdown, but I'm not much of a midnight release kind of person.  I wouldn't be able to stay up that late, unless I had been lying around a couch all day long, and since it was a school day (thursday) that wasn't happening.  I think my family is judging me, because when I said I wanted one, I was immediately questioned if I would rather have the Playstation 4.  That's how bad the representation of the new xbox was.  How could they mess up the presentation of the only thing they have been working on for years?!  

Anyway, with thanksgiving just a few days away, the semester is coming to a close, and with that said, I'm trying to show everything that I have done this semester.  The only problem is that there was so much done, that I don't even remember doing.  This could be a long process.  Down below I'm linking the publications where I sent my own call to papers.  Read them, and support the groups while you're at it.  I'm only linking two, because one of the papers was sent to my own publication linked all the way at the top of the page.

Warfare and technology (mine is under the super weapon category)

Warfare and Technology Publication

Progressing Technology

Progressing Technology Publication

Nanowrimo Week Two

They don't lie when they say that week two is the worst.  I took the weekend to go ahead and plot out my characters, and even made a timeline, but I still feel like there are moments where I doubt how much of this I can take.  I type whenever I can, and for me right now that is an amazing feat.  The thing is that I want to see this book through to the end.  Come Friday I am supposed to have around 25,000 words.  To some of you it would be a little bit of a random number to take so much pride, but considering that the goal is 50,000 words, I am ecstatic.  Last year I only made it to around 11,000 words, so with my current word count being at 20,000 this year has already surpassed my expectations from last year.  To those of you who have encouraged me with writing this novel, thank you.  Maybe I can actually finish this book for once?

Revisions I made to my Drafts

                                             Revisions to Progress of Technology

I used the midst of action intro for my actual introduction for the paper.

If you can't read it, it is mostly my alternate introductions, a midst of action introduction, and an outline of the major points of the paper.

The Force of Fiction Revision

Didn't use any of the introductions I wrote, but this helped me decide that I actually liked how my paper started.

Tech and Warfare Revision

This one was shorter, so the midst of action introduction made up the entire draft, though I think in the end I'll add more before it's due.

Nanowrimo Days Seven and Eight

First week is almost down, and I think I'm starting to realize how much more planning I need for this story.  I learned last year that you don't jump into a story without proper planning, it ends in misery and defeat.  And I will say this, being told you failed Nanowrimo is a harrowing experience, it kills your motivation on writing for a while.  The miracle?  The weekend is almost here, and with it comes more oppurtunity to write, which means catching up.  Nanowrimo is going to have a marathon on Saturday, but I probably won't be fully on track with that.  Friday I might sit, and use a white board to do more brainstorming, so I can hopefully carry on with this 50,000 word goal.

Right now, I am at around the 10,000 word mark, a little behind, but slowly trying to catch up.  I may end up looking for more motivational tools soon, but I think I can stick this out, and still make good grades in school.  A writer can dream.

Reflecting on the Drafts

As a joke I'll just say that there's not much to reflect on my writing process, because I think we can all catch that that was a bad lie.  When I write there is a process, but it is confusing, and hard to remember when looking back at it.  I have a symptom of bad memory.  There are bits of music that creep into my other writing project, and instead of just influencing my book, it puts its mark on everything.  Some of the new music is by an artist call Les Friction.  It sounds weird, but this music is epic, and helped me imagine some of the scenes in my other project.

Les Friction
-World on Fire
-Firewall
-Here comes the reign
-Louder than Words
-Who will save you now


Listen to some of the songs, and you get a little bit of my process right there.  There's a sense of dramatic thought to these songs, and they drove me to work harder, and stay strong in my Nanowrimo goal.  Check through some of my other posts if you are interested in any of the music in this post, some of the others have more music that has inspired me.

Music has only been a portion of this progress though, and due to my earlier progress post you can see how Oblivion played a role in which drafts I chose to write, and how I would write them.  Though it never was mentioned in the drafts, it influenced how I looked at the ideas during my brainstorming process.

