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Visualization
- Visualize The Future
- Wide Angle
- Hollywood
- A Mixed View
- Electromagnetic
- Vision
- Color
- X-Ray
- Lasers
- Optics in Everyday Life
- Optics in Science
- Light Microscopes
- Electron Microscopes
- Medical Imaging
- Eye Glasses
- Surveillance
- Telescopes
- Optics in Review
- TV
- Scientific Visualization
- Virtual Reality
- What's Next ?
Other Pages
Visualizing The Future
( A Mixed View )
Art
The history of art is vast, starting with those cave paintings
mentioned in the beginning of this article. And like those
cave paintings, it's not always apparent what is being depicted
and what message is being sent in any given artistic expression.
"Is Mickey Mouse Art?" was a rousing battle cry through the
60s and 70s, an issue that has since morphed into the same
question regarding computer graphics. But more importantly,
it's not a question of what art is, but what artistic expression
says about the universe, and all the stuff in it.
Art history is far too vast a subject to be sufficiently covered
in a series of articles, yet alone a series of books. In fact,
art is everywhere. Historically, there is prehistoric art,
ancient art (Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, Persia), middle ages
(Jewish, early Christian, Islamic, Gothic), the Renaissance,
Baroque, Rococo, Romanticism, Realism, Victorian, Modernism,
Impressionism, Symbolism, Art Nouveau, and into the 20th century
with Cubism, Futurism, Abstract, Art Deco, Dadaism, Surrealism,
Pop Art, Kinetic Art, and a host of other movements and styles.
Cultural differences are as vast as the mere mention of countries,
from China to India, the Americas to the Middle East, and
the 200 +/- countries that belong to the United Nations. Nor
are cultures unified by geographical borders. In New York,
for instance, sometimes turning a corner can be as dramatically
different as crossing the borders from China through Europe
into Italy.
Clearly, art is highly subjective, from both the creator and
viewer perspective, where the goal was never to capture reality,
but to interpret it. Of course, realism became a movement,
where the goal of drawings and paintings was to capture something
so realistic as to be indistinguishable from photos. But photos
are not living, breathing representations of reality either.
The quality of the film, the camera, the lighting and development
processing, are all factors that generate varying levels of
realism.
Yet, some paintings are mesmerizing in their ability to transport
a viewer into what appears to be real. And with 3D computer
modeling, some objects become even more real than in real
life. With 3D modeling, we can view an object in its entirety,
including what's inside. We can highlight aspects of the object
that go unnoticed by the naked eye.
On a world scale, the differences in artistic expression are,
well, so different, it's almost hard to imagine we're all
from the same planet. To appreciate art from countries other
than our own requires some understanding of our cultural differences,
and how those differences express entirely different worldviews
from our own.
There is a movement--although it doesn't really have a name--designed
to eradicate our cultural differences. Nothing fuels this
movement more than the desire to make English the universal
language. But it might not be so hegemonic as it first appears.
The movement could very well be a practical one. As technology
moves us closer to a unified world, we need to communicate
in a language everyone understands. Language then, is a barrier.
However, the choice of English as the universal language is
very telling in itself. First, who is doing the choosing?
Is there really a consensus amongst nations to head in this
direction? Globalization is not just about the quest for a
universal language, but also the Americanization or westernization
of global cultures.
The practical necessities of everyday life are not conducive
to cultural expression, especially when such expression gets
in the way of business. For instance, when a country exposes
another country to a new technological development, the ability
to do so is severely restricted by the time it takes to interpret
one language into another. For that reason alone, multi-lingual
employees are favored to make the exchange more efficient
and less time consuming.
Differences in creativity span not only across geographical
boundaries, but time as well. Our world would seem bland and
colorless without the richness of ancient Egyptian, Greek,
Asian and American Indian art. Plus, creativity is not confined
merely to hobbies and ways to pass the time. The line between
creativity and innovation--with innovation seemingly having
a more practical value--is a thin one. Like the use of computers
in movie making and the use of graphics in science, the relationship
between art and innovation is a symbiotic one.
The old adage, "Invention is the mother of necessity," does
not necessarily reveal where artists and inventors get their
inspiration. The desire to fly might not have come from the
need to transport the largest number of travelers in the shortest
amount of time. The inspiration could very well have come
from a painting of birds in flight.
The view that art is something impractical fails to appreciate
something inherent in all human endeavors. Grecian urns were
not just for carrying water. They had artistic shape with
elaborate paintings on the sides. Fast-forwarding to modern
times, airplanes are not pink or rainbow-colored. Why? Houses
and cars certainly come in a variety of colors, and most architecture
is appreciated for looks even more so than function.
