Cause & Effect

I chose to do my cause and effect poster on nutrition and exercise. I have been an athlete for my entire life. In high school I played three varsity sports and made a hobby of working out and eating right. When I arrived here at ASU, I knew that these two aspects of my life would become even more important, since I would be away from healthful, home-cooked meals and a daily team sports schedule for the first time in my life. While I think that I have made the adjustment successfully to caring for my body in this new college environment, I do not think that I can say the same for many of my peers. Having the discipline to eat right and exercise can be hard, but sometimes it just takes a little reminder to get people back on the right track. This is why I chose to make flyers about health – it is a topic near and dear to me, and I think that posters around campus could really make a difference.
In setting out to design my poster, I that knew I wanted to keep the layout simple and the “cause and effect” relationship clear. A basic color scheme on a white background lends itself to mass-photocopying, so I chose to go that route. I also chose a basic theme for the project – the “freshman 15.” Essentially placing a joke about getting out of shape during college in big letters at the top of my poster differentiates it from other flyers and catches the reader’s attention. Also, it is a bit of a scare tactic to convince students to read on, so that they will not fall victim to the phenomenon. A URL at the bottom of the page directs readers to a nutrition website for more information. The body of the poster shares important information about eating right and exercising and depicts a comical representation of the two possible results: either stay health and look great, or ignore your health, and gain the freshman 15. Either way, as the poster shows, it is all up to the reader.

Halo: Reach Launch

On September 13th, 2010 the gaming world waited with bated breath. As the clock struck 12 midnight, Bungie and Microsoft Studios launched Halo: Reach, a prequel to the Halo trilogy and the newest addition to the Halo universe. Halo: Reach follows the story of Noble Team, a squad of elite Spartan super soldiers, as they make a final stand on the doomed human planet of Reach. In 2000, the first game in the series, Halo: Combat Evolved took the gaming world by storm. Launched concurrently with Microsoft’s first console, the Xbox, it established Bungie as one of the preeminent first person shooter development teams in the industry. The sequel, Halo 2, set a record for most games sold, and was responsible for establishing online gaming with mainstream console users. Halo 3 was the first game from Bungie to be released on the Xbox 360. Bungie took the opportunity to take full advantage of the new console’s graphics and computing power to produce another critically acclaimed game. Halo: ODST saw Bungie depart from the Spartan’s storyline for the first time to tell the story of Marine Orbital Drop Shock Troopers fighting the covenant on earth. This project, which used the game engine from Halo 3, served as a testing ground for many of the new concepts enacted in Halo: Reach. Reach has been met with a similar response to the other games in the franchise, achieving near gaming perfection and earning scores of 9.5/10 from both IGN and Gamespot (Brudvig, Watters). What appeals to gamers most about the Halo games, apart from such solid programming in the engine itself, is the social opportunities they present and the overall fairness for all participants. Sure, there are some naysayers out there that will never appreciate these games, but for most, the thrill of going head to head against another human opponent, where anything can happen is well worth the cost of the game.
Since the franchise began with Halo: CE, the release of these games has been so highly anticipated that retailers have help “launch parties” to promote their release. These events, often beginning the evening before the release, celebrate the release of the new game and allow gamers to secure a copy at the earliest possible moment, precluding the need for all-night campouts in front of the store. A myriad of elements come into play when evaluating these parties. They can range from small-town, local shops opening their doors in the early hours of the morning to full blown celebrations in Time Square, complete with musical performances from huge stars (Ackerman). What determines a good release party from a poor one is the atmosphere of the party and the presentation of the game. Atmosphere is determined by a number of factors, including but not limited to: music, decorations, fellow gamers, and other forms of entertainment. The presentation of the game can come in several forms, from clips of gameplay to game demos to tournaments. All of these variables contribute to the success of a good launch party.
In September, I attended two Halo: Reach Launch parties, both located at Scottsdale Fashion Square Mall. I briefly attended a party at EB Games, the store where I had preordered the game. EB is a small game store that sells games for all of the major platforms. But I spent most of my evening in another part of the mall at the Microsoft Store. This unique superstore is modeled after the Apple Stores that have found their way into most large metropolitan areas. The Microsoft Store serves as both a retail outlet for the brand and an exposé of Microsoft products to come. The differences between the two launch parties were stark and obvious.
To put it lightly, the “launch party” at EB Games subpar. It did fulfill the one essential criteria of delivering the game to customers at the earliest possible moment, but that was about it. The turnout at the event was dismal, with only about 20 customers. The store did not even sell all of the copies that Microsoft had allocated them for presale. In the past, launch parties at this location for Halo 2 and Halo 3 both generated 100+ customers, and the partly allocation of copies that the store had to sell ran out quickly (Bryce Muzzy). Those that had not preordered the game did not receive copies. While this is unfortunate for those few who did not walk away with a game, it only heightens the excitement of those that did, creating a sense of exclusivity. Furthermore, this time it seemed as though the staff on hand at this store had not really done anything to go out of their way for the launch. Unlike the images of launch parties all over the country, in which stores are decked out in Halo posters and cutouts and the employees wear costumes to celebrate the event, EB Games had done absolutely nothing. There was not even music playing, or a TV on display showing off the new game. The “party” atmosphere essential for a successful event was markedly absent. The food, drinks, lights, and music were nowhere to be found. This launch party was a cash register, manned by tired, bleary-eyed employees, frustrated with being made to work late hours, and a line of 20 or so dedicated gamers, all sitting in a ling along the wall in silence, bored out of their minds, and frustrated at having arrived early to the event, only to have to sit and wait even longer for the much-anticipated game..

