Video games in pop-culture Essay Example for Free

Video games in pop-culture Essay Video games and computer games (from here on both categories will be simply referred to as video games for simplicity) have entered the domain of pop culture fairly recently. Although the first video game was developed in 1958 by William Higginbotham, their popularity didn’t occur until the seventies with the appearance of Pac-man and Frogger in the arcades (Computer and Video Games). If the younger generation of video game consumers would take a look at what was out there when the video game boom begun they wouldn’t be able to understand what was so attractive (and addictive?) about Pac-man and Frogger? The truth is, video games from over three decades ago share the same basic principles with the games we have out there right now. Let’s face it, we like video games because they provide us with interactive entertainment. In other words, we’re genuinely entertained by colorful objects that move on the TV/computer screen when we press certain buttons. I suggest that it is the overwhelming gratification that we experience from actually having absolute and unconditional control over something in our lives. Another suggestion that I have is that video games share the same elements or even directly imitate traditional games such as tag, ping-pong, chess, hopscotch etc. ; video games allow us to engage in these games easily, without any stigma or significant effort on our parts. Video games are fun, inexpensive, can become a social activity allowing friends to play along, and sometimes they’re even mentally stimulating if not challenging. They’ve been a real hit every since they came out and today the video game industry has grown significantly. However, let’s examine the circle of people that are involved in production and design of video games. As long ago as video games first became popular their manufacturers turned them into sellable products. It seems a bit ridiculous that a video game can cost as much as $50 (for a good video game), however, this amount seems almost justified if we consider all the effort put into the creation of a good video game. There are perhaps more steps involved in the creation of video games then in a production of a music album. First of all, behind every great game there’s a great idea, which most often have been proven to be interesting to human brain in real life (tag, chess, checkers, etc.). However, this idea has to be turned into machine language, so then it could be displayed on the TV/computer screen in the digital format. Second, there’s a wealth of robust and â€Å"well-polished† computer software behind every good video game. Good video games are well-implemented and, therefore, run with no problems – example of good computer design. Bad games are poorly â€Å"written†, therefore, crash often and require frequent resets (turning the video game console/computer off and back on). Third, there’s the testing stage, where beta-testers (pro gamers, hired by manufacturers) test the games for â€Å"bugs†, â€Å"glitches†, and â€Å"crashes† (various code problems). If the game passes the tests with few problems it gets released and advertised. Highly anticipated games are advertised long before their release by means of internet teaser videos, information from the developers and screenshots taken during the development/testing phase. Games that are expected to make it big are even advertised on television. But why do we listen to these ads and buy video games, one might ask, don’t we have more important things to occupy our free with? This question brings to the discussion of the social world involvement in the video game industry. Indeed, we, as consumers, both passive and active, create the context and content for video games. A lot of games, as I’ve already mentioned earlier in this essay revolve around activities we enjoy in real life such as analog games, sports, social interactions, operating various devices, working a job, solving problems, managing finances, dancing but most importantly fantasizing. Most people given the possibility would love to engage in a variety of activities that are outside their usual mundane existence. While the living out these activities might be a bit complicated for a variety of reasons starting from time and ending with money, their virtual representation are readily available in a digital format. There are literally tons of video games out there that simulate all sorts of sports, their popularity is especially high among Americans who idealize a fit, toned and healthy body image and an active lifestyle. Video games also burrow heavily from other forms of popular entertainment such as movies, cartoons, books, music, television game shows, commix etc. These genres sometimes attempt to do the same and burrow content from video games only to fail miserably every single time (Bloodrayne, Doom, Dungeons and Dragons). Perhaps, the reason why this happens is because video games in addition to mind blowing special effects and often great story lines and excellent voice-over/soundtrack also offer interactivity (active participation f the player). Refined of participation element video game-to-movie adaptations are like about as entertaining as a video game with no controller to manipulate the characters and the outcomes. This gives evidence that shows that although video games represent a humongous industry and have a great diversity of products, they are nothing without the social world. Whether we’re simulating a football