Exploring the World

Great photography has always been of interest to me, especially nature photography.  It always amazed me how these artists could have so much patience and skill to be able to take the perfect shot of a sometimes very unpredictable animal.

I recently discovered the works of William and Matthew Burrard-Lucas: wildlife photographers from the UK. I found their photos of a Leaf-tailed Gecko and Wildebeests particularly interesting.



Leaf-Tailed Gecko (above) and Wildebeest Crossing.
check out more at http://www.burrard-lucas.com/

 

The great things about these photographs, besides all the technical aspects, is that they showcase new animals and animal behaviour that many have never seen before.

Living in the industrial environment that comes with living in the city, I rarely see any animals besides the random bird, squirrel, or fly.  To see a species that I've never seen before is interesting, like the Leaf-Tailed Gecko, and tells me that this world has so many interesting and different species that what lives in my little bubble of the earth.  The wildebeests crossing the river shows animal behaviour that I know exists, but have never seen before.  With great photography, it's like I'm really there, watching this event take place.  It's amazing to see the enormity of how many single animals take part in one event, such as these wildebeests migrating.

The detail captured in both of these photographs, as well as other works by the brothers, make city-dwellers like many of us experience the real world, and inspire us to be a part of it as well.

Gamers Are Becoming More Feminine

But don't worry - it's not that all the males gamers are loosing their masculinity, but that 40% of gamers in the U.S. and Canada are females, according to a recent article in Toronto newspaper, The Toronto Star.  This just goes to show that society is constantly changing and accepting certain things that were once considered inappropriate or taboo.

The article goes on to say that of these females, most of them play the same games as their male family member(s), and few play "girly" games.  However, this is most likely because of the lack of female game developers.  But the fact that it has become socially acceptable for ladies to play these, at times, (very) violent games says a lot about how our society has changed in the past couple decades.  I am not old enough to remember, but in history classes I got a sense that females were always the ones needing protection and are, in general, very innocent people that should not be exposed to violence, in general.  As far as I know (meaning collective titles of games from the gamers in my life), most of the games out there are about killing your opponents to be the last one standing / the winner.  If these games were out a couple years back, I don't think as many females would be playing the.

But the main point of the article is how two sisters are developing games for the more feminine of females, aka the ones who are not into the whole "kill everyone in your way and then some" games.  The article goes on to explain the concept of their work in progress.  Now, after reading it, I realized that although I'm not a huge fan of some first-person-shooter games, I still play them on occasion, and games such as the one mentioned in the article do not appeal to me.  It may be because I'm not in the targeted age group, but I think if I was in that group, then I still would not be interested.  It is admittedly an interesting concept, and I think it would appeal to many young girls, but growing up with a gamer for both a brother and a father, these "girly" games aren't as interesting to me as the more "manly," violent games they play.  Again, this farther shows that society is changing, because if I'd been born a couple years earlier, I may not be allowed to even watch people play these sorts of games.

The fact that more females are slowly becoming a part of the gaming industry is also a huge show of the equality between females and males becoming accepted and acknowledged.

Going Gaga

Lady Gaga and Maria Aragon perform at the Air Canada Centre, Toronto.
Photo taken from CTV Calgary.

After posting a youtube video of her cover of Lady Gaga's new single "Born This Way," 10 year old Maria Aragon's fame skyrocketed.  Lady Gaga took notice of this talented little girl and invited her to sing a duet with her at her concert in Toronto on March 3, 2011.

After watching and hearing clips of Maria's converstations with Lady Gaga, and Maria's other youtube postings, I couldn't help but notice that this little girl has got a whole lot of potential and talent.  This pairing with her idol was a great was for Maria to get noticed and a chance to live her dreams.  Many people often do not get the oppertunity to follow their dreams, and it's always sad to see someone's happiness disappear.

I think it is important to take every chance to live your dream and hold on to it for dear life - you may not get a second chance.  Unlike Maria, I am still waiting for my chance.  I am envious of her for getting hers so soon, but happy for her at the same time.

But still, when is my chance?

Gleeking Out

The songs performed by the cast of hit TV show Glee have always been remakes of some other known song.  However, for the first time, they are performing their own original song (co-written by Max Martin)

For those who don't know, Glee follows the struggles the students in the glee club at McKinley High School have in trying to fit in and climb the proverbial social ladder.  Many of the members are bullied and alienated by the other students for being in the glee club, and most of them feel like they need to step up and prove themselves to the rest of the school.

This original song is a great anthem not only for the glee club, but for the many, many people who are or were bullied while growing up.  I can see the anti-bulling messages within the song reaching a whole new adolescent audience.  When I was growing up, me and my classmates would always be told things like, "treat others how you would like to be treated" and "the 'nerd' that you bullied will one day be your boss," and other sayings with the same messages.  For some, the messages sunk, but for others, bulling was not a horrible thing to do.

This song has the same messages within it, but sang in a catchier tune than your elementary school teacher probably said it.  This song also takes a different perspective than traditional lectures about bulling - it is told from the victim's point of view.  All the members of the glee club know what it's like to be bullied, so they are able to connect with this song, saying that bullies will not get them down.  This is an important message because it tells bullies that their victims will not take being belittled sitting down, and that they will be the ones to amount to something because studying hard and, in this case, having a passion for singing, will lead to great careers in the future, while bullies will be the real losers in the end.