Most of the rest of the process was dominated by my own experiences, and those of family members who were impacted by the subject at hand.  The joke from before comes to mind, and I think the reason for its existence is that it can be so hard to explain.  There are hardly enough words to describe how you pass through ideas, and let your imagination run wild.  The fact that I did most of these drafts in a short span of time doesn't help in reflecting on it.  I think writers in general want to be tight lipped in how their process works, its their special way of doing things, and part of their reclusive get away from the world.  To reveal that is like opening yourself to a world that may not accept your way.

This picture speaks volumes of how the song, firewall is just so powerful.  If you go onto youtube, this is the picture get when the song plays, and it just reflects the song so well.  This song was just so inspirational to my process.  Here are some pictures from when I started writing both my drafts, though the focus is on technology.

I don't own any of the pictures, except for the writing ones.  The first two belong to their respective owners.

Nanowrimo Day Four

Day four and I feel like it's beginning to hit that excruciating point of the writing process.  This is technically another rewrite, but I have vowed not to try to edit anything I have written. The problem lies in re purposing old material that can still be used in the current version, and characters that I want to keep but have no explanation for.  The only thing that is inspiring enough to keep me going is more music.  :)
 Here's my list for the last week:
-Invincible (2013) (Battle Rock) though it's only on youtube
-This is for the Fallen (Epic Vocal Rock)
-Star Trek (1st one) soundtrack

It's short, but still effective for writing.  I am currently at around 7,000 words today, supposedly on track for the 50,000 word count for the month.  If any of you are looking for a challenge, try this next year, or if you're extremely courageous you can still try it this year, though you'd already be several thousand behind.  It's an experience I've been proud to even try for the second time, winning or not.

Nanowrimo

Those unused to the term used in this title might want to get acquainted with it.  The name Nanowrimo refers to National Novel Writing Month (yes, it's real-look it up if you're interested), and that month just so happens to be November.  Last year I tried my hand at the 50,000 word goal and made it to a sad 11,000 if that was even the score (I think I heavily rounded up).  This year I've decided once was not enough, and hey, maybe I have gotten smarter, so I'm giving it a try with a bit of a clearer plan in mind.  The focus of this writing marathon is going to be Rebirth, which is starting to be a thorn in my side, so why not?  Right?

If any of you find the site, and decide you're insane enough to take a stab at it, be forewarned, do not take it lightly.  50,000 words is roughly 2,000 words a day.  That's enough words to drive even the best of us crazy, and I'm not banking on myself making it to that word count.  Wish me luck, and I might post my first week's word count, just don't expect a grand amount.  :)

Call to Papers progression

Ever had that sudden inspiration from a movie hit you?  Every now and then it hits me like a wall, and it becomes all I can think of.  On Friday night I watched Oblivion, and it is still like a drug to my brain, the end credits song has been my go to song for quite a few tasks, and I think it even affected what call to paper ideas that I gravitated to.  I chose the call to papers of Progressing Technology, and the Force of Fiction.  Both I think followed my love of science fiction, and the realm of creating things from ideas that are already in existence.

If you are in need of an interesting song, check it out, but I think the end credits had such a profound effect on me, because it also worked in some cartography parts, mapping out the world of the movie, and I had a nerd moment.  I'm pretty bad when it comes to things like that.  It just shows how much effort went into the idea of a story, and I have to say that I'm a little jealous that I don't even want to try things like that.

  Oblivion End Title Sequence Video

I guess the main reason for this post is to track the progress of my drafts of the call to papers, though this inspiration is definitely a part of this progress.

To start out, I really just stuck to the Murray cards, which were kind of like my first rough draft, my laziness at rethinking an idea coming out full stream.  I liked the idea anyway, so why fix something that clearly works?  To help connect the different ideas, and writings I added in some filler sentences, connecting my ideas on technology.  For finalizing I re-checked the actual call to paper, and made sure I followed what they were asking.  This one had less to log, but that was mostly because I had technically already done it, so there wasn't much to report on.

For the second call to paper, I did my own, The Force of Fiction.  I just love fiction, and while I really want to get it known for influencing the world around you, there's also this lighter side, another version of the truth is probably a good way to describe fiction basically.

