Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Closing Thoughts
This semester has made me think about a lot of different things -- mostly summarized in that robots are better than humans but will never become better than humans if they are sterile...but we all are cyborgs anyway so it doesn't matter.
Something my brain really started working on this semester is genetics and genetic engineering. It was one of the those rare cases where two of your classes relate to each other, and in this case they informed one another. With an environmental studies background you hear about GMOs, that they put genes from an arctic fish into a tomato so it can grow in colder weather. But with this class, you see how far this could be taken. The Windup Girl was very interesting to read, because instead of suggesting that GMOs are bad because they aren't "organic" or whatever, it is because of the ways that they can allow for corporations and capitalism to become further ingrained in what we do. While we were learning about this in Tec. Ec. Lit., we were looking at gene therapy in genetics, and how plasmid and reverse transcriptase and all that sciencey-stuff goes into gene therapy. I think this is an area where there probably are, and definitely could be, a lot of interesting sci-fi novels in the future. The combination of lit and genetics really got me thinking about some sci-fi stuff I want to write.
As for things I was already thinking about, and that this class further informed, came at the beginning of the semester when we read Paley. Coming from 13 years of Catholic schooling, I guess I was used to doing science in a religious setting, and it wasn't like people were lobbying to ban evolution. But I guess it was really illuminating to see what that whole movement is based on, beside the bible. It was also fascinating that Darwin was inspired by the same text that people use to deny Paley's theory. It also felt like I started seeing Paley everywhere, and could actually understand. For example, professor Weldon loaned me Angels and Insects, which takes place right after Darwin's theory started taking root in England. The main character is a scientist and believes Darwin's theory, while the man who hires him believes in a more Paley theory. I was able to appreciate this era and the conflict between the two characters because of the readings for this class.
Thanks for reading, shout out to my 13 Russian readers. You guys are the best!
Something my brain really started working on this semester is genetics and genetic engineering. It was one of the those rare cases where two of your classes relate to each other, and in this case they informed one another. With an environmental studies background you hear about GMOs, that they put genes from an arctic fish into a tomato so it can grow in colder weather. But with this class, you see how far this could be taken. The Windup Girl was very interesting to read, because instead of suggesting that GMOs are bad because they aren't "organic" or whatever, it is because of the ways that they can allow for corporations and capitalism to become further ingrained in what we do. While we were learning about this in Tec. Ec. Lit., we were looking at gene therapy in genetics, and how plasmid and reverse transcriptase and all that sciencey-stuff goes into gene therapy. I think this is an area where there probably are, and definitely could be, a lot of interesting sci-fi novels in the future. The combination of lit and genetics really got me thinking about some sci-fi stuff I want to write.
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| Reading sci-fi helped me understand this... |
As for things I was already thinking about, and that this class further informed, came at the beginning of the semester when we read Paley. Coming from 13 years of Catholic schooling, I guess I was used to doing science in a religious setting, and it wasn't like people were lobbying to ban evolution. But I guess it was really illuminating to see what that whole movement is based on, beside the bible. It was also fascinating that Darwin was inspired by the same text that people use to deny Paley's theory. It also felt like I started seeing Paley everywhere, and could actually understand. For example, professor Weldon loaned me Angels and Insects, which takes place right after Darwin's theory started taking root in England. The main character is a scientist and believes Darwin's theory, while the man who hires him believes in a more Paley theory. I was able to appreciate this era and the conflict between the two characters because of the readings for this class.
 |
| ...and this! |
Thanks for reading, shout out to my 13 Russian readers. You guys are the best!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Creatures and Bears and Voyuerism...Oh my!
Little do we suspect, when we forget to close our windows or cover our hovel-holes at night, curious creatures learn how to imitate life, or so Benjamin Percy and Mary Shelley suggest. In Percy's short story "The Heart of the Bear" we see a learning how to behave like a human and imitate our actions through watching a family in their remote, window-filled home. In Shelley's infamous novel Frankenstein, the book's creature learns how to speak and read from an unsuspecting family, all the while he growing to care for the peasant family who doesn't know of his existence.
The parallels between the two lie not only between the situation of learning through spying, but also what occurs as a result. In Percy's story, the bear becomes very attached to the family, fantasizing himself as a recognized member and even lusting after the family's mother/wife. The Frankenstein creature feels a similar affection, sympathizing with the peasants in their struggle for sustenance and feeling their joy when the young man's love returns to him.
But despite the affection in both these tails, things inevitable fall apart, because in both stories the watcher can never be more than a watcher, for both the bear and Frankenstein's creature are ultimately not humans. They are monsters that strike fear into the hearts of the people they encounter. Things go awry in Percy's story when the bear decides to go meet the family, and ends up killing the wife and husband, leaving their baby alive. In Shelley's tale, the creature reveals himself to the family, only to be chased away, never to see the family he learned from and loved again.
An interesting, more minor, similarity between the two is that each story has a character that doesn't see the creature as frightening. In Percy's story it is the baby, who sees that bear and gurgles, not recognizing the bear as dangerous, and even being raised by the bear for an unknown period of time, long enough to run out of formula twice. In Shelley's story, the peasants include a blind father, who can't see how horrific and ugly the creature is, leading him to initially accept the monster as a normal person.