The Things They Carried

For my final paper I am reading Tim O'Brien's Vietnam War novel, The Things They Carried. Since I got into reading it, this book has been difficult to put down. It is a collection of short(ish) stories that O'Brien tells about Vietnam. The difference between fact and fiction is a huge theme in this book, at least it seems to me. All of the stories are presented in a manner that would have the reader believe that they are true. The same characters inhabit most of the stories, all drawn from the same (presumably O'Brien's) rifle platoon in Vietnam. Here and there, O'Brien interjects some background about writing, or how a particular story came to be. But what intrigues me the most is how he describes the story-telling itself. If you've ever played telephone, or watched as a rumor spreads through a group of people, then you know how facts can be changed or tweaked, how everyone seems to hear a different version of "the truth." To me, and to most other people, it would seem, a story is a recollection of what happened, at a particular place and time. To O'Brien, a story is more like a vehicle with which to convey understanding of an abstract idea or emotion. To him, the little details that a story teller adds in, embellishing the tale with small lies to make it more interesting are not lies, as I would think of them. O'Brien sees them as useful additions that the story-teller uses to help the listener understand a concept or emotion. I just read a wonderful quote, in fact, about this mindset in The Things They Carried - "I want you to feel what I felt. I want you to know why story truth is sometimes truer than happening truth." ... "What stories, I think, do, is make things present." ... "When my daughter asks me if I have ever killed somebody, I can say honestly, 'of course not sweetheart,' but I can also say honestly, 'of course I did.'" When I do get around to writing my paper, I think I will expand on this topic.

"To be, or not to be, that is the question"

Here is my answer to a question on p. 1589:

#1 Hamlet is contemplating suicide, and what exactly suicide would mean. Basically, he says if death would be like sleeping/dreaming he would like it and if it would be something boring and obnoxious he would not like it. I think it might all be a bit of an act in order to appear crazy in front of Ophelia though.

