Category: BCM112

In this weeks lecture, once again Ted played with our minds. He introduced us to a topic that we’re all familiar with, but we never take a second to step back and acknowledge. We can link the concept of hyperreality, simulation and spectacle to social media, and the way we create an online presence for ourselves seperate from reality. As young adults, we have grown up in the generation over run by social media and the internet. Everyday as we scroll through Instagram we are introduced to the idea of a perfect lifestyle, stunning influencers, with perfect lighting and lives. We take what they post online, we believe this is reality and achievable, and we create our own illusions of who we are, or who we want to be, and then we post it on social media for all to see. We build our own aesthetics based off what we are exposed to. This related back to Jean Baudrillard’s idea of reality ‘Simulacra and Simulations’. His idea of simulacra and simulations is told in four parts; reflection, mask, illusion and simulacrum.

I have used instagram from primary school, through high school, and now into university. Over these years, I have been introduced to the idea of what a “perfect person”, a “perfect lifestyle”, or what a “perfect body” looks like. We are all influenced by what we see and what we perceive as reality or reliable sources, and in return, we use what we see to perceive ourselves in the same way influencers with perfect lives present themselves on social media. However, these posts are selected specifically and are examples of a ‘highlight reel’. As an audience we are seeing the best parts of their life, and being completely shut out from what goes on behind the scenes.

Looking at my instagram who can tell a lot about who I am. However, what I don’t show on my instagram is my reality. I don’t post photos of myself playing sport, or my travel videos I love making, or my family I spend every waking moment with, or photos of me sitting at home in a baggy t-shirt, oily hair thrown back in a bun, drinking endless cups of coffee and watching greys anatomy on repeat … because it’s not how I want to be perceived.

This remediation is an example of how I represent myself on instagram vs who I am in real life

I’m someone who is super adventurous, loves socialising and dressing up, loves the great outdoors and travel…. but I also love my down time, and I am actually an extremely lazy person when I want to.

References:

Jean Baudrillard [1981] Simulacra and Simulations

Tables with Taryn has undergone a fair few changes over the past couple months since it was first put together in March. With the current pandemic and the closure of local cafes, my overall concept had to be altered to fit my original aim but also make it possible to complete whilst at home. I made sure before isolation was put in place to visit numerous cafes and keep record through photos, to ensure I can still continue to post about cafes whilst also completing what I can at home.

I have learnt to adapt with each problem that occurs. With lack of enthusiasm as the initial activity on my account begins to slow down, I adapted by fitting cooking into my weekly schedule by prioritising and keeping myself organised.

Moving from Youtube to WordPress has been the smartest decision I have made as part of this project. It has allowed me to gather resourceful information for each recipe, research into pricing and nutrition, as well as adding a personal view, in order to connect with my audience. Within one blog post I can include a personal introductory, a demonstration, ingredient list, equipment, list, method, my tips, and different pricing.

In order to connect with my followers, I have aimed to keep my page fun, friendly, realistic and comfortable. I strive to continue this aesthetic because as uni students we are fun, creative, and aren’t all natural gourmet chefs. However, a specific colour scheme can be beneficial for my Instagram account, as an appealing page, helps to draw in attention from other creators and users.

Continuing to use instagram as my core platform for my audience means I can link and advertise my WordPress account. Instagram insights has helped me keep track of the progress of my DA with its interactions, profile visits and website directories. As shown below, in the past week I have interacted with around 58 accounts and have directed around 8 people to my WordPress blog, which was only created a week prior.

If there’s one party food that never failed to be present at any birthday party, Australia day or any major event… it would be mars bar slice. I shamefully have to admit, I have never made it before. Don’t know how it took me 19 years to finally learn to make it but I did, and everyone in my family loved me for it.

Above is a quick visual from Saturday night when my best friend Brooke and I decided to make mars bar slice for the first time. We were surprised with how easy it was and how limited steps there was in the process.

All thats needed is:

Ingredients:

• 12 pack of small mars bars or 3 normal sized mars bars
• 90g butter
• 3 cups of Rice bubbles
• Approx. 375g of milk chocolate
• 1 tbsp of coconut oil

Equipment:

• Baking tray (Make sure that it is deep and not too wide)
• Baking paper

The method is quite simple:

• Line baking tray with baking paper
• Roughly chop the mars bars
• Place mars bars and butter in a microwavable bowl and microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds
• Combine with rice bubbles
• Spread the rice bubble mixture onto the lines baking tray and continue spreading until even
• Using another microwavable bowl, break the milk chocolate into small pieces and combine them with the coconut oil
• Microwave for 2 minutes
• Using a spatula cover the rice bubbles with the chocolate
• Put in fridge until set
• Cut and serve 🙂

My tips:

1. If you forget to put the butter in with the mars bars, you can melt the butter separately and add with the mixture
2. To make sure the baking paper sticks to the tray, spraying canola oil directly to the tray can help the paper keep its grip
3. A smaller tray is better because the mars bars are thicker and hold together better