There are differences though. In Percy's tale, people die, but the creature ends up being accepted for some time by the baby, and is never confronted by people as it shops for groceries, drives, or goes to the park with the ever day people. The Frankenstein creature, on the other hand, is hated by the peasant family and every other person he comes into contact with. The end results are also different, the Frankenstein creature ultimately becomes bitter and makes it his goal to ruin his creator's life. The bear, on the other hand, finds the baby accidentally shot itself, then leaves the house, realizing that it is, at its core, a wild animal.
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| Not Pictured: A bear or horrific creature made of dead bodies watching you make formula, read books, have sex, etc. |
The parallels between the two lie not only between the situation of learning through spying, but also what occurs as a result. In Percy's story, the bear becomes very attached to the family, fantasizing himself as a recognized member and even lusting after the family's mother/wife. The Frankenstein creature feels a similar affection, sympathizing with the peasants in their struggle for sustenance and feeling their joy when the young man's love returns to him.
But despite the affection in both these tails, things inevitable fall apart, because in both stories the watcher can never be more than a watcher, for both the bear and Frankenstein's creature are ultimately not humans. They are monsters that strike fear into the hearts of the people they encounter. Things go awry in Percy's story when the bear decides to go meet the family, and ends up killing the wife and husband, leaving their baby alive. In Shelley's tale, the creature reveals himself to the family, only to be chased away, never to see the family he learned from and loved again.
An interesting, more minor, similarity between the two is that each story has a character that doesn't see the creature as frightening. In Percy's story it is the baby, who sees that bear and gurgles, not recognizing the bear as dangerous, and even being raised by the bear for an unknown period of time, long enough to run out of formula twice. In Shelley's story, the peasants include a blind father, who can't see how horrific and ugly the creature is, leading him to initially accept the monster as a normal person.
There are differences though. In Percy's tale, people die, but the creature ends up being accepted for some time by the baby, and is never confronted by people as it shops for groceries, drives, or goes to the park with the ever day people. The Frankenstein creature, on the other hand, is hated by the peasant family and every other person he comes into contact with. The end results are also different, the Frankenstein creature ultimately becomes bitter and makes it his goal to ruin his creator's life. The bear, on the other hand, finds the baby accidentally shot itself, then leaves the house, realizing that it is, at its core, a wild animal.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Let's Clone Jesus Guys
On behalf of the illustrious Atheist Allies (AA), I am promoting the use of cloning to clone the genetic material of Christ himself. While Christian churches and organizations around the world may see this as unnecessary and offensive, I believe that with this objective in mind we will be able to develop the most advanced and comprehensive understand of cloning and genetics possible. If being like Christ is the highest objective for the everyday man, shouldn't creating an actual clone of Christ be the highest objective for a (Christian) scientist? This project will help us gain a basic understanding of cloning, because the groundwork of such an elaborate project would lay in the understanding of chromosomes and genetics. This understanding could then be used for gene therapy and the production of stem cells. After this ground foundation is laid, there is no where to go but up (towards Jesus)! We would start with more accurate and successful cloning of live animals (pandas, anyone? If we cloned them China wouldn't own them all!). We would then move to specimens with less viable DNA, such as stuffed Tasmanian Tigers, then onto Wooly Mammoths. Our first clone of a dead man would be a mummy, and then we would move to our ultimate goal, Christ! I mean, what are all of these sacred items doing in the basement of the Vatican anyways? Gaining dust! Let us put them to use with the best science we have!
To those who believe life is sacred, and that the groundwork necessary to make this project take off is morally wrong, let them be reminded that we are working to bring back to life the most sacred being! Not only will this project help us help other people, we will be resurrecting Jesus himself!
In conclusion, let science free itself of the confines of religion, and reach the lofty heights it is capable of.
To those who believe life is sacred, and that the groundwork necessary to make this project take off is morally wrong, let them be reminded that we are working to bring back to life the most sacred being! Not only will this project help us help other people, we will be resurrecting Jesus himself!
In conclusion, let science free itself of the confines of religion, and reach the lofty heights it is capable of.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
The End of a Book at Luther
I know we had some brief discussion in class about the future of books. When I heard that Luther is getting rid of its own yearbook, and I don't see the Pioneer being around long after it goes digital, I thought of this. I know a yearbook isn't like a traditional book, but it is a book all the same, and I am sad to see it go. There were plans that would have made the yearbook much more cost effective, and I'm sad to see it go like this.
Chips Editorial
Makes very good points about the value of print media.
SAC Explanation
Explains why the yearbook was cut.
Chips Editorial
Makes very good points about the value of print media.
SAC Explanation
Explains why the yearbook was cut.
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| Goodbye |
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Mars Rules
Imaging I am a UN official deciding rules for the settlement of Mars, with a focus terraforming, I have made my sanctions based on Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars, discussion with a small group, and my own gut feelings. I would have to propose the following sanctions:
1) The whole expedition would start with some sort of vaguely comprehensive geological survey. I think it is important to have some sort of understanding of the place we are settling before we dramatically alter it. One may to address this might be to sort the planet into "biomes" of sorts. This would encompass getting an idea of topographical and temperature features of different areas. Thus, mountainous regions could be given some general characteristics, while huge craters might be given a different set.
