Ben Mauro definitely stirred up some internet buzz with his Bioshock 2 concept art which was actually part of his architecture 2 project. "It was for a class at Art Center, the assignment was to design a sequel for a videogame or film. So I picked one of my favorite games from last year." 2K Games community manager even tried to contact Ben Mauro to thank him. Hopefully he'll get a job offer out of it. ;) Via Xbox360 Fanboy
Brave New World is a 1932 novel by Aldous Huxley. Set in London in 2540 AD, the novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology, biological engineering, and sleep-learning that combine to change society. Huxley answers this book with a reassessment in an essay, Brave New World Revisited (1958), and with his final work, a novel titled Island (1962), both summarized below.
The world the novel describes is a utopia, albeit an ironic one: humanity is carefree, healthy and technologically advanced. Warfare and poverty have been eliminated and everyone is permanently happy due to government-provided stimulation. The irony is that all of these things have been achieved by eliminating many things that humans consider to be central to their identity — family, culture, art, literature, science, religion (other than idolization of "our Ford", Henry Ford, who is seen as the father of their society), and philosophy. It is also a hedonistic society, deriving pleasure from promiscuous sex and drug use, especially soma, a powerful psychotropic taken to escape pain and bad memories through hallucinatory fantasies. Additionally, stability has been achieved and is maintained via deliberately engineered and rigidly enforced social stratification.
Brave New World is Huxley's most famous novel. The ironic title comes from Miranda's speech in Shakespeare's The Tempest, Act V, Scene I:
"O wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world That hath such people in't!"
Aldous Huxley wrote Brave New World in 1932 while he was living in France and England (a British writer, he moved to California in 1937). By this time, Huxley had already established himself as a writer and social satirist. He was a contributor to Vanity Fair and Vogue magazines, had published a collection of his poetry (The Burning Wheel, 1916) and four successful satirical novels: Crome Yellow in 1921, Antic Hay in 1923, Those Barren Leaves in 1925 and Point Counter Point in 1928. Brave New World was Huxley's fifth novel and first attempt at a utopian work.
Brave New World was inspired by the H.G. Wells utopian novel Men Like Gods. Wells's optimistic vision of the future gave Huxley the idea to begin writing a parody of the novel, which became Brave New World. Contrary to the most popular optimist utopian novels of the time, Huxley sought to provide a frightening vision of the future. Huxley referred to Brave New World as a "negative utopia" (see dystopia), somewhat influenced by Wells's own The Sleeper Awakes and the works of D.H. Lawrence. Yevgeny Zamyatin's novel We, completed ten years before in 1921, has been suggested as an influence, but Huxley stated that he had not known of the book at the time.
Huxley visited the newly-opened and technologically-advanced Brunner and Mond plant, part of Imperial Chemical Industries, or ICI, Billingham and gives a fine and detailed account of the processes he saw. The introduction to the most recent print of Brave New World states that Huxley was inspired to write the classic novel by this Billingham visit.
Although the novel is set in the future, it contains contemporary issues of the early 20th century. The Industrial Revolution was bringing about massive changes to the world. Mass production had made cars, telephones and radios relatively cheap and widely available throughout the developed world. The Russian Revolution of 1917 and the first World War (1914–1918) were resonating throughout the world.
Huxley was able to use the setting and characters from his futuristic fantasy to express widely held opinions, particularly the fear of losing individual identity in the fast-paced world of the future. An early trip to the United States gave Brave New World much of its character. Not only was Huxley outraged by the culture of youth, commercial cheeriness and inward-looking nature of many Americans, he also found a book by Henry Ford on the boat to America. There was a fear of Americanisation in Europe, so to see America firsthand, as well as read the ideas and plans of one of its foremost citizens, spurred Huxley to write Brave New World with America in mind. The "feelies" are his response to the "talkie" motion pictures, and the sex-hormone chewing gum is parody of the ubiquitous chewing gum, which was something of a symbol of America at that time. In an article in the May 4, 1935 issue of Illustrated London News, G. K. Chesterton explained that Huxley was revolting against the "Age of Utopias" - a time, mostly before World War I, inspired by what H. G. Wells and George Bernard Shaw were writing about socialism and a World State. “ After the Age of Utopias came what we may call the American Age, lasting as long as the Boom. Men like Ford or Mond seemed to many to have solved the social riddle and made capitalism the common good. But it was not native to us; it went with a buoyant, not to say blatant optimism, which is not our negligent or negative optimism. Much more than Victorian righteousness, or even Victorian self-righteousness, that optimism has driven people into pessimism. For the Slump brought even more disillusionment than the War. A new bitterness, and a new bewilderment, ran through all social life, and was reflected in all literature and art. It was contemptuous, not only of the old Capitalism, but of the old Socialism. Brave New World is more of a revolt against Utopia than against Victoria. ”
Brave New World received nearly universal criticism from contemporary critics, although his work was later embraced. Even the few sympathetics tended to temper their praises with disparaging remarks.