Entire empires and civilizations, past and current, are recognized
for art, perhaps more so than in terms of being advanced societies
or possessing superior scientific capability. We marvel at
the beauty of pyramids, 100 foot ornate columns and cobble
stone streets, with disregard for any practical value. We
place tremendous value on preserving the "beauty" of the past,
much in the same way we value nature untouched by human intervention.
When a real estate developer surveys an area of land motivated
by a housing shortage, a beautiful lake just gets in the way.
But the practical value of beauty is something we might not
be able to articulate. To an environmentalist, the lake is
beautiful because it is the home to a variety of wildlife.
Its beauty lies in ecological balance with the forests, fields,
mountains and deserts that surround it.
Globalization, westernization and modernization might be one
and the same. Kids in America are much more preoccupied with
Playstations and iPods than with the mysteries of ancient
Chinese drawings or the spiritual meaning behind African pottery.
Ironically, drawing and painting is a prevalent activity throughout
American K-12 schools, especially pre-school.
Pop culture is an entity all its own. Las Vegas is a good
example of where culture is meaningless, outside of being
a gimmick to attract tourists. Las Vegas is a cultural soup
of pyramids and Eiffel Towers, pirate ships and Roman architecture,
the streets of New York and the canals of Venice, all thrown
onto the same 20 mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard. Visiting
museum exhibits compete for tickets against world wrestling
and rodeo championships. Techno-dance pounds away in dozens
of late night, erotically charged clubs while retired "snowbirds"
from the Midwest take in a Wayne Newton concert.
Vegas has nothing to do with preserving cultural heritage,
global or American. It's a lure for gambling. But Vegas is
no different than any other tourist trap, where culture is
the primary calling card and means of making money. Is this
bad? It's hard to say. But, it's an ironic twist when Americans
travel to other lands to see different cultures only to find
a McDonald's, a Kentucky Fried Chicken and a poster of Arnold
Schwarzenegger everywhere they go.
Pop culture in America can get a little trashy. There is as
much interest in the drug and sex habits of Hollywood movie
stars as there is in the latest roles they played. America-especially
the media-loves to rate celebrities on scales of 1-10: Who's
the hottest, sexiest, and most beautiful? The magazine shelves
in grocery stores abound with covers of beautiful starlets,
nearly all under the age of 30.
So where is the art? Can a painter make a living today? Or
is there a new art-technology art? We express ourselves through
electronic gadgets, many of which, ironically, are used to
share photos. In some filmmaking circles, calling a movie
an "art film" is an insult. There is such a thing as trying
to be too artistic, apparently.
Advertising commercials are the new art. Auto manufacturers
spend billions on design alone, over and above safety and
function. Gated communities are landscaped with exotic plants
and water fountains. MP3 players are sleek and pastel-colored.
Designer clothing says so much more than jeans and a pair
of work boots. And in Hollywood, space ship explosions, fast
car chases and giant robot wars are the new art, far more
exciting than standing in a museum looking at a boring landscape
or some old Queen from who knows where.
In Tampa, Florida, water pumps are painted blue. Outside of
Las Vegas, bridges over interstate highways are painted by
Native Americans. In Bemidji, Minnesota, huge statues of Paul
Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, have stood for decades. In Los
Angeles and New York, entire walls and buildings are dedicated
to graffiti.
Again, art is everywhere.
Astrology
Before the 17th century, the terms astrology
and astronomy were often interchangeable. Astronomy was considered
more mathematical and astrology more philosophical. Sadly,
despite the popularity of astrological predictions found in
magazines and newspaper, astrology as a science has lost credibility.
Events on earth are linked with events in the sky, with all
life regulated by the movements of the sun, moon, planets
and other celestial bodies. Both astronomy and astrology are
based on these celestial occurrences.
Earthly events such as floods, droughts, seasons and the ocean's
tides, linked with the rotation of celestial bodies, are relatively
easy to understand. The scientific correlations have been
proven time and again. But other events don't have such a
strong correlation, and could only be explained by religion
and symbolic connections.
The Babylonians are generally credited with the birth of astrology,
a mixture of astronomy, mathematics, religion and mythology.
Astrological charts were used to predict seasonal change and
various celestial events. Babylonian astrology was introduced
to the Greeks early in the 4th century B.C. and, through the
studies of Plato, Aristotle, and others, astrology came to
be highly regarded as a science. It was soon embraced by the
Romans (the Roman names for the zodiac signs are still used
today) and the Arabs and later spread throughout the entire
world.
Astrology attempts to bring order out of chaos. This is reflected
in the astrological musings found in popular magazines and
newspapers, where advice given is predicated on the belief
a person's life is an unsolved puzzle. It is also a device
used to predict the future.
In earlier centuries, it was used to predict weather patterns
largely for agricultural purposes. But eventually it broadened
to include forecasts of natural disasters, war and other events
in the course of human affairs. The accuracy of these predictions
or lack there of, partly explains why astrology isn't taken
seriously. There's no mathematical, scientific basis for predicting
human events, like there is for predicting physical events
that occur as regularly repeated patterns. But, the inability
of science to accurately predict social, cultural and personal
change explains why religion, myth and astrology are so popular.
