Watson's world

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Quick link for BCT year 3 semester II review

Studio VI: https://metoershowers.tumblr.com/tagged/ctec709

Transmedia narratives:https://metoershowers.tumblr.com/tagged/ctec704

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Studio VI - Final - ready for showcase

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Studio VI - Conceptual & Contextual Statement

Conceptual Statement

(The majority of the following text is written by Rachael Li. Other group member inputs are referenced.)

Most people tend to just forget about trash once it is in the bin. Out of sight, out of mind. It just “disappears”, but where does it go? This is the aim of this project, to show a scenario where your trash may potentially end up if it not able to be recycled and to also educate how it will affect the consumer. Ultimately, the plastic used by the consumer will affect them somehow. We specifically look into microplastics cycle and its effect through a narrative.

The mentality we followed for the entire semester was that “If we had to stand there and explain our project during Open Studio, then what is the point of it?” Meaning that if you had to explain the project then it means that it didn’t work. Your project should explain itself.

We looked into many different areas of study and problems to look at as the brief given was very broad. The chosen topic we looked into was pollution in New Zealand, specifically looking into littering and waterways. After research into those topics, this was then narrowed down into microplastics as it was widespread and also affects everyone. As for the actual project itself, there were also many broad concepts and ideas, from fear mongering using live fish to hopeful documentaries. It was still too broad. From looking at similar projects, we realized that they all had aspects of interactivity, education and communication. These are the things we would need in our project, communication using interactivity and education. Using these aspects we came up with an interactive infographic poster combining narrative and relevant statistics.

Educating the audience was something that we wanted to focus on as a group, we felt educating through immersion would be most appropriate for our concept. This is how we would get our main message across, to let the audience know, be aware and learn of the extent of the problem and to look into solutions to better themselves and the world around them. The education aspect of this project would be the statistics that show up with smaller objects. These are carefully selected statistics aimed to impact the audience to reflect on their actions, their consumeristic idealism and their contribution to the trashing of single-use plastics.

Interactivity was another important aspect of this project. Humans are curious and learn by interacting whether it is with an object or another human. By incorporating interactivity with conductive and reactive graphics on an infographic, we aim to leave a lasting impression or lesson in the mind of the viewer. Hopefully educating the consumerism mindset of buying for the sake of having. The obvious interactive aspect is the touching of the actual infographic. The deeper interactive is the actual storyline of the large objects. The intention of these was to give the audience a scenario of how their single-use plastic usage contributes to the larger problem of how microplastics in the environment affect the flora and fauna and most importantly, our health. We believe that if we can show the user how they directly relate to the issue, they will be more likely to consider their actions in the long-run.

Contextual Statement

Although banning of plastic bags is gaining traction in New Zealand, it still is not enough (Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.)). The effects of the reduction of plastic bags are barely noticeable when we are still surrounded by so many other single-use plastic packaging items. The plastic bag ban may temporarily help with a consumer's guilty conscience about the effects of plastics on us and the environment.

Plastic pollutants, littering and illegal dumping are a problem in the Auckland area. The restoration and upkeep of New Zealand’s environment are necessary for the preservation of a “clean and green” image (Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.). This is important not just for our tourism industry but also for the enjoyment and education of our future generations. There is obvious plastic pollution that you can see such as plastics and litter on the streets, beaches and parks. However, there are more plastics that many of us can’t see, such as plastics on the ocean floor or small plastic particles in the environment called microplastics.

For this project, we have decided to look into the invisible dangers of microplastics (Orb Media. (n.d.)). Some plastics can only be recycled through manmade processes, leaving the rest of single-use plastics to end up in landfills and other areas. The plastics that are not recycled do not biodegrade, they gradually break down into smaller pieces through physical and called microplastics.

The invisibility and the widespread of it is quite concerning. Plastics are harmful in the natural ecosystem. The ingestion of plastics may cause harmful effects on the entire ecosystem, microplastics are ingestible to small aquatic organisms (Zeng, E. Y. (2018)). The plastic additives and the absorbed toxins leach into the gastrointestinal tract of a small ocean organism, the ingested toxins are concentrated into the surrounding body and flesh, when eaten by a larger organism, the toxins move up along the food chain (Frederic Gallo, Cristina Fossi, Roland Weber, David Santillo, Joao Sousa, Imogen Ingram, … Dolores Romano. (2018)). Ultimately, being ingested by those at the top of the food chain, us (Johnston, I. (2017, July 26)).