Since I didn't start a set of Murray cards on the Force of Fiction draft, it took some time to start, because while I made the call to paper, I hardly remembered what I had asked for.  Long weekends breed horrible memory, and this was just one of those things that decided to be forgotten.  Once I figured out what I exactly had asked for, I created a sentence to start off with.  Of course that sentence would describe fiction as part of my lifestyle.  I'm seriously heading down that nerd hole when it comes to my writing, if my obsession with Oblivion doesn't already show my nerd tendencies.  

To end my progress report, I think I stuck with my gut on this one, and didn't try to do it on Oblivion.  Instead I did Lord of the Rings, which has had a much longer lasting effect on me.  I grew up with it, I learned from it, and it's one of those things I connect with my dad with.  It's a classic to put it simply.  Boromir just seems to get to me when I think of the trilogy, and the lesson he represents was definitely something I could talk about for the call to paper.  That's what I love about fiction, characters aren't just random people.  They're life lessons, and above all else, they're your mistake makers.  You learn from their mistakes, so that you can seem that much more flawless in real life.  The fact that it's entertaining is just an amazing bonus.

To end it, I think in all, Oblivion really did help me with prepping for these drafts.  It's music, and art was just impressive on all accounts, and it quickly became my muse for my creative work this week.

All pictures and video owned/copyrighted by Universal Pictures, Monolith Pictures, Chernin Entertainment, Relativity Media, and Radical Studios.

Reflecting on the Toyhack (Fiction and Science)

This make was a little different for me.  It definitely took me a while to come up with an idea that I could use with toys representing it.  The inspirations were harder to pinpoint than last time, because it spanned over several weeks, even a week before the actual make.  Here's a list of some of the media I went through that helped me come up with this idea:

Books/Authors/Characters
-Boromir (Lord of The Rings)  I think the whole growth he had just when he was dying teaches the reader that they should have an open mind, instead of being so heavy handed with your own opinions.
-Frodo (Lord of the Rings)  Don't wish to get away so much.  Live in the moment.
-Tolkien
-Galdoni by Cheree Alsop:  Her Galdoni people inspired the idea for the clone fight, and people being forced into a life by other humans.
-Insurgent/Divergent by Veronica Roth:  These books brought the idea of too much power, and losing part of ones humanity to mind.  Her thoughts on how when Tris had to shoot a gun she had to lose herself in order to do it.
-Rebirth by Me (Lauren Price)  With Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month) coming up in November, I've been thinking more and more about my own series, trying to decide what to do with it.  That said, it's no surprise it inspired part of the toy hack.

Songs
-Laura Palmer by Bastille
-Pompeii by Bastille
-My kind of love by Emeli Sande
-Things We lost in the Fire by Bastille
-Lost in the Echo by Linkin Park
-Castle of Glass by Linkin Park
-117 from Halo 4 soundtrack

All of these songs had a profound effect on my writing in Rebirth, and scene ideas, so in the long run it affected the make too.

Movies
-Gladiator
-The Fellowship of the Ring

Video Games
-Halo 3 Odst
-Halo 4

Other Videos
-Trailer of Divergent
-MV of Divergent: Laura Palmer

The only difficulty that occurred during the make were the speech bubble apps, which I went through three or four before finding one that would let me insert more than one bubble without a fee.  Not really a difficulty, but a hindrance that happened during the last scene was my cat knocking over the legos, because he was hungry, and figured that was the only way I was going to feed him.  My brother on the other hand, was happy to help since it was his lego sets I was using.  That's probably why I chose legos over any other toy, because we had an abundance of them, and they are better at portraying some of the emotions I wanted to get across.

Inspirations

One thing I noticed when I finished up Divergent (Veronica Roth) last week was that she had written about some of the things that had inspired her to write her series, and create the idea of the factions.  Of course I thought about the fact that she listened to songs I hadn't, but I also thought about how these things can affect you, as well as your writing.  I figured I should share some of the most recent music I've listened to.