The zodiac comes from the Greek word meaning "circle of animals."
It is believed to have developed in ancient Egypt, later adopted
by the Babylonians. Early astrologers first learned about
the twelve lunar cycles. Twelve constellations were then identified
to correspond with the lunar cycles.
The signs of the zodiac are subdivided into four groups:
Fire signs: Aries, Sagittarius, Leo
Water signs: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces
Air sings: Libra, Aquarius, Gemini
Earth signs: Capricorn, Taurus, Virgo
Each of these four groups is inscribed in its own quadrant
or "house" on a circle. The division of the twelve houses
is based on the earth's daily rotation. Astrologers link these
divisions with human activity such as relationships, travel,
finance and career path. However, the division of the twelve
signs of the zodiac is based on the earth's yearly rotation
around the sun and astrologers relate these divisions to character,
such as Venus and affection or Mercury with speech and writing.
Each planet rules two signs and the sun and moon rule one
sign each.
A horoscope is a map of the zodiac circle with the earth at
the center. The top of the circle represents the sun at its
highest point during the day and left and right of that are
the eastern and western horizons. A horoscope charts the relative
positions of the sun, moon, planets, and stars at a specific
time and place, such as a birth date. Astrologers use sidereal
time (measured from the equinox), rather than clock time.
Once the date and time are selected and calculated as sidereal
time and the location known and plotted, the astrologer consults
an ephemeris. An ephemeris is a table listing the angles and
locations of the sun, moon, planets, and constellations at
any given time. From this, a chart is constructed.
Computer software programs are now used to construct charts,
which can be mathematically complex. However, the real art
and science of astrology comes into play in the attempt to
interpret the charts. Some people are superstitious, while
others derive whatever meaning they can.
Astrology is often defined in dictionaries as "the ancient
art or science of divining the fate and future of human beings
from indications given by the position of stars and other
heavenly bodies." In ancient times, it was once believed Gods-represented
by celestial bodies-determined fate. For instance, Mars was
the God of war. There is a temptation for those with Mars
as their birth sign to believe they somehow possess war-like
qualities, like that of a soldier. In turn, Libra is symbolized
by the scale, and it's easy to believe that by symbol alone
Librans search for balance and justice.
These myths from ancient times have survived through the centuries,
and understandably so. Science has proven there is no sun
God or other Gods embodied in the shape of celestial bodies.
But, it has not disproved the existence of a God as the creator
of life. Astronomers surround themselves with fancy telescopes,
supercomputers, build academic departments devoted to the
science, and spout forth exotic theories about space, time,
light and gravity. But the Big Bang theory has no more scientific
basis than intelligent design, a phrase currently popular
in today's evolution vs. God debate.
It's not astrology's job to prove the existence of God. It's
more mystical than that, as so much of life is as well. Mysticism
not only gives us meaning but also adds color and even fun
in our lives. Without denigrating the seriousness of astrology,
astrology turns the universe into somewhat of a celestial
playground, where the human spirit is free to see whatever
it wants to see...until science proves otherwise.
Dreams
Perhaps no area of scientific inquiry is least
understood than the mysteries of dreams. We can catalog black
holes and electron orbits, turn light into energy and produce
a slew of devices based on a host of scientific principles,
but dreams are just something you wake up after and forget.
Dream interpretations were documented in clay tablets as far
back as 3000-4000 B.C. But that says little when we've been
dreaming since the first day humans walked the earth. A number
of primal, ancient and even current primitive societies don't
distinguish between the dream world and reality. In other
words, dreams are real. What happens in dreams really happens.
If reality is used as a measuring stick for the interpretation
of dreams, then dreams cannot possibly be real. Dreams are
then just the result of overactive imaginations.
Back in the Greek and Roman era, dream interpreters accompanied
military leaders into battle. So did astrologists. What affect
this had on the fall and rise of such empires is a question
for historians. Dreams were often seen as messages from the
Gods. They were seen in a religious context and in Egypt,
priests also acted as dream interpreters. The Egyptians recorded
their dreams in hieroglyphics. People with particular vivid
and significant dreams were believed to be blessed and were
considered special. Just who was deciding what dreams were
blessed and special has its parallel in today's movie critics.
People who had the power to interpret dreams were looked up
to and seen as divinely gifted. In the bible, there are hundreds
of mentions concerning dreams. But priests and pastors today
are not good sources to go to for interpretation of dreams,
unless there is a desire to place all of what we dream in
the context of divine intervention. Dreams are frequently
sexual, and morality could very well get in the way of what
such dreams really mean.
Dreams were also seen as prophetic, and still are. People
often looked to their dreams for signs of warning or advice.
