DiVE Experience

Experiencing the Duke Immersive Virtual Environment was really fun and informative and it was interesting to see how such technology which is usually viewed as being used for games and entertainment, can also be utilized for educational and practical uses as well.  Rachael Brady took us through many different applications, some of which were cool little games to mess around and play with, and others which were useful applications that could translate to real life.  I was surprised when we entered the virtual cathedral that Charles Sparkman built using the DiVE software, and we were able to fly around the place and explore every inch of the virtual cathedral.  There were also other buildings that we went through, and it was easy to see how this kind of technology could really help an architect or people that deal with environments like that, because one can build and explore places in greater detail than before.  There was also another program that was kind of like a visual database that mapped different companies and inventors with their innovations with computers and technology.  The user could interact with the data and visualize information that way.  I also read here about other programs and applications that had been created, such as a virtual forest that studies how wind affects seed dispersal and a giant simulated heart that biomedical engineers can crawl through.  

The only question I have is related to the cost versus the benefit of technology like this.  Rachael Brady described to us the hassle of having to design and build a structure like that, and how difficult it is just to ship and deliver specialized parts.  Maybe in the future they will be able to create less costly forms of the DiVE, but for now it is hard to imagine any company or organization (besides for research) that would be able to justify the creation of such a laboratory for the amount of money it would cost.  Also, its really easy to get dizzy with those goggles on...

Google SketchUp

This is an image of a 3D model I made with Google SketchUp.  I entitled the model, Autumn Sunday Afternoons, because this is the setting where you can find most men at that particular time.  It took a while to get used to the controls and figure out what to do, but once I got the hang of it, it gets pretty easy to manipulate.  I also thought it was really cool how you can import images as textures, which is how I created the Coke can.   I think that Google SketchUp can be a very useful and innovative tool that can open up another dimension of creativity (no pun intended).  It seems to be very useful for architects and people that must design in 3D environments and virtual reality worlds.  It is being used by Google Maps to create realistic models of actual places and buildings in order to take virtual tours of the place.  The places can actually be located and visited on Google Earth.  Many people are also using almost as a hobby, like a virtual version of building model airplanes and ships.  Many different models and buildings can be seen at the Google 3D Warehouse. 

Serious Games

Serious games refer to computer and video games that are not solely for entertainment, but also have some aspect of additional value, such as education, advertisement or simulation. Many companies and government institutions have been able to use these games in order to train personnel, create different interactive learning environments or serve as marketing tools. It allows for people to be immersed in realistic situations and having to respond realistically, without having to worry about the safety or cost of doing it in real life. It can make learning more enjoyable and maybe even more effective. I've always loved playing video and computer games, but I have never really thought about using a game to actively learn about or find out how to do something. It is interesting how video games are progressively getting more and more realistic, but people rarely think of how this increasing proximity to reality could be used to impact our society. While educational and training games may never gain the popularity of their more entertaining counterparts, they still serve a very important and useful purpose. 

When looking at video games, I've always seen the Flight Simulation games as boring, because it was actually like flying a real airplane and it was very difficult. I never understood why someone would want to play a game where you're really only trying to fly the plane. There's no enemy fighter planes to shoot down or German U-boats to sink; it just doesn't seem like a real game. There have even been combat simulation games developed by the military to help soldiers make good decisions on the battle field and to also recruit more soldiers, but even these games pale in comparison to the stunning graphics and action packed storyline you can find in a Tom Clancy or Call of Duty video game.

I thought that the Darfur Is Dying game was a good way to inform people of what is going on and actually give them the ability to respond right at their fingertips. The advantage for having the game on the internet is that it makes it easy for a person to go from playing a game to actually corresponding with people halfway across the world. Although it was a simple game that got kinda boring and repetitive after a while, it does make the player think about the circumstances that real people are going through.
The Kinko's game was very amusing. It was actually kind of addicting because I kept wanting to beat my previous score. The highest level I got to was level 10 on the medium difficulty. This game actually reminds me of a spoof of Kinko's that Dave Chappelle made called PopCopy. Kinko's must have done some things to piss a lot of people off.
One serious game that caught my eye is called Global Conflict: Palestine. In it, the player is a journalist in modern day Jerusalem who is trying to publish an article on the events taking place there. The main character must explore the area, conduct interviews and compile information and then actually put together an article. I thought it was a very interesting way to get people to learn about current events and also spawn an interest in writing.

