Memory Architecture Project

Hi guys,
Sorry I couldn't attend, I was bed-ridden for a most of the week.

Anyway I wish you all a safe and happy holiday, and best wishes for the upcoming new year and new years to come.


Andrew.

photos from last critique

I'm sorry, but I only have three pix; nevertheless,
it is worthwhile to see, and if you have pix, please post. :)

Jill

Michelle

Fiona



~Bryn

Grounding Space

The final concept for the memory architecture project that I created is to design a space where patients at Baycrest, as well as general visitors to the space can rest and re-group their thoughts. The current location of the "Grounding Space" is at Art Metropole on the second floor of the building.

Through research into memory loss, I found that there is a positive correlation between cognitive memory loss and anxiety. When people forget the tasks that they had planned to do, anxiety increases because the person feels overwhelmed with the fact that they do not know what they have to do, and where they need to go, therefore feeling like they are "floating" out of their body and disconnected to the present reality. This is also known as dissociation. In order to cope, or to feel re-connected to present reality, it is helpful to practice grounding techniques, in a safe place like the "Grounding Space" in Second Life.

Some grounding techniques include: (from http://www.mosaicminds.org/safe-ground-new.shtml#list)

• Breathe - slow and deep, like blowing up a balloon.
  
  
• Take your shoes off and rub your feet on the ground.
  
  
• Open your eyes and look around. See you are in a different place than then.
  
  
• Move around. Feel your body. Stretch out your arms, hands, fingers.
  
  
• Peel an orange or a lemon. Notice the smell. Take a bite. Focus on the taste.
  
  
• Pet your cat, dog or rabbit.
  
  
• Spray yourself with favorite perfume.
  
  
• Eat ice cream! Or any favorite food. Pay attention to the taste.
  
  
• Repeat "this is now, not then"
  
  
• Go for a walk. Feel the sunshine (or rain, or snow!)
  
  
• Count nice things.
  
  
• Dig in the dirt in your garden.
  
  
• Turn lights on.
  
  
• Play your favorite music.
  
  
• Hug a tree!
  
  
• Touch things around you.
  

This list comes from "mosaic mind," which is mainly trauma-focused, but it is also about being mindful. Many of the items on the list have practical applications on Second Life, like putting feet on the ground/or floor, playing music. Some of the sensory applications like smell and taste can be mimicked virtually on second life, and at the same time, the participant can actually practice the grounding in real life. I think "Grounding Space" should be a mobile project, so that it can be moved between islands on Second Life, or for other practitioners to be able to buy the project to use in their work with patients as well.

I have approached this project on an emotional level, but it also addresses issues of physicality of emotions and feeling whole in your space. I had some challenges creating my Avatar, but I am happy with the concept and will continue to build on the project. Next year, I plan on incorporating Second Life into my thesis to research and produce applications in Second Life for trauma patients and to create healing environments in Second Life where the patients can create art as a form of therapy. This is also my interest for Grad School, so I am looking forward to exploring the project further to support my portfolio and research presentation at Concordia for the Art Therapy program.

Lev's Final: Instant Life In Second Life

Click on the title to check out my blog. Have fun.

Goldie the Memory Avatar

Unfortunately I was able to build my recreational room in SL I couldn't get the program to run long to build anything. This was extremely fustrating because I tried with my mac and my pc and neither were strong enough to run the program. I hoping to try later in the week when my projects are done because I found some interesting things that I would like to try out.

Anyways my memory avatar is based on my Grandmother who as you know has alzheimer's. The prototype of her family room and the function of it.
The tv actually serves as a memory bank for family events, social gatherings, vacations, personal experiences, and what I call "The Discovery Channel" which is a bank of pictures, videos, and descriptions of people in my Grandmother's life. On the memory avatar blog I created there is a more descriptive information about the use of the avatar from last class that I updated with the screen captures I created.


Even though I had a lot of difficulty with using SL, I found it useful on aiding me with my animation skills. I was able to build on how created three dimensional objects that were animated using scripts. I feel that this will help me understand flash and javascript actions a little more even though they're not exactly alike.


Created by Alicia Francis

Memento Machinima

Although I was unable to actually film a machinima on my own for this week, I developed a website that deals with the concept of a machinima filming service for people with impaired memory.

I may have struggled a great deal in the development of this project, I feel that I learned a lot about the filming process without even getting to the filming point.

Do please check out the link attached to the title to see the website I developed.

To see examples of machinima, I reccomend checking out:

Four Eyed Monsters Machinima
Odessy Art Machinima
Second Life Media Page
Bells and Spurs: a full-length feature film from Second Life



To read more about filming machinima,see:

Making machinima in Second Life
The Second Life Wiki: Machinima

Ghazaleh's Memory Architecture: thesis growth

Hi class,

I'm sorry I can't be there today, I'm out of town and I will be joining you on SL.

The objective of my thesis has been reflected in my virtual communities assignment and the avatar assignment. I have decided to update my architecture assignment with the new driving force of my approach to a networking site configured through a semester of "making connections":

measuring the potential evolution of an idea into actualization through collaboration

The avatar reflects the profiling component of my virtual community by framing identity (strengths, skills, accomplishments, education etc.) through fashion. The architecture is a reflection of the participation and collaboration component of my site which is what makes the site actually work.