It was an oracle or omen from outside spirits, whether it
was a message from a deity, from the dead, or even the devil
himself. Dreams were used as tools by healers in understanding
what was wrong with a dreamer.
We are no longer influenced by many Gods. Most religions today
have reduced many to just one. God is speaking to us through
our dreams, but very few people have a grip on just exactly
what messages are being sent.
Dreams might be actual places our spirits visit every night.
Sometimes we look forward to these "movies" in our head. Other
times, dreams are nightmares. Psychologists say dreams are
a form of release. We can express our desires in dreams in
ways we could never do in reality. Sigmund Freud, in his Interpretation
of Dreams, was extremely influential in acknowledging the
importance of dreams. But the world of dreams is far too vast
and mythological to be reduced to a clinical analysis, where
dreams are an expression or release of anxiety, neurosis,
or even psychosis.
Dreams could be visions of the past, visions of the future,
or the dead invading our psyches to tell us things. Dreams
are far too disjointed to make sense out of them in the way
we construct a movie, say, out of a screenplay that follows
a logical plot line. Dreams are linear, up to a point.
We follow along a progression of events, then suddenly, a
totally unrelated image appears. We can't make sense out of
it all. Cartoons get mixed with faces of people we either
might've known, or have never known. We visit exotic landscapes,
fight battles with faceless creatures, read books upside down
written in unexplainable languages, fly, fall and scream,
all without any apparent reason.
Dreams certainly don't follow any kind of natural progression
from one night to the next. It's sort of like going to the
movies and whatever happens to be playing, that's what we
see. However, some dreams are recurring, even haunting. When
dreams get in the way of normal functioning, that's when they
get attention.
The movies have explored the realm of dreams, either directly
or indirectly. Frequently, the story centers somewhere around
fear of the dark and the inability to sleep because of what
might be under the bed. Examples include Nightmare on Elm
Street, Deadzone, and Flatline, and Field of
Dreams.
However, Deadzone was more about clairvoyance-a man
who has visions of the future whenever he touches another
persons hand. Flatline toyed more with the afterlife,
or near-afterlife, but since the characters did not actually
die, the visions they had were more the result of a deep sleep.
Field of Dreams has dreams in the title, but the story
is more about wish fulfillment than an exploration of dreams.
Dreams are often thought of as expressions of wish fulfillment.
What is most puzzling is our inability to remember our dreams.
Everyone has experienced at one time or another difficulty
in describing a dream to someone else. But it might not be
as painful as listening to someone else try in vain to tell
us their dreams. The descriptions are usually accompanied
with distorted faces, puzzled by fractured images, mystified
by surreal. Inevitably, we then walk away with no more mention,
simply because we have no comprehension whatsoever of what
the dream meant or the significance of dreams in our lives.
It is sad that our culture or cultures blow off dreams as
if they were the creations of a mad artist.
The Paranormal: Things We See No One Else Sees
It's amazing what we see and how we see,
but it's even more amazing what we see that isn't there. Of
course, numerous accounts of the weird, strange, unexplained
and the paranormal tell a different story. Maybe not everyone
saw something, but someone did, at least, that's what they
claimed. In many cases there are photos to prove it. Unfortunately,
because of so many photographic process tricks, pictures become
equally suspect
Media has a long history of fascination with the occult, bizarre,
strange, weird and paranormal side of life, from radio's Only
the Shadow Knows to Rod Serling's hugely popular Twilight
Zone , to movies like Ghost, Poltergeist, Hide and
Seek, Signs and others.
It's important to understand that many movies that seem to
be about the paranormal are really about something else. The
movie, Ghost , features, well, a ghost, but it's really
a love story. Poltergeist addresses head on what
happens when people mess around with graveyards, but it's
really a story about greed. Although the little girl is trapped
inside a TV, there is the slight hint at virtual reality and
the desire to enter into a TV show instead of passively watching
it. The movie, Pleasantville , does this directly,
where characters are sucked into a black and white 50s scenario
and a world where color is taboo.
Mindreading is frequently dealt with humorously in the movies,
such as Mel Gibson in What Women Want and Bruce Willis
is the talking baby movie, Look Who's Talking .
Animation techniques are sophisticated enough to make creatures
of all types appear as though they can talk, act and feel
just like us normal folk. If all else fails, voice-over narration
picks up where animation leaves off.
In Ghost , we can hear the voice of a dead person
because of two reasons: one is the suspension of disbelief
and the other is by allowing the audience to hear something
other characters in the movie don't hear. It takes Whopi Goldberg's
character, with a peculiar gift and special receptivity for
hearing voices from the dead, to convey messages from the
dead person (Patrick Swayze) to the living (Demi Moore).
In The Shining , Jack Nicholson's character hears
voices from the dead, and because of it, it ultimately drives
him insane.
