Digital Technology and Culture

A blog for students and friends of Washington State University Vancouver's Digital Technology and Culture Program

New Edition of the Iowa Review Web

The new edition of the Iowa Review Web is out, with Rita Raley as guest editor and Dan Waber, John Cayley, and others as guest writers.

Check it out at:

http://www.uiowa.edu/~iareview/mainpages/tirwebhome.htm

There is an article about gaming mods by Sandy Baldwin that some of you may find interesting.

posted by: grigar at 03:04 | link | comments |

Careers and Globalization

I spent all day Friday at a College of Liberal Arts retreat. The main topic of conversation was developing a coherent, united voice on the purpose of and goals for Liberal Arts at WSU. I am telling you all this because one of the goals that was put forth focused on preparing students in information literacy for a global perspective. Questions were raised about what we could do to achieve such a goal.

I have some possible answers to that question, as those who know me may have guessed by now.

First, it seems to me that the main focus of DTC courses should not be on asking you to learn specific technologies but providing you, instead, with experience in creative problem-solving so that you can adapt to changing technology. There is an old saying that the only thing we can depend on is death, taxes, and roaches (okay, the last of these is a Texas addition). I would add to that saying "changing technology," because it is certain that there will be a new version or a better program the moment we master one. So teaching you how to think through technological conumdrums provides a broader perspective than, say, learning only to code in a specific language.

Second, it seems to me that another important thing we have to do in educating you is to broaden your vision of the world and to make you world citizens as well as Vancouver, WA ones. To do that, we need to expose you to new ideas not necessarily local ones--and to ask you to engage with those ideas, perhaps, in ways alien to your own. What I am hinting at is this: The way to expand your horizons--and ultimately your career potential--is to learn other languages, and I don't mean Java:) It really helps to learn Spanish, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian--you know, natural languages.

You have to ask yourselves why American companies have been so successful in moving high tech businesses off American soil. Do you think they could have if folks in foreign countries did not speak English? Do you know, for example, how many languages taxi drivers in Singapore speak? The ten or so drivers I rode with spoke upwards of six. These are men who did not go to college. You, who are spending a lot of money in tuition so that one day you can land a white collar, high-paying tech job, may be squirming over learning one. How many languages do you think college-educated Singaporeans speak? How many do educated Americans speak? The disparity is literally killing us.

Even avoiding discussions about understanding other cultures by understanding them in their native language, you cannot deny that, truly, we can't afford that luxury anymore.

The bottom line is that you need to learn to work in multiple contexts with multiple understandings. So, information literacy and foreign languages. Those are the keys to your future. To anyone's future. Amen.

--Dene

posted by: grigar at 23:00 | link | comments (5) |

Coded Language- poetry by Saul Williams, music by DJ Krust

This is an amazing song, thought I would share it with anyone who has never heard it before and to reacquaint those who have.  If you look at this as a call to those of us who are the next generation of designers and pundits, it is a call to action for us.  Below you will see the music video and below that is an approximation of the poem.  enjoi!




Whereas, breakbeats have been the missing link connecting the diasporic
community to its drum woven past
Whereas the quantised drum has allowed the whirling mathematicians to
calculate the ever changing distance between rock and stardom.
Whereas the velocity of the spinning vinyl, cross-faded, spun backwards, and
re-released at the same given moment of recorded history , yet at a
different moment in time's continuum has allowed history to catch up with
the present.

We do hereby declare reality unkempt by the changing standards of dialogue.
Statements, such as, "keep it real", especially when punctuating or
anticipating modes of ultra-violence inflicted psychologically or physically
or depicting an unchanging rule of events will hence forth be seen as
retro-active and not representative of the individually determined is.

Furthermore, as determined by the collective consciousness of this state of
being and the lessened distance between thought patterns and their secular
manifestations, the role of men as listening receptacles is to be increased
by a number no less than 70 percent of the current enlisted as vocal
aggressors.

Motherfuckers better realize, now is the time to self-actualize
We have found evidence that hip hops standard 85 rpm when increased by a
number as least half the rate of it's standard or decreased at ¾ of it's
speed may be a determining factor in heightening consciousness.

Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the
unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth.

Equate rhyme with reason, Sun with season

Our cyclical relationship to phenomenon has encouraged scholars to erase the
centers of periods, thus symbolizing the non-linear character of cause and
effect
Reject mediocrity!

Your current frequencies of understanding outweigh that which as been given
for you to understand.
The current standard is the equivalent of an adolescent restricted to the
diet of an infant.
The rapidly changing body would acquire dysfunctional and deformative
symptoms and could not properly mature on a diet of apple sauce and crushed
pears
Light years are interchangeable with years of living in darkness.
The role of darkness is not to be seen as, or equated with, Ignorance, but


with the unknown, and the mysteries of the unseen.