It is about problem solving and collective intelligence to be the judge of effectiveness and impact of an idea into fruition based on user ratings.

So, here in Second Life I've created three cubicles:
-yellow is for idea
-pink is for method
-and green is for the problem
(no particular reason for the choice of colour)


This piece of architecture shows the type of activity that the users would be engaged in:

On one side you can go inside the cubicles and actually participate in the generated content. You are a part of making the site work, so you can contribute, critique and get inspired by other ideas, methods and problems - which all go in a cycle, by the way.

On the other side, all the content is generated and up for exposure and showcase. This reflects the type of audience that chooses not to participate and observe.

You can also just sit down and use the site as your source of media and get updated on what is happening based on your identified interests and preferences.

This concept works with memory because once you contribute, the content is tracked down by your profile and you will be able to identify yourself through your generated content and your contributed content to the network.

If you would like to know some more details, I have an earlier post describing my thesis and its growth.

My Memory Architecture

Hello everyone!











For this part of the project, I was interested in looking at how Second Life could assist with the prospective memory of individuals suffering from memory loss. Prospective memory (in the words of Brian Richards) relates to carrying out an intended action at some specified future time i.e. attending a doctor’s appointments or work. By using technologies offered by Second life such as notecards, external linking, date and time scripts, mailboxes and alert systems, I created a memory architecture that essentially works like online calendar system. The way it is set up is that there is a mailbox for each day of the week. Family members, friends, co-workers can help individuals suffering from memory loss keep their appointments and schedules by dropping off notecards in the respective day of the week mailbox. An upright flag on the mailbox is an indicator that someone has dropped off a message for the user.











These notecards that are received can/ should contain information such as:
when the appointment is
where it is and with a link to the google map
who they are meeting with a link to a picture
why he/ she is meeting them
what he/ she will be doing there.











The text indicating the day of week above the mailbox serves as a reminder that only appointments of that particular day can be dropped in this particular box. Likewise, separating the mail according to each day of the week makes it mentally and visually more clear to the user what day the notecard is relevant for.

By using an interface (mailbox) that is familiar and carries many semantic connotations to the real world, I think that users may feel more comfortable interacting with this system. One of the biggest hurdles I found with Second Life was how hard it was to figure how the interface worked as it was very unlike that of …say the interface of a cellphone or email system. For people who may not understand what a notecard is, this memory architecture can help them look at notecards as letters that you receive in the mail.

Also attaching a familiar artifact to the memory architecture (in this case my starbucks cup) I thought would make it more recognizable and personal to the user. This directly addresses something Guy Proux mentioned in his lecture about patients being able to recognize the environments better when filled with artifacts that are personal to them or speak to an event in their early past that they are still able to vividly remember.











Actually, as a side note here…I found an awesome article by the New York Times about the topic of "Alzheimer and Architecture" where they were saying that “familiar objects helped patients find their own room better than name tags” . Click on the title to read full article. Worth your time!

Cheers
Fiona

Memories and the Art of Second life

Hi everyone!

As you may all remember from my previous project, my mother created an avatar of how she remembered/perceived herself. I did this as she is in Montreal dealing with Cancer and I am here in Toronto, unable to be there for her.

To continue on this theme, I created a functioning scrabble game for her to play. Again, this is a way for her and I to connect online together. We have been playing scrabble together (in person) since I could spell.... she typically wins but I give her a good run for her money. This interaction reinforces our bond, and is a special moment between her and I. Since we are in separate cities, I wanted to provide her with a means to still play (or win) at scrabble with me. Additionally, she could also play it with others, if she pleases.

You will notice a blue orb right beside the scrabble board. The tiles are randomly generated and given to the avatars to a maximum of 7. It can also detect when u have 7 or not. This wasn't an easy feat of programming and I am quite proud that I managed to figure that one out! Its because of this orb that one doesn't need to posses the tiles in their inventory to be able to play.

I have yet to figure out an electronic form of score keeping. But i got so involved in getting this together that once the holidays have started, and I have more time, I am going to try and figure it out.

Much to my chagrin, this Second Life thing is growing on me. :)

Looking forward to seeing everyone else's in class!

Memory Final

2234177 Jill K

This is my final project for the semester for this class. It consists of two walls that will aid in memory loss. The two walls consist of photos from two different categories. One wall is a photo album and a reminder of who my immediate family is and what they look like. The second wall is the same deal but for my friends. These walls are to remind myself, if I am in the situation o f forgetting people’s faces, of the people I love and trust. If I ever get confused or disoriented I can go online either via cell phone, palm pilot, or my laptop and quickly log in and visit this area. To complete this project it would be even more use full if I could click on one of the pictures and it connects me to a website that me and that person have made together that documents our lives and reminds me of past events. Even if the link was to a website like Facebook.com it would be sufficient.
Anyone can uses this method can customize it to their own family and friends or even build more walls to create categories for co-workers, distant relatives and even second life friends and their first life equivalents.
So that is my final project. Have a good Holiday break.