Sean Patrick Flanery's character in the movie, Powder
, has the ability to bend forks and make a hunter feel
the pain and suffering of a dying deer just after it was brutally
shot. Near the end of the movie, it's revealed his powers
come from a divine or cosmic source. The goal of the story
is to connect us with something larger than ourselves and
that when we hurt something or someone, it affects the universe.
It's a bit of a twist on chaos theory.
Religion and the Paranormal
No area generates more controversy in the
unseeable than religion. From burning witches at the stake
to modern day chants, "I've seen the glory of God," believers
make astounding claims of seeing things that can't be seen.
Statues and drawings of Jesus are known to bleed. Rising from
the grave is not a Jesus exclusive. Night of the Living
Dead is but one of tons of movies where the dead rise
from murky shallow graves to haunt the living.
The quest for the Shroud of Turin, Noah's Ark and the Holy
Grail is a lifelong ambition for some.
In Hollywood, no film struck terror in religious hearts more
than The Exorcist (1973). Linda Blair's head turning
a full 360 degrees and vomiting streams of green gob was enough
to frighten anyone.
Besides great special F/X that scared the hell out of everyone--pun
intended--what was the religious message of The Exorcist
? The devil embodies evil and anything evil is the devil.
This leaves a lot of room for interpretation.
The sheer belief that God speaks to us is bound to conjure
up a slew of voices...and images. However, no actor in his/her
right mind would ever play the role of God. Afterall, what
does God sound like? Well, that's not true. Only one of the
funniest comedians of all time, George Burns, would dare embody
the spirit of the Lord and smoke a cigar at the same time.
The fact that many see Jesus as white and handsome has generated
enough controversy as it is. In The Exorcist , the
devil allegedly spoke in many tongues, but what audiences
heard was primarily a deep, ominous male voice.
Once again, both God and Devil are men. Where are women in
this charade?
The devil wears many a disguise, but most people peg him as
a male--red, with horns, carrying a three-pronged fork. Interestingly,
the issue of whether God or the Devil is a woman is one repeatedly
ignored. Occasionally there is a reference to women, such
as the band INXS and their song, "Every Single Woman Has The
Devil Inside," or maybe the movie classics, The Devil
In Ms. Jones , which took form as both a 1940s thriller
and a 1970s classic porno film.
There's an angel on every shoulder. Usually it's a classic
angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. How many
people actually see these angels is a scary thought. But thanks
to Hollywood and animation, we can put an angel on a shoulder
and actually have some very fun conversations.
Angels have wings and many people believe in their existence
as much as they believe God is a man or Jesus had a beard.
Angels aren't the only creatures that can fly. Fairies, Pegasus,
various Gods and of course most ghosts can not only fly but
move through walls. There are even a few flying pigs and elephants
floating around out there in someone's imagination.
The key point here is not so much what we see that others
don't see, but that we can see anything we want in our mind's
eye. We don't just believe something; there's almost always
a visual to go with it...plus sound F/X.
The bible--and its many versions--is filled with astounding
tales as common as Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. Water
turns to wine. A man lives in a whale. A sea is parted. Angels
fall from grace. A snake talks to Adam, and a woman is born
from his rib.
Artists have plenty of work as long as people keep imagining
such tales. The Bible was never illustrated. Yet, every priest
and pastor has a picture of Jesus on the wall in their office.
And what is not visualized by something resembling real life,
it is represented by a symbol.
Symbolism is especially important in terms of what we see.
There can be no greater examples than the cross and the flag.
Every major--and in most cases, minor--corporation has an
identifiable logo as easily recognizable as the faces of our
own mothers. Some people might confuse McDonald's Golden Arches
with the Gates of Heaven.
But religion goes way back to a time when there were many
Gods, not just one. The Greeks had their Gods. The Egyptians
had theirs. And the Chinese, East Indians and Aztecs each
had their own cast of Gods.
There was a God for everything and they did some very crazy
things: the God of Thunder, the God of Wine, the God of War,
the Goddess of Love and the Goddess of Fertility. Finally,
women had roles to play. They were one big family with a considerable
amount of dysfunction.
Did people actually see these Gods, beyond mere representations
in cloud formations? And what was the embarrassing moment
when people finally realized that, well, we really can't see
Gods? But then, ironically, as much as we make fun of multiple
Gods, it sure doesn't stop us from seeing a single God.
If you don't know what something looks like--like a God--then
how would you know how to react? For instance, "The Gods will
get you," must've conjured up the worst images and fears for
a hapless peasant in ancient Rome. And the shift from many
Gods to one God must've been--and still is--a most difficult
transition since the believer must prove there is only one
God...without any photos as evidence.
The paradox becomes even more complex when a Muslim God takes
on an entirely different appearance than a Christian one.