Plastic has been around for 100 years, the production of plastic has drastically increased and it is now a commodity. However, we never really looked into effects it may have on us and the natural environment or how to properly dispose or recycle it. Now that it has reached the point where everything around us is plastic, what can we do with it?

Consumerism is a factor in the demand and production of non-recyclable materials. This is a mindset we hope to change eventually. To make better purchase choices and to always question whether it is that you need it or just want it. In the average consumer's minds, the usefulness and convenience outweigh the damages it may cause(Miles, S. (1998)).

There are many different organizations and campaigns already targeting plastic pollutions. However, as a group, we have decided to focus on the effects of widespread microplastics. Looking at similar projects such as Plastic Oceans (Plastic Oceans. (n.d.)) and 4Oceans (4Ocean. (n.d.)), we have realized that communication and connection is key to educating youth and the general public. This is a good way to make them aware of consumer tendencies and the dangers and effects of singles use plastics on the entire planet and even themselves. As seen, this could be done through many different mediums such as campaigns, powerful documentaries or even recycling waste plastics into an object that someone could purchase.

 References

I.        Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.). Single-use plastic bags to be phased out | Ministry for the Environment. Retrieved from http://www.mfe.govt.nz/news-events/single-use-plastic-bags-be-phased-out

II.     Miles, S. (1998). Consumerism: as a way of life. London: Sage Publications, 1998.

III.   Zalk, N. (2017, August 31). Why are New Zealand’s waters so polluted? Retrieved from https://www.aljazeera.com/blogs/asia/2017/08/zealand-waters-polluted-170831090454283.html

IV.   Our clean green image: What’s it worth? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mfe.govt.nz/sites/default/files/clean-green-aug01-final.pdf

V.      Pressures on our water environment | Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/environmental-reporting/state-new-zealand%E2%80%99s-environment-1997-chapter-seven-state-our-3

VI.   Waste generation and disposal in New Zealand | Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/environmental-reporting/state-new-zealand%E2%80%99s-environment-1997-chapter-three-production-3

VII. National Ocean Service. (n.d.). What are microplastics? Retrieved from https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html

VIII.                      Zeng, E. Y. (2018). Microplastic contamination in aquatic environments : an emerging matter of environmental urgency. Amsterdam, Netherlands : Elsevier, [2018]. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat05020a&AN=aut.b2532469x&site=eds-live

IX.   Frederic Gallo, Cristina Fossi, Roland Weber, David Santillo, Joao Sousa, Imogen Ingram, … Dolores Romano. (2018). Marine litter plastics and microplastics and their toxic chemicals components: the need for urgent preventive measures. Environmental Sciences Europe, Vol 30, Iss 1, Pp 1-14 (2018), (1), 1. https://doi-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/10.1186/s12302-018-0139-z

X.      NZ Herald. (2018, September 20). Microplastic pollution much worse than feared. Retrieved from https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12012070

XI.   GreenFacts. (n.d.). Marine Litter: 3. What are micro-plastics and how do they enter the marine environment? Retrieved from https://www.greenfacts.org/en/marine-litter/l-2/3-micro-plastics.htm

XII. Johnston, I. (2017, July 26). Plastic microparticles found in the flesh of fish eaten by humans. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/plastic-microparticles-fish-flesh-eaten-humans-food-chain-mackerel-anchovy-mullet-a7860726.html/

XIII.                       Orb Media. (n.d.). Invisibles. Retrieved from https://orbmedia.org/stories/Invisibles_plastics/

XIV.                       4Ocean. (n.d.). 4ocean is Actively Cleaning our Oceans and Coastlines. Retrieved from https://4ocean.com

XV. Plastic Oceans. (n.d.). Rethink Plastic. Save Our Seas? Plastic Oceans Foundation. Retrieved from https://plasticoceans.org/

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Studio VI - Method

 The methodology behind this project was creating the interactive infographic. After we done the research we start making our storyboard, this includes how to completely present our topic. The interactive wall is based on the Makey Makey tech. This kit is the extension from Audrino which means it uses processing to write the code and get the function we want. The other part interactive wall is screen printing this is the area that I had never touch before. It can let our drawing get connect with our projector and when the user touches the paint will trigger the animation.

I am the technique supporter in the group. The main thing to do is how to let our paint get connect to our projector and trigger the animation. This includes the coding, mapping and animation create.

(1)  Mapping -> (2) Animation create -> (3) Programing & Coding -> (4) Projector adjust -> (5) Bugs fixed up -> (6) Repeated

 (1)  Mapping

(2)  Animation create

In this part i had struggle for a bit longer time. Due to the Makey Makey kit limited we can’t import the GIF in. I didn’t recognize this at the beginning. I use photoshop all the time to finished either my GIF or video is all done in photoshop.

and more...

