We like to think of an idea as a light bulb that suddenly appears aglow in the dark corners of our mind. But brilliant ideas don’t just pop into view in a single flash of clarity; “eureka” moments are not spontaneous or isolated incidents. We should think of an idea as network with a timeline all its own; ideas grow and evolve because of how they are allowed to make connections with other ideas. That is where innovation comes from.
Tonight, at the close of a busy semester, I find myself thinking about just one thing: how do I get to the big idea? I have a feeling that there is something sort of epic in me, but I just keep wondering how will those ideas come shine?
I’ve been doing a bit of reading on this in the last week. And it seems to me that our grade school teachers were right about one thing, sharing is caring. I’m not sure I like sounding peppy or optimistic about “collaboration.” It was a lesson we heard repeated in our childhood, and I feel like an after-school television special to have a platform of ‘play nice with others.’ This blog entry isn’t about an original thought and the topic doesn’t make it feel young or hip. But regardless, the idea of collaboration as a source of innovation is an important cause.
We must all jump on board with the idea that working together leads to opportunity and embrace openness. New and evolving communication platforms are giving us the ability to work together in increasingly complex ways. Call me a techno-optimist, but why aren’t we more excited about these innovations of connectivity for the sake of solutions? Cognitive Surplus, an idea Clay Shirky has installed in me, is the idea that the world’s free time can now really be used as a global resource. If we accept that there is wisdom in the crowd, and that two or more people can produce an idea far superior to the individual, than why is there so much resistance to embracing openness of knowledge and research?
Connect rather than protect ideas: I am thinking that we all need matching t-shirts with this slogan. I know what it is like to hold a good hand of cards. I understand that scientists and research labs are resistant to showing their bag of tricks. When I find myself with a full house, my fingers tend to ache from my tight grasp; careful and aware of wandering eyes that might ruin my victory. But curing disease, saving our planet and digitizing human knowledge are not card games. I find it foolish that some are more concerned about intellectual property rights over humanity. These multi-faceted and significant problems can’t continue to suffer from hesitation and greed. I dream about about collisions—of ideas. In physics, a collision is the exchange of energy and momentum. I advocate for collisions of our philosophies and methodologies. The collision is where exciting innovation is born.
Big ideas need big spaces. I encourage you to become familiar and comfortable with the idea of open source, open data, open access, open software and open science. The fundamental ideas, as Dan Gezelter wrote, “Transparency in experimental methodology, observation, and collection of data; Public availability and reusability of scientific data; Public accessibility and transparency of scientific collaboration. Using web-based tools to facilitate scientific collaboration.” I believe strongly that we will continue to discover that sharing is in our own best self-interest.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Disconnect to Reconnect: Being OK with Powering Down
My phone buzzes in my pocket. Just a one pulse vibration, ahh what does that mean again? Curiosity overcomes me and I pull the shiny screen from hibernation, rightttt, someone has re-tweeted my most recent life altering post. Freaking fantastic, remind me to change those settings! I turn back to the computer just as a pop-up window invades my screen; it’s Google, someone has sent me a video chat request. It’s an old troubled friend down in the Carolinas. Sigh, you’ve got to FOCUS JESS. I can’t play “online therapist” right now buddy. I X the screen close quickly as my Catholic conscience sets in. Before I can process what I’ve done, I have received new email and push notifications on my phone. By the way, it’s your move on ‘Words With Friends’ and if you don’t act soon you will forfeit. Additionally, someone has commented on your ‘Happy Birthday Big Cat’ Facebook comment.
When I am “hooked in” trivial life can feel more exciting and validating. And when the world feels a little lonely or small- simply logging on exposes me to droves of people from the past and present ready to “like” me: validation, information and connection. It’s there for the taking, if you want it.
I have one email address for work, one for school, one for a side eBay business and another still for personal use. Three of these accounts get sent to my phone. My daily life is a slew of incoming information and messages. I get texts, tweets, and emails rocking round the clock and calls via phone, Skype and Google. But it almost feels passé to use the phone now, doesn’t it? If I am making plans with a friend sometimes I’ve got to check six places to see how they messaged a time and location. “I figured you would get this email as fast as any text.”
Everyone has a bedtime routine. Like most, I start with brushing teeth. But then I plug in. I set the alarm app on my phone, making sure it is wired to the wall. I set my laptop on my nightstand; loaded up with the next thing in my Netflix queue; a life source as important as my MacBook must be charged overnight. It’s sad when you realize you can’t fall asleep without the lullaby background noise of a television show. It was in this pre-bed plug in process on Wednesday that I had a realization; I’ve become so good at connecting that I must become better at disconnecting. I set a goal on the spot, for 24 hours of tech solitude, desperate for a passport-free mini retreat to the jungles of my undisrupted mind.
By 9 am the next morning I had failed miserably. I had texted my roommate, checked email and monitored a bidding war on eBay. Perhaps 24 hours was too lofty a goal for my first go. I totally blame my environment; it dictates the need for being wired up. As a student of emergent media, I certainly can’t have live Wi-Fi less life. But an addict would never get away with those excuses at a 12-step meeting. What have I become?
For the past four summers I have spent time with a handful of good ol’buds in Caroga, NY. There is a camp there, deep in the Adirondack wilderness, which belongs to a friend’s family. The property is only accessible by boat and is an amazingly rustic and secluded hideaway. Every time I drive there I know the exact landmark where I will loose my cell service for the length of my stay. I have observed a difference in the relationships with these friends on our backcountry vacations. We always blossom in light of total disconnection, we aren’t distracted and we relish in the face-to-face, internet-free, TV-less relations. We disconnect technology and we reconnect with our liveliness; and in the process have one hell of a good time.
I am so tired of hearing, and for that matter saying, “I can’t live with out my phone.” Technology can be a mind-numbing drug. I know what it is like to jones for it too, we need it. Now hey, I am no naysayer. I think the power of technology is awesome. We rightly depend upon it for efficiency. It’s not feasible or practical for me or anyone else to completely abstain. But as the year comes to end, I am dedicated to establishing ability for disconnecting. I firmly believe that when we turn our phones off we have a newfound ability to reconnect with some important things in life. There is such a thing as being too connected and as I continually reaffirm in life, balance is important. When I am able to disconnect I have the ability to tame my mind and find new value in real human contact. I am going to insert “time off from technology” into my weekly schedule—and not just during my usual yoga practice. I don’t want to wake up with my iPhone in hand or my laptop tucked under the sheets --- and yes this happens.
