NMD 100

02/14/14

Cultural Shift: Writing

boy_walking_down_street

 

For our cultural shift project we created a futuristic world dominated by Skype’s newest communication technology, Holochat. For part of the project, I wrote a short story detailing what this world may be like.

 

 “Timmy!” A distant voice echoed throughout the virtual room. “Oh, sorry guys I have to go…” Groans erupted before he could explain. “I know I know” he mumbled, “I’ll be right back”. Timmy switched off HoloChat and the physical world swirled into focus before him. “Timmy!” Another cry could be heard. He shrugged off the mild nausea, got up from his HoloStation and dragged his feet towards the voice.

Timmy’s grandmother stood in the kitchen staring out one of the westward windows. Timmy could tell what she was thinking. She had never understood all this Holo-stuff and often wondered aloud how things changed so suddenly. “Come visit anytime, Timmy” she would suggest, knowing all too well that no one ‘visits’ anymore. She was getting old, too old to compete with a virtual world.

“I need some milk,” she mumbled. “Would you be a dear and fetch some for me?” Timmy stood silent for a moment, viewing his grandmother with a quizzical look. No one went to the store anymore, she knew that. “Uhhh yea grandma… sure. You want another gallon?” She turned to look at him. “That would be great Timmy, thank you.” He thought the request was a bit strange but didn’t argue. The quicker the better.

The streets were barren, as they had been since Timmy could remember. He disliked the real world. Cold, harsh and immutable, it was the exact antithesis of a HoloChat call. Upon reaching the warehouse he opened the door. “Why hello there!” Timmy was surprised to hear a voice, although quickly realized that it wasn’t human. A holographic teller stood watch over the merchandise. “I need a gallon of milk,” he said. “All produce is usually shipped to– “I know,” interrupted Timmy.

He strained a bit carrying the milk. He couldn’t remember the last time he was forced to carry around something so heavy. Switching between arms, Timmy raced back home but found something missing. “Grandma!” he shouted. “I got it!” No reply. Timmy called again as he put the milk in the refrigerator. Nothing. His thoughts turned to HoloChat and the call of his friends. He jogged into the HoloRoom and stepped into the flickering light.

02/14/14

Cultural Shift: Holochat Screencast

Holochat Screencast

 

For the NMD 100 final project, my group theorized that Skype would develop a technology allowing 3D personal holograms to be projected piratically anywhere at any time. Essentially, as this technology worked its way into the mainstream culture it became the ‘ next big thing’ and holo-rooms became as common in the home as the computer is now. The Holochat system, combined with sensory input technology would allow anyone to go anywhere be able to interact with anything in the real world all from the comfort of their own homes. As one can imagine, we hypothesized what effect this technology might have on planet Earth – and it wasn’t pretty. This screencast depicts a typical owner of the Holochat system and how his world has been skewed without him even knowing it.

A link to the screencast video and website can be found here.

Apart from the screencast, I also wrote a short story depicting the world that Holochat has created.

12/10/13

Pecha Kuchas

What is a Pecha Kucha?

PechaKuchaPink

We were recently introduced to the idea of a Pecha Kucha in NMD 100. Previously, I had no idea what they were or what they were supposed to be. At first they felt like glorified PowerPoint presentations, but I eventually realized that they were designed to start a conversation. If you have never heard of this style of presentation before, I would recommend taking a look at some of the ones listed on http://www.pechakucha.org/.