(3)  Programing & Coding

 The program i first coding on is Processing and base on Audrino to test. In week 8 i had made the prototype for our group to test. 

In week 9 we gave it a try to get connect with our projector and Ya! It work it got the change when we touch the paint.

After the prototype test Tim advise me a program “multimedia builder”.  I had try to import all our video in the Audrino at the beginning and the end is the Audrino hardware is not strong enough to hold what we expected it to do. So i start to discovered this program “ multimedia builder”

This is a easy program to edit rather than processing. It’s Interactive visual interface that we don’t just write the code. We can straight see the change while we code it. I enjoy this program a lot and it correctly let me make what i wish it to do.

(4)  Projector adjust

After i finished our mapping and codding. It’s the time to put the real things up and get ready for our show case.

Repeated until a good adjust.!!!

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Trans - Final

Virtaurus Healthy world

Tagline

Fight for a new home, survive to get home, live to be home

INTRODUCTION

Looking forward to the future. The earth has now overpopulated but still managing to stay wealthy, however, resources are being consumed at an alarming rate, governments made plans to remove the problem of overpopulation and created a new system, where those who wish to gain citizenship, must survive. This competition is held weekly as more and more people wish to fight to find their home. The winner wins his freedom and citizenship towards that country and can live among the many others who earned it. Backstory and context Overpopulation. War has not occurred in over Three hundred years, thus causing an overpopulation in people, Now, countries have created a blockade to stop Immigrants to enter illegally. Thus Creating the C Game, where contestants go through a survival faze in order to become a citizen of a country, however, those that are not, live in an Island, A massive Island, where walking down one block takes half an hour. We have one character who is against other contestants who aim for one prize, their Title for Citizenship. With overgrowing population increasing, being suffocated in this poor society, he decides to take up on the games. Anywhere is better than here.

This Story was Inspired by My high school English class, where we studied stories, and written essays about it, these stories were Billenium by James Graham Ballard, 1930-2009. And Catcher in The Rye J.D Salinger.

Synopsis

In 2200, global warming has caused the sea levels to rise up to 3.5 metres, most countries have been overwhelmed and the earth's available crops are less than half left. People demand resources that exceed far from the supply that the earth can offer. Thus the world organization host the C Game to select the fittest to be its citizens. The competition requires all the participants to bring their mobile devices phones to collect the data from them.

The Character goes through a rough time, much like the others around him, his home is filled with people, wherever he walks there are people sleeping, wherever he goes there is someone with him. Every day, starving people are seeking and fighting for limited food. The population has far exceeded what the country can burden. Getting tired of the life in this ‘Home’, he decides to check his fortune. (Much like how teenagers flee from home, not wanting to be apart of their families lifestyle). However as competitors go through with this, they do not realise the struggles, they were not told how this works, how to survive. The whole world keeps changing as it overpopulation and the world organization are always find the best way to figure this problem.

In the Photo above and below, will show what the survivors will have to go through, just an example of what you can see. A hot environment, steep mountain, blazing hot lava, and abnormal hot heat coming from the water. This is what they will go through if the contestants fail, then their lives are sealed to the government, forever. Above I have designed, I made sure that there are two volcanic areas, on one side, and in the centre. so pretty much, the safest area to camp is away from the volcanic area. However, there are others who would take that area.

There from the other volcanic areas point of view of the other volcanic island in the centre.

And this photo shows the safe side of the map, where it is calm and peaceful.

Characterisation and attitude

he Dystopian world is where you compete in a game, to earn your home, your citizenship, your life. This will show a tale of what some certain teenagers go through, the struggles of what they go through once they enter the big world themselves. It will show in this game where others compete in order to fit in. Like Game shows from which you have chances to get money, or a car, here you get Citizenship, but those who lose, are guaranteed to go into the workforce, where they will never see their chance in the big world. A man decides that he has had enough of the life he lives now and decides to seek his fortune elsewhere, But in order to seek for it, he has to ‘fight’ for it.  etc...  More in my own website. Feel free to ask me.

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Trans - Process

We start with the storyboard:

The platform we are going to have in this project:

●     Webisode

●     Location

●     Social

●     Social film

●     social youtube

●     Community Hub

And I create this map for the user journey:

After we have these we start to make an app. Stephan is going to create the scenes and I am going to make out the app. Here is some shortcut for our process.

This is the process of Stephan making the scenes.