Thus, in the name of:
ROBESON, GOD'S SON, HURSTON, AHKENATON, HATHSHEPUT, BLACKFOOT, HELEN,
LENNON, KHALO, KALI, THE THREE MARIAS, TARA, LILITHE, LOURDE, WHITMAN,
BALDWIN, GINSBERG, KAUFMAN, LUMUMBA, GHANDI, GIBRAN, SHABAZZ, SIDDHARTHA,
MEDUSA, GUEVARA, GUARDSIEFF, RAND, WRIGHT, BANNEKER, TUBMAN, HAMER, HOLIDAY,
DAVIS, COLTRANE, MORRISON, JOPLIN, DUBOIS, CLARKE, SHAKESPEARE, RACHMNINOV,
ELLINGTON, CARTER, GAYE, HATHOWAY, HENDRIX, KUTL, DICKERSON, RIPPERTON,
MARY, ISIS, THERESA, PLATH, RUMI, FELLINI, MICHAUX, NOSTRADAMUS, NEFERTITI,
LA ROCK, SHIVA, GANESHA, YEMAJA, OSHUN, OBATALA, OGUN, KENNEDY, KING, FOUR
LITTLE GIRLS, HIROSHIMA, NAGASAKI, KELLER, BIKO, PERONE, MARLEY, COSBY,
SHAKUR, THOSE STILL AFLAMED, AND THE COUNTLESS UNNAMED

We claim the present as the pre-sent, as the hereafter.
We are unraveling our navels so that we may ingest the sun.
We are not afraid of the darkness, we trust that the moon shall guide us.
We are determining the future at this very moment.
We now know that the heart is the philosophers' stone
Our music is our alchemy
We stand as the manifested equivalent of 3 buckets of water and a hand full
of minerals, thus realizing that those very buckets turned upside down
supply the percussion factor of forever.
If you must count to keep the beat then count.
Find you mantra and awaken your subconscious.
Curve you circles counterclockwise
Use your cipher to decipher, Coded Language, man made laws.
Climb waterfalls and trees, commune with nature, snakes and bees.
Let your children name themselves and claim themselves as the new day for
today we are determined to be the channelers of these changing frequencies
into songs, paintings, writings, dance, drama, photography, carpentry,
crafts, love, and love.
We enlist every instrument: Acoustic, electronic.
Every so-called race, gender, and sexual preference.
Every per-son as beings of sound to acknowledge their responsibility to
uplift the consciousness of the entire fucking World.
Any utterance will be un-aimed, will be disclaimed - two rappers slain
Any utterance will be un-aimed, will be disclaimed - two rappers slain

posted by: funktifyknow at 18:52 | link | comments (1) |

Collision

We are back from Collision, the conference in Victoria, Canada. I will be writing a review of it for Leonardo Digital Review, but for those of you interested, I will mention that a couple of the highlights were Kirby Malone's (AVT, George Mason University) presentation on "Live Movies," his project with Gail Scott White that mixes live performance with digital technologies. Stunning work. Ben Evans' (Alberta College of Art and Design)paper, entitled "An Interdisciplinary Approach to Interdisciplinarity," did a great job pointing out some of the problems we face when calling a course, project, or program "interdisciplinary." Lucy Pullen's (UVic) artist talk about her practice provoked a lot of discussion––some of it quite passionate––from audience members who wanted her to take the discussion to interpretation.

On Wednesday night of the conference, Steve Gibson hosted a dinner at his house for friends. Artist Randy Adams, formerly of the trAce Online Writing Centre and a frequent collaborator of Steve's, was in town from Naianmo. Allen Bell, professor of English and screenwriter ("The Sweet Hereafter") was present and brought some faculty friends from Cambridge. Justin Love, who does quite a bit of programming for Steve and Steve's collaborator on various projects, also showed up––with a recent batch of his homemade beer.

Both Steve and Justin will be at WSUV from November 9-13 to help me calibrate the lab. I have invited them to perform their new work, Channel 10, for us while they are here. We are looking at holding the event on Saturday night.

posted by: grigar at 22:58 | link | comments |

Summer Schedule

This summer I am planning to offer a course under the rubric of ENG 497 is Electronic Literature. Essentially, it is a net art course that will give students both a background and history of this genre of new media art as well as a hands on opportunity to create their own net art.

I am also thinking of offering a complete summer session (two courses back to back) in the area of video. I have been talking to someone who who specializes in video production and in experimental video. If I can pull this off, then it means that students could spend half a summer learning video art.

If you are interested in such an offering, click on "Comments" below this post, and tell me. I want to hear what you think.

posted by: grigar at 14:57 | link | comments |

Photos of DTC Orientation

Harrison Higgs talks to students about the DTC Program



A roomful of DTC majors and minors

posted by: grigar at 00:25 | link | comments |

Welcome

If you have landed here, chances are you are a student in the Digital Technology & Culture program at Washington State University-Vancouver and/or media arts freak. Welcome to all.

To the left are "Links" that take you to websites announcing upcoming digital media conferences and events; blogs by leaders in the field of new media; top online journals featuring new media art and criticism. These links will change each month so that you will be exposed to a multitude of ideas, expanding the notion of digital technology and culture from the local to the global.

In the future you will find announcements, photos from DTC events, and program information posted here. For example, those of you interested in Laurie Anderson's work, should note that two films in 1986 featuring her are playing at the T:BA:06 this Friday at the Portland Art Museum. Also the New Humans are performing on Sunday night at 10 pm. Check out the PICA link to the left for more information.

Also in Ocotober, the DTC Club will be going to First Thursday. Anyone interested should contact Dene Grigar at 360-546-9487 for more information.

posted by: grigar at 21:43 | link | comments |