The Interminable Relevance of Oedipus The King

This Greek play, Oedipus The King, has interested many generations of scholars and students over the last two-thousand years, becoming “one of the most famous plays in all of Western literature” [Mr. Coon]. This tragedy about the unfortunate situation encountered by Oedipus presents several themes that are just as applicable today as they were in Sophocles’s time. The philosophical and psychological questions that it raises strike a chord among most audiences. Furthermore, seeing Oedipus as a potentially “good” character (albeit with several large flaws) makes the unfortunate circumstances surrounding his life and his family tie appeal to the feelings of the audience, who sympathize with him and his mother.
Philosophy is “The study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language” [Wikipedia]. One of the philosophical aspects of this tragedy that intrigues people is how the prophesy, which predicted that Laius would be killed by his son, changed (or didn’t change) the events of the story one way or another. Was Oedipus’s fate pre-ordained? Laius ordered him killed, and unlikely as it was, he survived. Also, even though he grew up miles away in Corinith, he was somehow at the same place at the same time as his father, the king, and had to kill him to defend himself. If it were not unlikely enough for Oedipus to even meet his biological father again (let alone kill him), next he solved the riddle of the sphinx that had threatened to starve Thebes and took his mother as a wife. So was the prophesy a true vision of the future, telling of events that would certainly unfold, regardless of an individual’s choices or actions? Or, was this prediction a self-fulfilling prophesy? One can reasonably assume that had Laius not ordered his son to be killed, had he raised the boy himself, then the incident on the highway when Oedipus killed Laius would never have happened. But would the same result have been reached in another way? Does man truly possess true will, or are the fates of all men decided from the beginning?
Psychology is “The sum or characteristics of the mental states and processes of a person or class of person” [Dictionary.com]. The state of emotions felt by Oedipus and Iocasta at the conclusion of Oedipus The King, when they find out the truth about their relationship, presents a unique situation in which the audience cannot help but feel sorry for the characters and their plight. The reaction of both characters is somewhat shocking, but not altogether surprising. Overcome with grief, Iocasta committing suicide makes sense. She simply could not stand to live anymore. But Oedipus’s actions are more attention-grabbing. He so dreaded the time when he would once again face his mother and father in the underworld that the stabbed out his own eyes, so that he would not ever have to see them again.
The themes that Sophocles chose for this story endear it to nearly all peoples. Oedipus The King has remained a timeless work of literature because of the basic questions of human nature that it asks, which are just as relevant in modern society as they were in Ancient Greece.

On Death

Day in, day out, here in the ground we toil. Like rats,
We dig, we eat, we sleep, we march. And then repeat.
But unlike rats, we kill.
We kill and die, we kill and die, we kill and die.
Dulce et decorum est, pro patria mori?
No, It is not sweet and fitting to die for one’s country.
It is sweet and fitting to live, not to die.
It is sweet and fitting to hear silence.
It is sweet and fitting to sleep on a mattress.
It is sweet and fitting to tuck in to a warm meal.
It is sweet and fitting to wash, to shave, to shower.
It is sweet and fitting to use a proper latrine.
It is sweet and fitting to wear clean clothes.
It is sweet and fitting to enjoy your dry, warm feet.
It is sweet and fitting to leave the gas mask in its proper place.
Most of all, it is sweet and fitting to live. To live, and not to die. It is sweet and fitting.
Here, life not be sweet and fitting.
No, here we grow accustomed to, comfortable with Death.
Like the friend we all have, he is never invited,
But always comes along. One gets to know him, just the same.
And all for what? Who can say why?
A soldier cannot. For he is the just noose.
Otherwise just a length of rope, others make the knot. Others drop the floor.
These young men, they are Death’s agents.
Deadlier than you can imagine. I wonder
How many would be friends, in another world.
But instead they fight. They only kill and die.
Kill and die, kill and die, kill and die
Dig, eat, sleep, march. And then repeat.
Of Horace, I know not how he lived,
Only that he died, and died not knowing Death.

On Death

Day in, day out, here in the ground we toil. Like rats,
We dig, we eat, we sleep, we march. And then repeat.
But unlike rats, we kill.
We kill and die, we kill and die, we kill and die.
Dulce et decorum est, pro patria mori?
No, It is not sweet and fitting to die for one’s country.
It is sweet and fitting to live, not to die.
It is sweet and fitting to hear silence.
It is sweet and fitting to sleep on a mattress.
It is sweet and fitting to tuck in to a warm meal.
It is sweet and fitting to wash, to shave, to shower.
It is sweet and fitting to use a proper latrine.
It is sweet and fitting to wear clean clothes.
It is sweet and fitting to enjoy your dry, warm feet.
It is sweet and fitting to leave the gas mask in its proper place.
Most of all, it is sweet and fitting to live. To live, and not to die. It is sweet and fitting.
Here, life not be sweet and fitting.
No, here we grow accustomed to, comfortable with Death.
Like the friend we all have, he is never invited,
But always comes along. One gets to know him, just the same.
And all for what? Who can say why?
A soldier cannot. For he is the just noose.
Otherwise just a length of rope, others make the knot. Others drop the floor.
These young men, they are Death’s agents.
Deadlier than you can imagine. I wonder
How many would be friends, in another world.
But instead they fight. They only kill and die.
Kill and die, kill and die, kill and die
Dig, eat, sleep, march. And then repeat.
Of Horace, I know not how he lived,
Only that he died, and died not knowing Death.