And the app I made:

Goals

What we are trying to show are just some of the themes of what people go through, like depression, money issues, finding a home, finding oneself, stress, Isolation. We want people to watch something, or someone that has the same or all the problems that they go through, someone that they can relate to, and see how he or she may or may not overcome it. We want people to know that they are not alone and that there are people who understand.

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Studio VI - Research

Microplastics

(These research are done with all our groups)

The properties of plastics are that they are lightweight, very durable physically and chemically, simply and inexpensive to produce. Plastics are made to last forever and do not biodegrade, yet 33% is just simply used once and disposed.

Microplastics are small pieces of plastic under 5mm. They can be pieces that have broken down and come from a larger piece of plastic or they could be actual products that are designed to be small such as microbeads and glitter. Plastics may enter the environment as litter and may include peeling microfibres from fabric and rope, tire wear debris and polymer coatings.

Although plastics have high durability and last for a long time in the environment, it becomes weathered with or without UV radiation, mechanical ocean forces such as waves and corrosion and biological activity such as organisms masticating. This leads to the production of many small fragments known as microplastics. A property of plastic is that it tends to be very light, therefore microplastics tend to float on the surface of seawater and travel globally due to wind and ocean currents.  Although microplastics in personal items can be removed through the wastewater treatment process, a portion bypasses and is still discharged into the environment, this amount depends on the effectiveness of facilities in the area. Many studies have found varying concentrations of microplastic pollutants in freshwater and marine environments, this is a major problem. There is almost no areas where microplastics are not present.

There are many chemical additives used in the production of plastic items, such as plasticizers, antioxidants, ultraviolet and heat stabilizers, flame retardants and pigments can be toxic. Plastics are hydrophobic, meaning that they attract and concentrate toxic pollutants present in the ocean. These toxins may remain in the microplastics.

Phthalates - Plastic softeners, tendency to migrate into surroundings. Endocrine disruptors causing reproductive system problems, developmental disorders, asthma, affects brain development. BPA & BPS - Phasing out of food containers by FSANZ, completed in October 2017. Dietary exposure is low and not of concern for human health. Likely to still be hound in other plastic items. Hormone disruptor, estrogen mimicking, cancer, infertility, heart disease and other health problems. PVC - Its production releases many toxins such as phthalates, vinyl dichloride, ethylene dichloride, lead, cadmium and other toxic chemicals. Styrene/Vinyl Chloride - carcinogenic and mutagenic. PUR, Polyurathanes - Safe if fully bonded, however it is unlikely to be 100% bonded. Increased asthma, irritant.

Plastics are harmful in the natural ecosystem. Organisms may become entangled or ingested. The ingestion of plastics may cause harmful effects on the entire ecosystem, microplastics are ingestible to small aquatic organisms. The plastic additives and the absorbed toxins leach into the gastrointestinal tract of a small ocean organism, the ingested toxins is concentrated into the surrounding body, when eaten by a larger organism, the toxins moves up along the food chain. There have been many incidents where an animal has died due to the ingestion of plastics, such as a beached pilot whale found to have over 8 kgs of plastic bags in the stomach.

“This should knock us into our senses. We knew that this plastic is coming back to us through our food chain. Now we see it is coming back to us through our drinking water. Do we have a way out?”  - Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and founder of Grameen Bank

Plastics and their toxicity are known to be eaten up the food chain, we eat them too. This is called tropic transfer. When we eat fish, generally the gastrointestinal tract is removed and discarded, this lowers our chance of eating microplastics. However, mussels, oysters and other shellfish filter feeders are eaten whole with the intestinal system intact, this means that we are ingesting the microplastics. Since microplastics attract, concentrate and transport other toxic pollutants, the consumer will be ingesting it also.

Microplastics have also been found in food and water. A study done by Orb media found microplastic fibres present in 80% of samples of tap water internationally. The contaminants come from abrasion of clothing, upholstery and carpets.

Microplastics are a universal problem, everyone is affected. Although microplastics are found on New Zealand coasts at lower concentrations, it still is of concern as it is a risk to the health of humans and the ecosystem.

“We might think of this as a distant problem, associated to less developed countries around the world, but sadly this is a global problem and microplastics have reported in New Zealand coasts as early as 1977, when Gregory R. Murray from University of Auckland conducted surveys through the country and found microplastics almost all the localities surveyed. Back then, microplastics were already encountered abundantly on beaches near Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

Another study, done by researchers from University of Canterbury and University of Otago in 2016 presented evidence for the presence of these particles in 8 of the 10 locations sampled around Canterbury. Akaroa Harbour was included in this study, and the results indicated a concentration of 353 microplastics per square meter of sediment.