-Pompeii by Bastille
-Laura Palmer by Bastille
-War of Change by Thousand Foot Krutch
-Against the tide by Celldweller
-Runnin by Adam Lambert
-Shattered by Trading Yesterday
-Right Here by Ashes Remain                                          
-Radioactive by Imagine Dragons                                    
-Never close our eyes by Adam Lambert
-Clarity by Zedd ft. Foxes

It's a small selection for now, but I think these songs really made me think about what I was writing, and where I would go with some of my characters.  Against the tide has been my go to song for anything about the relationship of my main character and his brother.  With Nanowrimo coming up in less than a month I am in the process of setting up my characters and plotline/chapter guide again.  Maybe this time I can stay strong enough to focus just on Imminent Wars, and not editing for once.  What do you think of music and writing?  What inspires you?  Feel free to share some good song titles as well, I love checking out new stuff!
And any writers out there, what gets you prepped for writing?

Short Stories are Murder on your Brain

Another week has gone by in my life, and there's a voice in the back of my head that is judging my inactivity with my writing.  You know how writers are supposed to write everyday?  I've written for my series maybe once this week.  Is it my fault that my classes have bombed me?  But nope, my brain is slamming me with guilt.  A solution?  I thought I would do a submission to a literary-Arts magazine on campus.  The only problem is that it has to be a short story, and most of the ones I saw in their magazine were life stories, and romance.  This is where I worry about the little things like my violent writing which sometimes doesn't have an ounce of romance, and may not have a happy ending.  It doesn't help that I usually create story ideas for the long haul, not a few pages.  This could become difficult, but maybe if I succeed I can find the motivation to aim for that goal of publishing.  A writer can dream, right?

I'm still wondering if I want to do Nanowrimo this year.  November is National Novel Writing month, but the one question is if I have the time to put towards 50,000 words for that month.  Last year I tried, and I got bombed with projects during that month.  Maybe I'll try again, and have a death wish for my brain.

The Dreamworld

There's a concept of an idea I've been thinking about ever since I figured out the name of this blog.  When is it bad to dream?  When have we gone too far, and it begins to hinder us?  I say I want to be an author, and I get a few laughs from the person I said it to.  Do they not believe me?  Did it seem funny?  In a world where the publishing industry is choosing to go digital, I stick with my paperback and hardback books, dreaming of a world where they can't disappear.

I think that for many, some goals seem too high to even ponder on.  J.K. Rowling was living off the government when she was writing Harry Potter, and don't get me started on the life of an artist.  They are paid almost nothing, and as if a miracle has hit the world, people go out and buy their stuff.  The only thing is, it can't help that starving artist anymore, they're kind of dead.  The dreamers get hurt by the non-believers.  It's a fact that's sort of out there.  What kid hasn't been told, "sure, you can do that," in a sarcastic tone?  I know I've gotten it.  I'm okay with people not wanting to believe me, but it's the ones that try to tell you it isn't possible that make me upset.  They tell you it can't be done, and to boot some people just try to discourage you overall.  To get to the point, why are some so bent on not believing in something?  To dream is to think of a better future, a point where you are truly happy, so why do they object to someone finding that destination?  I realize some kids dream of being some pretty wild stuff, but support the idea of their dream, they're still innocent, or better yet, just give them something to be proud of themselves for.  Who knows, maybe that dreaming kid reading a book just might be the next J.R.R. Tolkien.  I know I want to be given the support, and backing necessary to write a series, because honestly, it isn't the easiest task to complete.

Sorry if this sounded like a rant, it just crossed my mind.  If this made an impression on any of you, you can comment, though if it's only anger, please just hold back for me.  I think this post was mainly to address my idea of dreaming, dreaming for me is essential to how I write and create.

Make Cycle 2: Sucked into the Game

(Make Cycle 2 is below)
For my second make cycle I decided to write a short story.  At this point (For the picture) it is still in it's beginning stages, and I have yet to really look at it for editing, so it's far from completion.  In it I am combining my one pager ideas on Star Wars, Video games, Hollywood and science, and The Evolution of technology.  Typing this, I only have five paragraphs, all of which are extremely short, and only exist due to dialogue.  For me this make outlines some of the issues that can arise with technology, and where it can go in the future, especially gaming technology, which is always changing, but not always improving.  So I guess this short story is a take on some of my favorite pastimes and where I see science taking it in the near or far off future.