Some memorable quotes:
A gramme is better than a damn.
A slogan encouraging people not to dwell on gloomy thoughts, but to obliterate them with drugs.
When the individual feels, the community reels
A slogan discouraging individualism in favor of the community as a whole.
Every one belongs to every one else.
A government slogan encouraging sociability and sexual promiscuity.
Ending is better than mending.
A government slogan encouraging people to throw away old possessions and buy new ones, thus theoretically keeping the global economy strong.
Community, Identity, Stability.
The motto of the World State.
No social stability without individual stability.
Refers to mass use of soma to create "stable" citizens who conform to societal norms.
Christianity without tears — that's what soma is.
Mustapha Mond's summarisation of the hypnotic, revered drug soma.
The Thought Criminals are a 4 Piece from London. They are influenced by Gary Numan,Soft Cell, Nitzer Ebb, John Foxx, The Prodigy, Sex Pistols. They are the new face of London's Underground and have headlined venues such as The brixton mass, the camden underworld, goldsmiths college, 333 club, roehampton university, the hope and anchor, the dublin castle. The Band was signed in 2006 Summer and quickly dropped that label in September 2006. The band have become probably one of London's biggest underground acts and have been growing strength to strength. The Thought Criminals - Suicide Bomber
The Thought Criminals started as a supercharged synaptic in the in the mind of a splodge reclining on a floor of a South London college sometime in 2004. The splodge set about to create something that could comfortably lounge in the seedy underbelly of London until ready to sell out to the highest bidder. Whilst the foundations of the sound, including the tongue in cheek lyrics and infectious hooks were tweaked, stretched and pounded, the splodge set out on a mission of mismatch to recruit its notorious members to give a face to this new horror.
rocky, a wrestling stripper, was headhunted from London's underground fetish scene with the promise of as many different species as he could handle in one night as long as he could keep his mouth open for up to 45 minutes on stage. Rocky provides a hard body that the rest of the band can always stand behind.
kirlian blue, a concept hacker, was caught by dipping our phishing net in cyberspace. He was easily persuaded that real viruses were much more fun to catch and that talking to girls would not hurt his fingers as much. Kirlian provides an infectious melody whilst playing any instrument with all eight fingers.
lee v2, a religious chemist, was found in the rehabilitation toilets of slimelight at 6am, praying for inspiration. With an exceptional imagination coupled with absolutely no musical talent, no promises were ever made to him and he still feels blessed to this day. Lee V2 provides a rhythm that the others can pound along to.
vortex, a bookstore prophet, was hiding behind a cash register clutching the last book with pictures and holding a gun. He was kidnapped in broad daylight with an agreement that he can only have his glasses back when we are famous. Vortex has so much talent that we all choke when we suck it out of him.
