Annihlation HW for Monday 4/23

Hi everyone,

For next class, please briefly research and print out an article (news articles are okay) about one aspect of climate change that you believe could relate to the themes of the book Annihilation.

This might connect to how Area X *possibly* was created (we don't know for sure how it was but the novel suggests climate change could have impacted its creation), or some other element of the novel.

This should be a quick activity--no more than fifteen minutes or so.

Best,
Prof D

Report from the Future Pre-Drafting Activity

OVERALL QUESTIONS:

Tell us about your character. Give as many details about them as you can in one paragraph (no more than 200 words). Who are they? Age, gender, species, race, home, goals, personality, family, vocation/job, skills, etc.

Will your Report from the Future be a warning, or more of a snapshot (window into the time period)? Why did you choose this method?

What is your version of our world in 100-200 years like? What is its economic system, its environment, its politics, its technologies, etc? Describe it in as much detail as possible.

How does your future connect to our world today? What is your primary issue (social problem, invention, etc) that you have projected into the future? Why do you think this is the most pressing idea facing humanity today?

What other aspects of our world have you projected into this future? As a reminder, say you are creating a dystopian future--perhaps your world is ravaged by climate change in some way, as climate change is currently documented by scientists to be creating rapidly, increasingly negative effects for our environment. Perhaps you've projected current politics in the US toward a totalitarian regime ruled only by reality TV stars. Perhaps scientists have created brains in jars to solve all our problems for us (yes, test tube brains are a thing scientists are working on). Here is where you may need to do some preliminary research to get some good ideas. Don't get bogged down in research, but do make sure you can connect your world to our world in a research-based way.

CREATIVE COMPONENT QUESTIONS:

What format will the assignment be in? (Digital comic, short story, video). Why did you choose this format?

What technical challenges will you face using this format? Have you used it before?

What are some practical planning tools you need to do to get up to speed with this assignment? (Make appointment with tech liason in the library; rent equipment, read a tutorial, etc).

*Important note: please remember that I have made particular requirements for each of your creative components, that you should go back and re-read them before working on your assignment. For example, your digital comic has a certain number of frames required, should be in color, etc. I will be grading very strictly along these requirements, so make sure you understand them and ask me any questions you have about them before beginning your project.

Presentation Schedule

Please note that there are no makeups for missed presentations. If a true emergency occurs, as per the syllabus guidelines, please let me know.

 


M 4/30 

 

Noah

Emerson

Chloe

Jesse E

Jesse G

Sean

W 5/2 

 

Wyatt

Gabriel 

Ashley

Nate

Keola

Diana

M 5/7 

 

Maggie

Oz

Sophie

Braden

Yulissa

Brainstorming Ideas for your Report from the Future

Brainstorming Ideas for your Report from the Future

If you are brainstorming topics for your Report from the Future, here are some innovations and current cultural issues you might want to project into a speculative future. Please note that the news articles listed here are not to be used as your scholarly sources, as they are not peer-reviewed research from the library's databases. Rather, these are just brainstorming topics to get you thinking in a certain direction.

Designer babies: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jan/08/designer-babies-ethical-horror-waiting-to-happen

Internet brain implant: https://www.technologyreview.com/s/609232/the-surgeon-who-wants-to-connect-you-to-the-internet-with-a-brain-implant/

Nanotechology: https://www.popsci.com/science/article/2012-11/7-amazing-ways-nanotechnology-changing-world

Drones: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2018-02-15/why-drones-are-still-future-war

Robot companions: https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/japanese-companies-introduce-new-companion-robots/4240141.html

Transhumanism: http://whatistranshumanism.org/

Income inequality: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/12/us-states-with-the-highest-levels-of-income-inequality.html

Animal extinction: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/05/140529-conservation-science-animals-species-endangered-extinction/

Sea level rise: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2018/feb/27/scientists-have-detected-an-acceleration-in-sea-level-rise

Automation/Jobs: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jun/26/jobs-future-automation-robots-skills-creative-health  

Bringing back extinct animals: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/02/16/harvard-scientists-pledge-bring-back-woolly-mammoth-extinction/