 

The main idea of the short story is to raise questions about where science is going, and what people could possibly use it for in the future.  In modern life we already have issues with hackers, and it's especially a problem among gamers in online universes, so essentially how could it end up further along the years?  The process of creating this make cycle was an idea that popped up when I was going back over the one pagers.  In the past I've enjoyed stories that took place in a game world, so this short story seemed a pretty good idea.  It covers all the one pagers for the most parts, some more than others.  It takes Hollywood's exaggeration of science, video games, well I'm pretty sure we can piece that one together, Star War's look at the future of science, and the evolution of technology is kind of shown in the story with how the video game world works.  Most of the process of making was just me sitting at the computer, listening to music as I typed it up, and of course editing it later. Though for others, my process started with me thinking about the one pagers, and flicking through youtube for music.  My music is a mix between soundtracks from all kinds of movies.  Some media that influenced me a lot were the Sword Art Online, and Ready Player One.  Both of these pieces of imagination brought to mind what could happen in the video game world.  In Sword Art Online they are stuck in the video game, and Ready Player One actually brings video game culture to forefront of the story, daily life playing and happening around the video game world. Sorry to pull the horrible ending, it was already getting too long, and hey, maybe I can extend it in the future.

Sword Art Online:

Ready Player One:

Some Soundtracks to check out: (What I listened to when writing this as well as similar soundtracks)

-Sword Art Online Soundtrack

-Halo 4 Soundtrack

-Two Steps From Hell soundtrack

-Mass Effect 3 Soundtrack

All copyrighted material is not mine, Ready Player One written by Ernest Cline, Sword Art Online story created by Reki Kawahara, and Individual soundtracks owned by respective companies.

Here's the Actual Make:

“Sucked into the Game”

                The room was dark, the only light being emitted was aimed at one of the four walls.  Loud bursts of gunfire echoed bright flashes of light, the only occupant staring at the violent expanse before him in delight.

                “Take that you alien scum!”  His fingers darted over the keys of the controller in his hand with a crazed obsession.

                “Michael.  There’s a band of aliens coming from the east entrance.”  Another boy’s face flashed onto the right hand portion of the wall.

                “Alright, Benjy.  Keep it calm.  Why don’t circle around the north entrance, and we hit them from both sides?”

                “Fine by me. But my score is higher than yours.  Don’t act so mighty.”  For effect, Benjy flashed his Gamerscore under his picture, the high stats number highlighted just for Michael.

                “Whatever man.  Are you going to do it, or what?”  Michael let loose a string of moves, his character blasting, and punching the approaching aliens.

                “I’m already moving.  These tunnels are crazy long.  What do you think happened to our teammates?”  An icon popped up on the screen, Benjy’s dot moving slowly on the map.

                “Ditched at the beginning of the match.  A whole bunch of pussies.”

                “Man!  Couldn’t they have at least stayed to see how it would go?”

                “Probably went to watch the news.  Because that’s as close as they’re going to get to this action.”  Michael pumped his fist as he got a head shot on a tall alien, the opponent crashing to the floor with a ‘bang’.  “I am so catching up to that score of yours.”

                “You’re so unfair.  Can’t you at least save me something to shoot at?”  Benjy’s character ran out of the tunnel, assassinating one of Michael’s enemy from behind.

                “Why?  You’re doing just fine.”  The last alien went down, and Benjy playfully did a punch at Michael’s character, Michael’s health rating plummeting slightly at the contact.  “That was uncalled for Benjy.  You aren’t being a sore loser, are you?”

                “You’re lucky you’re a nice person outside of the video game world.”  Michael shrugged, the action unseen by his friend.  Their conversation ended as a box appeared in front of them, both of their characters inching away out of habit.

                “What is that?”  Michael was the first to step closer, still just far enough for it not to have an effect on the object.

                “We better leave that.  We’re on the internet, Michael.  It could be a virus.  You remember those hackers that hack into the video game.”

                “And when has that happened to us?”  He could hear Benjy muttering unintelligible curses through the microphone.  “I’m just going to open it.  You can step back more if you want to.”  One last curse was mumbled, and Benjy stepped closer to the box, his character’s weapon aimed at the object.

                “If I get another freaking virus in the system, my dad’s going to murder me.”

                “Just tell him it was my fault.”  They opened the box, and moved back, staring at its empty inside for a moment, neither wanting to say anything.

                “I almost peed my pants over this?”  Michael snorted, trying to hold in his laughter as his character kicked the box, the object spinning in place.

