Hi, I'm Grace.

Digital America Spring 2017

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Interview Who?

My mom didn’t have much interaction with computers in high school. She assumed they probably had computers at her high school, but doesn’t remember using them really, except for word processing. Because my mom was going to school to be an elementary teacher, she didn’t think they would really need to use them in the future. She knew they would be important for people like my dad, who was an engineer, or other people going into science or math fields, but using computers was unlikely for her. I asked her what she thought about my dad having a computer in college. She said “He was like cool, cutting edge.” I thought that was interesting, so I asked her if she actually thought that. “Let’s just say I did.” The first mind-boggling use of computers she witnessed was when her friend in college used it to cut and compose music. He was able to connect a keyboard to him computer, so he could record it directly. She knew that math and science types used computers, but seeing someone use it for art was crazy for her to see.

After college, she pretty much always had a computer, because my parents got married and my dad already had one in college. She never really thought much of computers or used them often until the internet came around. The big reason she used computers then was to connect to people through electronic messaging. It was popular in the culture to use email, so that’s what she did. Of course there were the benefits of speed and simplicity, but it was the common thing when she did it.

My mom said that the main reason she values computers is because of the opportunities they gave to my sisters and me. Because she was a teacher, she was always focused on learning opportunities for us. My three sisters and I grew up on edutainment. We played games like Oregon Trail and Zoombinis and games with Winnie the Pooh or Mickey Mouse characters. It made life easier for my mom, because she felt okay about us “playing” these “games”, because we were really learning. They were the epitome of “kid tested, mother approved.” Now, not all of the computer games we played were educational, though. We did have Commander Keen and when we went to my grandparents, we played Ski Free. I remember using powerpoints with applause as ending credits for our home movies that my sisters and I made with the help of my mom.

I am definitely somewhere in between my mom and dad when it comes to computers. My dad is so used to using technology and computers and my mom would prefer to just write something out on paper or only use computers when it’s convenient for her. Before I did these interviews, I assumed their answers to be pretty much what they were, but it was interesting to hear about the more specific stories. One aspect I really like was that one of the turning points in their views on computers were associated with music. I didn’t know that previously, but because music plays such a large role in my family, it makes sense.

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Interview Who?

I interviewed my dad about his experiences with computers. He was a sophomore in high school in 1980 when he had his first real interaction with computers. He was in a basic programming class to learn the fundamental language. The students had to get permission to take the class and there were only about a dozen students allowed in the class. He went to school in Blair, but they only had access to the interfaces and the computer they had to connect to was in Omaha, almost an hour away.

He knew that computers would be an important addition, but did not know the full extent of the purpose they would serve. He thought they would be good for businesses and research, but the idea of personal computers never crossed his mind at that point. He was able to get a personal computer when he was in college, which was unusual for most students. Unlike most of his friends, he was lucky to have one with two floppy disc drives, so he was able to use a program and save on the other disc. The idea of having a hard drive was a crazy notion at the time. He fondly remembered being able to choose which color monitor he wanted. He chose amber instead of the basic green.

He knew having computers would help make his job as an engineer better. When he started work, they had a computer that recorded information and monitored their machinery, but it was all on a very basic level. At his next job, they had computers that acted like supervisors, constantly monitoring the machines, recording and calculating variables and putting them in spreadsheets for workers to use. They used a program called GroupWise which was basically a type of electronic messaging, but they never used the term email. He said they would tell each other to GroupWise them things. I thought it was interesting how technological language changes over time. Today, we constantly use the term Google as a verb, which is exactly what they were doing, but I had never heard of GroupWise before. One of the biggest advancements he remembers is when they were able to order products online through McMaster-Carr, which was mind-boggling for him. They just clicked a button online and received an invoice. I’m so used to shopping online, so it was cool to hear about the first time he did that and how momentous it was.

One of his most memorable experiences with computers was when he watched a video from a Sting concert. He was so amazed by the differences color on the monitor, just like he was watching television. I’m sure if we watched it today, the thing we would be amazed by is the terrible quality and definition. It’s crazy to think about how far we’ve come technologically just within my lifetime. I grew up with computers and online content, so living without that possibility is almost inconceivable.

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My thoughts on customizable Converse. 

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Liveblog It! March 8th

1:19) I arrive in class and pull out my laptop to pull up the different pages I need and Coin-Operated Americans which we were scheduled to read.

1:22) Sean enters and utilizes his catchphrase: “How’s everyone doing?” which receives a few unintelligible sounds and one thumbs up.

1:24) We discuss the use of document projectors (or whatever they are called) in other classes. I’ve had a few classes that use it, primarily my Spanish professor who preferred to face the class and interact with us rather than use up an entire whiteboard with his back to us.   

1:30) Another “How’s everybody doing?” to start the class off. Sean discusses days to present the Mini-Boss. I’m going to be gone on the Friday of presentations, so I hope it’s alright that we present early.

1:33) Start games discussion with the fact that more children were able to recognize Mickey Mouse and Mario than other famous figures.

1:37) We discuss how viewing games as historical artifacts is not widely accepted. I start thinking about the historical significance of Oregon Trail and how it is still referenced to this day. This reminds me of how when I was younger my dad convinced me that they used to play Oregon Trail on typewriters when he was in school and how they would have to type “bang” when they were hunting. I believed him for longer than I care to reveal.  