There is a new film by Tiffany Shalin that is asking what it means to be connected in the 21st century? I am looking forward to seeing it and sadly I checked Facebook while playing this trailer: Connected The Film.
I would also check out this new witty picture book: Goodnight iPad by Ann Droyd.
When I am “hooked in” trivial life can feel more exciting and validating. And when the world feels a little lonely or small- simply logging on exposes me to droves of people from the past and present ready to “like” me: validation, information and connection. It’s there for the taking, if you want it.
I have one email address for work, one for school, one for a side eBay business and another still for personal use. Three of these accounts get sent to my phone. My daily life is a slew of incoming information and messages. I get texts, tweets, and emails rocking round the clock and calls via phone, Skype and Google. But it almost feels passé to use the phone now, doesn’t it? If I am making plans with a friend sometimes I’ve got to check six places to see how they messaged a time and location. “I figured you would get this email as fast as any text.”
Everyone has a bedtime routine. Like most, I start with brushing teeth. But then I plug in. I set the alarm app on my phone, making sure it is wired to the wall. I set my laptop on my nightstand; loaded up with the next thing in my Netflix queue; a life source as important as my MacBook must be charged overnight. It’s sad when you realize you can’t fall asleep without the lullaby background noise of a television show. It was in this pre-bed plug in process on Wednesday that I had a realization; I’ve become so good at connecting that I must become better at disconnecting. I set a goal on the spot, for 24 hours of tech solitude, desperate for a passport-free mini retreat to the jungles of my undisrupted mind.
By 9 am the next morning I had failed miserably. I had texted my roommate, checked email and monitored a bidding war on eBay. Perhaps 24 hours was too lofty a goal for my first go. I totally blame my environment; it dictates the need for being wired up. As a student of emergent media, I certainly can’t have live Wi-Fi less life. But an addict would never get away with those excuses at a 12-step meeting. What have I become?
For the past four summers I have spent time with a handful of good ol’buds in Caroga, NY. There is a camp there, deep in the Adirondack wilderness, which belongs to a friend’s family. The property is only accessible by boat and is an amazingly rustic and secluded hideaway. Every time I drive there I know the exact landmark where I will loose my cell service for the length of my stay. I have observed a difference in the relationships with these friends on our backcountry vacations. We always blossom in light of total disconnection, we aren’t distracted and we relish in the face-to-face, internet-free, TV-less relations. We disconnect technology and we reconnect with our liveliness; and in the process have one hell of a good time.
I am so tired of hearing, and for that matter saying, “I can’t live with out my phone.” Technology can be a mind-numbing drug. I know what it is like to jones for it too, we need it. Now hey, I am no naysayer. I think the power of technology is awesome. We rightly depend upon it for efficiency. It’s not feasible or practical for me or anyone else to completely abstain. But as the year comes to end, I am dedicated to establishing ability for disconnecting. I firmly believe that when we turn our phones off we have a newfound ability to reconnect with some important things in life. There is such a thing as being too connected and as I continually reaffirm in life, balance is important. When I am able to disconnect I have the ability to tame my mind and find new value in real human contact. I am going to insert “time off from technology” into my weekly schedule—and not just during my usual yoga practice. I don’t want to wake up with my iPhone in hand or my laptop tucked under the sheets --- and yes this happens.
There is a new film by Tiffany Shalin that is asking what it means to be connected in the 21st century? I am looking forward to seeing it and sadly I checked Facebook while playing this trailer: Connected The Film.
I would also check out this new witty picture book: Goodnight iPad by Ann Droyd.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Tuesdays with Jody
Martin Luther King Jr., John Lennon, Clint Eastwood, Marvin Gaye, Buzz Aldrin, Marilyn Monroe were all part of the “Silent Generation.” Demographic justification defines this generation with birthdays between 1925 and 1945; it includes the children born during the Great Depression and World War II, and those who fought in the Korean War. William Manchester, a biographer and historian, summarized the generation as “withdrawn, cautious, unimaginative, indifferent, unadventurous and silent.” My experiences over the last few Tuesdays have proved Manchester a fool.
Class lets out at 4:45pm on Tuesday. I’m usually a bit fried from discussions on technology as a disruptive force and heavy with weight of homework assignments due in less than 24 hours, but I agreed to join my professor and a few classmates on a trip to a senior community in Shelburne, Vermont. With promises of a $5 dinner, and good karma, we were tasked with helping seniors with digital technology.
Jody was one of the first residents to enter the room. I looked up from my screen, having downed the vegetarian option at the café and feverishly trying to knock out some part of my hefty homework load in the small window. She smiled, I smiled, and the journey began. “Where should I sit?” she asked. The evening was a bit of an experiment, pre-assigned to topics, uncertain of our destined partners or further arrangement I invited her to take a sit until we were told otherwise.
“Do you have an iPad?” she inquired.
“Well no. But I have an iPhone, it’s the small version of the iPad and I work with a lot of Apple products. I bet I can help.”
“I really need to talk to someone who knows the iPad.”
What happened next was perhaps serendipity… Jeff, my professor surfing the room, formally assigned us to work together. Needless to say, Jody wasn’t thrilled, she had come here, looking for simple, straightforward, easy answers and my lack of an iPad was a strike against me. She whipped out a laundry list of topical questions, sync issues and other problems. I took a deep breath and dug to the core of my inner yogi. I knew I had something to prove and jumped to the plate, reading the first item aloud, “e-books.”
Did you know that the Kindle reader app doesn’t work on the iPad 2? You need the Amazon Cloud Reader app apparently. Long story short, I didn’t know that. Jody studied library sciences, was a librarian and has a love of a book in hand. She really had no interest in reading e-books but she wanted the option. She wanted to know, what was all the rage? Lesson 1. Technology is not seamless. Lesson 2. Technology makes things easier, but it isn’t easy.