Although that concentration is very small compared to other parts of the world, for a small, scarcely populated place like Banks Peninsula, it is a matter of great concern. Furthermore, this summer a waka conducting New Zealand's first plastic trawl and found significant amounts of these particles between Napier to Cape Palliser, being Wellington’s Oriental Beach the worst location with 230 macroplastics, 146 microplastics and 2412 plastic nurdles.”

-Maria Jesus Valdes, PhD candidate University of Otago

Glitter and Microbeads

Microbeads were first used in personal care products around 50 years ago. New Zealand has  banned the production and sale of microbead products and has come into effect as of June 7 2018. This ban is recent as we are becoming more aware of the harm that plastics can cause. Along with the phasing out of single use plastic bags by popular supermarket chains.

References

Gabbatiss, J. (2017, November 22). Glitter should be banned over environmental impact, scientists warn. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/glitter-ban-environment-microbead-impact-microplastics-scientists-warning-deep-ocean-a8056196.html

National Ocean Service. (n.d.). What are microplastics? Retrieved from https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html

Parker, L. (2017, November 30). To Save the Oceans, Should You Give Up Glitter? Retrieved from https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/11/glitter-plastics-ocean-pollution-environment-spd/

Zeng, E. Y. (2018). Microplastic contamination in aquatic environments : an emerging matter of environmental urgency. Amsterdam, Netherlands : Elsevier, [2018]. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat05020a&AN=aut.b2532469x&site=eds-live

Frederic Gallo, Cristina Fossi, Roland Weber, David Santillo, Joao Sousa, Imogen Ingram, … Dolores Romano. (2018). Marine litter plastics and microplastics and their toxic chemicals components: the need for urgent preventive measures. Environmental Sciences Europe, Vol 30, Iss 1, Pp 1-14 (2018), (1), 1. https://doi-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/10.1186/s12302-018-0139-z

Ory, N. C., Gallardo, C., Lenz, M., & Thiel, M. (2018). Capture, swallowing, and egestion of microplastics by a planktivorous juvenile fish. Environmental Pollution, 240, 566–573. https://doi-org.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.04.093

NZ Herald. (2018, September 20). Microplastic pollution much worse than feared. Retrieved from https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12012070

Blastic. (n.d.). Toxicity of plastics - Blastic. Retrieved from https://www.blastic.eu/knowledge-bank/impacts/toxicity-plastics/

Food Standards Australia & New Zealand. (n.d.). Chemicals in food packaging. Retrieved from http://www.foodstandards.govt.nz/consumer/chemicals/foodpackaging/Pages/default.aspx

France-Presse, A. (2018, June 4). Whale dies from eating more than 80 plastic bags. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jun/03/whale-dies-from-eating-more-than-80-plastic-bags

GreenFacts. (n.d.). Marine Litter: 3. What are micro-plastics and how do they enter the marine environment? Retrieved from https://www.greenfacts.org/en/marine-litter/l-2/3-micro-plastics.htm

Johnston, I. (2017, July 26). Plastic microparticles found in flesh of fish eaten by humans. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/plastic-microparticles-fish-flesh-eaten-humans-food-chain-mackerel-anchovy-mullet-a7860726.html

Made Safe. (2016, December 13). How to Avoid Toxic Chemicals in Plastics. Retrieved from https://madesafe.org/avoid-toxic-chemicals-plastics/

Ministry for the Environment. (n.d.). Plastic microbeads ban | Ministry for the Environment. Retrieved from http://www.mfe.govt.nz/waste/waste-strategy-and-legislation/plastic-microbeads-ban

Nanotech Industries International. (n.d.). Dangers of Polyurethane. Retrieved from http://www.hybridcoatingtech.com/dangers-of-polyurethane.html

Orb Media. (n.d.). Invisibles. Retrieved from https://orbmedia.org/stories/Invisibles_plastics/

[[ Research of Microplastics in New Zealand that you may like to read about :< ]] Otago Daily Times. (2018, June 6). Microplastics in New Zealand. Retrieved from https://www.odt.co.nz/news/your-news/microplastics-new-zealand MFE. (2017). Plastic microbeads ban | Ministry for the Environment. Retrieved from https://mfe.govt.nz/waste/waste-strategy-and-legislation/plastic-microbeads-ban ( Ban set on June 7th 2018 ) NZ Herald. (2018, September 20). Microplastic pollution much worse than feared. Retrieved from https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12012070

Research - Conductive Materials

The conductivity of different materials is general knowledge, everyone should know this. This is something I haven’t looked into since college and I’ve forgotten most of it. However for this project I will be looking further into materials that I could incorporate into the interactive infographic.