Jill Korgemagi

Progress Report

Hey guys,

I'm having the same problem with logging into SL and staying functional. I finally got my laptop back but I can't stay on SL long enough to do anything and I can't get to Judith's house. ARGHHHHHHHH, I guess it's going to be a late and long night for me... see you guys in the morning!

Alicia

Second life maintenance work

heyy everyone,

Is anyone else having touble logging on to Second Life? Their maintenance work is taking rather long! I thought it would be over by now.

Fiona

Transit and Tribulations

UPDATE: Ok, it's Sunday at 3:45 and I'm at school. Apparently transit takes longer on Sundays. Like, nearly 3 hours each way. ARGH! Also - the school computers can't handle video capture in SL without crashing SL - and the school computers don't allow me to install new/seperate video capture software! Also... no one I know is ever online when I am! No one to ask about gestures or re-enactment/filming help....

Lesson learned: if Machinima Memories were ever to happen, the service would require fairly high-powered set of computers and a staff of 5 minimum. Website designing I go.

~Kat

ps- Judith, there's a bus and a shopping cart on your SL front lawn....

Machinima and Meltdowns

Hey everyone!

My memory architecture project is going very slowly... my home PC can't handle logging on without crashing, my boyfriend's macbook can't capture video without crashing secondlife either.... so I'm really not sure how I'm going to film this!

In lieu of a finished machinima, I think I might develop a prototype website for a machinima filming service. We'll see. I'm going to go to the school tomorrow to see if I can get it to work there.

If anyone has gotten a hold of a simple 'rain-making' object or a hug animation/gesture, a donation of one would really help me out!

I'll try to be filming tomorrow night or Monday night, depending on how it all goes.

~Kat

my memory avatar

So, this is my avatar, "Locitar Frog." I had a lot of trouble making it because SL was not working on my computer and I couldn't log-in sometimes too. Nevertheless, here she is and I'm content with the results.












Sitting under an installation at Art Metropole Sitting on a cushion at the Ah Lounge Amphlitheatre












Flying through the trees on Odyssey Isl. Sitting on an installation by Zenya Z. at Art Metropole

my thesis evolving

Hey everyone

Just an update on what the focus of my thesis has become inorder to differenciate and strengthen its "collaboration" focus.

the big idea is:

An online network to expose, develop and support effective methodologies and ideas.

That's it in one sentence. It will be executed in the next semester and the process books will be designed as well.

It's been great to be a part of this class. I won't be present the next class but I will post my architecture assignment and have it in Judith's place for next week. If I can get online, I'll see you there. If not, it's been a pleasure having you all in the class.

The guest speakers were wonderful.

Thanks Martha and Judith.

Ning - create your own social network

According to the recent blog entry in World Changing about The Business of the Social Graph, Ning is going to kick Facebook's ass.

Machinima filming

Hey there!
Thanks for putting the word out for me, Judith!

I won't have the opportunity to actually film until next weekend - this week I'm working on getting all the necessary avatars, gestures and locations figured out, as well as a storyboard and testing different video capture software (it seems that the in-game video capture software crashes every time I use it - on my Mac or PC).

I don't think I'll need many 're-enactors', but some extra 'camera operators' would be ideal. Let me know if you're interested!

~Kat

GUY PROUX WEB VERSION -

THIS JUST IN FROM MARGARET GRISDALE, manager of the President's office --

(GUY PROULX)... graciously agreed to having his presentation videotaped
and provided permission for us to post it on our Web site. The posting
will be made as soon as our staff can edit the footage. Given that a
number of pressing projects currently under way, this may take a couple
of weeks. We shall endeavour to have it posted as quickly as possible.

Guy Proulx documentation // Kat's Machinima Shoot

Hey everybody --

Guy Proulx was fantastic! If you missed it, they did video the lecture last night. Call Eric Schwab at the library to find out about how to see this documentation. If he doesn't know, get back to me.

Kat is scheduling an SL movie production using Machinima -- Ian Ah and I will take part and maybe you can too

-- may be best for us to meet you on-world, then Kat can tell us who to log on as and give us instructions -- or she may be able to give us a "costume" as inventory then we could don the costumes and follow her directions. Ian will have suggestions on this -- Maybe we can find some in-world folk who'd like to participate

-- I will enjoy the experience! Meanwhile, I shall continue with machinima research.

-- I suggest that Kat post her SL "production time" on the blog and we can join in as virtual actors and extras if she'd like...