Tuesday 1. Downloaded some new apps, managed to get access to e-books against great odds, set up email account and covered podcasting. I was amazed and caught off guard by Jody’s hunger; in her 70’s she was aching for modern technological enlightenment. Along with the hunger was fear and frustration. The more she talked about her six children and numerous grandchildren that more I understood. Jody knows the world is operating a new digital playing field and she does not want to be left behind. She wants her voice heard.
I returned the following Tuesday evening, not quite knowing what to expect. Jody arrived shortly after with her laptop and iPad. It sort of felt magical on Tuesday 2. She had played with some of the new apps and had questions on syncs and social networking. “I tried Facebook,” she said. My eyes bugged out of their sockets. Curiosity is what keeps us young, regardless of what year it says on your birth certificate. Her internal digerati had been awoken. By the end of the evening we were following each other on Twitter and she was planning a trip to Small Dog to buy a MacBook. I assume her Dell laptop has found a dumpster by now. Lesson 3: Technology can be your friend, if you let it.
Lesson 4: Life works in mysterious ways. I’ll be honest, 15 minutes into Tuesday 1 was thinking about wolves wearing sheep costumes. By the end of Tuesday 2, I was feeling a bit sentimental that the experience was coming to a close. Lesson 5: Empathy. It is important to look at the resistance of technology and where it comes from and what feeds it. It is easy to forget that we all use technology with different expectations.
Jody has sent me words of thanks by email. I don’t think she understands that I am grateful for these Tuesdays; sure a lesson in patience, a reminder to be sweet and steadfast, but a powerful experience nonetheless. I am confident that Manchester’s generalization needs to be revisited. Nothing about Jody suggests she is withdrawn. She reads more than anyone else I know and is openly seeking education in her golden years. Perhaps she is a bit cautious but I would argue, well shouldn’t she be? I think over one cup of tea, Manchester would be biting his tongue, unimaginative? Unadventurous? I don’t think so. Silent? Think again sir.
Class lets out at 4:45pm on Tuesday. I’m usually a bit fried from discussions on technology as a disruptive force and heavy with weight of homework assignments due in less than 24 hours, but I agreed to join my professor and a few classmates on a trip to a senior community in Shelburne, Vermont. With promises of a $5 dinner, and good karma, we were tasked with helping seniors with digital technology.
Jody was one of the first residents to enter the room. I looked up from my screen, having downed the vegetarian option at the café and feverishly trying to knock out some part of my hefty homework load in the small window. She smiled, I smiled, and the journey began. “Where should I sit?” she asked. The evening was a bit of an experiment, pre-assigned to topics, uncertain of our destined partners or further arrangement I invited her to take a sit until we were told otherwise.
“Do you have an iPad?” she inquired.
“Well no. But I have an iPhone, it’s the small version of the iPad and I work with a lot of Apple products. I bet I can help.”
“I really need to talk to someone who knows the iPad.”
What happened next was perhaps serendipity… Jeff, my professor surfing the room, formally assigned us to work together. Needless to say, Jody wasn’t thrilled, she had come here, looking for simple, straightforward, easy answers and my lack of an iPad was a strike against me. She whipped out a laundry list of topical questions, sync issues and other problems. I took a deep breath and dug to the core of my inner yogi. I knew I had something to prove and jumped to the plate, reading the first item aloud, “e-books.”
Did you know that the Kindle reader app doesn’t work on the iPad 2? You need the Amazon Cloud Reader app apparently. Long story short, I didn’t know that. Jody studied library sciences, was a librarian and has a love of a book in hand. She really had no interest in reading e-books but she wanted the option. She wanted to know, what was all the rage? Lesson 1. Technology is not seamless. Lesson 2. Technology makes things easier, but it isn’t easy.
Tuesday 1. Downloaded some new apps, managed to get access to e-books against great odds, set up email account and covered podcasting. I was amazed and caught off guard by Jody’s hunger; in her 70’s she was aching for modern technological enlightenment. Along with the hunger was fear and frustration. The more she talked about her six children and numerous grandchildren that more I understood. Jody knows the world is operating a new digital playing field and she does not want to be left behind. She wants her voice heard.
I returned the following Tuesday evening, not quite knowing what to expect. Jody arrived shortly after with her laptop and iPad. It sort of felt magical on Tuesday 2. She had played with some of the new apps and had questions on syncs and social networking. “I tried Facebook,” she said. My eyes bugged out of their sockets. Curiosity is what keeps us young, regardless of what year it says on your birth certificate. Her internal digerati had been awoken. By the end of the evening we were following each other on Twitter and she was planning a trip to Small Dog to buy a MacBook. I assume her Dell laptop has found a dumpster by now. Lesson 3: Technology can be your friend, if you let it.
Lesson 4: Life works in mysterious ways. I’ll be honest, 15 minutes into Tuesday 1 was thinking about wolves wearing sheep costumes. By the end of Tuesday 2, I was feeling a bit sentimental that the experience was coming to a close. Lesson 5: Empathy. It is important to look at the resistance of technology and where it comes from and what feeds it. It is easy to forget that we all use technology with different expectations.
Jody has sent me words of thanks by email. I don’t think she understands that I am grateful for these Tuesdays; sure a lesson in patience, a reminder to be sweet and steadfast, but a powerful experience nonetheless. I am confident that Manchester’s generalization needs to be revisited. Nothing about Jody suggests she is withdrawn. She reads more than anyone else I know and is openly seeking education in her golden years. Perhaps she is a bit cautious but I would argue, well shouldn’t she be? I think over one cup of tea, Manchester would be biting his tongue, unimaginative? Unadventurous? I don’t think so. Silent? Think again sir.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Photography, Painting and Puppy Love
Digital painting: let's hear it for trying something new! I used a Wacom drawing tablet and many of the paintbrushes in Photoshop to create this digital painting of my dog and I:
This is is a link to the PSD file.