There are generally two different types of materials, conductive and insulative. Conductive materials conduct electricity due to free electrons, many of these materials are metals. Insulators oppose electrical currents.

For this project I would be able to experiment with copper tape, conductive paint and conductive thread to use on the interactive wall.

Conductive paint could be very useful for this project, as you could use it for illustrations and even screen printing. The most popular paint is the electric paint from Bare conductive, it is quite costly so you could experiment with making your own using graphite and other materials. This is something I would definitely like to work on.https://www.instructables.com/id/Conductive-Paint/

There is also the Resene SmartTouch paint

https://www.youtube.com/watchSPtjfja3yYE

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Trans - Discussion

During the mid semester break we start making our project prototype and develop deeper. Here is some discussion conversation of my group and edit by Stephan:

Well are we still going with that idea of it like the survivor show?

No with the fix up one

Last time we went up one.

I mean serving is fine, see who can stay healthy or u know not in a near death state wins, all contestants are in a different Island, trying to outlast the other contestants.

I like this idea and share the way how to keep healthy supporting our lives

yeah because u see nowadays games and movies are about killing each other for good equipment, fortnite, pub g why not try to win a game by your own body and mind, instead of relying on equipment.

are we going with that citizen ship thingy?

like if they win they get to be a citizen to keep their place, cuz I want it to be similar to situations of teenagers and what they go through. Teens not finding their place in society and such.

Yep. Keep this part the same as we talked before and add new part of the healthy stuff.

Shall we start writing the concept

we have to “Sell” our idea, cuz that was what Pete told us, and that other guy, he said that he understood our story for our character, but what is its purpose )

(Right. mainly is about the idea. I think we should start look on Hunger game concept and explore our project?

okay,

the picture up there is just how to make a story, as opposed to how to sell a story. We can use it as help for a part of how we sell it.

Start with some resource now and research.

.

Make good use of resources and Nature selects, the fittest survives. Healthy person gets stronger and better life, right, everyone is equal, no cheating on a competition where it’s the best person wins.

Boom I got it.

Trying to show equality. Lol.

So , how can i put this into words.

I think we just left this first and come back to rewrite but we know the way to go now. Alright.

The story do you still remember last time the things you write down? About one of the characters?

A man decides that he has had enough of the life he lives now, and decides to seek his fortune elsewhere, But in order to seek for it, he has to ‘fight’ for it. The man joins a game, where he must go against other contestants, however, they do not need to face each other, more rather, outlasting the other. Thus, making it a fair game for everyone. No weapons, no cheats, only your body and mind are your weapons.

He goes into the competition in hopes of gaining citizenship for the place he likes to go. However, as he starts the game, it is a different world from what he is used to, he has never learned to survive, as he is a corporate slave to society. He struggles immensely and tries to be on top, however he is always second to last, barely surviving. He goes into last place but manages to outlast the other contestants. Having enough of being at the bottom, begins to learn his surroundings, instead of complaining. However, he gets caught in an accident, breaking his foot entirely. Wishing to stop and quit, only to realise that he had only Four more people to defeat in order to get to the top. Then decides to stay in the fight, however his leg begins to get infected, leaving him no choice but to sacrifice his freedom to run. (Chopping it off maybe?) However, he manages to get to second place, with no prizes. Leaving him nameless and gained nothing or did he. He has learned during his time there that nothing is worse than that, being a slave to societies work ethics is nothing compared to the hellish time he has gone through in the game.

He decides to change himself emotionally and mentally, making himself a better man. However, he criticizes himself in a way that we can make up, and has to restart his adventure, completely not learning anything that he has learnt.

Yeah, I just based this from the picture down at the bottom. :D

I think this is a full story not necessary to add more in

yeah, i pretty much discarded the useless stuff, and put in the meaning in this project. Equality, Sacrifice, Knowledge, Hypocrisy

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Studio VI - Final decision

The final our group decided to do the interactive wall. This is getting some drawing on the wall then use the projection over top. It’ll show up a narrative, animation, light and sound when you touch it. The idea at the back to support is microplastic damage the environment. 

Team role:

Conductive Materials - Rachael 

Illustration/Animation - Shirley

Projection Mapping/Technician design and make out - Tim and Myself

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Studio VI - Big changing

During the mid-break, Donna talked to our group and she thinks the idea right now is not good enough to meet the paper requirement. There is two option for us which is adding more ideas or thinking different concepts.