Jill - Virtual Community

Virtual Communities

A virtual community is an interaction between people or persons via internet, exchnaging information and ideas. There are many names for virtual communities; e-communities, social network, and online communities. Virtual communities can be small or big, they can also be with people you know in reallife or with people you have only met online.
Th internet is a growing media that allows us to publish and interect and exchange information digitally. The internet has also been dubbed the “Third world”
Virtual communities can be a passage way to develop a group that is far away from eachother or bring together old friends and family. People may have the same ideas and interests but may be half way across the world. The virtual community allows a connection between people.
There are so many communities out there. Some communities are art based, some are for intereactions with school like forums or online courses, also there is msn where you can silently talked to your added friends. Then there are others like myspace and facebook where you can customize a page that is your profile and where you can interact with other members of that site. I think though some people abuse virtual communities and post themselves. So many people have posted themselves by taking pictures and writing about their everyday lives. I think that is abusing the site because virtual communities are for sharing and not for gloating.
What is also interesting with virtual communities is the members that join them . There are different stages in being a member. The first stage is the peropheral stage here the person is not yet a member but is a viewer of the community. The second stage is called inbound also known as a newbie and this is where the person is investigating the community. The third stage is called insider or regular and this is where the person becomes a member of the community. Then boundary is the fourth stage which is where they become more involved and sustain their participation in the community. The final stage is called outbound and this is when the member decides to break off and leave the community. Every person is different and it might take a verylong time to break away from the community since its is what helps to define out profile on the internet.
I found an online community that organzies and catalogues family trees and your family name so you can add to your digital family tree as the years go by and add other historic information. It’s a memorial site and keeps track of your origins. You see where your family was first from and where it was circa 1920. Its quite a fascinating site that can help to presurve your family identity.
Virtual communities are becoming more and more popular. They can be used for school, social, leisure, and even work. They allow us to stay in contact with people or to allow ourselves to meet new people who share the same need to communicate in our busy fast pace world. Virtual communities can even get so big and great its own culture.
People who can’t identify or relate to preexisting communities go out and create their own. There are of course guidelines to creating your own online community. First there has to be a sense of usefullness. If the site or community is not worth connecting to then there isn’t really a reason for it to exist. So the creator has to be flexibile and allow for member’s input and make the community easy to contribute to and to access. You have to be open for change. Allow suggestions from members and to allow your knowledge to evolve. Then you have to allow your members to be credited and have to measure their contributions. Then finally to allow members to respond to other members.
Virtual Communities are a new phenomenon in the late 20th and early 21st centery and I think will just get bigger and bigger until the internet is no more.


Works Cited Page


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_communities

http://www.linkpendium.com/genealogy/USA/sur/surc-K/surc-Kor/surc-Korgemagi

http://archive.ord/index.php

http://www.ourmedia.org/

http://www.akakurdistan.com/

http://www.nytimes.om/special/bosnia/

http://web.macam98.ca.ac.il/~horit_a/chkpoint.htm

http://www.drik.net/


Virtual Community Project – “Double Lives”
By Jill Korgemagi

For my Virtual community project I am doing an online do-over book. I was first ispired by the do-over book called “Pretty Little Mistakes.” It’s a book where you choose your own adventure but in this case its like a passage of your life. You get to choose where you want to go and your actions affect your decions. Usually in one sitting you can can read through your life starting after high school.

So my idea is to recreate this type of fantasy exploration but put it on the internet where you can create your own avatar and then have a profile where you can document your double lives. Other members can look at your avatar and can read about your adventures. For the stories themselves when the website is initially posted there will be a set amounrt of stories but then when people become members and have a certain amount of double lives they can add their own stories and passages, but they will have to be screened and approved by the website directors. You can’t just post any story they have to be okayed.

The format of my community can be considered to be sonic memory. It’s a website where people can share their own stories or post fictional stories to aid in the doublelive adventure.

The meaning of this project is for people to be able to go on imaginary adventure. I think istis a popular concept, many people do the same thing through books, video games like the sims or RPG games, movies, and other websites like Second Life. I think it would be fun to have your own avatar that could look like whatever you want and then you can have a proflile. The profile will post the picture of your avatar and you can add your friends or add stories that you like so you can tract their stories. It’s a media sharing and media swapping based community.

I think my audience will be very dynamic. I think it will attract young and older people. People like to have fun and with this community people will be able to see what its like to make other decisions in life and to see how else their life could be like, whether it be realalistic or fantasy.

I would like there to be different life categories. There will be different catgeories like fantasy, space, realiasic, historic, and even missions lives you can explore.

Assignment #5

Assignment 5 – Memory Architecture in Second Life

What would happen if myself or a family member started to forget the faces of their friends, family membes, or even co workers. What cold I do toeither help myself or help a faily member remember. Clear because Second life is an internet place where you can do anything I am going to use it to aid in this sort of memory loss. So lets just say that I am forgetting faces. Because I use the internet on a regular basis and I have an account on second life I will just make myself the one with the memoryloss. To aid in my dimentia I will produce a capsule that as an avatar I can enter and explore. It will be a sort of gallery where I can see pictures of my family, friends, internet friends and co workers. Using four walls and section each awall for each group of people I need to remember.
So I can interact with the people on secondlife but can teleport to the specific place to go visit the gallery if I need aid to remember someone.

Jill Korgemagi
2234177

Lynne Heller show - fun after class

Tomorrow after class Jim Ruxton and I will be walking to RedHead gallery to see Lynne Heller's mixed reality show at 401 Richmond -- it will be a fun little lunch walk together, followed by a great show with the artist in attendance. Lynne may even attend our class. Then, later this evening - Guy Proulx's lecture. Lots to learn and enjoy today.

GUY PROULX / BAYCREST lectures at OCAD

Tomorrow Night (Wednesday) PLEASE DON'T MISS - YOU'LL LOVE THIS TALK.