PhotoShopping Culture

This is the original photograph of Che Guevara, which has been widely modified and reused across the world, and has almost become a modern cultural icon. Guevara was a Marxist revolutionary who was mostly known for his leading of guerrilla troops to overthrow the Cuban dictator and his strong political belief in socialism. However, his life (almost moreso his image) has come to gain a new meaning in today's society that is more associated with revolutionary thought and the counterculture. What he represents is widely disputed and has created much controversy, as many people praise him while others dislike him. This photograph was taken by Alberto Korda at a funeral, but the monochrome version of the picture (shown below) is the one that has been most widely circulated. It has even been called "the most famous photograph in the world and a symbol of the 20th century." Many other adaptations have been made to the picture, and a few of them are shown below.



The first picture is the one that most people recognize, the icon that can be seen on many items of clothing, posters and magazines. There is actually a website, TheCheStore.com, that sells all kinds of merchandise with this same image and also other images of Che Guevara on them. There is also a New York Times article, that discusses how Guevara has become more than just a revolutionary icon and progressed into a marketing and advertising option. The second image is actually on the wall of the Ministry of Interior building in the Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana, Cuba. Directly below the image are the words, "Hasta la Victoria Siempre" which means "Forever Onwards Towards Victory." I thought it was interesting that even with the simple outlines used in this rendition of the photograph, it was still able to artistically convey the meaning and significance felt in the original image. The third image is a painting called "Garden of Revolution" and it was painted by Austrian artist named Dr. Werner Horvath. He has many paintings of this same style, which he calls "New Constructivism" and there is a whole philosophy that goes along with it. I really liked how the details of the image subtly flowed together to create a sort of background landscape, but then also focused enough to generate the image of Guevara. This is an adaptation I made of the image using a program called Virtual Painter. With it you can upload pictures to the program and it will modify it using different filters. There were many different filters to choose from, but the one I used is called Silk Screen. It is better to click on the image for a larger view in order to see the details of the picture, but the lines give it a very topographical look, which adds a sense of military feel to the picture.

Image

I chose these three images because they conveyed the struggle between reality and the artificial. All of these pictures are an artist's 3D rendering of an environment, but they look so real that it is difficult to tell the difference. Technology has become so advanced that artists are able to recreate actual places and locations almost to their exact specifications. They look so real that many of the movies, videos and commercials made today actually use virtual backgrounds and special effects that almost cannot be discerned from reality. This opens a huge door for creativity that allows people to go farther and do things that were previously thought impossible. However, many also think it detracts from the authenticity of the image and would rather opt for basic reality. But this begs the question: aren't images an artist's or machines rendering of reality anyways? Is one image more real than another? As the age old saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Visual Data

Using WikiMapia, I was able to actually locate my house in Charlotte. I used different landmarks that were close to my area to get a general location, and then I could follow the streets and find it.  I can tell that the picture is still pretty old because our driveway hasn't been redone yet, and that happened a while back.  However, I don't see the functional use of WikiMapia except for the fact that anyone can edit it. 

Google Earth has a more detailed feel to it and there are many more features that can be used. With Google Earth, you not only have the capability of looking at locations on the earth, but you can also look at astronomical objects in space.  If you have a GPS system, you can actually track yourself on the map, and it can also be used for virtual tours. It even has a feature that allows you to see traffic movement at certain places.  Google Earth definitely has a high level of functionality, as it is used by many major corporations and in many different industries.  It's also something that's just cool to look at.  

I wasn't able to figure out how to use Swivel, but I did take a look at some of the data graphs that had been posted. Many of them post really obscure material, and some things that may not seem to have any correlations.  Many of them are pretty interesting, and it is also helpful how the site is able to break down each row and column.  One interesting one that I saw was a graph where somebody was recording exactly how much time they slept each night.   

Online Identity

It was very interesting looking up my online identity and seeing everything on the internet that was associated with my name.  When I searched for myself on Google, almost all of the articles had something to do with my football career.  Many of the search results pulled up interviews that I had been quoted in, statistics, and recruiting forums.  It was amusing to read all of the articles that analyzed me as a football player and just to see what people's opinions are about me.  However, I wasn't able to find any real personal information, so on a certain level that was comforting. 

I don't really use Amazon, so I wasn't able to get any recommendations. I also looked up my credit report, and although I've never knowingly had one, there were a few entries in the report that claimed I had currently active credit cards.  One was a CITI credit card that I had gotten in the mail, and the other ones were department store cards.  Luckily I had already paid everything off, and I had never really used them except for a couple of times, so my credit is still pretty good.