I think this survey would also give us a better idea what exactly the planet has to offer. Instead of random rovers going out looking for metals, the geological survey could help us pin down where exactly to look for the resources we are looking for. It could also be used to estimate the amount of water actually on the planet.
Finally, this survey would allow to see how we are changing the planet in our terraforming efforts. This will be helpful in judging our efforts success, as well as seeing how we are negatively impacting the planet. The survey will help us when we go to fix problems we've created as well, because we can see how high a rock feature was before it started eroding or what the composition of the ground was in a certain area that has been contaminated. In Red Mars not knowing the exact origin of some phenomenon is torturous. As Ann Clayborne says at one point in Red Mars a thing that pains her is that "we'll never really know" if we discover some kind of life form in rock if it was here before human arrival or if we contaminated the rock (319).
2) As terraforming begins, I would like to investigate if there would be some way to leave area of Mars in tact and as they were before humans or terraforming. Mars is completely different from earth in many ways, with its red regolith and the highest mountains in the solar system. For us to completely change these things would be a sin. Maybe the areas that are particularly treachorous and unfit for human settlement and farming could be left as it, as a sort of reserve.
The other reason that I think this is important is that throughout Red Mars multiple characters talk about how relaxing and centering it is for them to go out and walk, drive, or fly around Mars. I think this suggests there is something special about the plains of crater-speckled red ground. The peace of mind the place itself can provide should be preserved for the benefit of future generations.
3) Terraforming will mean bringing people to Mars, probably a lot of people, and their should be sanctions about who is allowed to come and settle. People who come after the original members should be selected just as carefully, making sure each has a skill and definite contribution to provide to the terraforming efforts.
4) Diversity should be encouraged on Mars, and people who settle on Mars should be from all areas of the world, in roughly equal proportions. The settlers will not be allowed to seperate themselves from each other and stick to their own cultures. For example, a city will not have Medinas for the Arab population, but instead some kind of culturally-neutral housing only present on Mars. This is in effort to create a unified Martians culture, composed of people whose alliance is to the good of Mars and the people who live in their communities.
5) When looking at issues of land ownership, the communities who live on the land will be the ones who own it. No individual can own any piece of Martian land, and people in a community will work together democratically to decide what they want their community to do.
1) The whole expedition would start with some sort of vaguely comprehensive geological survey. I think it is important to have some sort of understanding of the place we are settling before we dramatically alter it. One may to address this might be to sort the planet into "biomes" of sorts. This would encompass getting an idea of topographical and temperature features of different areas. Thus, mountainous regions could be given some general characteristics, while huge craters might be given a different set.
I think this survey would also give us a better idea what exactly the planet has to offer. Instead of random rovers going out looking for metals, the geological survey could help us pin down where exactly to look for the resources we are looking for. It could also be used to estimate the amount of water actually on the planet.
Finally, this survey would allow to see how we are changing the planet in our terraforming efforts. This will be helpful in judging our efforts success, as well as seeing how we are negatively impacting the planet. The survey will help us when we go to fix problems we've created as well, because we can see how high a rock feature was before it started eroding or what the composition of the ground was in a certain area that has been contaminated. In Red Mars not knowing the exact origin of some phenomenon is torturous. As Ann Clayborne says at one point in Red Mars a thing that pains her is that "we'll never really know" if we discover some kind of life form in rock if it was here before human arrival or if we contaminated the rock (319).
2) As terraforming begins, I would like to investigate if there would be some way to leave area of Mars in tact and as they were before humans or terraforming. Mars is completely different from earth in many ways, with its red regolith and the highest mountains in the solar system. For us to completely change these things would be a sin. Maybe the areas that are particularly treachorous and unfit for human settlement and farming could be left as it, as a sort of reserve.
The other reason that I think this is important is that throughout Red Mars multiple characters talk about how relaxing and centering it is for them to go out and walk, drive, or fly around Mars. I think this suggests there is something special about the plains of crater-speckled red ground. The peace of mind the place itself can provide should be preserved for the benefit of future generations.
3) Terraforming will mean bringing people to Mars, probably a lot of people, and their should be sanctions about who is allowed to come and settle. People who come after the original members should be selected just as carefully, making sure each has a skill and definite contribution to provide to the terraforming efforts.
4) Diversity should be encouraged on Mars, and people who settle on Mars should be from all areas of the world, in roughly equal proportions. The settlers will not be allowed to seperate themselves from each other and stick to their own cultures. For example, a city will not have Medinas for the Arab population, but instead some kind of culturally-neutral housing only present on Mars. This is in effort to create a unified Martians culture, composed of people whose alliance is to the good of Mars and the people who live in their communities.
5) When looking at issues of land ownership, the communities who live on the land will be the ones who own it. No individual can own any piece of Martian land, and people in a community will work together democratically to decide what they want their community to do.
 |
| "Do you really want to change me forever?" |
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