President's Speaker Series: Dr. Guy Proulx
The Aging Brain: How Art and Design
are Changing the Way We Care
Wednesday, November 28, 2007, 6:30 pm

OCAD President Sara Diamond invites you to attend a thought-provoking lecture by Dr. Guy Proulx, Director of Psychology at Baycrest. Dr. Proulx will share how art is a gift providing light and creativity taking dementia out of the darkness of pathology. In his words, "Memory has evolved as a wonderous time traveling machine that allows us to recapture the past or imagine possible futures. The power of art and environmental design can do much to reduce excessive disability associated with the aging brain and its related diseases. Confused minds are too often the results of disabling environments and crippling attitudes."

AVATAR-Show & Tell @ The Beal Institute for Strategic Creativity

PART I
AVATARAVATARAVATARAVATAR

On Thursday November 22, 2007, Researchers from the Beal Institute for Strategic Creativity at OCAD held a show and tell session for their weekly open house with the theme of, "Avatar," and I thought it would be beneficial to post my notes to the VC Blog. Shortly after the Avatar discussions, VC Prof. Martha Ladly presented her Masters thesis on mobile technology navigation, called "Park Walk".

So what is an Avatar?

Mark Poon, OCAD Alumnus and Researcher

• Synapse
• build us (humans)
• around us, therefore part of us
• reality
  

Terri, Researcher

• Non-permanent conditions of our existence
• medium of the emergent self
• Weild(ed/ing)
• "Avatard"
  
• Therefore, we must design for emergence
  

This is Fiona Chung, AKA Avah Greenwood

















Researcher
"Multiple Personality Order"

• Avatars are/give superpowers
• Context demands content
• choice/making; social matrix

Invisible Majority

• More visible vs. invisible

Who Are You Really?

• Outwardly, you are that person whom you project yourself to be
• Inwardly, you are more you
• ex. blogging- individual conversation with the/ your self
  

Researcher

• Avatars are "beautiful prototypes"
• Psychophysiological technique of facial electromyography to find the Avatar
• Phonesthesia
• Ancestor simulations
• Telecommunicate
• Ex. Marshall McLuhan- telecommunication theory
• Fractal Geometry as "supernatural avatar"
  

I think an Avatar is:

• Tools of extension; allow us to step into other realms without leaving our worlds
• Applications in:
• Play
• Education
• Production
• Social Psychology
• There is no straightforward answer to "What is an Avatar".

What is an Avatar?

Part II
Professor Martha Ladly presented her Masters thesis to the group at 3pm.







http://mobilenation.ca/mdcn

"Park Walk"






Some valuable information was shared, in regards to working towards a Masters Degree:

1. Generate a project concept: Create a user-friendly navigation-based application for mobile phones in High Park, Toronto.
   
2. Write out the methodology > see website for Park Walk
3. Apply and test > see website for Park Walk
4. During the creative process,
   
1. Think of the user----> Firmitas
2. Apply to the design (cell phone)---->Utilitas
3. Design (the interface)--------->Venustas
5. Important to note:
1. Documentation; storage of files in a library
2. Develop demos to present to committees and panels
6. Write the report
1. paper copy
2. digital copy on DVD

*There are probably many more steps, but this is helpful to know what it is like to go through the process of working towards a Masters Degree.

















In reflection, Martha states that her creative process during Park Walk was not free from barriers:

• GPS Drifiting
• cloudy
• rainy
• leafy
• Solution to this problem: Move the location to Grange Park; test and design.
  

Reflection on the experience of Grange Park:

• "I would make it less didactic and more mysterious"—M. Ladly

In conclusion, but not in-conclusion... Martha is moving on to explore other areas and interests (including, of course, our Virtual Communities class).

Check out these sites:
Android
http://code.google.com/android/index.html
TED Prize
http://www.ted.com/index.php/pages/view/id/6
Buckminister ("Bucky") Fuller Challenge
http://challenge.bfi.org/
One Laptop Per Child Project
http://laptopgiving.org/en/index.php

—Bryn Ludlow, Nov. 23, 2007

U2 Concert in SL

really cool

Second Life Prision???

I found this article the other day too... forgot to mention it in class... I think the title of this post says it all....

Article about the Future of Interactiive Communities.... as promised!

Hi all,

Its a long article but very interesting!
Richard Bartle's predictions for the future of interactive communities...

on a side note: he makes mention of a software called "3d mailbox". I would check out the link if you want a laugh...

see you next week!

Lynn Heller's show featuring SL at Redhead Gallery

LYNNE HELLER’S ‘really [this show is rented]’
PREMIERES NOVEMBER 21
AT THE REDHEAD GALLERY IN TORONTO -- 401 Richmond St. W.

Lynne Heller enjoys the best of both worlds. In one life, she is a gifted multi-media artist, living in Toronto. In SECOND LIFE, an Internet-based virtual world, she is Nar Duell, a character or ‘avatar’ Heller created as a ‘resident’ of SECOND LIFE.

Beginning November 21, Heller and her intrepid avatar Nar Duell will construct a mixed reality installation at the Redhead Gallery. SECOND LIFE, the three-dimensional animated world, will face off with ‘first life’ – also known as the real world.

