Minority Report and Free Will
Free Will… We all have it, don't we? Some of us get up in the morning, shower, and then go to work. Others get up, feed their kids, clean the house, and cook dinner. And others get up and do absolutely nothing all day. WE make these choices for ourselves for the most part. Obviously, if a teenager wanted to do nothing all day, this would (hopefully!) be intervened by a parent. Because of our parents, we learn that there are things we HAVE to do to thrive besides eat and sleep. Although we do have free will, it's almost as if it is instilled in our minds that we have to act a certain way and do certain things in order to please ourselves and others.
In Minority Report, we apparently do not have the free will to think about committing a murder. (Not that I have a problem with this!) But to arrest someone for a murder they haven't committed yet raises a lot of questions. What if he/she changes their mind? What if someone fantasizes about murdering people but doesn't actually do it? How would we know if someone would actually be murdered in this case? Just a thought…
Reading Response To Neuromancer
I thought the discussion of Neuromancer brought up some interesting points. Although I had a tremendous struggle understanding this book, the part that stuck out most in my head was the part when Molly and Case were seeing a show in which Molly's body was used even though she was sitting right there. These snuff shows are disturbing enough in real life, but when someone can actually watch a (unwanted) projection of themselves participating in sexual acts in front of everyone, I can't imagine how that would feel.
As stated before, I do not understand the "cyber punk" trend in most of these books. Perhaps it is because it is something I do not know about, or perhaps it's because I really don't find it interesting. Either way, Neuromancer had me quite puzzled throughout most of the book. However, this seems to be a growing trend, with tv shows such as Ghost in the Shell, and movies like The Matrix and Bladerunner. However, I did think it was appropriate to show the clip from the show Ghost in the Shell because one of the characters had these goggles which helped him see better than humans similar to what Molly had in Neuromancer.
All in all, I had a lot of struggle with this book, but it did have some important points. The idea of free will is brought up when it came to the sex show and Molly. And I found it odd that in that civilization, it was perfectly okay to do something like that.
Reading response to DADOES
I really enjoyed reading Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. I think the most interesting thing about this book was the animals. I thought it was so strange and sad that the animals of the future are mostly electronic. The idea of ordering electronic animals from a catalogue blows my mind. I find it interesting that most books that are set in the future have something destroyed, whether it be animals or humans. Perhaps it is a warning for us to take better care of our environment.
When it comes to the Androids, I found it unethical for humans to create Androids for their personal use. Why not hire out-of-work people to do these jobs instead of creating artificial humans that don't realize they are not in fact human? I felt some sympathy for Rachel, considering she did not know she was an android until later, and then was very upset. I also felt bad for the "specials" because I believe that they were severely mistreated. In our current society, we help people with special needs, rather than throwing them aside and considering them outcasts.
When I read this book, I couldn't help but think about The Island, and how the clones felt when they realized they were clones. I was also very disturbed at how extensive the tests were to detect an android. If humans did want to create robots to help them with their daily needs, I believe that they should look like, well… robots. There shouldn't have to be any tests performed to distinguish a human from a robot, and the robot should not be able to assume that it is human.
Another thing that I thought was interesting about this book was the mood changer. To be able to wake up and set your mood for the day is an insane thought. I don't think i would be able to go through my life having my feelings controlled by a dial. I also think it was interesting how Richard's wife would make herself depressed on purpose. Perhaps she wanted to feel depressed because she didn't like the world she was living in.
All in all, I enjoyed this book. I thought it was a very creative story. I am not really into the "cyber punk" trend that follows in most of these books, but this one was one of the easier ones to follow. I did not have as much difficulty with this book as I did with Neuromancer, or my attempt at Snow Crash.
Oh hey…Good news
So…The Plague is back…
Super.
And she got it from fleas in her house. Super Duper.
I always get the weird stuff, like Shingles. I’m sure this is next on my agenda.
Thanks for setting us back 90 years, ladies…
So these kids got a bunch of women to petition AGAINST women’s suffrage. I suppose the point that these guys were trying to prove is that women are stupid. Although I do agree that the women in this video are idiots, I hope that there were some women who realized what they were asking, and that they just got cut out.
OH MY GOD!
And from the horribly creepy files… this guy is completely ridiculous. What disturbs me more is that women actually took him seriously and let him touch them.
I wouldn’t care if he was a real doctor or not, if some guy comes to your door offering you a breast exam, shut the damn door and call the police. Real doctors can’t do that, nor can creepy old men with nothing better to do.
Excuse me, sir. Do you have a license to breed?
I was watching Mind of Mencia the other night. If you haven't seen it, you should. Anyways, Carlos made a good point. When you turn 16 and you want to drive, you have to take a class, take a written test, then an actual test where you prove to some disgruntled government worker that you can indeed drive. Well, in order to have a child, which is much more responsibility than driving a car, all you have to do is well…you know…
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/8802196/detail.html
So this guy wanted to get "tipsy" with his son. OK, J-Kwan, someone needs to slap you upside the head.
In other news…Van Wilder is real.
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=422398
I’m not sure as to why someone would spend 12 years in college trying to get a bachelor’s degree. Now, I am finishing my 4th year in college, and I probably have about a year and a half left, but not 8 more years, sheesh!
I don’t know about some of you, but the whole getting wasted every weekend got old. The fact that this guy did it for 12 years blows my mind. In my opinion, by that point he’d be that creepy older guy at the bar. We’ve all seen him: Receding hairline, oogling eyes, and open shirt.
Anyways, my point is, I think that after a certain age, people need to grow up.
I’m really getting sick of these people looking for a way to call someone racist…
OK. There are some racist people out there; the KKK, the Black Panthers, Skinheads, etc… I would like to know what someone was thinking when they accused this teacher of being racist. \
From the article:
"Condoleezza holds a watermelon just over the edge of the roof of the 300-foot Federal Building, and tosses it up with a velocity of 20 feet per second." The question then asked students to determine when the watermelon would hit the ground.
When I read this part I thought to myself, Hey, just like Gallagher… A few paragraphs later I see I was right…
" Ratener said the question originally referred to Gallagher, a one-named comedian who smashed watermelons as part of his act, and that he changed it to Condoleezza because she was more recognizable and because he likes the name. "
Well, Jeez. I think the accusers simply had an issue with this teacher and used this as a way to get him in trouble. Even after the guy apologized, that still wasn't enough for some people. They wanted him fired. People like this make me sick.
In other news…people have too much time on their hands…
In case you haven’t been following sports, Willi Chevalier , the former World Champion Freestyle Chin Beard of 2005 is back again for another round.
I never knew….
Also, someone should tell Colonel Sanders that his long lost twin brother is probably taking drugs…
I write everything in pencil...I change my mind too much! 