As a team, we restart again and gave down different concepts again:

Projection Mapping 

Projection 

Visualization 

Interactive wall 

Vending Machine 

Second-day Donna gave us some example can use as a guide for our project:

Data Visualization

https://app.dumpark.com/seas-of-plastic-2/#credits

The 2 Euro T-Shirt Social Experiment

Interactive Wall

[metoershowers]

Studio VI - Week 7 Presentation

We got a lot of feedback today include our classmate and our lecture. My teacher Donna still don’t really get what the point for doing this project. We thought this would be a great consumerism and pollution project but seems we still got many things to figure out.

This list is wroten by Rachael which is the feedback we got from class today.

Scaremongering, too literal

Why vending machine

Projection fish pls

Behaviour change - public responsibility, home and public

Alternative packaging, rethinking materials

Can be conceptual

Research on people’s habits

Missing link between research and vending machine

Lacking depth

Extra ideas

And our teacher really doesn’t like our idea for the showcase to put the real fish in. Um. We got to rethink these again.

[metoershowers]

Trans - Synopsis & Plot

Synopsis

In the far-future, based on Uninhabited island there is a country with eight factions/territories, the mountain, desert, plains, forest, snow, river, ocean, and sky dwellers. Technology is limited and hard to power. In order to keep peace and satisfy disputes they hold a once yearly competition where one representative is sent from each faction to win glory for their country and Basic needs of life for themselves.

The eight players engage in weekly competitions where they earn points each week and the one with the most points wins.

Future sci-fi/fantasy, mock reality-show.

Plot  (Done creating by me and Stephan but writing from Stephan)

There are three main characters, which ‘fight’ to survive, there Islands are not connected, however, they can find a way to get to each other Islands, and steal supplies and such, but they must take on account that they are not the only people surviving, and must watch their backs.They must undergo stressful times whilst they survive, peer pressure, as people will watch them as they go through this adventure. What we are trying to show with this webcomic is what our society is like, just to give them a sense of what the real world is like, preparing them when they themselves have to do their own adventure. 

We will still get some change as this story is similar to the hunger game. We are thinking adding the health elements into it. Will add it later on.

[metoershowers]

Studio VI - Relate other Projects on Pollution

Relate other Projects on Pollution

This is the research Rachael done and give our team for reference.

Many of these projects on plastic pollution awareness seem to be campaigns and organizations.

Plastic Free NZ

http://osof.org/portfolio/plastic-free-nz/

A campaign run by Our Seas Our Future Charitable Trust, their mission is “to protect New Zealand’s coastal and marine ecosystems through advocacy, education, and environmental stewardship, ensuring that they are managed sustainably and protected for future generations”. This plastic free campaign is to bring awareness to the harmful effects of plastics on marine ecosystems and advocating more environmentally friendly solutions. Coast cleanups are also organized to remove waste from waterways. Although this is a New Zealand campaign, I do not think many people do know about it even though that have contributed to the phasing out of plastic bags and straws. Jacinda Ardern said the Government had listened to the 65,000 New Zealanders who had this year called for the ban through a signed petition.

Plastic Oceans

https://plasticoceans.org/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwquTbBRCSARIsADzW88wFLJpxhvX9P7n70X_U8cRqIsnOL62Voubmn4SSBY-zts7elmpRbJMaApctEALw_wcB

https://plasticoceans.org/plastic-pollution-research-papers/

“Plastic Oceans Foundation engages people of all ages, in all social situations, to understand the danger of continuing to perceive plastic to be disposable. Once they become aware of the ultimate threat to human health, it will become a personal choice to prevent plastic waste from entering the environment. We plan to tackle this issue, through an awareness campaign using film and media – our documentary feature film, A Plastic Ocean. We will continue to spread the message of the film activating students through education, engaging with industries through entrepreneurship and partnering with global organizations actively changing their communities.”

Plastic Oceans is more of an international organization. They mainly use media and film to raise awareness. Their most impactful documentary is “A Plastic Ocean”, screened in over 70 countries with 14+ film festival awards and nominations also screened at UN’s Ocean Conference. This film is also screened at schools and education centres where it teaches children and their communities.

The documentary will be reviewed in another blog post or link here.