Syndicate Wars is the third video game title in the Syndicate Series created by Bullfrog Productions in 1996. It was released for PC and PlayStation, with a Sega Saturn version also planned, but eventually cancelled. This was the final game in the series and the one that marked the transition to three dimensional landscape. Syndicate Wars presents a rough sequel to the events in Syndicate. At the game's opening, the player-controlled syndicate (called the Eurocorp Syndicate) is at the peak of its power (achieved in the previous game), an alliance of corporations controlling the world through a combination of military and economic power, and technological mind control. Corporate decisions are facilitated through a number of AI entities connected through a global communications network. As the game opens, this totalitarian status quo is threatened by the emergence of a virus named "Harbinger" in the global communications system, damaging mind-control implants and leaving citizens vulnerable to co-option. Some of the newly liberated persons, dubbed "unguided citizens," choose to engage in an armed insurrection. The Unguided appear in early missions as random antagonistic elements, but over time form a well-organized militia. Viral damage to the global network causes disruption to Syndicate coordinations, with individual stations isolating themselves to avoid receiving rogue communication. The London station, as the headquarters of the Eurocorp Syndicate, attempts to regain authority via direct intervention by the game's signature quartets of heavily armed agents. The bulk of the game concerns the development of armed conflict between Eurocorp and the Church of the New Epoch, a church (led by a group called "The Nine") seeking to undermine the world rule by corporations in favor of subjecting its paritioners to its own variety of mind control. "Harbinger" was their first step in demolishing the existing world order. As insurrections take hold, the player is also obliged to conduct missions to control rogue elements within the syndicate itself, as various sub-corporations change allegiances or make bids for independence. The ironic parallels between the objectives of Church of the New Epoch and the original Eurocorp syndicate itself are abundantly clear throughout the game, and indeed the game can be played from the point of view of the Church itself to similar ends (indeed, it is revealed very early in the game, when played on the Church's side, that the "disciple" in control of Church agents is a former Eurocorp agent who has been converted).
The campaign for the Unguided rebels was unfinished, but the levels are still accessible.
BioShock is a first-person shooter video game by 2K Boston/2K Australia—previously known as Irrational Games—designed by Ken Levine. The game is available for the Windows operating system and the Xbox 360 video game console. It was released on August 21, 2007, in North America, and three days later in Europe and Australia. The game received overwhelmingly positive reviews, and ranks as the thirteenth best video game on Game Rankings based on reviews from critics. It was particularly well-reviewed in the mainstream press where its "morality-based" storyline, immersive environment and Ayn Rand-inspired dystopian setting were all singled out for praise. BioShock has been praised for providing "an entirely new tool through which to explore philosophy, psychology, and morality." A sequel, while not officially announced, is rumored, following high sales and positive reviews for BioShock. Set in an alternative history 1960, the game places the player in the role of a plane crash survivor named Jack, who must explore the underwater Objectivist-dystopian city of Rapture, and survive attacks by the mutated beings and mechanical drones that populate it. The game incorporates elements found in role-playing and survival horror games, and is described by the developers and Levine as a "spiritual successor" to their previous titles in the System Shock series. Setting BioShock is set during 1960, in Rapture, a fictional underwater dystopian city. The history of Rapture is learned by the player through audio recordings as they explore the city. Secretly built in 1946 on the mid-Atlantic seabed, Rapture was entirely self-sufficient and powered by submarine volcanoes. Constructed by business magnate Andrew Ryan (voice by Armin Shimerman), Rapture was envisioned as the solution to what he saw as increasingly oppressive political and religious authority. The city was populated by those whom Ryan believed exemplified the best in humanity. It was revealed in an audio log that Ryan wanted Rapture to become an "Eden," a concept furthered by the resources ADAM and EVE, which are named after the biblical inhabitants of Eden. During the early 1950s, Rapture's population peaked at several thousand, though an elite emerged, discomforting many of the inhabitants. The development of ADAM—stem cells created from a species of sea slug—by Dr. Bridgette Tennenbaum further upset the social balance. ADAM's prevalence greatly accelerated genetic engineering research, creating a plasmid industry that sold everything from a cure for male pattern baldness to skills like telekinesis, with non-passive types like the latter requiring a serum, EVE. In order to improve ADAM yields, Rapture scientists created the "Little Sisters," young girls, each with a slug embedded in their body. Although initially just ADAM "factories," during the war which later broke out, they were repurposed via mental conditioning to extract ADAM from the dead, and recycle it within themselves.