This is is a link to the PSD file.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Moves Like Jager
“Make it new,” he said simply. This is a principle Michael has lived by for the last 20 years directing the multidisciplinary creative and design efforts of JDK. The firm’s portfolio includes Burton Snowboards, Microsoft’s XBOX, Nike, Levis, Phish, MTV and Patagonia. As Michael would say, emotional, rational and cultural forces inspire their work and helps focus the center on the idea that design distinction matters.
As I pulled into my parking spot outside my condo, I couldn’t remember my drive home, my mind outpaced the wheels rolling on the pavement. I was anxious to make sure I held on to the inspiration and I plunked myself on the couch with some markers and wrote down everything I could remember. Now, every morning when I wake up and the wall above me looks like this:
Michael’s presentation was a glimpse into the creative thought process, a storm of thought, inspiration and I’ll say it, brilliancy. I put together this poster and threw in a little mayhem, to keep his ideas alive. Just like my bedroom wall, I hope to hold on to Jager’s advice, I know the sentiments will make me a better designer and I would argue a better person.
Michael Jager’s talk was part of the Emergent Landscape Speaker Series at Champlain College. The talk was recorded and is available online. I'm sure the energy will not be the same as it was in the room but here is the link to Michael Jager's talk.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
The Internet Has Arrived
There is much to say about the Internet. We can glorify it, we can vilify it; but the bottom line is that it makes each and every one of us more empowered. “Why aren’t we more amazed by this fullness? Kings of old would have gone to war to win such abilities. Only small children would have dreamed such a magic window could be real,” wrote Kevin Kelly.
I feel like my Grandfather complaining about the youth today, but I am going to do it. I feel a lack of appreciation for the web. The Internet is expression, entertainment, community, knowledge and connectivity at our fingertips. I can only imagine my sentiment of ingrate users growing with passing generations. Kids today grow up with the convenient ease of its speed, information and search functionality; there will be a lot less hauling of 10lb encyclopedias. Kids today will never get to hear the beautiful sound of a modem dialing up; “a noise like a duck choking on a kazoo,” according to Dave Barry. Companies like Netscape, Compuserve and America Online will be unrecognized. The invention of the web is perhaps the greatest innovation of my lifetime, and I feel we owe it a few more kudos.
In 1945, American engineer Vannevar Bush wrote, “The world has arrived at an age of cheap complex devices of great reliability; and something is bound to come of it.” Was he the oracle to our matrix? Bush wanted to take on the overwhelming task of making all of human knowledge more accessible. With great foresight, and perhaps prophetic talent, Bush envisioned hypertext, and thus became a pioneer of the World Wide Web.
Bush recognized humanity’s increased ability to keep an improved record with developments in photography, printing, film and other mediums. He saw potential for authentic and accurate copies of information and even foresaw the ability to compress these, “The Encyclopedia Britannica could be reduced to the volume of a matchbox. A library of a million volumes could be compressed into one end of a desk.” Bush wanted a better way to augment human understanding and cognition, a few decades later his vision become a reality.
Kevin Kelly is a great writer. Interested in the early history of the web? Take a second, and read the article “We are the Web” from Wired magazine.
Ok, I’m going to skip a lot of the history lesson because it is available all over the web, ironic isn’t it? I want to talk about what really surprised the hell out of web pioneers: the prevalence of user made content. Believe it or not at one point there was fundamental concern that web content would be too expensive to procure and thus the net would be lacking information. These early web masterminds underestimated human desire to make and create contributions, for interaction, participation, and for options--- and this is what has turned into “the main event.” The scope of the web today is hard to believe. The culture is participatory: we are sharing recipes, updating Wikipedia, commenting on the news, and posting and reading blogs. Kelly is right, we are the web.
Social media is just one example of our participatory environment but it is a significant shift in our culture. Watch this video.
Today, from your laptop, desktop, game system, tablet or handheld device, you can get: a an enormous variety of music and video, a constantly updated encyclopedia, the weather forecasts, help wanted ads, satellite images of anyplace on Earth, up-to-the-minute news from around the globe, IRS forms, road maps with driving directions, ticking stock quotes, telephone numbers, real estate listings with virtual walk-throughs, pictures of just about anything, game scores, records of political contributions, library catalogs, appliance manuals, live traffic reports, archives of major newspapers and magazines - all wrapped up in a searchable platform that really works. Information is available to us like never before.
What will come from the explosion of information, increased technical ability and our desire to share? This is the question of the future. We will certainly get more “lol cats” Clay Shirky suggests in his Ted Talk, “How cognitive surplus will change the world.” But Shirky is also hoping for something more, something bigger than “lol cats.”
Shirky talks about Ushahidi, a website that launched in 2008 as a form of crisis mapping in Kenya. The tool offered Eastern Africans information and the ability to share information about what was going on around them in the shade of their government’s media blackout. This platform embodies the idea of cognitive surplus, of shared information meant to help one another, of open source information made up of the world’s free time and talents. Man, it is truly a beautiful thing. I think we should all be amazed and inspired by idea of “design for generosity.” The Internet has given us an enormous opportunity to create tools and spaces that offer civic value, change society and build a more cooperative world. It’s up to us to harness the power for more than “lol cats.”
I do not deny that there are problems with Internet. We can talk about things like privacy, control and the loss of “common ground” sometime soon. But there is only one era in history when the Internet is born. You and I have are alive at this moment. I don’t know about you, but I find it exciting.
I feel like my Grandfather complaining about the youth today, but I am going to do it. I feel a lack of appreciation for the web. The Internet is expression, entertainment, community, knowledge and connectivity at our fingertips. I can only imagine my sentiment of ingrate users growing with passing generations. Kids today grow up with the convenient ease of its speed, information and search functionality; there will be a lot less hauling of 10lb encyclopedias. Kids today will never get to hear the beautiful sound of a modem dialing up; “a noise like a duck choking on a kazoo,” according to Dave Barry. Companies like Netscape, Compuserve and America Online will be unrecognized. The invention of the web is perhaps the greatest innovation of my lifetime, and I feel we owe it a few more kudos.
