“The Veldt” Summary

In Ray Bradbury’s story “The Veldt” a mother and father to two young children witness a psychological change within their children. The story is set in a futuristic time when more or less everything is done for you. People do not cook they don’t even rock their own chairs. People have become lazy and unable to live without technology. The story revolves around a single room called the nursery. This room was made specifically for the children. Any thought the two of them had would virtually appear on all for walls making it seem as if you are someplace else completely. The mother and father become weary of what the kids are imagining because every time they go into the nursery they find themselves in the middle of Africa with lions nearby ripping some poor animal apart. Later the parents find that the nursery’s were constructed to be able to see the thought of children to psychologically diagnose them easier. So after getting a psychologist in to look at the scene of Africa they figure out that the kids are actually mad at the parents for threatening to shut the house down and live without technology. They also find out that what the lions were ripping apart was actually them.

My thought on “The Veldt”

These children were obviously grown up in a family that relied on their electronic home. So in this case they sought their house as a part of their family and probably the most important member of their family because it supplied them with things that they loved. In a family like the ones we have today this love would have gone directly and solely to their parents because they are the ones that are cooking and cleaning and taking care of them. As parents they did raise these children wrong in my eyes because they did not have much of a part in their lives. Their home did more for them than anybody else ever did so by taking that away they don’t have much at all. Now when considering the lions tearing up the parent however I think that that is a bit too gruesome. I don’t think any child should be thinking thoughts such as that no matter how angry they are. It also doesn’t seem as if the children didn’t get disciplined at all and pretty much just got whatever they wanted. So when the slightest things are taken away from them or when they are not allowed to do something they want, they have a temper tantrum. Basically these children are very spoiled and need a sense of appreciation for the things that they have. And the parents in this case along with probably the entire society need to not be so lazy although their technology has become very advanced and the need to cook, clean, or even rock themselves to sleep is not needed. It doesn’t matter what state the world is in and how far technology goes cultures will have the same values and one strong value is to take care of your children and this did not happen.

Thesis

Is there such thing as too advanced when it comes to artificial intellegence?

"Dreamland"

Late fall 2008 a man named Keith Colons sits inside a Coffee shop located in the San Fernando Valley and starts to remember the day like it was yesterday. More than 45 years prior to this day Colons had stumbled into a situation that was unforgivable. In 1963 on the South Shore of Groom Lake 100 miles from Downtown Las Vegas is a top secret "Military Base" it has been called "Dreamland", "Paradise Ranch", but most popular "Area 51." This base has been home to numerous cosperacy theory's but no one has ever come forward to explain what really goes on there. Keith Colons was a test pilot for undercover aircraft's and flew over Area 51 on a regular basis. One day a top secret aircraft malfunctioned and he went down one mile from the military base. He is now able to recall the events that went on that day. He remembers a truck with three men hanging out of it rushing to get him inside. He was placed in the most confined room he had ever been in. This room was pearl white from the floor to the ceiling with no windows one door and a single chair. No longer than ten minutes later a team of men came in and inspected his injuries. He had minor injuries but could not walk very well so was wheeled to a near by cart to travel to the opposite side of the base. Colons starting to clutch his chair goes on with his story. They took a bag and placed it over his head unable to see anything he was transferred half a mile to the surgical area. With every room that was passed a different noise was heard. Scratching and Grinding. One noise in particular caught his attention most of all, it was the sound of dogs barking. About ten seconds after hearing a powerful bark from what had to be a nearby dog the vehicle he was in had been attacked by the dogs. He was able to get the bag off of his head and hid behind a nearby tank of some kind of liquid. He was able to get to his feet and not knowing exactly what was going on new he had to get another mode of transportation to get out. As Colons looks around he sees an suv in a nearby covered area labeled "Dreamland." He also sees what looks like a dog that had been shot near by. What he comes to realize is that it is not a dog, it is a machine dressed up in realistic fake flesh and hair. It had all the same characteristics of a dog except a lack of bones and added mechanisms that made it move exactly like one. As he limps over to the dog he hears more of them in the building that he suspects they must have broken out of. He finds another cart and instead of leaving he sneaks into the building to see what was going on. What he finds is a kennel full of malfunctioning robotic pets that have been locked away. What is even more bizarre is what he finds next in the building labeled "Dreamland." In this building he finally figures out the purpose of this top secret "Military base." As he walks into the building he walks into a test world made up of functioning men, women, pets, servants, and everything you would need to have an ideal society made entirely of machines.

The Experience Machine

Have you ever had a great dream that you never wanted to wake up from but sadly had to at some point? What if you didn’t have to wake up, would you? In the article “The Experience Machine” Harvard Philosopher Robert Nozicks idea of a machine that gives you any experience you desire is explained. This machine has the power to insert you into a world (a dream world) where you feel as if you can do anything. This includes directing an award winning movie, perform a guitar solo for the president, or even become the president. This is all happening as your actual body floats in a tub with electrodes attached to your brain. This machine even has the power to release you from the world every two years so that you can choose a life for yourself and change it to try something new. In a single life time you would be able to experience going to the moon, writing a novel, pitching in the world series, and much more. But as you’re enjoying this fake reality what is actually going on back in actual reality? This is the fact that concerns me the most. While everyone is living their dreams who are the unlucky few that takes care of earth wile everybody’s gone? If this is as amazing as it seems to be why would anyone not jump into their ideal life? Another question that gets raised is, while in the fake world do you get any sense of accomplishment? If I knowingly jumped into a dream land and become the best director of all time there would be no success there would be absolutely no thrill. And if the machine was made to erase your original mind will in the new world wouldn’t it just be an elongated dream? In this case every time someone created a family or fell in love in this dream world they would just wake up from it in two years and have to start all over again. While back on earth my body is nothing but skin and bones. There is absolutely no real emotion in anyone. If you really think about it however we already have something equivalent to this in many ways. The chemical that is used to knock someone out for a tooth pulling or surgery is very similar to the experience machine. Although you cannot pick your destiny you will one hundred percent of the time get thrown into a new world. Even with this chemical you are able to leave reality and just by having that power people get a glimpse of what it would be like if this experience machine were ever created. And if it is ever created I don’t think I could ever use it because I would be afraid of the real world and its disappointments. I would also be afraid of how many people in my life right now I would lose to this machine. Friends and family that would try it and never want to come back to everyone else who remains on earth.