                “That was fun.  Want to do a team game?” 

                “I don’t know.  That seriously messed with my brain.”  Michael stopped the laughter that had hit him so hard, staring down as the box as it lit up.  Without warning his screen went black, a light beeping repeating overtop of Benjy’s voice.

                “What?”

                “You got me another freaking virus!  I’m screwed!  Screwed, I tell ya.”  Michael could hear Benjy shaking a few of his gadgets even over the beeping. 

                “Benjy.  Look at that.”  The carnage stopped, Michael staring, dazed, at the small light that appeared on the screen.

                “I can’t take this.”  An icon popped on the screen, the words ‘Quitting is not permitted’ flashed in large red letters.  “Just let me out!”  Michael tried to exit the game as well, but the same pop up met him, his character taking form on the screen. 

                “Welcome to Legacy.”  Around his character, the setting slowly faded into existence, a dark sky looming overhead, and a forest taking root all over the place.  The voice that had spoken before began again, listing out general information of the world they had stepped into.  “Your goal is to make it to the inside of Mount Renegan.  Home and sanctuary of the gamer’s alliance.” 

                “Gamer’s Alliance?  What is she talking about?”  He tapped the map icon on the upper left hand of his screen, but all it currently showed was the forest.

                “Computer.  Where are we?”  Benjy’s question only served to make the system repeat itself entirely.

                “Give it up, Benjy.  Let’s just head over to Mount whatcha-ma-call it.   If we do that it might just let us go back.”

                “I don’t want to.  Let them have our personal information.  This is screwed up.”

                “And what if your parents find out their information is now on the internet?”  Benjy fell silent, and followed Michael’s character.  The terrain of the game was a reflection of one of the old forests that used to exist on Earth Michael noticed.  Each tree was unique, its limbs twisting off in every direction.  The sky up above was hardly visible, even though it was late fall, and all the leaves had fallen.  There was a low beep as something popped up on their maps, a small dot quickly advancing on their position.  Michael’s character reached for the gun he always carried, but his fingers grasped at air.

                “I don’t have my weapons, Michael!”

                “I don’t either.”  Michael looked at their surroundings, and pulled Benjy’s character with his behind a cropping of bushes and trees.  It wouldn’t last long, but at least it would give them some time to figure something out.  They waited a few long seconds before a figure ran at their last position and stopped, a long sword held at the ready.  It took Michael a few seconds to realize who it was standing in front of them.  “Jason?”  The character in front of them looked around at the surroundings and then saw them, stepping closer, its old video game styled armor glinting in the cold lighting.

                “Michael and Benjy.  Man, I haven’t seen the two of you in forever!”

                “Where have you been?”  Jason put his sword back into its sheath, and motioned for them to follow him.

                “Stuck here.  My parents found me in the gaming room, and I had to explain it to them.  But what happened was that I was able to hack the hacker.” 

                “Hack the hacker?”  Benjy’s confusion was obvious.

                “I was playing that new game, and got to the level where you’re on this volcano world.  Came this close to winning, it was amazing.”  He made a gesture with his fingers, indicating how close, and continued his story.  “And then this game boss came out of nowhere.  I knew he didn’t belong there, so I fought him.  I even began a system clean-up for the game.  That was when it wouldn’t let me out.  And then I ended up here.  People pop into this place every now and then.”

                “Is there any way out?”  Jason nodded, and pointed due north toward a large mountain.

                “That’s Mount Renegan.”

                “So why are you still here?”

                “I haven’t stayed in here this entire time.  I keep coming back to try to destroy it.  It’s getting there, but I still have a long way to go.”

                “I guess that makes sense.”  Michael looked again at the large mountain and let out a sigh.  “Who brought us here anyway?”

                “It took some time.  But I found out it was a hacker in the old Japanese sector.  He’s pretty good.  Come on.”    He led them through the woods, a trek that lasted a few hours, before they ended up on the outskirts of the woods, a makeshift village greeting them.  Ramshackle houses, and shops lined the sides of a dirt road, players watching their arrival with guarded looks.

                “Jason.  Who are these people?”  Jason lightly hit Michael, to keep him from staring at the people, and kept his own gaze on the dirt road they were walking on.