game, controlling an army of monsters or flying on a magic carpet we’re doing nothing else but living out our fantasies which are based on something we’ve (a) actually participated in, (b) would like to participate in or (c) simply heard of, read about or saw on pictures/video. However, there are of course more complex situations when games come very close to offer the players a virtual reality filled with possibilities limited only by the context of the game. There are games that offer entire virtual islands with their own flora and fauna for players to explore. In a sense, this puts the idea of content of video games being dictated by reality under question and opens a debate on whether video games will ultimately become substitutes for reality. As consumers it is up to us to answer this question for ourselves. Before we explore our options, however, let’s take a look around and see who the consumers of video games are. Video games have gained massive popularity due to their dramatically increasing variety. Decades ago when video games were just starting to develop this domain of the market was aimed primarily at high-school age boys. This was primarily due to the character of older video games, which centered on shooting, fighting and other activities typical (although not exclusive) to males. Now, as games are becoming more and more diverse women have been steadily joining this entertainment industry branch and now constitute 26% of the entire gaming world (Ulmer). Adult males (18+) are currently the world’s biggest video game consumers (38%), younger boys (ages 6-17) now only represent 21% of the total consumers. The mean age of video game consumers has risen to 29 (Ulmer), which means that this sector of the entertainment market is now dominated by college students and young working professionals, as opposed to high school boys. Other data from presented by James Ulmer of hollywoodreporter. com reveals that video games is a multi-billion dollar industry which keeps growing larger each year. It has shifted its consumer base by expanding towards a more mature audience and towards women as well. A direction of such character, based on the data, did not only help this industry acquire new customers but also dramatically increased this industry’s annual profits worldwide. Returning to the consumers, as we’ve observed, video games today are no longer an exclusively younger male entertainment; by expanding the market to both sexes and raising the target age average video game industry has now become inseparable from pop-culture. Movies, books, music and other segments of pop-culture inevitably influence content and context of video games; in fact video games are so closely tied to the rest of the media these days that one can find these products bundled together in one item at stores like Virgin, Borders, Best Buy and others. However, video games is multi-faced phenomenon; it’s as much a part of world’s pop-culture as it is an art form and a simulator of reality. It is only a matter of time before people realize and experience a fuller range of applications of video games. These discoveries are, however, in minds and hands of researchers and developers, we are but passive observers of their innovations and active participants of their popular products. Only time will show. Works Cited â€Å"Computer and Video Games†. 8 Mar. 2006. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 7 Mar. 2006. Ulmer, James. â€Å"Broadband rules in rapidly expanding global video game market†. TheHollywoodReporter. com. 27 Sep. 2004. VNU eMedia, Inc. 7 Mar. 2006.

Creating Slave Laws Essay -- essays research papers

The institution of slavery is a black mark on the record of Americans. Marking a time of hate and racism, an oppression spurred by fear that would plague our nation for decades upon decades. An Act for the Better Order and Government of Negroes and Slaves, and Conflicts between Masters and Slaves: Maryland in the Mid-Seventeenth Century, illustrate the dismay and panic European Colonials endured as they enslaved Africans. This dismay and panic generated laws to be established that further widened the gap between Europeans and Africans, stripping the Africans of any legal rights. The dismay and panic concerned loosing a valuable economic pawn. The first piece, An Act for Better Ordinance, clearly portrays the attitude of the majority of White Europeans. "Whereaes the plantations and estates of this Province cannot be well and sufficiently manages and brought into use, without the labor and service of negroes and other slaves [i.e., Indians]; and forasmuch as the said negroes and other slaves brought unto the people of this Province for that purpose, are barbarous, wild, savage natures, and such as renders them wholly unqualified to be governed by the laws, customs, and practices of this Province; but that is absolutely necessary."1 The white men of the time felt that their superiority was deemed by a higher power, why else would their skin tones be so drastically different. Racist views of these 'savage' men created fear. With the growing number of slaves, they had to be stripped of everything to prevent anarchy, as the white men could not envision a world without slave labor. The white men rationalized that slav es will escape. To prevent this one must allow them nothing beyond the plantation they were running from. The white men turn to government. "And for the better security of all such persons that shall endeavor to take any run-away, or shall examine any slave for his ticket, passing to and from his master's plantation, it is hereby declared lawful for any white person to beat, maim or assault, and if such negro or slave cannot otherwise be taken, to kill him, who shall refuse to shew his ticket, or, by running away or resistance, shall endeavor to avoid being apprehended or taken."2 White men had granted themselves a license to kill Africans whose desire for freedom was too strong. Likewise, the second piece, Conflicts between Maste... ...ord/St. Martin’s, 1999), 48. 