"Ultra-Violence" as a break from my thesis

No, no, the title to this blog entry is not about a secret life I lead when my thesis gets the best of me.  Instead, it is in regards to classic game Doom.

 

$9.00 for this game (see the bottom text of the photo)!!!!!!  I know it came on a floppy!

I realized a few months back that I never actually played these games as a young kid.  My parents barred me from the potential nightmarish violence that could come from a gun-wielding, "Doomguy" gunz-a-blazin' fella who was, to my knowledge as of a few weeks ago, fighting the demons of hell; Columbine shooting is the reference that didn't have at the time but were looking for.  Yet, aside from the violent atmosphere it embodies this game can be hailed as a corner-stone for all future action games.  The is one series that you can distinguish older gamers and older "computer nerds" (I really do hate that expression) from the younger, more modern type.

     I was first introduced to this series by my Aunt Sally.  She had it on her computer, and when I would spend the weekend at her house I would play it.  She saw it as harmless, but my parents argued otherwise.  It was the same as Mortal Combat, violent and captivating for a youngster.  In retrospect, I would have most likely taken a similar stance as my parents toward this game if my child wanted to play it; this was a mature game as the second image above shows.  Yet, the rebelliousness from playing this game (and simply from this game) excited me.

    What I say here is nothing that has not been said previously about this series.  Yes, it was an important first step for all succeeding first-person shooters.  Yes, the violence in it made anyone under the age of 35 wide-eyed and captivated, and, yes, based on my recent experiences, was actually a challenging and surprising game.  Level design I must say was superb for its time.  Playing through it now I do comment on the level complexity and surprises along the way.  When you go into a corner or teleport to another location suddenly there are monsters at all angles, little ammunition to be found, and a of course, you're already low on health. I find joy in the game, but also boredom after 45 minutes of playing.  Could this be the result of going back in time after experiencing modern games?

     iD software designed this game and distributed it in 1993.  Nearly 20 years.  John Carmack designed this game, and what happened afterward is history.  Wolfenstein 3d, followed by Doom, followed by Doom 2, followed by Quake.  iD software did have it's share of controversy, similar to Ozzy, Judas Preist, and other "satanic" items that emerged in the 70's through 90's.

    Ultimately, the game surprised me.  The younger version of me wouldn't have appreciated certain aspects to this game that age has now provided.  Really, the purpose of this blog entry was simply to state I'm playing the Doom series.  That's all.

This blog was brought to you under the influence of wine.

     

A Challenge for Myself (AKA Blog Origins)

     On occasion I have become upset with myself and wanted to make radical changes.  On occasion I have found my current state boring and lacking enough learning to keep my mind awake.  And for these occasions I have attempted to make changes but somehow fail within a few weeks.  This is where I will break through my previous shortcomings and make a solid investment to see a challenge through.
     The purpose of this blog is a creative outlet for me (personal and scientific), a way to track new and interesting items I come across, and also as a tool to remind me of what I want to do/where I am going.  As in the previous paragraph, I commit briefly to new hobbies/actions/qualities/etc.  Brevity, in so much as I believe this, is caused by not seeing the goals/objectives more than once.  When I witness such things (sorry for the broad catch-phrase) I feel myself stimulated and very excited.  And for a brief period of time I'm very motivated to do that thing or things.  Then it falls short.
     No longer will this happen.  I've set a goal up for pushing my boundaries, improving cognitive abilities for a period of 4 months.  It is a giant uptaking, and all is outlined below.  My objective is to a) improve my memory and memorize things I've always wanted to learn more about, b) step out of the science world and try new things (piano, art), c) play chess (and potentially other games) to work that pink, squishy thing, and d) write more frequently to work on that art.

Daily Changes

• Meditation
• Twice a day for at least 5 minutes
• Periodic Table of Elements - A new element a day
• If there is a total of 118 elements I could learn all in about 17 weeks.  For now I will stick to 5 a week (Mon-Fri) and review on the weekend
• 1-2 new vocabulary words on weekdays
• Review on the weekend
• Word Dynamo Daily use
• A new daily country
• Follow this link
• Daily mental review of the day's actions, people met, details, etc.

Daily to Bi-Daily Changes

• New sentence style in The Art of Styling Sentences
• Stretching and mobility work
• Learn/re-examine information regarding thesis
• This should be outlined, or the topics should be a bulleted list to pick from
• Read a book, practicing speed reading
• 
  

Weekly Commitments

• Play Chessmaster
• Learn how to play chess using the Chessmaster game, and begin playing regularly
• Write a few blog entries per week
• Even if they are boring and/or trite, write to work that brain
• Read a few blog entries from my subscribed blog sites list
• Practice playing the piano
• Minimum 5 days a week for 30-45 minutes
• Listen to a new style of music/new artist
• Actually sit down and listen to the music, not while doing other things; do this a few times a week

Let the change begin!

 - Chris

Pip \pip\ & Gazette \guh-ZET\

Gazette [noun] – a newspaper; official journal

Credit for origin of this word is given to the Italians, the word gazetta, but there is also a Spanish origin (etymonline.com).  There are two words of origin: a) from gazerra, meaning a magpie or chatterer; b) from farthing (small valued) coin, which was the price of a gazetta at the time.  It is believed the later, or b), is the correct Italian origin of the word.  As for Spanish origin, it comes from the Latin word gaza, which expands to gazetta.  This word means a little treasury of news.  Continuing with the Italian origin, gazetta was first used in Venice, Italy during the war with Soliman II during the mid-16th century.  Again, the newspaper was purchased using a coin, una gazetta.

France published the first gazette in the mid-17th century, and one in Germany in the mid-18th century.  England began publication of gazettes in the 17th and 18th century.  These were publications of bulletins containing government appointments and promotions, bankruptcies, property transfers, and more (Merriam-Webster Online).



Pip [verb] – to chirp or peep

This word’s origin is Lithuanian from the 1600s.  It comes from the sound a baby bird makes (Dictionary.com)

First Day with a Pony Tail

Today I have officially walked outside of my living space with a pony tail. Getachew referenced the 60s and 70s era upon seeing me for the first time.