Wednesday, March 10, 2010

IASC 3F00 - First Life Photos

In Real Life

IASC3F00 - Second Life Progress Photos

Here are some shots of people working hard, and some progress shots of our simulation.

Team

Brad
Christian
Cory
Michelle (who no longer looks like this)
Sarah

An empty part of the island pre-poly-invasion



Racetrack



Characters

Fire
A blue version of fire, potentially water
Ghost things in a part of the track. I like to think they are Haunters (Pokemon).

Lab

If you're a mad scientist and you don't have teddy bears keeping your brain-in-a-jars company, you're probably doing it wrong. As you can see, Michan is no longer a squat blue gnome, but Batman-head-in-a-jar.

The Shipwreck
(Cybertar Abonwood is a dummy character for guests to play)

IASC3F00 - Authorship vs. Narration

A discussion of a class that I recorded a video of, but have unfortunately misplaced.




When speaking in a literal, real-world sense, how do we control our lives? Do we author it as we go, or do we simply narrate our journey?

For those who are religious, they may feel that the authorship of their lives is in the hands of a divine one. In this sense, we merely narrate what has been given to us as the story of our lives by another being. Religious or not, things may be placed into our lives that we simply cannot control and in this way, our authorship is very limited, if we had any to begin with. It can also be an implicit part of life that individuals feel differently - when we are backed into a corner, feeling helpless, perhaps it is then that we lose whatever authorship we had over our lives because we willingly give it up.

In disagreement with this, however, is the idea that we would not move forward in life if we did not author ourselves. We would not seek education or work, we would not see the things we feel we need as people.

Narration is much simpler. Whether or not we actually author our lives and our futures, we still live it and narrate life to ourselves. Our actions are merely the implementation and thus, the storytelling of our authored lives.

IASC3F00 - Language

As a part of class discussion, we reached the topic of language. The most passionate of participants split into two sides - the English language should continue to "evolve" (side A), and the English language should remain the same (side B).

Side A, Brad, felt that the English language should continue to move in the direction of today's common "chat speak". Abbreviations (TBH, FWIW, AFAIK, AFK*) save time and effort, and are of universal knowledge. Language has been evolving for thousands of years, and it makes no sense for it to stop now. Only a few decades from now, language should be so different that the English language we use now will be seen as archaic. People can be more concise and will be able to easily understand each other, eliminating the hassle of diction confusion. Language is not an art form and should not be held captive in old ways. Since it is a part of many people's everyday lives, especially for those who type online very often, it should become a common practice in society. People should not be reprimanded for using it in academia or other serious situations.

Side B, Casey and I, feel that the English language is indeed an art (was I the only person who had "language arts" classes everyday in elementary school?). Abbreviations are NOT common knowledge and many people need to ask or look up what they mean. To take a language that has been moving forward for thousands of years and break it back down into three-to-five letter abbreviations is insulting and degrades it hundreds of years - sending our progress and knowledge of language and literature backwards. Just because "a lot of people" (not everyone) use chat speak, does not justify its significance for the rest of the world; some people use chat speak online, and some do not. For some, it does not save time or effort, or they choose to present themselves as more than stereotypical, lazy-typing chat users. People should most definitely be reprimanded for using such language in serious situations. It is unprofessional and holds no validity, nor should it, in academic submissions. There is a time and a place for chat speak, and that is on chats if people so choose.

How many people would take this seriously? (Click for full size)



*To Be Honest, For What It's Worth, As Far As I Know, Away From Keyboard