In 1945, American engineer Vannevar Bush wrote, “The world has arrived at an age of cheap complex devices of great reliability; and something is bound to come of it.” Was he the oracle to our matrix? Bush wanted to take on the overwhelming task of making all of human knowledge more accessible. With great foresight, and perhaps prophetic talent, Bush envisioned hypertext, and thus became a pioneer of the World Wide Web.
Bush recognized humanity’s increased ability to keep an improved record with developments in photography, printing, film and other mediums. He saw potential for authentic and accurate copies of information and even foresaw the ability to compress these, “The Encyclopedia Britannica could be reduced to the volume of a matchbox. A library of a million volumes could be compressed into one end of a desk.” Bush wanted a better way to augment human understanding and cognition, a few decades later his vision become a reality.
Kevin Kelly is a great writer. Interested in the early history of the web? Take a second, and read the article “We are the Web” from Wired magazine.
Ok, I’m going to skip a lot of the history lesson because it is available all over the web, ironic isn’t it? I want to talk about what really surprised the hell out of web pioneers: the prevalence of user made content. Believe it or not at one point there was fundamental concern that web content would be too expensive to procure and thus the net would be lacking information. These early web masterminds underestimated human desire to make and create contributions, for interaction, participation, and for options--- and this is what has turned into “the main event.” The scope of the web today is hard to believe. The culture is participatory: we are sharing recipes, updating Wikipedia, commenting on the news, and posting and reading blogs. Kelly is right, we are the web.
Social media is just one example of our participatory environment but it is a significant shift in our culture. Watch this video.
Today, from your laptop, desktop, game system, tablet or handheld device, you can get: a an enormous variety of music and video, a constantly updated encyclopedia, the weather forecasts, help wanted ads, satellite images of anyplace on Earth, up-to-the-minute news from around the globe, IRS forms, road maps with driving directions, ticking stock quotes, telephone numbers, real estate listings with virtual walk-throughs, pictures of just about anything, game scores, records of political contributions, library catalogs, appliance manuals, live traffic reports, archives of major newspapers and magazines - all wrapped up in a searchable platform that really works. Information is available to us like never before.
What will come from the explosion of information, increased technical ability and our desire to share? This is the question of the future. We will certainly get more “lol cats” Clay Shirky suggests in his Ted Talk, “How cognitive surplus will change the world.” But Shirky is also hoping for something more, something bigger than “lol cats.”
Shirky talks about Ushahidi, a website that launched in 2008 as a form of crisis mapping in Kenya. The tool offered Eastern Africans information and the ability to share information about what was going on around them in the shade of their government’s media blackout. This platform embodies the idea of cognitive surplus, of shared information meant to help one another, of open source information made up of the world’s free time and talents. Man, it is truly a beautiful thing. I think we should all be amazed and inspired by idea of “design for generosity.” The Internet has given us an enormous opportunity to create tools and spaces that offer civic value, change society and build a more cooperative world. It’s up to us to harness the power for more than “lol cats.”
I do not deny that there are problems with Internet. We can talk about things like privacy, control and the loss of “common ground” sometime soon. But there is only one era in history when the Internet is born. You and I have are alive at this moment. I don’t know about you, but I find it exciting.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Anachronism
Technology has allowed us to create new digital worlds of make believe. Programs like Adobe Photoshop have given us incredible power, but with it comes responsibility. What happens when reality and make believe collide? What happens when we distort reality and don't recognize the truth? Images have been altered to erase and change history and newsworthy events. Through "airbrushing techniques" we have forced an artificial sense of beauty. Here are a few examples of Famous Altered Images. I was tasked this week with creating an anachronism. An anachronism is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement. The goal was to create an image out of two or more images in which something from the present appears in the past in a way that reflects a temporal impossibility.
World War II was a unique time in history. For the most part, women still stayed at home and tended to their families. Few people imagined women could‚ or should‚ fly. But the need took precedence over traditional male-female roles. My Grandmother, Elsie Matheke Lynch, was a service pilot. From 1942 to 1944, more than 1,000 women were trained to ferry aircraft, test planes, instruct male pilots, and tow targets for anti-aircraft artillery practice.
I often wonder about what this adventure was like for her. The women pilots prided themselves on having better flying records than their male counterparts. Through their ability, courage and diligence, they proved to the skeptics that women were capable pilots. Yet they were given no official military status or privilege. In 1944, as the war was drawing to a close, more male pilots began returning and joining the service. The government forced the shut down of an established program known as WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilot). It would be more than thirty years until women would fly again for the US Military.
I wonder what my Nana's Twitter feed would have looked like? I would have definitely followed Airborn Elsie, a brave lady who never lost her sense of wonder and gave the heavens more than a passing glance.
World War II was a unique time in history. For the most part, women still stayed at home and tended to their families. Few people imagined women could‚ or should‚ fly. But the need took precedence over traditional male-female roles. My Grandmother, Elsie Matheke Lynch, was a service pilot. From 1942 to 1944, more than 1,000 women were trained to ferry aircraft, test planes, instruct male pilots, and tow targets for anti-aircraft artillery practice.
I often wonder about what this adventure was like for her. The women pilots prided themselves on having better flying records than their male counterparts. Through their ability, courage and diligence, they proved to the skeptics that women were capable pilots. Yet they were given no official military status or privilege. In 1944, as the war was drawing to a close, more male pilots began returning and joining the service. The government forced the shut down of an established program known as WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilot). It would be more than thirty years until women would fly again for the US Military.
I wonder what my Nana's Twitter feed would have looked like? I would have definitely followed Airborn Elsie, a brave lady who never lost her sense of wonder and gave the heavens more than a passing glance.
Here is a link to download a PSD file: Airborn Elsie Photoshop File
Friday, September 23, 2011
“Geeking Out” with Mike Eringis
In 1887, Thomas Edison started research into motion pictures; two years later he presented the kinetoscope that projected 50 feet of film in approximately 13 seconds. Since then there have been amazing strides in the rapid display of sequence images and thus the medium of art known as animation. From Paleolithic cave paintings, to cel animation, to the current world of computer-generated imagery (CGI): there is no doubt that this world has been transformed by the onslaught of new technology and animation is no exception.
