Week 2

1) Why was the period at the turn of the 20th century so important?

The industrial revolution saw many new inventions and much more mechanization that ever seen before. There were many new inventions such as the light bulb and cinema, which in turn enabled new art forms to be invented as well. 

2) What aspects of the Dada art movement are important from the point of view of the rise of the computers and digital visual media? (for example Marcel Duchamp's "readymades"?)

Duchamp’s readymades are basically the introduction of sampling to the art scene. Before the dada movement, the idea of just taking something and presenting it as art, or using it as a piece of your art wasn’t even considered. The dada art movement also brought forth the idea of random placing and random events being considered a part of art as well. These two ideas are used quite often in modern times, and both were introduced in the dada movement.

3) Name one aspect that links "The Man with a Movie Camera" with digital media according to Lev Manovich (ReadingsB)

It was Vertov’s attempt to break the limits of normal viewing, which is a common thing done in digital media.

4) What was 'constructivism'?

It was an art movement that tried to throw away “art for art’s sake,” and wanted to use it as something produced for social betterment.

5) Read pages VI (6) to XXII (22) of "The Language of New Media"
in ReadingsB: what does Lev Manovich suggest are the 'three levels' of "The Man with a Movie Camera"?

The three levels are:
-the camera man filming the movie
-the audience’s reaction
-the actual final film

6) Who first developed the idea of "Cybernetics"?

Norbert Weiner…

7) In "Computer Lib" Ted Nelson describes Hypertext as "Non ___________" writing (fill in the blank)
sequential writing

8) (Lecture) why were transistors, even though 100 times smaller than vacuum tubes considered impractical for building computers in the 1960s?

They were considered impractical because people didn’t think it would be possible to wire a computer with transistors due to it being perceived as too complex.

9) What was the name of the first commercial available computer (kit)?

Altair

10) Write a paragraph:

In your own words: What are things going to look like in 20 years from now in the average living room in terms of digital visual media? What types of digital media will your kids be using around 2030?

I believe there will be much larger televisions screens, if not higher quality projector based screens that will cover much larger of an area than we see today. The screens will be interactive, and much sharper quality. I think television and internet will no longer be two separate things. We will be able to chat and comment on live television through on screen displays, and post suggestions or reactions to whatever is being shown. Our kids will no longer read from textbooks, but instead e-books. This will save paper and encourage further human-computer interaction. Digital art will also become more common than it is today, and children will start to use it at a younger age than we have, thus being capable of producing things we haven’t yet considered. Programs will be created to further stimulate their minds at a younger age as well, and they will be incredibly easy to use.