Everything in SECOND LIFE is garish, bright and two-dimensional. It’s a world built out of algorithms and fuzzy imported j-pegs. Nature clashes in the ironically flat 3D universe where trees are two-dimensional images intersecting at right angles to simulate the lushness of leaves.

A ‘garden’ in a SECOND LIFE gallery will be projected onto the walls of the Redhead Gallery. Visitors will be able to watch Nar Duell tend her SECOND LIFE ‘garden’ in real time. At the same time, Heller will tend plants in a live garden at The Redhead Gallery. Webcams will capture the action and, in a reiterative loop, video of gallery visitors will be streamed into SECOND LIFE to play on a wall in the SECOND LIFE gallery, also in real time.

James Elkins, the E.C. Chadbourne Chair, department of Art History, Theory and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, says Heller “could be the one per cent or less than one per cent using SECOND LIFE this way. What is being done in these environments is new and doesn’t behave the way people expect art to behave.”

Heller’s interest in examining disparity is captured in ‘really’: “On the one hand, there are our desires and yearnings; on the other, reality. And in between there is a wide gap filled with our very human day-to-day struggles while we live, work, and play. Dreams and reality bumping up against each other… in odd juxtapositions, quirky coincidence and endearing fumbles. My current work reflects my interest in exploring our adaptation as we wander around – mostly lost – improvising in this rocky terrain. I love contemplating our humanity and finding beauty amongst the modest, ‘overfamiliar’ artifacts of our culture.” Her website: www.lynneheller.com/really

An artist and designer, Heller works in a number of disciplines. Principally known for her work in fibre, she has also created new media pieces, sound, websites and installations. She completed her MFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2004. Group exhibitions include: The Stray Show (Art Chicago), Wide Borders: Heller, Roy &Thiessen (Burlington Art Centre, Tom Thomson Memorial Art Gallery in Owen Sound, Cambridge Library and Gallery). Solo exhibitions have been shown nationally and internationally in Havana, Chicago and Santa Fe.

really [this show is rented] runs from November 21 to December 15, with a reception on December 1, from noon to 5 p.m. Heller and Nar Duell will be present at the Redhead Gallery and the SECOND LIFE gallery throughout the show. The Redhead Gallery is located at 401 Richmond Street West in Toronto. Exhibition hours: Wednesday to Saturday, noon – 5 p.m.

Memory Avatar

Hi guys,

The avatar that I created was produced strictly from inherit emotional symbolic and semiotic aspects that I found interesting throughout my life using visual and auditory applications.

Various elements such as the color and features of the avatar reflect cultural significance from various elements of fantasy and reality. The avatar itself would have inherit audio capabilities which take the voice of people I've heard of (though that function may not be available due to my fear of these online banking systems) and in accordance, gesture that person.

These elements coalesce into a single unified being of tangible memory fragmentmentation.

The idea seems nightmarish in a Phillip.k. Dick sort of way but that's how I see it.

Now for something completely Second

Hi persons (engage political-correctness)

Some links I reference come from the Play behaviour and game design course that I'm also taking at OCAD in regards to Second Life immersion :

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5huaC9fnUY7gEVtK-K8pt_5lorjaw
An interesting article about applying something called Brain Control Interface (BCI) as a means for paralysis patients to control a second-life avatar.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/11/12/second.life.irpt/index.html#cnnSTCText
What is regarded as news "in-world"? as the original poster mentioned, does this prove second life's importance or is it simply a means for corporate marketing ?

http://alpha.cbs.com/primetime/csi_ny/
CSI:NY using Second life as a premise for a murder episode.

Art on Second Life

Hey everyone,
Here's a blog about art that's popped up on second life. Neat stuff, check out the title link.
~Kat

Speaking of social networks...

Hey everyone,

I found this article on wired magazine about some of the social networking sites that are on the web today. Pretty hilarious check it out.

Class on Wednesday Nov 21st

I will be in class after the break, and will look forward to joining you all then!
with best wishes
Florence Freenote

The Gallery of Memories

I believe that when we don’t know much about our past and our grandparents we have the same feeling as someone that has lost part of his or her long time memory. Both ask the same questions: who am I? Where have I come from?
My grandfather has tried to answer these questions for my family by documenting the story of his life and pictures of our past generation. He has documented all of those in his notebook. What he has done has provided me with a world full of memories that I can refer to whenever I want to recall these memories.
Second life has given me the ability to recreate this world in virtual format. It has given me the ability to present these memories in a way that will be interesting for visitors. I have presented these memories in a gallery like environment. I have relatives around the world that each of them can find their answers here. They can come here and visit the gallery and learn more about their past generation. The next generation will also have the ability to come here and learn about their aunt sisters.
My avatar is a representation of my grandfather who decided to document all these memories in his notebook and past them to the next generation as an inheritance so we learn from them and apply them to our life.

SL on Facebook, and other destinations that you've browsed

Hello,

SL is on Facebook in a group... I'm scared to join..haha- would you? I like the anonymity of SL as it is.

What are some destinations that you've visted on SL?

Check out this place in China:

Yaoi Province > 207, 31, 25

*there's a building called, "Fingerpaint" and artists post their work on the walls, much like a gallery, but SL version. The content is "mature", nevertheless, the concept is interesting.