This past Monday, I had the pleasure of meeting Mike Eringis, a creative artist who has worked in 3D computer animation for over 20 years. Until recently he was employed at the Academy Award winning Blue Sky Studios, a subsidiary of Fox.
Mike’s portfolio includes work on the Ice Age movies, Horton Hears a Who, Robots and Rio among others. I should have asked him if that crazy squirrel from Ice Age, “Scrat,” ever gets to chomp down on that troublesome acorn.
Check out this funny first look of Ice Age 4: The Continental Drift
Did you know that there are 24 frames per second in an animated feature film? Each frame is designed carefully and extensively, it is touched, viewed and studied by multiple contributors. As Mike spoke, I couldn’t help but think how daunting and time-consuming the production process is—we are talking more than 140,000 frames. Over and over my thoughts were, “unbelievable,” and “they don’t get enough kudos.” There are many talented and dedicated programmers, artists and designers who log countless hours to bring you these films, often studying and rendering seconds of the movie over weeks of effort. But I guess the principles of economy and business are always at play; these films are raking in big dollars at the box office and in home entertainment.
It was made clear that the right software is an advantage, obviously trained and creative people to run that software is also fundamental. Blue Sky Studios is notable for its proprietary Renderer CGI Studio software. Mike said, this is what happens “when rocket scientists want to make cartoons.” CGI Studio is notable for its use of ray tracing as opposed to scanline rendering prevalent throughout the CG industry. The studio is known for the ability to manage light sources, emulating and diffusing light can make an extreme difference in the aesthetics and authenticity of a scene right down to the ice cubes. Mike showed a still image from Ice Age and zoomed in on a droplet of water flying off a creature jumping out of the water. In the water droplet, was a reflected image of Manny the Mammoth who was standing directly across from the scene. The image was a millimeter in size and I am certain that no one, even if they were watching on the big screen, could catch this detail. Nevertheless the software was able to create it. I was stunned; it is truly impressive.
Blue Sky Studios employs less than 500 people. It doesn’t seem possible that they could pull of a full feature film in 6-8 months given the time spent on a single second. But they do and the vast majority of employees work directly on visual development, layout and modeling, animation, materials and lighting. Eringis calls the process of production the “pipeline.” The writing, art storyboards and editorial are completed by only 20-30 people in the very beginning, when it’s time to cross into the realm of 3D then on come 400+ helpers.
Mike’s main role in these films was managing what is called “materials.” After modeling and rigging a frame all the details must be dressed. Mike worked on applying textures to all aspects of the characters, scenery and other objects. Seriously, the details are detailed! He showed pictures of his field trip to a junkyard, citing that trips out and about are often helpful for getting things right. He closely studied and photographed rust to help with the film Robots. Look closely; the wear tear is where it should be. A lesson from Mike, details are important.
Mike roughly got me up to speed on animation; the new technology is certainly emergent media. I have new respect for the detailed labor, hearing about the difficulty of simulating fur or hair and splashes of water will have that effect. Mike recently resigned from Blue Sky Studios but I could tell it was an incredibly difficult decision. He loved the creative aspects of his role. He offered some advice for the creative process that I took to heart, knowing the stressful deadline battles he continually fought. Always “set a plan, know your resources, know yourself and continually monitor that plan.” Seems simple enough? It’s always simpler said than done. I think we are often scared to work under deadlines, but as Mike reminded me “our best work is often done under limitation.” This week I will put that to the test with a few projects.
Incorporating multiple ideas and utilizing more hands will lead to a better end result. This type of creative work requires teamwork. There is not one person who could pull off a box office worthy feature film on his or her own; no matter how badass you are, it can’t be done. Aside from the lesson in animation and the creative inspiration, Mike reminded me that our work blossoms with collaboration. Learning to incorporate each other’s ideas, having the ability compromise and the willingness to let go when you should are fundamental skills in teamwork. As Mike said and as he lived with his animated life, there is something so thrilling about “creating something bigger than yourself.”
This past Monday, I had the pleasure of meeting Mike Eringis, a creative artist who has worked in 3D computer animation for over 20 years. Until recently he was employed at the Academy Award winning Blue Sky Studios, a subsidiary of Fox.
Mike’s portfolio includes work on the Ice Age movies, Horton Hears a Who, Robots and Rio among others. I should have asked him if that crazy squirrel from Ice Age, “Scrat,” ever gets to chomp down on that troublesome acorn.
Check out this funny first look of Ice Age 4: The Continental Drift
Did you know that there are 24 frames per second in an animated feature film? Each frame is designed carefully and extensively, it is touched, viewed and studied by multiple contributors. As Mike spoke, I couldn’t help but think how daunting and time-consuming the production process is—we are talking more than 140,000 frames. Over and over my thoughts were, “unbelievable,” and “they don’t get enough kudos.” There are many talented and dedicated programmers, artists and designers who log countless hours to bring you these films, often studying and rendering seconds of the movie over weeks of effort. But I guess the principles of economy and business are always at play; these films are raking in big dollars at the box office and in home entertainment.
It was made clear that the right software is an advantage, obviously trained and creative people to run that software is also fundamental. Blue Sky Studios is notable for its proprietary Renderer CGI Studio software. Mike said, this is what happens “when rocket scientists want to make cartoons.” CGI Studio is notable for its use of ray tracing as opposed to scanline rendering prevalent throughout the CG industry. The studio is known for the ability to manage light sources, emulating and diffusing light can make an extreme difference in the aesthetics and authenticity of a scene right down to the ice cubes. Mike showed a still image from Ice Age and zoomed in on a droplet of water flying off a creature jumping out of the water. In the water droplet, was a reflected image of Manny the Mammoth who was standing directly across from the scene. The image was a millimeter in size and I am certain that no one, even if they were watching on the big screen, could catch this detail. Nevertheless the software was able to create it. I was stunned; it is truly impressive.
Blue Sky Studios employs less than 500 people. It doesn’t seem possible that they could pull of a full feature film in 6-8 months given the time spent on a single second. But they do and the vast majority of employees work directly on visual development, layout and modeling, animation, materials and lighting. Eringis calls the process of production the “pipeline.” The writing, art storyboards and editorial are completed by only 20-30 people in the very beginning, when it’s time to cross into the realm of 3D then on come 400+ helpers.