Panopticon

Imagine a world where classrooms are set up like investigation rooms with absolutely no knowledge of what is on the other side of the one way mirror having the intentions of always keeping you in line, would it work? This idea sounds terrifying and overpowering, if I were in that classroom I would feel like an animal being watched at the zoo. This is not something I would ever like to imagine actually happening and do not believe it would ever work. If this were to come into effect my prediction would be that the bad students would still do bad things and the good students have nothing to worry about. If I walk down the street today and constantly have a patrol car follow me yes it would be very annoying but in reality it would just be a waste of their time because I know that I will not do anything illegal. Although I have nothing to hide this bugs me because it is completely unconstitutional. By putting this idea into motion the government is treating us like a test subject. However I am all for using this idea in jails all over because those are the specific type of people you need to be watching constantly. Using this practice of maybe watching and maybe not the inmates will have to stay on their toes at all times. But by using this concept in both prisons and public schools makes them feel the same. If I were to walk into this futuristic school I would already feel as if I had done something wrong to get there and I doubt that would make a better environment. 

1984 Questions

1. What is the significance of the posters that read: BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU? Who is Big Brother?

- Big Brother would be considered anything to do with the government in this case in chapter one it would be the helicopter patrolling the houses or the T.V. that listens to your every word. The significance is that you have no idea when your "big brother" is actually watching you so your always on your toes.

2. Where do we see evidence of panopticism in the novel?  

- In this novel you see evidence of panopticism with the poster it reveals that "Big Brother" is watching you but you have no idea if "he" really is or is not. It is just the possibility that makes you scared.

3. What is the telescreen, how is it used and what is its purpose?

- The telescreen is a flat dull mirror looking object that is a part of a wall in your house. This object spits out information "Big Brother" has chosen for you to listen to. The telescreen can not be turned off only turned down.It receives and transmits simultaneously so whatever you say above a very soft whisper it will pick up.

4. What is the significance of the Party slogans: WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH!

- The significance of  these slogans are that they are exact opposite. They are saying that war is good, freedom is bad, and that you should be ignorant to whatever we are doing because you have no say in it anyways.

5. Who are the Thought Police and what do they do?

- The Thought Police are undercover police men or women who watch for people who might possibly have intentions that are unfit for their society.

6. What is the Two Minutes Hate and what is its purpose?

- The Two Minutes Hate is a time where Emmanuel Goldstein a supporter of the counterrevolutionary  somehow got onto the telescreen and voiced his opinion on Big Brother and rambled on about his ideas and conspiracies.

7. Why does Winston begin writing in the diary?

- The book says that the reason for Winston picking picking up the diary in the first place was the geography of the room.

8. How would you feel if you lived in this world?

- Personally I would hate to live in this world i would feel confined and not free at all. If this were the world we lived in now I would try my hardest to get out and get as far away as I could, maybe live in the wild.

9. In what ways is our world like this world?

- Some similarities between this world and our current world would be the way in which our police patrol the streets and on some occasions hide around corners to sneak up and catch you doing something wrong. Another similarity would be the fact that our government is trying to censor what websites we are allowed to go to.

10. Do you think it is possible for our world to become like this one in the future? In what ways?

- I think in some ways we are already like this world and in others it would be very hard to become like it because of the amount of citizens that would give their lives to have actual freedom. If our government were to start taking control like they did in this story our public would fight back with full force because of the way we have grown up already in our society full of free minds. But anything is possible.

Bonus: What is Orwell's purpose in writing this novel?

- I believe that Orwell's purpose for writing this novel was to open everyone's eyes to what could possibly become if we the people do not hold our ground and hold onto our freedom.

Bonus II: What is totalitarianism?

- Totalitarianism is when the government or state has complete control of everything that goes on.

“Humans like Machines” and “Artificial Minds”

               

  For this assignment I read two articles one called “Humans like Machines” and the other called “Artificial Minds” both of these articles explained how it is completely possible for machines to have minds like humans. So this would mean that robots would not only be able to walk and talk like us but think for themselves and feel pain as well as other human like details. As you might be able to tell I am not at all for this futuristic iRobot technology. This type of stuff scares the bajeesis out of me, I am completely fine with a robot butler or something like that where I tell it what to do and it does it. But when we give them feelings and their own thoughts what makes them unable to think how a serial killer thinks and just think how difficult it would be trying to stop a robot serial killer that can’t necessarily die although it does feel pain it still is a robot. I heard recently that scientists found a way to use a known flu or virus as a weapon and whether this is true or not isn’t it the same concept. For the sake of argument let’s say that this is true wouldn’t it be one of those things like the atomic bomb that we just might want to erase from our scientists minds and not release it to the world so that it doesn’t get used against us? In my human mind I feel like there are some things that should be kept under wraps. This is one of those things.