"I am a man." —Clarence Thomas

People who seek to define themselves by race have experienced racial prejudice and are driven on anger to find their own identity—not the identity of their given label—and ultimately they will return to the beginning, more vulnerable than ever.

Race is not a project with a beginning and an end. We must be ourselves and live our own lives because it is the only life we will have.

-BL

Not including theories of reincarnation, does this argument/ statement make sense? I am also researching racial identity.

Race-The Floating Signifier

Race, the Floating Signifier: Featuring Stuart Hall
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=...
http://www.mediaed.org Arguing against the biological interpretation of racial difference, Hall asks us to pay close attention to the cultural processes by which the visible differences of appearance come to stand for natural or biological properties of human beings. ...

(In response to Andrew's piece on interracial identity)



(WARNING- THIS VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC ARCHIVAL IMAGES FROM THE SLAVE TRADE IN THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES SHOWING LYNCHING AND VIOLENT ACTS, AS WELL AS SWEARING. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.)

Avatars consume as much electricity as Brazilians

So as promised in my comment to Bryn's post, here is an article comparing the amount of electricity consumed by an avatar in second life compared to real human being is our Real Life. It is an interesting read, and certainly shed a new light in my eyes of how even in virtual spaces there can be and should be concerns for the environment.

Cheers
fi

Virtually There

"With the tourism boards of Ireland and the Netherlands setting up shop in Second Life, Ivor Tossell wonders if visits to the online world can entice tourists to actually board a plane and go".

IVOR TOSSELL

Special to The Globe and Mail

November 14, 2007 at 8:51 AM EST

"In Second Life - a place where people can frequently be found without underpants - nightclubs act as chat rooms with a visual twist. This particular establishment, a popular pub called the Blarney Stone, was set up by Tourism Ireland, but virtual-world ventures are starting to pop up at the behest of destinations around the world in a bid to attract real-life tourists."

"Mitham points to the Mexican tourist board's replica of Chichen Itza in Second Life. The board built the attraction in part to promote its bid to have the ancient ruins added to the list of the New 7 Wonders of the World.



"I'd certainly never heard of Chichen Itza myself before entering Second Life," he says.""

"I would be shocked if a lot of people visited virtual Dublin then decided they had to go to Dublin," says Peter Ludlow, a professor of philosophy at the University of Toronto and the author of The Second Life Herald: The Virtual Tabloid that Witnessed the Dawn of the Metaverse, a book that chronicles his time as the editor of the virtual world's in-house newspaper.

Ludlow says that, for the moment, virtual versions of real-life destinations have the qualities of simulacra - Disneyland-like imitations that don't necessarily evoke the real thing.

"If you have a simulacrum of Venice in Las Vegas, for example, I don't know that that makes you want to go to Venice in the same way as a travel brochure does."

A Second Life simulation that can accommodate a few dozen patrons at once won't reach nearly as many eyeballs as a brochure, Ludlow points out. "

(I'm not related to Peter Ludlow..haha)

Good article. Wonder what the SL Herald is like?

~Bryn

Second Life Memory

Here is my final avatar that will help my Mother to remember certain things she has to do throughout the day. using Second Life when I am away I can send here specific reminders to allow her to recall the information she needs to finish what she starts. Two forms will be sent to her, one being a snap shot of the avatar with a little message to reminder to "feed me, walk me, pet me" The I will also send the picture and attach the day planner for her so she can print it out.

Jill Korgemagi 2234177

Because I simple can’t remember triple grande 3 pump non-fat no-whip Cinnamon Dulce Latte

When working at Starbucks for a couple months, one of the biggest challenges I faced was trying to remember the drinks that customers ordered and then repeating it in the order that was only satisfactory to Starbucks standards. This order being # of shots, then the size, then type of syrup, then type of milk, then any custom attribute like whip or no whip and THEN the actual drink – yes I know, quite a handful. It also didn’t help that I only worked 2 days out the week and would often forget parts of my training upon returning to work the following week.

In having this project now, I wonder if perhaps my work experience could have been enhanced had I been introduced to Second Life earlier. This in many ways became one of my research questions, and in response to this project I created an avatar that would aid me in my inability to recall words in a specific order.

In hearing the past two lectures, few of the points that really stood out in my mind were 1) Gayatri’s notion of chunked memory and how that can be a very effective tool in retrieving information as in the case of phone numbers which are separated by dashes to aid in remembering these arbitrary strings of numbers.
2) Brian’s talk about semantic memory which is the memory of meanings, words and conceptual knowledge non-specific to any event and how this is preserved in patients irrespective of amnesia.

Keeping this information in mind, I looked at tools like mnemonics link systems which chunks arbitrary words together by creating an association between the individual elements. For instance, random words like cell phone, car, and socks could be linked in a mnemonic story like my cell phone was ran over by a car and as a result I buried my dead cell phone in a sock.

A visual mnemonic link system would then be a string of words linked together through a memorable and absurd imagery, which also creates a story. In my case, for example, the words of shot, size, syrup, milk, custom, drink could be translated into an image of a camera taking a shot of my dwarf-sized, maple-printed cow drinking a whipped latte.