Perhaps no pair of images captures the imagination more than
that of Heaven and Hell. How we see what isn't there is even
amazingly still captured in color. The devil is red, not green
or yellow. Hell is also red, being full of fire. Heaven is
white, floating on a soft pillow of air.
Both places have the eternity tag attached to them, a very
persuasive means of instilling fear one way or the other.
If whatever happens after death is going to happen forever,
well, that just makes the images much more vivid...and scary.
Heaven is above and hell is below. Hell is someplace in the
center of our planet and Heaven is somewhere up in the stars.
Most assuredly, we've proven that there is no place in the
core of our planet where people dwell. It's really just a
swirl of molten rock. Perhaps that's hell enough.
In fact, even the most vehement believers confess to knowing
Heaven and Hell are not real places, but more a state of mind.
But just what is a state of mind? What do people see when
they see heaven and hell?
This might be a key to understanding the power of religion.
Actual pictures are not needed in the game of persuasion.
Religious leaders count on the fact that most believers and
believers-to-be have over-active imaginations. Say the word
"hell" and watch them shudder. Say the word "heaven" and watch
them put their hands together in prayer.
Heaven or hell is the best we have to offer so far when it
comes to seeing the afterlife. Ask anyone what they "see"
when they try to imagine life after death, and most likely
the images will be some variation of heaven or hell.
What else IS there? Do we just float around in the stars,
become part of the electromagnetic wave, or turn into living
photons?
Ghosts
How much ghosts are the result of religious
beliefs is a subject for historical research. The point is,
people see ghosts all the time, religious or not.
Ghosts are a way to bring the dead back to life. Somehow,
it just doesn't make sense that someone we saw yesterday we
can't see tomorrow because they've, well, they've disappeared.
Where do dead people go? This complex question has spawned
enough Hollywood movies to fill libraries. The Horror genre
has given us such classics as Alfred Hitchcock's, The
Birds , the film version of Mary Shelly's Frankenstein
, and superstars Bella Lugosi as Dracula and
Lon Chaney as the Werewolf . The cheesy Night
of the Living Dead is a cult classic. The movie,
Halloween , which was originally released in 1978, has
at least 7 sequels to its credit.
Symbolism plays an important role in visions of werewolves
and vampires. They come out at night. The night is scary.
The day is safe. Full moons are particularly mysterious, especially
with eerie clouds floating through the light and the wind
is howling. Dracula wears a black silk cape with red interior.
That's quite a fashion statement. The werewolf is, well, a
man that looks like a wolf. Are there female werewolves, or
is this just a guy thing? Female vampires, strangely enough,
are well known for their sexuality.
Ghosts don't generally hang around new places, even if people
died in them. Ghosts dwell in old places, like Victorian houses
and Egyptian tombs. No one in a modern day office is going
to suddenly announce to their boss they've just seen a ghost
under their desk. Such a truism is indicative of how most
people don't believe in such fantasies; that ghosts are just
"figments of your imagination."
Even inanimate objects are known to possess--with a strong
emphasis on the word possess--human characteristics. Houses
moan while two windows look like eyes and the door is the
mouth. Trees have arms and fog searches the land for victims.
Now that artificial intelligence is becoming mainstream, there's
no reason to believe a computer crash is not the result of
an attitude problem. It even gets silly, like happy flying
Volkswagens (Disney's, The Love Bug ).
Halloween
In America and a few other countries, there
is no more fun time than Halloween, especially if there's
a haunted house to visit.
Ghosts love Halloween, since its the one time of year they
have they opportunity to scare non-believers. But then, Halloween
is more about giving out free candy and going to fun parties
than it is a shared exploration of things we don't see.
Halloween dates back 2000 years. The Celts believed that on
the night before the New Year, the boundary between the worlds
of the living and the dead became blurred.
Halloween is a major exercise in seeing the unseeable. Virtually
every imaginary character is represented on the night of October
31st. The list is far-ranging: Comic book heroes and heroines,
past Presidents, Greek Gods, werewolves and other monsters,
Hollywood and music superstars, Disney cartoon characters.
There's always a contest to see who can come up with the most
creative costume.
Mediums make their living off of conjured spirits. Most people
who ever participate in a séance are going to see and hear
something, the reason being, they want to. The guy who didn't
see or hear anything and snubs his nose in disbelief will
most certainly never get invited back to the next one.
Fortune Tellers
Crystal balls, tarot cards and tea leaves
each have their share of believers and practitioners. Palm
readers are also popular.
But just exactly what does a palm reader see in the hand we
don't? Does the palm reader have some kind of specialized
visual translation software installed in their minds?
If crystal balls really worked, wouldn't everyone have one?
Or does it require specialized training to look into a glass
ball and see the future or past? Maybe it's a talent. The
trick is, is that we must believe what the "gypsy" sees, since
we can't see it ourselves.
