Introduction: Everyone needs one.

Welcome! I've been waiting for you. Please, take a seat. I have some important news to share with you. In case you don’t know me, here’s a summary of things you should know…

Name: Kassandra Mariah Kohary

Age: 18 years young

Studying: First year Bachelor of Communications (thinking about changing to health science to do Optometry)

My hobbies consists of: Blogging (more like reading blogs), watching youtube, watching gaming play-throughs (especially scary games like Amnesia, F.E.A.R because I don't have the ladyballs to actually play the game), anime (played a big role during my child hood, I mean, who couldn't resist Pikachu?) Photography and Art (I like to draw buildings when I'm bored) and finally, fashion and I live by this quote and repeat it like a mantra "You’re young and beautiful for about 20 years, dress up. Dress like a maniac when you’re young and then let that go. Grow old gracefully.”

My favourite bands: Metronomy, The Killers, The Shins, The Smiths, Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Temper Trap, Phoenix, The Pillows, The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, Porcelain Raft, Beach House, High Highs, PNAU, POP ETC,

I'm pretty big when it comes to music, I always say I'm going to start a band... but I never do. Maybe I'll just keep it in my bucket list and hopefully when I'm at the ripe old age of 60, I'll start some ridiculous Japanese-inspired indie band c:

Anyways, that's all from me!

I smell the start of a beautiful and long friendship…

Just sit, relax and chill.

Internet Censorship

This is an interesting video about the dominance of the internet and it's censorship. This links up to the topic we are currently doing because it provides us an insight of internet censorship and how it dramatically affects the community.

The History of Cultural Technologies

 

Part of our weekly tasks was to read the required readings of Some dates in the History of Cultural Communication, . This site essentially provides a timeline of the years of human communication and technologies (early as the 30century B.C to the early 2000s). Humans have come a long way in the means of technological advancements: from just commercialized inscriptions (scribble) to computer generated text. The site shows how humans are constantly finding different methods of communication, along with advancing in technology. Now we live in a society where we are so reliant on technology and become hopeless without it. Technology in contemporary society consists of phones (iPhones, Smartphones), computers (Windows, Macs) and television. These devices are used as forms of human communication and interactions: television is a device used for public broadcast; phones are often used for personal conversations and computers (the internet) have ‘many’ capabilities – from blogging, viewing and sharing your ideas to the world. Humans should be praised from all these achievements; however constant technological develops may lead the human race to our impending doom, as technology as of now dictates and consumes our lives. 

'Some dates in the History of Cultural Communication, ', 2005, viewed 29th July 2012, <http://worldhistorysite.com/culttech.html> 

Lost in Translation (First Post)

Wandering

Last night, in order to sleep (and cure my haphazard sleeping habits) I decided to watch a movie that I could possibly fall asleep to. Sofia Coppla's Lost in Translation had been a perfect option, considering it was slow-paced and didn't require my full attention. Sofia Coppla is actually one of my favourite directors, that being said, I've seen every production she's involved in to date (even her minor role in the Godfather). Sofia's style of directing is rather unique; she touches on difficult, sensitive subjects and themes which can be unsettling to the viewers. In her movies, Coppla has a tendency to showcase characters that feel slightly or immensely disjointed from the world around them, hence they are faced with inner-demons and are often battling it out to have a right state of mind. Coppla's characters eventually resolve their issues in their own way, i.e. suicide (The Virgin Suicides 1999), or letting go of something sentimental (Somewhere 2010).

Lost in Translation centres two characters: an aging, famous, American actor, Bob Harris and a young college student graduate, Charlotte, who find themselves stuck in the colourful and lively Tokyo, Japan. The instant cultural shock of Japan sends the two characters in awkward situations that adds to their own inner turmoil; a notable scene where Bob Harris is filming a commercial in a Japanese studio: In this scene the director provides lengthy directions to Bob Harris in Japanese, which are briefly followed by inept translations by the English translator. The two character eventually encounter each other and develop a strong friendship, since sharing the same predicament of being culturally shocked and isolated. Through their adventures around Tokyo, they both begin to fill the empty void in their lives, along with finding a purpose to continue on living and hopeful for the future.

University to me, is similarly like 'Tokyo' in Lost in Translation; in the sense that I have entered uncharted territory, surrounded by a sea of people and constantly encountering different individuals. Because of the unfamiliarity of University, I'm finding it difficult to mingle and socialise with other people, hence I'm always feeling incredibly out of place. New Communication Technology, unlike my other courses, seems like an interesting class, very up my alley, since blogging is something I truly enjoy! Needless to say, I can finally whine down and relax.

Note: My writing is incredibly rusty (due to the holidays), so I apologise if there are a few grammatical errors.