Video Art: Bulimia

Looking Into the Future

As I sit to write this, the only thing I can ask myself is, "Where do I begin?"  After reading "A Scientist Predicts the Future" by Michio Kaku, it is safe to say that my mind is blown.  To think that the incredible technologies and scientific advancements that have only been possible in movies will most likely become reality one day is very hard to grasp, but I do have faith that it will happen.  This article not only gives readers a look into the multiple types of technologies that will become available, but also into how they will benefit society.  For example, as media and industries are digitized, society as a whole will be able to gain knowledge on everything about services and products, which will ultimately lead to understanding exactly where the supply and demand curves meet, and this will perfect capitalism.  Advancements in health sciences will allow complex organs such as livers to be reproduced, allowing the term "organ failure" to become a thing of the past.  Further cancer research will bring scientists to be able to target individual cells and kill them, making cancer become that of the common cold.  Meanwhile, censors that can be placed in toilets or bathroom mirrors will be able to find early signs of tumors or other harmful health issues, thus saving lives.  It is these health advancements hat truly make me thankful for technology, yet it is the inventions that will reduce basic human skills, such as driving our own cars or cleaning our homes, that make me a little nervous.  Technology is already such a huge part of our lives, to the point where obesity and simple face-to-face communication skills are becoming issues.  If this continues further, I worry for the future generations that may lose simple skills as they allow technology to run their lives.  Overall, he world of technology has a bright future, but as with any part of life, their are both benefits and drawbacks to this reality.

Tumblr Findings

My daily explorations on tumblr had me stumble across this beautiful series of photographs using the camera obscura.  It is titled Guest Relations and is by the artist Robyn Stacey.  I immediately felt the need to blog about it because before taking this class I would have just assumed that these were done using a simple projector.  Now, I can immediately recognize a camera obscura series when I see one, and even understand how it is done.  I really enjoy Stacey's use of people in her pictures because it brings a new element that I have never seen before.  Also, I love how the color and liveliness of the scenery from the outdoors contrasts with the very plain and dull interiors.  I'm always finding great things on tumblr, but I was SO excited when I came across this!

SNF

After reading the article "The Saturday Night Fever soundtrack helped spread disco--and kill it," the movie itself has become much more to me than just some 70's film my parents showed me.  I can now see how it helped to define a generation.  The article explains that disco was already at its peak, or even possibly passed it, at the time the movie was released in 1977.  However, what made he movie different from the disco culture that everyone was used to seeing, was that it showed how disco was a form of escape for a working class boy from Brooklyn.  For the main character Tony, going to the club on Saturday nights was his way of forgetting his parents, his friends, and his future as a hardware store employee.  The article quotes one of Tony's best lines and states, "There are ways of killing yourself without killing yourself."  This spoke to me, and I think that it can speak to every generation.  It is basically saying that if you aren't careful, you can find yourself with a job or a life that doesn't allow you to truly feel alive.  This was Tony's problem, but going to the clubs and being the best dancer is what got him through the week and what got his adrenaline pumping.  As for the soundtrack to the movie, the article explains why it was considered the disco album to many buyers.  It stayed at number one on Billboard's album charts for a little over half a year, and it had one of the 10 biggest selling LP's of all time.  Despite the fact that bellbottoms were packed away and the genre of disco is a term of the past,  Saturday Night Fever and its soundtrack will forever represent a generation that was "unwilling to let economic uncertainty and social divisions keep them from having fun."  It is a great movie with great music that showcases an even greater era.