5. The Early America Review, Charles P.M. Outwin, â€Å"Securing the Leg Irons: Restriction of Legal Rights for Slaves in Virginia and Maryland, 1625-1791. pg 7. Available http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/winter96/slavery.html 6. The Early America Review, Charles P.M. Outwin, â€Å"Securing the Leg Irons: Restriction of Legal Rights for Slaves in Virginia and Maryland, 1625-1791. pg 7. Available http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/winter96/slavery.html 7. Journal of Black Studies, Joyce Tang, â€Å"Enslaved African Rebellions in Virginia,† pg 2 May 1997, v 27, n, p598. Available http://bess.fcla.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~fcliac/cgi2iac/UF?RI19998103 8. Journal of Black Studies, Joyce Tang, â€Å"Enslaved African Rebellions in Virginia,† pg 3 May 1997, v 27, n, p598. Available http://bess.fcla.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~fcliac/cgi2iac/UF?RI19998103 9. Journal of Black Studies, Joyce Tang, â€Å"Enslaved African Rebellions in Virginia,† pg 4 May 1997, v 27, n, p598. Available http://bess.fcla.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~fcliac/cgi2iac/UF?RI19998103

Franklin Delano Roosevelt: The Savior of America

It seems that everyone knows what these three simple letters mean. FDR, which stands for Franklin Delano Roosevelt, was the 32nd President of the United States, the savior of America during mid-20th century, also the hero of mine. As we all know, FDR, known as Franklin D. Roosevelt, is the only president of the United States who was elected to more than 2 terms and up to 4 terms. It’s not so hard to find out that the reason for being the one elected to 4 terms is leading the whole nation overcome the worldwide economic crisis and the World War II. In this essay, I am going to discuss how FDR leaded America pull through the economic crisis which happened in 1927 and what FDR did for fighting against the Fascists with the Allies. First of all, I would like to talk about the worldwide economic crisis. It is known to us all that the Great Depression caused by the economic crisis in 1927 destroyed the whole economy of the world, not only the United States, but also the whole Europe and some parts of Asia including Britain, France, Germany, Japan, etc. It was like a domino effect, all the countries sank into the abyss from which no one can escape. At the beginning of the Great Depression, President Herbert Hoover who was the one before Roosevelt started plenty of programs for reversing the down, but unfortunately all of those failed. Even the worse, the economy and the society turned into a worse condition, and that time became even harder either. At that time, the rate of unemployment and the rate of crime went up, whereas the standard of living went down, and so a huge number of citizens in the United States could no longer live their normal life as before. During that hard time, a lot of people became homeless and died from starvation and disease while another part of people would rather suicide themselves. Finally, Roosevelt defeated Hoover in the election of 1932 and became the 32nd president of the United States. In his Inaugural speech, he encouraged the whole nation with the words that only thing we have to fear is fear itself. And then, in his â€Å"First Hundred days† in office, he started a new series of economic programs named the New Deal which contained Relief, which aimed at protecting the poor and providing jobs to those people who was unemployed, Recovery, whose goal was recovery of the economy to normal levels, and Reform which means rebuilding the economic system to avoid a repeat depression. To support his New Deal, he also passed the Emergency Banking Relief Act, the National Industrial Recovery Act, the agricultural adjustment act, the Social Security Act, and so on which opened a new era. Because of all of those, the economy of America began to recover. That’s the evidence which can prove that it was Roosevelt who helped the United States get out of stuck. Second of all, Roosevelt also made a declaration of war with Japan which meant the United States officially participate in World War II and became a member of the Allies fighting against Germany and Japan. In fact, the United States Congress passed The Neutrality Acts in the 1930s which limited the help from the United States to aid Britain against Nazi Germany. Because of that, Roosevelt opposed the acts and tried to find various ways to assist the Allies. Before the participation of the United States, Roosevelt signed the Atlantic Charter with Winston Churchill, who was the British Prime Minister at that time, and then gave a strong financial support to both China and Britain to fight against the Fascists. On the following day when Japanese attacked on Pearl Harbor, he made a speech calling December 7, when Hawaii Operation took place, â€Å"a date which will live in infamy†. That meant it’s the end of the Neutrality Acts and the beginning of the participation of the United