…and still suffering from a chronic lack of sleep.

You are never quite sure what the person’s story is next to you, why they are who they are, and what story lays behind their smile or in particular their choice in movies. In 10:01 I could not help but find myself interested in the individual stories of each person. Which if I place myself in that context and situation, I would probably find more interesting then whatever movie or show we came to watch. The perspective of the work seems to cater to this as well, by placing the patrons of the show in front of the viewer, as if the patrons are apart of the show itself. I was amazed at not only were details of the individuals were given, but the emotional responses as well as their links to the others in the room (along with their personal opinions of the others) were revealed. Also another point worth mentioning is that the patrons all are shadows in the dark theater and their stories are hidden. However the shadows seem to add a almost anonymous quality to them, why did the writer choose to have the stories on mouse over (hidden) instead of in a more public way (revealed) since the characters are hidden themselves?

As the discussions of augmented reality through different mediums, the benefits are quite clear in that how and when data and information is processed and displayed will become more streamlined and accessible in the real world broad-casted on the real environment. However who is able to manipulate and create that information, if so, what entity or person controls it once it is made. The benefits of web 2.0 coming more into real space are difficult to argue with, however with the mass amount of user generated content, what is to keep the information from being manipulated much like the Internet, that is, to keep people from profiting from that manipulation. When the information is controlled by corporations or individuals looking for personal profit, this would allow our spaces to become not only covered with advertisements and suspicion in reality, but also allow yet another medium for a hand to be placed in our pockets.

It seems this semester I have been effected like a large amount of my classmates at the lack of evening classes for several departments. It is surprising in fact to learn that a college that counts a large group of older students that have some life experience, veterans for example, being forced to rely on part time or evening positions to help pay bills or aid in that ever growing tuition cost. However as a person that has made this transition recently and somewhat late in my academic career I now think of it as another massive handicap to my education. It seems as my need for junior and senior specialized classes grows the less is available. The English department has been very wonderful in helping my attain these goals through night classes however several departments do not offer a single class, with the exception of core curriculum. With these rising tuition costs, do these departments wish to cut out much needed student tuition due to this oversight?

It is understandable that the idea of a evening class is tough perhaps for professors due to the hours and work needed to run them, however it should be considered that perhaps more incentive be offered to those professors willing to provided these much needed classes instead of assuming that people give up their needed day jobs for their education.

I would personally sacrifice and have sacrificed much for my education and know that it will benefit me in the end. However, a good high paying position is difficult to find in this modern economy and will take any that come my way, day or night.

Picture a image of a ninja fully armed…then jump to a image of a room full of murdered people.

What does the mind assume? The thought is one that is presented to us in the readings that the mind often completes the story when we are presented with a portions in the story given by comics as a medium. Thus in this aspect the convaying of the story is placed on the reader his/or her self, as put by Scott Mccloud, the reader is responsible for the act.

Going back to the image of the ninja. How do we not know that the ninja is just a man in a costume at a unnamed convention of costumed ninjas, or a anime convention goer, or simply a image placed randomly in a sequence? It may be that we as a culture tend to move to the extreames of a situation by media and movies. Situations in a movie like a man with blood on his hands is instantly assumed to have killed someone, a attractive woman going to a seedy roadside motel is a prostitute, when other, more rational explainations can be inferred. Things that are often out of the norm in a situation, such as picturing a person that plays destructive/action movie characters sitting and doing a normal act such as walking, we tend to expect a random act of violence and can be dissapointed when not presented with what are minds want to assume.

In class we talked about the relevance of a classic story like, “Pride and Prejudice” being renewed by adding pop culture icons, such as zombies, to the equation. While someone that wouldn’t be interested in the plot might be by the addition of this element, it is the more subtle quality of addressing the gender roles of the characters in our story and those in the original. While the goal remains the same of both manners and to be married. The strength of the women, including that of Lizzie, has grown exponentially. The qualities that were valued in the time period in England have been turned upside down. Women are now, more so, valued for fighting ability, and training such as the Chinese/Japanese education rivalry. The inner strength of the heroine can be seen as well when she seems to reject the idea of marriage at first, seeming to value herself and her abilities over her need to marry.

The themes of class can also be addressed, in that Lizzie, a member of the english middle class, clashed with a member of the upper class. Also the manner in which she speaks to the Lady Catherine, insults, threats and so forth.

While the appeal of the origional story is still alive and well, adding a more modern outlook to the characters and attitude seems to increase the relevance. While the addition of zombies to the plot makes things even more unrealistic, the emotional and overall feel of the characters through these events can be thought true. Such as valuing skill over manners, and the ability to protect over marriage.

-Mike     (Just found the spell checker)