4Ocean

https://4ocean.com/

This organization is more unique to the other ones. 4Ocean hires full-time captains and clean up crews to physically remove plastic from the ocean and coastlines using innovative and new technology. The selected collected material is recycled into bracelets which can be purchased. Each purchase of a product remove 1lb of trash from the ocean and coastlines “Shop now - Pull a pound”. They also host cleanups around the world to raise awareness.

Clean Seas

http://cleanseas.org/

“Turn the tide on plastic”

This is an organization launched by UN Environment to engage governments, the public society and businesses to battle marine plastics by targeting production and consumption of single-use plastics. Clean Seas emphasizes the importance of connections such as civil society groups, industry and governments.

The Ocean Cleanup

The Ocean Cleanup is an organization that finds technological solutions to remove plastics from the ocean, specifically from the Pacific Garbage Patch. They created a system that uses natural currents to move autonomously to collect trash in areas of higher concentration. This system is set to launch very soon.

My Opinion

Everybody knows about the water pollution but the damage still keeps continue on. Much innocent life might just be killed by us in the ocean from our rubbish.  Communication and connection are key, educating from they born and change the adult mind is the key point to let the pollution goes down.

[metoershowers]

Studio VI - Start prototype

After we set our project concept, We start making a small prototype out to test. We don’t want to spend too much money and wants to do it as an eco-friendly way as we are doing the project of water pollution. 

technical drawing first

After we finished the drawing. We decided to use the materials left in our mechatronic room and we found good material: Transparent plastic. 

I know I just mentioned before that I want to use eco-friendly material but seems this is the material left in here and it’s waiting to be thrown. So we reuse it I think still count. Let’s get started.

The water got the pressure. We had failed many times as the Seam joint is not strong enough to hold. we cut it more smoothly then put some transparent tape and more glues. Finally, it works!!!

[metoershowers]

Studio VI - Research continue

Consumerism

Wikipedia states that consumerism is “a social and economic order and ideology that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts”.

The below research done by my teammate Rachael:

There are two different definitions of consumerism each one has different connotations and implications. The more positive definition of consumerism is the need to respect the consumer. The more negative definition of consumerism is the ideology in which there is a need to acquire unnecessary materialistic items, therefore creating a market demand for these items.

Customers are now encouraged to “vote with with your wallet” as in, if you do not agree with what you are shopping you can just put them out of business. Money is a powerful thing. Buying something is not just a an exchange of goods, it is a statement on wealth and your place in society.

Consumerism seems to have become a norm in modern society internationally. Many of us have been conditioned to believe that success and happiness lies in wealth and being able to afford the newest of items such as phones and cars to show status. There were areas such as religion that previously had no market demand has now had to adapt to the needs and desires of a consumer. Consumer goods and services is a potential influence on our lives socially as in the way we relate to others.

“I showed how human desires are evolving in such a way that the negative element is taking over and causes us to skid off balance, into a mode that is destroying our planet, our society, and ultimately ourselves. The over-amplification of the negative elements in our desires manifests in excessive self-centeredness, alienation, coupled with a desire to exploit others for personal gain. The problem is that our natural instinct to stop when we have had enough is overtaken by our need to outdo others—be smarter, stronger, prettier, wealthier, and so on. The more “ers” we can attach to egos, the better we feel about ourselves. Consequently, nothing about us is balanced. And because we are permanently out of balance, we are in constant (though usually unconscious) anxiety, to the point that we confuse relief (from anxiety) with happiness.”  

Reference:

Miles, S. (1998). Consumerism : as a way of life. London : Sage Publications, 1998. 

Laitman, M. (2016, March 29). On Consumerism, Terror, and Human Nature. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-laitman/on-consumerism-terror-and_b_9556546.html

Laitman, M. (2016, March 29)

[metoershowers]

Trans - Group losing one & Idea narrow down

On the first formative presentation. We were asked to start creating our own bible and talk about it on the presentation. Considering the fact that this is only a twelve-week project and our idea was huge. From the feedback we realised to make all this out might be impossible.

We have a couple of options 1. Scale back our whole project 2. Start from scratch on a new project  3. Ditch it all together and join another group.

In the end, I and Stephen still want to go with this idea but would narrow down a lot. AJ think the project still too big that doesn’t have a chance to make it out. So she decided to quit. This means we only got two people to make all these out. Well... We’ll see how can we go with it.

[metoershowers]

Studio VI - Timeline & Work Distribution

Here is a quick timeline for our project:

There are five people in our groups. We had separate our works to get a better effectiveness and Results.

My team:

Racheal: Project manager and Research Watson(Myself): Technician support, design and create  Tim: Technician support, design and create Sharely: Artist design Waha: Deep Research and explore