Mike’s main role in these films was managing what is called “materials.” After modeling and rigging a frame all the details must be dressed. Mike worked on applying textures to all aspects of the characters, scenery and other objects. Seriously, the details are detailed! He showed pictures of his field trip to a junkyard, citing that trips out and about are often helpful for getting things right. He closely studied and photographed rust to help with the film Robots. Look closely; the wear tear is where it should be. A lesson from Mike, details are important.
Mike roughly got me up to speed on animation; the new technology is certainly emergent media. I have new respect for the detailed labor, hearing about the difficulty of simulating fur or hair and splashes of water will have that effect. Mike recently resigned from Blue Sky Studios but I could tell it was an incredibly difficult decision. He loved the creative aspects of his role. He offered some advice for the creative process that I took to heart, knowing the stressful deadline battles he continually fought. Always “set a plan, know your resources, know yourself and continually monitor that plan.” Seems simple enough? It’s always simpler said than done. I think we are often scared to work under deadlines, but as Mike reminded me “our best work is often done under limitation.” This week I will put that to the test with a few projects.
Incorporating multiple ideas and utilizing more hands will lead to a better end result. This type of creative work requires teamwork. There is not one person who could pull off a box office worthy feature film on his or her own; no matter how badass you are, it can’t be done. Aside from the lesson in animation and the creative inspiration, Mike reminded me that our work blossoms with collaboration. Learning to incorporate each other’s ideas, having the ability compromise and the willingness to let go when you should are fundamental skills in teamwork. As Mike said and as he lived with his animated life, there is something so thrilling about “creating something bigger than yourself.”
Friday, September 16, 2011
The Question of Technology
What is technology? I encourage you to take a second and write down your own definition. As time moves along you may find yourself redefining what you hold to be true about innovation, this is something I have been doing consistently over the last few weeks. We have come to recognize major advances in our society by identifying them as “technology.” The invention of the alphabet over 2,500 years ago had transformational effects on Greek society and even to this day we can’t imagine our modern world without it. The long days of scribing texts by hand came to a close with the printing press and the work of a German goldsmith named Johannes Gutenberg. Gottlieb Daimer invented the car in 1893 and well the list of world-altering invention goes on. I assure you, there is no easy way to address the question of technology; what you think it is, how it behaves, how it comes to be and do what it does. Technology is a means for accomplishing a task; it is a solution, a capability, the application of science, a tool or process, applied human knowledge, industrial art, devices, applications and power… well according to some.
There is no doubt that technology is here to serve purpose. Martin Heidegger, a 20th century philosopher, suggested that if we understand what technology is, and how we relate to it that we can essentially have a “free relationship” with it. If you are feeling masochistic I would suggest a long night with a dense Heidegger reading and for a more gentle approach a cliff notes version.
There is also no doubt that this fast moving thing called technology is dramatically altering our world. But then again it always has, be it the wheel or the world a ‘Twitter. My Dad isn’t ancient enough to have missed Edison’s brilliance (har har.) However, the other day he told me with astonishment about the lights in my family’s home; perhaps a testament to our digital age. He wakes to a world that is aglow with tiny lights. There is the flash of a digital alarm clock. The electric toothbrush is charging with a green flicka; the TV, satellite and blue-ray all suggest the power is off with a red light on. A trip to the coffee pot at 5:30am is guided like an airport runway by every digital light on the major kitchen appliances. Do you want the time? Do you want the temperature? Do you want to know that I am charged, or perhaps I need charging? They all suggest, “We can help you with that.” My microwave even says, “Have a nice day” on its display as it comes to a beeping hault. The realization: there is no longer absolute darkness among the twinkling screens, and perhaps this is metaphoric as much as literal. Perhaps this is why I hear more and more about jaunts to “electric-less cabins in the deep woods.”
Think about the technology of your lifetime, what have you seen rise, fall, or more likely seen updated and replaced? It’s rather overwhelming.
You’ve got to hand it to Samuel Morse and the boys who laid cable across the floor of the Atlantic: the telegraph is an awesome example of the power of revolutionary technology. The first telegraphic message released communication from the restraints of geography and bore a new concept of immediacy. Messages could now be sent and received in time for the content to still be relevant. Today we can bawk at the ten-minute coast-to-coast window that it took for message translation with our ‘instant’ capabilities, but in its day the telegraph was astonishing. There were fundamental effects on commodity markets, industry/imperialism, language and military efforts. The standardization of time was also made possible; socially and economically the world experienced radical advancement. No one could foresee how powerful the invention of the telegraph or even the introduction of the alphabet would be in its early inception. We must understand that the powers of a technology, and the extent of its capabilities, are never realized as it is implemented.
It is far easier to recognize how technology changes our external world but as Walter Ong wrote, “All technologies affect man’s sense of his lifeworld, his sense of himself in relation to the universe, and thus enter into human consciousness to change its structure.”
Perhaps one of the greatest definitions of technology that I have found, "Technology is how people modify the natural world to suit their own purposes... generally it refers to the diverse collection of processes and knowledge that people use to extend human abilities and to satisfy human needs and wants" (Excerpt from Standards for Technological Literacy: Content for the Study of Technology, ITEA, 2000).
You might feel like you want the last few minutes back when I tell you that I don’t have the answer to technology. I realize, and I’m sure you have too; that we live in a world that is growing more and more dependent on technology and the speed at which that technology is evolving is unprecedented in history. The power and responsibility we willingly hand to technology is daunting. Somewhere along the line I feel like technology has promised to be more dependable than our human counterparts, and as flawed individuals we accept. So… when do we become robots? Well, I’m not a big fan of gunmetal grey or taking orders so what I can tell you is that there is power in technological literacy and awareness; the ability to use, understand and assess the technology we use is incredibly important.
There is no doubt that technology is here to serve purpose. Martin Heidegger, a 20th century philosopher, suggested that if we understand what technology is, and how we relate to it that we can essentially have a “free relationship” with it. If you are feeling masochistic I would suggest a long night with a dense Heidegger reading and for a more gentle approach a cliff notes version.