Using our understandings of words like shot, size, syrup, etc and replacing it with connoted imagery heightens the absurdity of the story and also makes it much more memorable. Through features and functions, like building and wearing objects, texture mapping, sending snapshots to email, my avatar will be able to play out the absurd imagery and have its appearance archived in the form of email for future reference. It is also quite possible now to actually print out your 3d avatar in a 3D form (see www.fabjectory.com). This could very well be another option to have my second life stay connected to my real Life.

Goldie the Memory Avatar

My memory avatar was created to help my grandmother with her alzheimer's. The avatar's name is Goldie and on secondlife her name is Goldie Oldrich. The avatar is basically used as a memory bank of events, people and experiences that happened throughout her life.

There is a more descriptive information about the avatar and its purpose on my blog: Goldie the Memory Avatar.

Avatars as Memory Tools

My concept for using the Avatar as a memory tool is posted entirely on the link attached to this title.

I've taken to posting everything to my .mac website and my OCAD webspace to save space on the blog.

I feel there is a lot that can be done with this!

Assignment # 4
Memory Avatar


The Segmented Memory Worm Man

More information will be available in class on Wednesday - this is a brief summary.

• Their code exits only in a volatile memory and they are installed by a memory disability.
• The worm -- a self-fertilizing hermaphrodite with a life span of two weeks- - it is Asexual
  
• It focuses on deciphering the genes and cellular processes that govern memory and learning.
• It even has a vehicle to get around in Second Life - to enable faster access
• it is still genetically modified and bio-engineered - to work within a closed circulatory system and true segmentation of the memory system. Pushing the envelope of what Second Life is capable of.
  
• It directly effects the brains procedural and declarative memory systems. By being a reminder to the user.

Inspiration for the memory worm came this article :
http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/ubcreports/2006/06jan09/worm.html

Avatar concept: Fashion as Identity; Identity as Experience

What we wear and how we look is our only way to communicate who we are to people without dialogue. Clothes are indicators of our personalities, likes, values and subcultures we may be a part of. We are in a constant stage of reflecting our identity and the only way we can do that in the physical world is through our bodies. Our bodies are physical representations for defining how we choose to be perceived as individuals.

Second Life is a place where the physical world limitations open doors for imagination and creative approaches, and new possibilities in an alternative physical world, where we have more choices on how to be perceived. Imagine if what you wore told a story about who you are based on what you've experienced. How can fashion become a closer representation of who we are? How can we track our experience in an avatar "fashion"?

I see the body as a medium.

If the body is perceived as a medium to communicate identity through experiences, we can begin to see how our memories play an integral role for who we really are and how we define reality. Memory is visually documented through photographs, writing, art, video and audio. To bring memory into visual form has been the reason we exist. So, why can this medium of our bodies not be a vehicle for documentation and communication along with aesthetic appeal?

These are my thoughts for creating an avatar and hopefully I'll be coming up with examples of how I can achieve this with Second Life.

Memory Avatar

Hello All.

I have been enjoying the guest speakers throughout the past weeks. It is fascinating that something so complex is inside of us all. The human body is a fantastic place...

Recently, my mother was diagnosed with stage two cancer. This is the 3 type of cancer she has had in 6 years. For the first two times, i was able to be around for her. Unfortunately, this time I am far away, and unable to be there at a moments notice.

With that, I wanted to make a memory avatar for my mother. This avatar would remind her that i am there for her, and that her incredible strength will get her through it all. Additionally, it would help remind her that her family can be her strength, when she doesn't feel up to it.

To do this, I wanted to create the avatar in my image that contains several outfits with images of my family. Additionally, this avatar would send messages to my mother daily, providing words of encouragement and love.

This week, I started to create this in second life. However, I have run into some issues with the software and usage.... I am having difficulty making lindens to upload skins. I was filling out surveys, but for some reason, couldn't get more than 10 lindens total... I am not sure if I wasn't filling them out properly. I also attempted to "camp" but again, couldn't figure out how to accomplish this...

Maybe someone can give me some tips on this?

See you all in class...

National Geographic : Memory

If you missed Martha's fascinating hand-out last week - Joshua Foer's story in this month's National Geographic on Memory - here's a link to the complete text online. Send it to your friends. I think the piece is well-written and thought-provoking - but I'm curious to get Brian Richards' perspective, now that he's joined our blog. Welcome, Brian and Angela!

Hi everyone , It's Brian,
I just looked through the postings they look great. Angela is eating all my girl guide cookies...I was warned about you OCAD types having limited food budgets.

Hello!

Hi to everyone in the Virtual Communities class,
This is Angela Petranik writing. I am a 4th year INTM student doing an independent study at Baycrest under Judith's supervision. I'm at Baycrest today and have just joined the blog, and thought I would introduce myself. I have also helped Dr. Brian Richards join (he gave a presentation to your class on Hallowe'en). We are both going to take a look at some of the work you are doing. It looks interesting so far! I can't wait to see more when I come sit in on the class this Wednesday. See you all then!
-Angela

You Only Live Twice - SL doc on YouTube

Check out this 45-minute doc about Second Life that aired on CBC newsworld recently - now on YouTube.