GeekSugar

Culture Vulture: Would You Watch Opera on the Internet?

GeekSugar — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 09:00:48 -0700

You no longer have to be in NYC to get a dose of the Met: The famed opera house is going to start streaming its opera performances online! You'll be able to get audio and video via its "Met Player" from metopera.org.

While I think this is completely cool - I want all important forms of culture to be widely available on the web - I'm kind of curious about the audience rift. That is, are people who are into opera also tech buffs who watch streamed content on the Internet?

But then again, who's not into the Internet?! Share your thoughts on this below!

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How Do You Charge Up Without Electricity?

GeekSugar — Thu, 10 May 2007 08:00:15 -0700

Most of us can no longer consider a life without the internet, technology or even access to electricity. In fact, if you're reading this right now, chances are you are sitting at a computer with the lights on, a cell phone handy and about a gazillion other gadgets and electrical outlets within walking distance. Jan Chipchase, who is a Principal Researcher in the User Experience Group of Nokia Research Center, does ethnographic fieldwork all over the globe, particularly in places where access to electricity and mobile phones is limited. His recent study about rural charging services in Uganda revealed how locals stay powered up without access to main power.

He found that many communities powered up using car batteries in the home, and businesses such as bars run off car batteries or their own power generator. The car batteries cost about $30 or $40 and can keep a household lit for a month, but the same battery might only last a week in a bar. Inside houses, families used the batteries to run radios, CD players, television and domestic lighting.

Of course, as a result of the power limitations, locals have developed alternative solutions, such as phone-sharing systems and battery-charging stations where batteries can be recharged for a small price. How do you think you would fair?

To check out more slides from the study, read more

View 5 Photos ›

The complete Nokia study can be found online on Chipchase's blog.
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Unfriend: The New American Dictionary's Word of the Year

GeekSugar — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:46:25 -0800

The New Oxford American Dictionary just released its annual Word of the Year and it's unsurprisingly tech-related. This year's honor goes to "unfriend," defined as by the dictionary as, "To remove someone as a 'friend' on a social networking site such as Facebook."

The Word of the Year is chosen from newly created words by researchers based on language trends, popularity, and cultural significance. Some popular geeky words that were up for the honor are no stranger to GeekSugar: "sexting" and "netbook" were also considered, along with "hashtag," referencing the popular Twitter "#" character and "intexticated," the state of distraction one experiences while driving and texting.

I think that "unfriend" is a pretty fitting addition to the dictionary. Plus, its inclusion makes it easy to decide between the terms "defriend" and the newly validated "unfriend."

How Well Do You Know Your Tech and Internet Culture?

GeekSugar — Mon, 25 May 2009 14:04:57 -0700

I pretty much live my life on the Internet and among technology of all kinds. You can almost always find me online, looking for the newest thing, phrase, or gadget to hit "the 'Net." Hey, it's my job.

Hopefully, you've been keeping up, so the answers to this quiz should come pretty easy. Consider this your short-but-sweet midterm exam for recent events in tech and Internet culture. You may pick up your clicking devices now.

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Take the quiz

Do You Think Emoticons Carry Cultural Baggage?

GeekSugar — Wed, 16 May 2007 04:01:35 -0700

A recent study used the hypothesis that facial cues in different parts of the face are interpreted differently based on an individual’s cultural background. The researchers confirmed this, with a study that found emoticons - as in the text-turned funny faces used in text messages, e-mail and instant messenger to replicate emotions and attitudes - are in fact interpreted differently depending on cultural factors.

Arstechnica notes the study found a culture's interpretation of facial expressions is dependent upon a combination of the culture's emotional openness and the challenge of controlling certain facial muscles. Here's more:

Given that the eyes are more difficult to control than the mouth when people express emotions, we predicted that individuals in cultures where emotional subduction is the norm (such as Japan) would focus more strongly on the eyes than the mouth when interpreting others’ emotions. By contrast, we predicted that people in cultures where overt emotional expression is the norm (such as the US) would tend to interpret emotions based on the position of the mouth, because it is the most expressive part of the face.

I have never been a huge fan of emoticons, mostly because I think our texting etiquette and habits are in fact lessening our writing abilities. I do, however, agree that emoticons are less universal than we might have thought, and that what looks like "money mouth" or "frown" to me might look like something else entirely to someone down the street or across the globe.

What If Websites Were Rated Like Movies?