Getting Your Priorities Straight

How cute is this little girl?  Knowing exactly what she wants, and who she wants to be.

I have to admit, though, I'm actually kind of really jealous.  With me being in grade 12, it was due time to make a decision:  Which university should I go to? What should I study?  I've always wanted to know about the future - what my career will be, what I will be like, who I'm still going to know, and just in general - and envied the people who knew who they wanted to be since the age of 5, like this young girl.

In my school board, it is mandatory to take a careers course in grade 10.  It is supposed to help students prepare for their senior years of high school, and to make sure they take the courses necessary to get into their program of choice at their post-secondary institution of choice.  For me, this class was just an everyday reminder that my future was a huge secret, even to me.  I spent my time trying to figure out what I wanted to study, and every questionnaire I did gave me different answers, or random answers like "magician."  Now don't get me wrong, magicians are cool, but I would rather watch one than be one.

I also happened to be scheduled to take this course after I had already chosen my courses for the next year.  Everyone in my class and taking the course the same time as me suffered from this ill-planned timing.  How is this course supposed to help us choose courses for next year when we've already chosen them?

My one chance at planning my life out like this little girl, ripped away.

Vision Problems

What do you think when you first see this photograph?

Photo from http://www.guy-sports.com/index.htm 

 You can probably tell that the two photos are of the same object - the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  However, only one of them actually looks to be leaning, doesn't it?  In actuality, the two photos are identical (the buildings are parallel).

This optical illusion plays tricks on how humans visualize objects.  Because we are used to seeing tall buildings angled towards each other at the top, our brain does not know what to tell our eyes to see when we see images like these.  So, our mind thinks that the buildings must be raising at different angles to each other, and therefore we see one building raising on a slant, and the other raising straight.

(For more information and other photos like this, visit this site)

Photos like these show exactly how much animals (and us, as humans) depend on our sight, and how easily it can be deceived.  So much of our lives depend on what we see, especially in this time period, when so much depends on our looks.  Normal people like me, and probably you, see celebrities in magazines and in other media looking beautiful, thin, and seemingly perfect.  Alot of the celebs' fame comes from the way they appear in front of others, and media causes a big hype when they catch a famous star without their make-up, or when they've gained a few pounds.  Closer to home, many young people starve themselves in the struggle to become and/or stay looking "hot."  Some develop eating disorders and die because of lack of nourishment.  All of this because of the strive to appear appealing to others.

However, hopefully you all know that appearances are not everything.  Sure, it may be the start, or the first thing a person notices (again, because of our dependency on vision), but what's on the inside is what keeps us somewhere.  There never appears to be a day when some magazine or newspaper is advertising the downfall of some celebrity.  Obviously, just because something looks pretty, is may not be pretty "inside."  Our vision deceives us, tricks us, and makes us think something that is not true very easily, because the first thing we "see" in a person is usually never who they really are.

Defamiliarization Takes the Road

Andy Saunders takes a different road when thinking about the defamiliarization technique.  Check out what he did to his Citroen 2C7 here and below.


Andy Saunders' "Picasso's Citroen"
(photo from http://autos.ca.msn.com/photos/gallery.aspx?cp-documentid=27676061&page=9)

 Though this piece of art does not look very drivable, it is actually legally allowed to be driven on the road, and can get up to 65 mph, making this piece not only an excellent example of defamiliarization, but something the Picasso-inspired artist can use after completion, other than to admire.

The creative alterations to the Citroen 2CV make the art piece look like a car at first glance, but when the audience extends their viewing period, they start to notice features of the car to not be normal; such is what makes this piece a great result defamiliarization.

Assuming that this was a regular car that at first glance looked sort of weird was exactly what I did when I first laid eyes on the image of the car.  However, the more I viewed the image, I began to notice why it looked to odd in the first place - two headlights on the same side of the body, an extension in the backseat, a lopsided grille.  The more you look at the car, the more changes you spot and the more you appreciate an artist who can take something so familiar it's taken for granted, and defamiliarize it to make it a masterpiece.

Ophiuchus

Astrology's got a new sign!  No doubt you've all probably heard about this, since it's caused a major outbreak of rage and identity loss.

Ophiuchus, also called Serpentarius, was introduced as the thirteenth zodiac sign, making those born in the end of November to early December followers of the new sign that astrologers say was caused by changes in earth's alignment.  Many of the dates depicting the seperation of signs have changed, so you may be the previous sign to what you used to be. Check this out for more information.

Now, according to the new astrological order, I am no longer a fierce Aries, but a calm Pisces.

Though I do not plan my days according to what my horoscope tells me, I still feel an affiliation to my warring Ram buddies.  The thought of all of a sudden becoming someone else made me question my identity and what made me, me.  What described an Aries described me as well - there's no way that I could be a Pieces.  When I first heard about this new addition to the so-called "Zodiac family," I was shocked that astrologers could miss such an important thing, and horrified that I may not actually be an Aries.  Being an Aries was like a part of me, a part of my identity, even though I was not one of those people who wouldn't go out on days their horoscope said not to.

Imagine what a relief it was to discover that our western astorology has not changed in the slightest.