Pricing:

A 12 pack of mars bars at Woolworths costs around $4.60 but I got them on sale for 2.30. As only 3 cups are needed, the 250g packet of rice bubbles for $4.15 works just fine and still leaves you enough for a few days worth of cereal for breakfast. As a chocolate lover, I prefer using Cadbury chocolate for cooking whenever I can. The milk chocolate quantity of 375g is a little difficult to buy exact so I bought both a 350g family block for $5 and an extra 180g for $4. Last is the coconut oil. The quantity for the coconut oil is unfortunately only small and only uses a tiny bit from a large jar of 100g. However, 100g of coconut oil in the ‘macro organic’ brand is only $4.15 and is an item that is useful kept in the cupboard for the next recipe that rolls around including coconut oil.

I believe mars bar slice is one of the best snacks to have around, especially when stress eating. Just learn from my mistakes and hide it from your family members.

Back in 1979 in his book ‘The Selfish Gene’ an evolutionary biologist and author named Richard Dawkins coined the idea of a ‘meme’. However, it’s not what you would think it is. A ‘meme’ isn’t just an image with a funny caption made to make us laugh, but in reality is actually more complex…. they’re everywhere.

A ‘meme‘ can actually be defined by google as “an element of a culture or system of behaviour passed from one individual to another by imitation or other non-genetic means”. To provide an example, this week I decided to record a cover of one of my favourite songs. It’s a little rusty and I hate singing to people but it provided the perfect example for this concept of a ‘meme’.

Music is considered as ‘distributed media‘ because when a piece of music is made it is distributed to thousands of people where it can be imitated, mutated and replicated. It has influenced the creation of thousands of communities all around the world that come together to share, inspire, embrace and imitate music.

The lyrics in songs can create a universe idea, that connects with individuals or groups. I personally find I connect to songs better when I can relate to the lyrics or they provoke emotion.

MEMETIC WARFARE:

Meme warfare is the use of meme as a form of propoganda. The use of memes have become a popular way for people to promote causes, businesses or a particular opinion. For instance, throughout the climate change debate Greta Thunberg, a 17 year old who has become an activist towards the arising issue of climate change, is constantly used as a meme to portray a point or ‘a side’. It is used as a ‘weapon’ to imitate and replicate significant ideas.

I definitely surprised myself when I understood this weeks lecture that introduced us to monological and dialogical media. If I were given these words with no context, I would have no idea what they were talking about, so I decided for this weeks remediation to shamelessly create a TikTok that quickly identifies the two medias during life in quarantine.

@taryncastle5

Some simple examples for BCM112 students. Enjoy this weeks remediation😬

♬ Moon – Kid Francescoli

Monological media can be described as a ‘one to many’ process. A form of media that broadcasts information to an audience without conversation or interaction, whilst dialogical media is conversation and dialogue based. I used Netflix and reddit as an example that adolescents at present use for entertainment, especially during this weird time at home. Netflix is an example of monological media as it it demonstrates this ‘one-to-many’ idea. We are an audience of many, being broadcasted information through one source, we cannot speak directly back to the source, we are just an audience. This is where Reddit is different as a dialogical media. Dialogical as I explained is a more conversation based process, where people can interact with each other, share ideas, stories, quirky things they have been up to during quarantine. It’s a ‘many-to-many’ process and can be an example for ‘collective intelligence’.

“Collective intelligence is a form of universally distributed intelligence, constantly enhances, coordinated in real time, and resulting in the effective mobilisation of skills”

Pierre Lévy

Collective intelligence is extremely important in this digital age as it’s the collaboration and coming together of people to discuss and curate content. It’s a sociological concept that allows users of media around the world to curate content collectively, allowing us, as an audience, to both engage and participate with this content, whether it be through watching, commenting or providing our opinion. We wouldn’t have the media we have today without this idea of ‘collective intelligence’.

References:

Sciencedirect.com. 2020. Collective Intelligence – An Overview | Sciencedirect Topics. [online] Available at: <https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/computer-science/collective-intelligence&gt; [Accessed 16 April 2020].

Overtime the digital age has changed the way content is produced and the quantity of its production. Mass production in the industrial paradigm can be shown through the assembly line in a manufacturing factory. Nothing can be altered or changed… no risks can be taken. Emergent media has since changed this idea, allowing millions of creators to produce their own content, express themselves, take risks and to create their own aesthetic. Emergent media and the internet paradigm have allowed people to create craftsmanship allowing modification.