States. After America’s participating, the aspect of World War II has been totally changed, especially after Normandy landings. In the Pacific, The Battle of Midway became the most significant turning point in World War II which caused the cooperation between Japan and America change a lot. At last, as everybody knows, the Axis collapsed, while the Allies got victory. It’s so easy to tell that how Roosevelt contributed to the victory of Allies. While there are still some people hold a point of view that Roosevelt needs to be blamed because he had known some details about the plan that Japanese attacked on Pearl Harbor before that happened but he kept that as a secret and then he allow that tragedy happened in order to rouse the nation for participation to the war. However, the opinion is wrong because World War II was a disaster for all the human beings, while the participation of the United States let the Allies get the final victory and end the war. We should not abuse Roosevelt but thank him because he let us have a peace world. Whereas there are still some people holding another idea as Charles Dorn did that FDR did effectively eliminate one global threat – but left us with decades of cold war. I have to say what he thought is right but that is also the thing no one can avoid. Moss Roberts points out that â€Å"The empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. † After defeating the same enemy – the fascist, the United States of America and the Soviet Union turned into enemies because of the different profits of two nations. Actually, the cold war is the best way to solve the problem caused by different profits, compared with wars or battles. In conclusion, Roosevelt is not only the savior of the United States but also the savior of the whole world. He saved America’s economy from the abysm and then saved the world from being destroyed by the Fascists. As the article Visit Little White House to step back into FDR's time said, â€Å"His ‘Fireside Chats’ heard over the radio were as popular as the ‘Grand Old Opry’ or Joe Louis' prize fights. His â€Å"So help us God† speech at the beginning of World War II pulled the nation together. Then later, when word came that he had died, grown men cried unashamedly in public beside their wives. † We can easily figure out that FDR himself and the things he did are all unforgettable to every single American who overcame that hard time. Thanks to Roosevelt, we can have a developed America; thanks to Roosevelt, we can have a peaceful world even though there are still a lot of skirmishes in the world.

List of the 12 Seas Surrounding the Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the worlds five oceans. It has a total area of 60.06 million square miles (155.557 million sq km) and it stretches from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south and has coastlines along the continents of Asia, Australia, North America, and South America. In addition, some areas of the Pacific Ocean feed into what is called a marginal sea instead of pushing right up against the coastlines of the aforementioned continents. By definition, a marginal sea is an area of water that is a partially enclosed sea adjacent to or widely open to the open ocean. Confusingly a marginal sea is also sometimes referred to as a Mediterranean sea, which shouldnt be confused with the actual sea named the Mediterranean.   Marginal Seas of the Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean shares its borders with 12 different marginal seas. The following is a list of those seas arranged by area.   Philippine Sea Area: 2,000,000 square miles (5,180,000 sq km) Coral Sea Area: 1,850,000 square miles (4,791,500 sq km) The South China Sea Area: 1,350,000 square miles (3,496,500 sq km) Tasman Sea Area: 900,000 square miles (2,331,000 sq km) Bering Sea Area: 878,000 square miles (2,274,020 sq km) The East China Sea Area: 750,000 square miles (1,942,500 sq km) The Sea of Okhotsk Area: 611,000 square miles (1,582,490 sq km) The Sea of Japan Area: 377,600 square miles (977,984 sq km) Yellow Sea Area: 146,000 square miles (378,140 sq km) Celebes Sea Area: 110,000 square miles (284,900 sq km) Sulu Sea Area: 100,000 square miles (259,000 sq km) The Sea of Chiloà © Area: Unknown The Great Barrier Reef The Coral Sea located in the Pacific Ocean is home to one of natures greatest wonders, the Great Barrier Reef. It is the world largest coral reef system which is made up of almost 3,000 individual corals. Off the coast of Australia, the Great Barrier Reef is one of the nations most popular tourist destinations. For the Aboriginal population of Australia, the reef is culturally and spiritually important. The reef is home to 400 types of coral animals and over 2,000 species of fish. Much of the marine life that calls the reef home, like sea turtles and several whale species.   Unfortunately, climate change is killing the Great Barrier Reef. Rising ocean temperatures cause coral to release  the algae that not only live in it but is the main source of food for the coral. Without its algae, the coral is still alive but is slowly starving to death. This release of algae is known as coral bleaching. By 2016 over 90 percent of the Reef had suffered from coral bleaching and 20 percent of the coral had died. As even humans depend upon coral reef ecosystems for food the loss of the world largest coral reef system would have devastating effects on the plant. Scientists  hope they can stem the tide of climate change and preserve natural wonders like coral reefs.