                “Players that can’t leave.  Their information is now linked to this game world because of the hacker.  If they leave, they lose everything.”

To be Continued…..

The Evolution of Technology

     Within the last decades our market has been flooded with technology that is constantly being replaced by its new superior.  For many this is what technology is all about, but for others it creates a question of what this rapid evolution of science is doing to us.  Is it only about being up to date, or has the unpredictable evolution created a breed of consumers that buy only for the sake of the next new thing?  In this context, science is what is increasingly pushing out new phones, mp3s, laptops, and cameras, whether it is the science that makes these devices smaller, or what gives them their faster processing speeds.  To do science, is to create these pieces of technology, or design them, and those that do these jobs are the creators, large companies like Samsung, Apple, Toshiba, and Dell.  The only elements that would be missing from this technological expansion would be the advancements or upgrades that still have not come out on the market.

 A truth that is assumed in this constantly changing market is that the consumer will buy almost anything if it is the “next biggest” thing.  This assumption by the large companies creates instances where they try to sell the same technology that they had already put on the market.  It creates a good payday for the company but puts the consumer in a difficult position as they try to be informed and smart about their purchasing.

            The major issue that I find with this evolution is what it does to consumers, and how companies play off of it, breeding horror shows like Black Friday.  While it may be up to the consumer to partake in these events, companies make it hard to avoid that feeling of wanting to replace your old-tech with their bombardment of commercials, flyers, and other consumers.

Some Images from: http://www.fotolia.com/id/42502368, and http://www.knavickas.com/?p=116.

Fourth one pager, and my phone is up there.  I actually got asked once if a person could see it.  I feel like my phone is now a museum piece, should I be proud of that, or should I take that as a sign?

Hollywood and Science

     Hollywood and Science is probably one of the least likely partnerships for many movie viewers.  While they can occasionally get aspects right, they tend to live more off of exaggeration than reality, but in the context of science fiction, directors give a glimpse of the future that we all wonder about.  For Hollywood, science is the future and what it holds in store for all of us.  Directors try to give an image of what it means to do science in these cinematic pieces by showing us the production process of the technology/science, or giving us a scientist to hook the creations upon.  This establishes some of the background information for the actual storyline, and makes the audience whole heartedly follow what is happening.  Typically the screenwriter, producer, and director get to name what the science in the story actually is.  In some movies the elements of science can be almost non-existent, but in others like “I Robot”, the uses, creation, and future of science is almost laid out for the viewer to appreciate. 

 For audiences of Hollywood, a truth that can assumed here is that most of what these movies promote as science will never be fully accurate.  Hollywood and its films will never be known for one hundred percent accuracy, because they will generally want to work some angle, and reality doesn’t always fit their agendas.  This is represented by some of their past attempts at portraying actual events like those of historical significance, which historians find are fatally skewed or flawed.  Sometimes in their attempt to show elements of science, Hollywood finds itself pointing fingers at certain individuals, and not trying to find the full story of the event that had happened.  This breeds an under-informed public, who tends to believe all that Hollywood feeds them.

Even with Hollywood’s flaws, they still manage to entertain our fancies, and promote our Era of scientific evolution.  This helps raise some of the modern issues that don’t always make it to the general public, and inspire the future science thinkers.  The only thing audiences should be wary of is the question of, what is actually true, in relation to science.  So, is Hollywood only exaggerations, or is there some form of a truth that we can take from their skewed opinions?

Images property of Columbia Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, MGM Studios, and Warner Brothers.

Third English assignment, called a one pager, and why not Hollywood?  I love movies, until they are made from books where the director completely ignores the book's important parts.  Hope that never happens to me.

The Science of Video Games

      

      Over the last decades the world of video games has both gradually, and rapidly changed from that small section in a store to aisles of competitors, and vast arrays of genres.  Beyond the general scheme of putting the games together, there is more science to these virtual realities than consumers would ever care to think about.  From the beginning of a game there are several standards that are placed before us; new world technology, fast paced music, and the settings themselves.  In the context of video games, science is the world that you’re transported to, albeit the racing, fighting, or strategy world that you choose.  In these worlds you are doing more than simply playing, you’re studying how it works, and how to use the environment to your advantage.  To do science here you’re either the creator who sits for hours programming, or the player who studies their worlds without end.  The creator is the boss of these worlds, and he gets to choose what is important to the game title.  While most elements of science can be found in these series, some aspects are hidden from the viewer, how the world came together, and sometimes the players never know about all the research that is behind one simple point in the game, like a map in a world.  This is what generally leads to people believing that video games are all made up, and purely imagination.