Within this internet paradigm, there are no boundaries, content flows freely. Following the idea of internet aesthetics and the internet being a ‘copy machine’ by Kevin Kelly, I created a gif demonstrating a glitch in technology. In this digital age technology can be difficult and can mean on accident we can freely alter content. In fact, glitches in technology, broken images have become a way people are producing content. With growing technology and the availability of hundred of platforms on the internet, we are able to use Kevin Kelly’s idea of the ‘copy machine’ to utilise what we have, or what we already see online and create content. So much so, that the glitch aesthetic has become a huge trend on social media. This open process is called “eternal beta”, reiterating that the internet paradigm and emergent media has no boundaries, as long as there is consumers.

Overtime production has taken a big leap from legacy media, where mass production meant a higher risk of failure with a high product cost, to a process with the lower risk of failure and a low cost process, what we now call emergent media.

-T

References:

-Kelly, K, 2008, Better than free, https://www.edge.org/conversation/kevin_kelly-better-than-free

–Encyclopedia Britannica. 2020. Assembly Line | Industrial Engineering. [online] Available at: <https://www.britannica.com/technology/assembly-line> [Accessed 8 April 2020].

Leaving this weeks lecture about “medium is the message” I wasn’t sure whether I was confused or understanding of what this actually meant. In 1964 Marshall McLuhan developed the idea that the when relaying information the medium is of upmost importance and is in fact the message. I understood the concept but struggled to put it into words. It wasn’t until I came across Eric McLuhan’s statement in the article “Commonly asked questions (and answers), that I could put my thoughts into words.

Each medium, independent of the content it mediates, has its own intrinsic effects which are its unique message.

Eric McLuhan (Marshall’s eldest son)

My recent understanding of “the message is the message” has now been replaced with this idea of the medium being the important key to determining the message it carries. This week I have learnt that as a person, I have my own medium, my own message and it’s in my control what my audience receives. The message is controlled by the medium and I believe this is an extremely important concept to understand.

The example that immediately came to mind when researching into this topic, was the way that we as individuals portray ourselves through social media. As a teenager I am guilty of caring what other people think and how they perceive me and using platforms such as instagram to express myself, my lifestyle and my fashion through perfectly arranged images and videos. I use instagram, the photos I post and the clothes I wear as my medium, creating the message I want to create. It’s a platform to express my personality to others in a way I feel comfortable and confident.

References:

McLuhan, E., n.d. Commonly Asked Questions About Mcluhan – The Estate Of Marshall Mcluhan. [online] Marshallmcluhan.com. Available at: <https://www.marshallmcluhan.com/common-questions/&gt; [Accessed 19 March 2020].

McLuhan, M., 1964. Marshall Mcluhan: Medium Is The Message Http://Web.Mit.Edu/Allanmc/Www/Mcluhan.Mediummessage.Pdf – Fox Writing. [online] Fox Writing. Available at: <https://www.foxwriting.com/marshall-mcluhan-medium-is-the-message-httpweb-mit-eduallanmcwwwmcluhan-mediummessage-pdf/&gt; [Accessed 21 March 2020].

Through my Digital Artefact “Tables With Taryn”, I aim to create a platform for uni students to access when they are in need for a cheap local cafe or home cooked meal. As a local I have an extensive knowledge of what Wollongong has to offer. My favourite part about Wollongong is the social life, and the access we have to places where we can gather together to socialise and communicate over a cup of coffee. There are so many spectacular cafes, big and small, that I believe deserve to be recognised. Using only $15 or less, I will go out to local cafes and document what I can buy, as well as, provide videos of sustainable meals that are quick, easy, and fit within this limit.

I strive for this project to be a place to help students who are struggling away from home and don’t know where to eat or what to cook affordably.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvoCdcnn06M

My instagram page and youtube channel:

From the moment we were introduced to our DA projects, I have been stuck on ideas. We were told multiple times, by multiple people to create a DA incorporating something we’re passionate about. I’m passionate about many things such as singing, food, Hockey, adventures, friends, and family. It wasn’t finding what my passions are, that made me feel stuck.. it was the issue of incorporating these into a useful and possibly successful project.

Over the past week I have been switching from one idea to another, struggling to put all my focus and energy into one. It wasn’t until I went out for lunch with my best friend did my first major idea come together. Since becoming a full time uni student, I now understand the importance of budgeting, especially in terms of food and socialising. What brings me most joy is spending this quality time with friends and family over coffee and food, but spending the money has become increasingly hard to keep up with.

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This is where my DA idea comes into play. My idea, so far, is to find cafes around Illawarra that are suitable for uni students to not only eat but study. My goal is to limit my spending between $10-$15, determine whether the space is quiet and comfortable enough to study, and of course have an aesthetic and friendly environment. I will document my research on an instagram page, as well as vlog my journey and experience on a youtube channel.

A few other ideas I have in mind include:

• Exploring around Illawarra
• Beaches
• Getting people to do something out of their comfort zones (eg. Me singing to a crowd)
• Finding hidden cafes
• As someone who can’t cook, I thought creating a cooking account would be a fun and interesting idea
• Finding cheap places to visit, including shops, cafes, restaurants etc..

-T