Most people suspect that fortune tellers see what they think
we want them to see. They are excellent judges of character,
and of course, a positive vision always uplifts the spirit.
Fortune telling has little scientific validity, if any. But
perhaps more importantly, is that maybe some people don't
want to see the future, for fear that what they might see
will not necessarily be that positive.
Children's Fairytales
Go into any decent size book store into the Children's book section, and a world full of fantasy opens up far beyond the classics. We all know Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Hansel and Gretel , and Little Red Riding Hood don't exist, but children don't. What's most popular with kids, from books to Disney movies and cartoons, is talking animals.
Politics
In America, the two party systems of Democrats
and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, are as split
down the middle as black and white, no pun intended. Civil
debate is supposed to be the cornerstone of democracy, but
anyone with even the slightest clue about politics knows politics
is about power. The two parties are two indelibly distinct
"views" of the world--frequently at blaringly opposite ends
of the spectrum.
What the images or icons of the donkey and the elephant have
come to mean is so strong, that voting on issues is frequently
split down party lines, regardless of the issue. It's two
parties like two football teams, and the goal is to win the
game. Sacrificing individual beliefs for party beliefs is
subject to severe party pressure.
The Unexplained
The world is jam-packed full of thrilling and controversial
yet unexplained events and locations. Stonehenge and the Isle
of Wight have as many theories about why they exist and the
magic they conjure as there are tourists that visit these
sites annually.
Strange geometric patterns are cut out of corn fields, frequently
explained as the work of aliens. Mother Nature is full of
freakish rock carvings and it's anyone's guess if humans or
aliens played a role, or if it's just the playground for the
sun and wind.
Mirrors and ponds and lakes reflect back faces other than
the person looking into them.
Who can't see a face or object in the clouds as they roll
by?
Superstars
Today's Gods and Goddesses exist in the form
of Hollywood, pop music and other celebrities and stars. Many
of these stars have reached such mythical proportions they
no longer seem human. In Las Vegas, there's an Elvis on every
corner. Marilyn Monroe still reigns as the sexiest woman ever.
Who these people are is nothing compared to what people see
them as. Even paparazzi, gossip columnists and "inside entertainment"
shows fail to humanize them, such as when they punch a photographer
or are captured without any makeup on.
Michael Jackson has become a true mythical character that
not even years of court cases and plastic surgery can erase.
But Michael is by no means alone. Willie Nelson is America's
number one modern day rebel. Dolly Parton's breasts seem to
grow with each passing year, unfortunately masking her phenomenal
talent as a songwriter, singer and performer. Babe Ruth baseball
cards are worth 1000s, maybe even millions.
Clearly, the inability or desire to not want to accept the
finality of death explains to a large degree the existence
of the paranormal. Some people we don't want to ever die.
Others we want dead, but their evil ways continue to haunt
us long after they've been buried.
Cartoons
Cartoons give us talking animals, a fantasy
that dates back to fantasy novels like Alice in Wonderland.
Whether it's a cartoon character talking or voice-over narration,
it's a dramatic device for exploring the inner thoughts of
others, and the thoughts and feelings of animals.
Walt Disney, and the company he built, has become an American
institution. The cultural and social impact of Disney, Warner
and other independently produced cartoon series and movies
defies measurement.
We grow up with animals as our friends, meanwhile consuming
them as a primary food source. Some animals we eat, some we
don't. But even the ones we eat have found a mythical life
like Elsie the Cow or Red the Rooster. Wiley E. Fox is an
endangered species, and Pepe LePew the skunk, is considered
by many to be a pesky, smelly rodent.
All told, this creates a moral dilemma between protecting
the environment and the human need for survival. It's more
confusing where children are concerned, since young children
think all animals are their friends. Children's stories and
our education system share the burden of responsibility of
children's perceptions of the world, along with the creator's
of cartoons.
Animation has become quite sophisticated, so much so, that
in many movies, it's hard to tell where animation begins and
reality ends. Films like the Matrix, Lord of the Rings
and Harry Potter (and all the sequels) are just shy
of being full fledged cartoons-realistic cartoons, if you
will. These movies fall more into the fantasy and sci-fi categories
than the animated film category, but the line is thin.
Ironically, as we get older, we seem to forget about cartoons.
It seems unimaginable for a person in their 30s, 40s and on
up, to be caught sitting around watching cartoons. What's
even more ironic is that much of the dialog and even action
in cartoons is incomprehensible to the age group that does
watch them.
Animated films like Shrek, It's a Bug's Life and Toy
Story, continue to hold audiences imaginations well into
adulthood. Animation is used prolifically in the sciences.
But watching a nanorobot steering a course through the bloodstream
or an animated documentary on DNA chains can hardly be called
cartoons.
Sex, Money and Violence
Of the three areas most controversial in society
and culture-sex, money, and violence-sex is the most controversial.