GeekSugar — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 10:00:23 -0800

What if you went to a website and a rating popped up, telling you it was PG-13? That's the suggestion of British Culture Secretary Andy Burnham, who thinks that "film-style ratings" for websites is a good idea.

Whether it would work or not, I think it's a logical conclusion to come to, since even video games are given ratings these days. Of course, the big questions would have to be worked out - How would it be decided? How would it be enforced? And whose responsibility would it fall under? The little questions abound too - what about personal blogs and individual social networking pages?

I could see this being a relief to parents who are eager to shield their children from all that can be found on the Internet, but I could also see it as a big hassle for those of us who are of age, if we're talking age verifications.

What do you think?
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Americans Split on 'Always On' Culture

GeekSugar — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 03:06:45 -0800

Is there such thing as BlackBerry backlash? A new research study finds many users of wireless devices such as BlackBerry, Palm Treo and similar 'smartphones' struggle with the blurring of boundaries between life and work. The jury is split on whether devices like BlackBerry or Treo liberate or chain people to their work - an issue I ponder far too often when I wake up in the middle of the night and see the red "you have a message" light blinking on my BlackBerry.

Thirty-three percent of the people polled agreed with the statement "devices like BlackBerry chain you to work more than they liberate you, while 33 percent were neutral and the balance, 34 percent, disagreed. For more of the survey findings, just read more

While smartphones give users the ability to get work done outside the office, the survey showed that owners were somewhat more likely to work long hours, not less.

Among those who own a BlackBerry or a similar device, 19 percent worked for more than 50 hours a week, compared to 11 percent average.
Among owners of BlackBerry or a similar device, 53 percent agreed with the statement "I don't have enough 'me' time," compared to 40 percent average.
When asked to choose between time and money, 56 percent of those who own a BlackBerry or a similar device chose 'time' and 44 percent chose money.

"Contrary to shiny happy ads suggesting we do more in less time, in fact, there is evidence to suggest that we simply do more, more of the time," said Kaan Yigit, study director for Digital Life America. "While being always on in a social context is a natural for young people, many of those in the 25-54 age group with families and corporate jobs are struggling with work-life blending. There is a need for the mainstream workplace culture to offer ways to counterbalance."

So what about you, would you pick time, or money?

Up Your Coolness Factor With Hipster Gadgets

GeekSugar — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:30:18 -0700

Whether you define yourself as a hipster or not, one thing is for sure: those cool cats know their beer, indie bands, pop culture, and tech. In fact, I don't know a hipster who isn't slinging a solid level of geek knowledge and understanding of the hipness of certain oddball whatchamacallits.

New devices hit electronic shelves and the Internet daily - some are instantly welcomed with long lines while others are largely ignored. A select few naturally gain geek cred for their coolness. These are the Polaroid keepsakes, Japanese goodies, and mini turntables we eventually see celebrated at the MoMA store, Urban Outfitters, and the Apple store. (Have you ever been to the Apple store on Friday at 6 p.m.? Hipster central.) Take a gander at some of the current classics, and stock up to up your coolness meter.

Another Web Clip Show to Love: Tosh.0

GeekSugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:04:27 -0700

TV land has gotten the message that the new cultural currency is viral videos, and it's responding by taking them from the Internet and building TV shows around them.

Chris Hardwick got his show this Summer, Web Soup, and Comedy Central also debuted its new web clip show last month, my new addiction, Tosh.0.

Hosted by Daniel Tosh, Tosh.0 is pretty much the same format of Web Soup (themselves both borrowing from The Soup's format), but its comedian host is as hilarious as the clips he's showing. Plus, the web redemption feature (where viral "stars" like Miss Teen South Carolina get to right their wrongs on camera) keeps things more interesting than just introducing videos.

Are you watching any web clips shows, or is seeing them online good enough?

Photo courtesy of Comedy Central

Vintage Video Game Memorial: Michael Jackson's Moonwalker

GeekSugar — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:02:36 -0700

However you watched Michael Jackson's memorial, we all have our own ways of dealing with the loss of a cultural icon. For my friends, it was by pulling out something dusty from the back of a closet: a Sega console and a copy of - wait for it - Michael Jackson's 1990 video game Moonwalker.

We blew out the game and hooked it up, and like Jackson himself, gameplay is a pretty outrageous. You dance villains to death and free kidnapped children all while midi "Smooth Criminal" plays. And at level intervals, the 16-bit king of pop's face comes on-screen and yells "OW!" in case you forgot who made the game.

Check out the video I found below, with the highlights of this video game that's as memorable as its namesake.