  A truth that is assumed and shown throughout the creation, and the playing of these games is that anything can be accomplished, or done in these worlds.  Players can be their best, they can reach their goals, and can even create something that they could not otherwise have in real life.  These truths are shown by the abilities given to the gamer, through additional material, the gaming experience has allowed players to set different difficulties, and let them tweak the actual world itself.  These abilities though, have occasionally brewed inner turmoil with some players modifying it past the limits the creators set, and some even going as far as hacking the system, so that they are virtually unstoppable against other players.   

  Video games give much more than a fun time in the modern world, they give viewer access to an escape, real world information, and allow the player to feel emotions they may or may not get to feel in real life.  In all they give some a chance to vent, accomplish, and overall a sense of enjoyment.  They bring to families together, and they can even teach, breaching the beliefs that they can’t be any more than a small time amusement.  How can Science be important when connected with Video Games?  Video games have become a reachable part of science    in modern culture, and continues to inspire the next generation,  subsequently pushing the boundaries of what is thought to be possible.

Images property of Bungie, Capcom, 343 Industries, and Turn 10 studios.

This was an assignment I did for my English paper, and of course I was a total nerd, and did it on some of my favorite video games.  Got to say that I am disappointed that the xbox one is coming out, and I can't get it.  My video gamer brain is going to cry when Halo 5 and Forza 5 come out.  By the way, did they plan that?  I mean seriously, both are at 5 at the same time.  A little suspicious.  :) 

When do we have too much power?

When do we have too much power?

A science Narrative of the Star Wars Saga

            For many Star Wars is primarily a classic example of good old science fiction, but even categorized under the classification of fiction, there are many scientific issues raised in its high tech storyline.  Science in this epic Saga can mean a number of things, from the technology used in ships, and weapons, to the creation, or saving of a life.  These different examples are shown through the use of scenes that take a sweeping panoramic view of a battle, or in the case of the creation of life, Obi Wan’s inspection of the clones on the planet of Kamino.  Most of the technology presented in these cases is not always shown being created, in fact the only times we see the people “doing” science is when a robotic hand is being attached to someone, or where we see the different stages of the clones during their “growth”.  The main characters only use the technology in their wars, never raising a question about where it all came from.

            The people in charge of doing the science, and naming it, are mainly the writers, producers, and directors of the films, and the Star Wars universe.  They dictate what happens in the story, and how they affect the storyline, and its characters.  There are no visible missing elements of science in these movies, the writers covering everything from the medical points, to the destructive ones as well.  What is missing is the people who create the technology, and medicine, they are absent throughout the series, technology seeming to just appear at times.

  

       

   One of the truths assumed in the Saga is that science is not one sided, there are usually both pros and cons to technology, medicine, and the creation of life.  This truth has been assumed by many for centuries, and the series brings it up rather impressively, by introducing it through their characters and storyline, never outright claiming their standing on the issue.  By never saying directly where they stand, they also have not singled anyone out for the issues presented.  The problems can be linked to pieces of history, but whatever could be extracted would only be someone else’s opinions, not                                                   those of George Lucas.

  

 The issue for me that was presented is of what can be done with clones.  In the movies it is said that they will “obey every order”, and for me that sounds like a risky negative to grapple with. Considering clones cannot think for themselves, and are what consequently bring down the Republic, it just seemed a bad idea from the start.  Overall, Star Wars becomes much more than just fiction, bringing issues of the present into a far off galaxy.

  

         

Images and names property of Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox.  All I own are my opinions and ideas.



This was done as an assignment, connecting Star Wars to the world of science, and simultaneously connecting Science Fiction as well.  Hope you guys like it.  For more effect, here is a video link (youtube), that clarifies the ordeal with the clones.
  Begun the Clone War has video