1:40) What is a game? Is reading or translating a book a game?  What is fun? Are court cases games? Some could argue that the OJ Simpson case had a set outcome, but I prefer not to buy into that mindset. Did Mary Poppins make cleaning a game. When I was in preschool, we sang the Clean Up song and had to be finished cleaning up by the end of the song. There weren’t very high stakes if the cleaning wasn’t accomplished, now that I think of it.

1:44) If games have to be voluntary, is the board game I made for 6th grade about the Incans not a game? Are those computer games I played to learn to type faster and more accurately not actually games? This is a lot to think about.

1:50) Sean disses Candy Land. I get it. Games with ethan and abby.

2:01) The Jane McGonigal Ted Talk begins. 

2:04) We tend to believe that we aren’t good enough in the real world, but when it come to video games, we often believe we’re the best. Doubt sucks. We constantly and consistently face failure, but we are so willing to start again in video games.

2:06) ”There is always something specific and important to be done.” -Jane McGonigal

2:08) The amount of time spent in school from 5th grade to the end of high school is only 80 more hours than the average amount of time a person spends playing games before the age of 21. This is a mind boggling statistic. 

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These are my thoughts on the podcast, Missing Richard Simmons. 

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Blogify the World

There has been a recent rise in the amount of anti-Semitic actions and threats in America. According to the Anti-Defamation League, over 120 different Jewish Community Centers have received bomb threats this year.  On March 2nd alone, there were at least 16 threats directed toward JCCs across the nation. Thankfully there have yet to be any physical bombs, yet the potential risk of follow through still weighs heavily. Over the past few weeks, three different Jewish cemeteries have been vandalized with headstones being knocked over and etchings being marked out. Close to 200 headstones at the Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery in St. Louis were toppled on February 20th. The night of February 25th, about 100 headstones were vandalized in Mount Carmel Cemetery in Philadelphia. The Christian cemeteries across the street remained untouched. On March 2nd, Waad Hokolel Cemetery in Rochester, New York was attacked on a smaller scale, with only about a dozen headstones damaged, yet it still speaks volumes.  Despite these targets against Jewish-Americans, officials are hesitant to label them as hate crimes until the investigations are closed. These actions have brought people together, though. After the St. Louis attack, Muslim-American activists Linda Sarsour and Tarek El-Messidi created a fundraiser to raise money to help repair the headstones with the initial goal of $20,000, which was passed within the first three hours that the fundraiser was live. It currently has raised over $156,000 which “will assist other vandalized Jewish centers nationwide.”These current anti-Semitic actions garnered wider attention during President Trump’s press conference on February 16th when Ami Magazine reporter Jake Turx attempted to ask the president how he planned to address this problem. Turx, however, was unable finish his question and receive an answer.  Trump returned to the topic later that week when he visited the National Museum of African American History and Culture and again during his first major speech to Congress, where he spoke out against the . which Pence restated when he addressed a crowd in Missouri when he went to visit the Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery saying that this anti-Semitic activity has been “The anti-Semitic threats targeting our Jewish community and community centers are horrible and are painful, and a very sad reminder of the work that still must be done to root out the hate and prejudice and evil.”

Links:  http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/03/us/jewish-cemetery-vandalized-headstones-new-york/   http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/26/us/jewish-cemetery-vandalism-philadelphia/   https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/02/26/dozens-of-headstones-vandalized-at-philadelphia-jewish-cemetery/   https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/us/politics/trump-speaks-out-against-anti-semitism.html?_r=0   https://www.launchgood.com/project/muslims_unite_to_repair_jewish_cemetery#/https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/02/21/remarks-president-trump-national-museum-african-american-history-and

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Blogify Your Life

The Oscar nominations recently came out and are much more diverse than the past year, which resulted in the trending hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. When the Tony Award nominations came out, being much more diverse in appearance, it caused another hashtag: #TonysSoDiverse. This past theater season brought some much needed attention to diversity within the arts. By now, many people have heard of Hamilton and their non-traditional casting, but it was not the only groundbreaking show on Broadway. Cicely Tyson and James Earl Jones starred in the revival of The Gin Game, which is traditionally casted with two white actors, despite there being no allusion to their race in the play. Waitress was the first Broadway musical with a creative team made up fully by women. The revival of Spring Awakening featured a cast of both hearing and deaf actors, as well as the first actor on Broadway to be in a wheelchair. On Your Feet! was based on the life of Gloria Estefan. Allegiance told the story of a Japanese-American family in an internment camp. Eclipsed was the first Broadway show to have both a cast and creative team made up solely of black women.  Diversity in entertainment is such an important topic that is beginning to play a larger role in the discussion, but there is still a long way to go.

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Hi, I’m Grace.

I’m a junior history major and theater minor. I am very interested in musical theater and am currently (kind of) interning for a podcast about musical theater. I also volunteer at the Sheldon Museum of Art as an student advisory board member and student guide. My dream job would be working as a curator at a museum about the history of American musical theater, but that isn’t really a thing yet, sadly. I love music, nature, family, books, and fun socks. The picture I chose is a picture of my dad holding me when I was probably three years old. As visible in this picture, I am often uncertain of what I’m actually doing.