[34] At the same time, the scientists created "Big Daddies," (voiced by Stephen Stanton) armed and highly enhanced humans in diving suits—to defend the Little Sisters as they worked. For several years, Rapture was what Ryan originally intended it to be: a paradise of freedom and wealth. But ultimately, the very reason it was created—Ryan's hatred of authority—caused the city's downfall, and the ideals Ryan had envisaged to be corrupted and lost. To keep his utopia a secret, Ryan passed a single law: contact with the surface was prohibited. This turned out to be one too many. The edict made smuggling profitable, resulting in the formation of a small black market. This market came to be dominated by a man with just as much determination as Ryan: former mobster Frank Fontaine (voiced by Greg Baldwin). Unlike Ryan, however, Fontaine wanted control. His wealth, combined with his monopoly on Tennenbaum's research, soon gained Fontaine enough power and followers to challenge Ryan for control of the city. In late 1958, Ryan lost patience with the conflict, and apparently had Fontaine killed—an action that proved useless, as another figure, Atlas, took Fontaine's place as the leader of the opposition. On New Year's Eve that year, Atlas and his ADAM-augmented followers fomented a riot involving the lower and upper classes. This sparked a civil war between Ryan and Atlas that eventually spread to all of Rapture, crippling the city. As the war progressed, Ryan began to betray his ideals. The former advocate of reason and self-determination began using torture and mind control in his battle with Atlas. Eventually, he became so unreasonable that a number of his supporters attempted to assassinate him. By the time the player enters Rapture, only the "Splicers"—citizens with severe mental and physical problems caused by excessive ADAM use—are left, scavenging throughout the city. The remaining non-mutated humans have managed to barricade themselves in the few remaining undamaged areas. Objectivism in Bioshock. Ayn Rand = Adrew Ryan? Atlas -> Atlas Shrugged? Wired Review Andrew Ryan speaks out against altruism
Missing Pages Those of you who follow the film festival scene might already be familiar with this excellent science fiction short film from Speaking Pictures. Filmmaker Jerome Oliver wrote and directed Missing Pages, the story of a professor who invents a time machine and touches off a war. The 24-minute "amended" version of Missing Pages is now available via Speaking Pictures or iTunes. What makes this piece particularly unique and visually stunning is that the story is created entirely with 40,000 pictures from a digital camera. The still images were processed and animated using Adobe After Effects and Adobe Photoshop using a technique the director calls "fotomation". To get a glimpse of the creative process behind Missing Pages, check out Toolfarm's interview with Jerome Oliver last year. Despite being based in still photography, Missing Pages makes you think about motion and dynamics and it raises questions about the classic persistence of motion film theory. It's definitely somewhere between photography, motion graphics, graphic novel, and filmmaking. Funded by the J-Pop star Chage of Chage & Aska fame, this short is the result of 14 months of arduous work and experimentation.
The Retrosic When the history of THE RETROSIC starts in April 2001 with the release of PROPHECY, no one can foresee that the first album will already enjoy considerable resonance in the electro scene. For keeping full control over his music Cyrus founds his own label TRIBUNE RECORDS, which became RETROSIC’s very own platform from its beginning.
Followed by MESSA DA REQUIEM hardly a year later, the mini album hits the top of the European Alternative Charts. It is celebrating “Record of the Year” of the DUTCH ALTERNATIVE CHARTS (DUC) after three months’ constantly holding the top position. The song GROUND ZERO establishes itself as a club hit overnight skilfully linking hard electronics with an oriental theme. For the first time here, THE RETROSIC is enriched by the classical singing of soprano Zaide who gives the EP its name quoting passages from the requiem by Verdi under the same name.
2002 and the following year also sees the band challenging various remix works for Bruderschaft, Clan of Xymox and a collaboration with [:SITD:] feat. Cyrus on vocals for the comic-soundtrack ERYNIS with the song DECOY and on the RETROSIC-Remix for LAUGHING STOCK.
Almost two years after MESSA DA REQUIEM, THE RETROSIC's second full-time release is brought to daylight with GOD OF HELL. Harsh arrangements combined with biting vocals remain the immovable centre of THE RETROSIC, now expanding to a fully band line-up behind Cyrus. Discography: * Prophecy (2001) * Messa da Requiem (2002) * God of Hell (2004) * Nightcrawler (2006) The Retrosic - The Storm
A daily blog of a faux science fiction writer for inspiration and motivation.
Mainly focusing on music, movies, video games, comic books, art,
internet, photography, video editing, video games, cyberpunk, dystopia, post apocalypse, steampunk, interactive storytelling, anime, and whatever might come along to inspire me.