There is also no doubt that this fast moving thing called technology is dramatically altering our world. But then again it always has, be it the wheel or the world a ‘Twitter. My Dad isn’t ancient enough to have missed Edison’s brilliance (har har.) However, the other day he told me with astonishment about the lights in my family’s home; perhaps a testament to our digital age. He wakes to a world that is aglow with tiny lights. There is the flash of a digital alarm clock. The electric toothbrush is charging with a green flicka; the TV, satellite and blue-ray all suggest the power is off with a red light on. A trip to the coffee pot at 5:30am is guided like an airport runway by every digital light on the major kitchen appliances. Do you want the time? Do you want the temperature? Do you want to know that I am charged, or perhaps I need charging? They all suggest, “We can help you with that.” My microwave even says, “Have a nice day” on its display as it comes to a beeping hault. The realization: there is no longer absolute darkness among the twinkling screens, and perhaps this is metaphoric as much as literal. Perhaps this is why I hear more and more about jaunts to “electric-less cabins in the deep woods.”
Think about the technology of your lifetime, what have you seen rise, fall, or more likely seen updated and replaced? It’s rather overwhelming.
You’ve got to hand it to Samuel Morse and the boys who laid cable across the floor of the Atlantic: the telegraph is an awesome example of the power of revolutionary technology. The first telegraphic message released communication from the restraints of geography and bore a new concept of immediacy. Messages could now be sent and received in time for the content to still be relevant. Today we can bawk at the ten-minute coast-to-coast window that it took for message translation with our ‘instant’ capabilities, but in its day the telegraph was astonishing. There were fundamental effects on commodity markets, industry/imperialism, language and military efforts. The standardization of time was also made possible; socially and economically the world experienced radical advancement. No one could foresee how powerful the invention of the telegraph or even the introduction of the alphabet would be in its early inception. We must understand that the powers of a technology, and the extent of its capabilities, are never realized as it is implemented.
It is far easier to recognize how technology changes our external world but as Walter Ong wrote, “All technologies affect man’s sense of his lifeworld, his sense of himself in relation to the universe, and thus enter into human consciousness to change its structure.”
Perhaps one of the greatest definitions of technology that I have found, "Technology is how people modify the natural world to suit their own purposes... generally it refers to the diverse collection of processes and knowledge that people use to extend human abilities and to satisfy human needs and wants" (Excerpt from Standards for Technological Literacy: Content for the Study of Technology, ITEA, 2000).
You might feel like you want the last few minutes back when I tell you that I don’t have the answer to technology. I realize, and I’m sure you have too; that we live in a world that is growing more and more dependent on technology and the speed at which that technology is evolving is unprecedented in history. The power and responsibility we willingly hand to technology is daunting. Somewhere along the line I feel like technology has promised to be more dependable than our human counterparts, and as flawed individuals we accept. So… when do we become robots? Well, I’m not a big fan of gunmetal grey or taking orders so what I can tell you is that there is power in technological literacy and awareness; the ability to use, understand and assess the technology we use is incredibly important.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
The Personal Identity Crisis
I do not wish to start a debate on identity, discussing what identity is, or even how it is formed. That sounds dreadfully annoying and therefore rest assured I will definitely skip any train of thought that is sure to end with “cognito ergo sum.”
But this isn’t to say that philosophical thought has no purpose, and if is written poetically it has a solid chance of ending up on my screen. Walt Whitman wrote, "O me! O life! of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless--of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life? Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse."
I am here to contribute my verse. My hope is that this blog will become a storm of thought and conversation on a changing world of media and the fast-paced modern culture of the here and now that feeds it.
Identity. I am an MFA candidate studying emergent media at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont. I am an entrepreneur, yogi, designer, photographer and writer. I am a free-thinker, tinkerer, believer, maker, and mover and shaker. This morning I was a girl with mismatched socks. But when the sun comes out tomorrow, I am hopeful that I will get that right.
Perhaps the “I am here,” is most important. I am a wide-eyed, active participant in a landscape of change. Whether you like it or not, the world is under non-stop barrage of brand spanking new technology and innovative media. We are connected. We are wired. We are hooked.
What’s the next big, cool, new thing on the block? What does all this innovation mean for everyday life? What’s tomorrow looking like? If you choose information over ignorance, participatory over laziness, and challenge over effortless ease than please, join the important conversation that must be had. I encourage you to be a watchdog on the world around you. Awareness is the only answer. We must understand that change is inevitable, perhaps the only dependable nature of our world. However, what we can shape is our role in the new realm of global connectivity, networks and digital interactivity. The world is now really at your fingertips, if you want it. Let the powerful play go on.
But this isn’t to say that philosophical thought has no purpose, and if is written poetically it has a solid chance of ending up on my screen. Walt Whitman wrote, "O me! O life! of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless--of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life? Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse."
I am here to contribute my verse. My hope is that this blog will become a storm of thought and conversation on a changing world of media and the fast-paced modern culture of the here and now that feeds it.
Identity. I am an MFA candidate studying emergent media at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont. I am an entrepreneur, yogi, designer, photographer and writer. I am a free-thinker, tinkerer, believer, maker, and mover and shaker. This morning I was a girl with mismatched socks. But when the sun comes out tomorrow, I am hopeful that I will get that right.
Perhaps the “I am here,” is most important. I am a wide-eyed, active participant in a landscape of change. Whether you like it or not, the world is under non-stop barrage of brand spanking new technology and innovative media. We are connected. We are wired. We are hooked.
What’s the next big, cool, new thing on the block? What does all this innovation mean for everyday life? What’s tomorrow looking like? If you choose information over ignorance, participatory over laziness, and challenge over effortless ease than please, join the important conversation that must be had. I encourage you to be a watchdog on the world around you. Awareness is the only answer. We must understand that change is inevitable, perhaps the only dependable nature of our world. However, what we can shape is our role in the new realm of global connectivity, networks and digital interactivity. The world is now really at your fingertips, if you want it. Let the powerful play go on.
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