The alleged accidental exposure of Janet Jackson's breast
during the Super Bowl in 2004 created more of a stir than
all the violent video games, TV shows and movies put together
that year. The sex taboo has spawned a multi-billion dollar
pornography industry, an industry that showed Wall Street
how to make money on the Internet.
Movies are rated. Channel blocking devices are installed in
TVs. Parental control software is installed on computers.
Obviously, the most apparent reason is to protect children.
But the fear goes far beyond the fear of molesters. It's a
fear of sex itself.
Violence is rampant in the media. Some of the most well known
actors are known for their ability to kill the most people
in the shortest amount of time, using every conceivable weapon
known to humankind. Arnold Schwarzenegger's success in politics
is largely because he's the Terminator, and terminators
get the job done. We admire public figures, especially politicians,
who have the "killer instinct," not the "sexual instinct."
And it certainly helps to have a military background, which
is why former President Bill Clinton was perceived by conservatives
as weak.
Kids spend hours if not days killing aliens, robots and monsters
of various types while playing video games. Murder mysteries
and thrillers dominate the media landscape, ranging from film
versions of Agatha Christie novels to movies like Silence
of the Lambs and TV shows like CSI. TV news and
newspaper headlines are rife with violence, whether in the
form of war or crime.
The lust for money is equally popular, from robbing casinos
in Ocean's 11 to the celebration of greed in Wall
Street. Suitcases full of money, huge inheritances, winning
the lotto, high tech jewelry heists, all serve as inspiration
for a slew of movies. Characters like Jesse James (numerous
movies), who would be serving life by today's criminal standards,
and Al Pacino in Scarface, a ruthless drug dealer,
become celebrated folk heroes, despite their crimes.
As for sex, shows like Queer Folks for a Straight Guy
and L Word use the freedom of cable TV to cut through
the barriers of regular broadcasting. However, regular TV
is full of hypocrisy, from bouncing female lifeguards in Baywatch
to bouncing girls on trampolines featured regularly on The
Man Show. TV history is riddled with gorgeous women flaunting
their assets, from I Dream of Genie and Gilligan's
Island to Friends, Dallas and The Nanny.
The movie Kinsey was an intelligently written biopic
not only focusing on one of the 21st centuries greatest scientists,
but also the obstacles he faced in a society saturated with
denial, hypocrisy and guilt because of sex. Still, what ever
liberties the movie took in discussing sex openly, there was
still no nudity.
We can go to the beach and see bikini-clad women and men strutting
their stuff. We can view lingerie ads in fashion magazines
as long as they are "tastefully" photographed, and frequently
in black and white. We can watch dozens of love scenes in
movies, many of which are some of the most treasured scenes
in all movie history. We can even play around with lesbian
themes on TV like in Zena: Princess Warrior. However
we cut the moral cake, what we can't see is nudity.
Image: How Do I Look?
Looks are everything-so they say. Some companies
and occupations--even entire industry sectors--are devoted
entirely to making something or someone look good. In all
areas of corporate endeavor, marketing, advertising and promotion
departments have the biggest budgets. With the media on the
front line, the goal is to persuade consumers buy things and
services they may or may not need. And the competition is
fierce.
The reference to consumer as opposed to people is a deliberate
one. It demonstrates how we see each other, and reducing flesh
and blood, feelings and thoughts, into mindless automatons
with expendable cash flow is not helping us to see who we
really are.
Looks and style is often more important than substance. Ironically,
the reasoning is often practical. In a media saturated culture,
competition centers on attention spans, and image makers have
less than a second to capture a consumer's or audience's imagination.
It's not a question of having choices; it's a question of
too many choices. Too many choices can apply equally to stars,
politicians and religious leaders as it does to cars, MP3
players, and stock investments.
The fashion industry is on call 24/7, ready to embark on an
image making mission no less efficient than a military strike.
The mission could be a star's gown at an awards ceremony,
the President's tie during a State of the Union address, or
a 13-girl trying to fit in a new school. Hair styles range
from pig-tails to crewcuts. Makeup can be a touch of rouge
lipstick to a strategically placed tattoo. Jewelry can be
a pierced ear to a diamond-studded necklace. Clothing knows
no bounds, from jeans to designer gowns, from tennis shoes
to lingerie.
Every fashion detail is meticulously attended to. Red might
be too bold. A curl on the forehead might be too sexy. A nose
ring automatically defines rebellion. With products, bright
pastels suggest teens, curvy shapes are erotic, and devices
with lots of knobs, buttons and fancy LCDs represent sophistication
and high-tech.
Image is not necessarily always visible. Politicians use smear
campaigns to make a rival "look" bad. Paparazzi seek out the
immoral, especially if they happen to be "the beautiful people."
Supreme Court justices are put through grueling Senate inquiries
to ensure there are no skeletons in the closet.
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