(Considering that the end of 2010 is right around the corner, this video clip gives us a chance to reminisce and reflect upon some of the most popular zeitgeists of the year).
The video SCREAMS zeitgeist. Google itself is a zeitgeist. Think about it. The most resourceful and popular website in our generation (with the exception of Facebook and Youtube which most of our blogs have something to do with) has been Google. We use it to find homework answers, song lyrics, definitions, movietimes, restaurant addresses. It all starts on Google. Google is presenting the zeitgeists of this year. It starts of with a cursor typing in "How the world searched" which can be taken both literally (using Google's search engine) but also figuratively too. How "in the spirit of the times," our lives have revolved so much around "searching". We worship and get very caught up with the latest technological advancements (iPhone 4, iPad), sports coverage (Spain's victory during the World Cup, Kim Yu Na, John Isner, Grame McDowell, San Francisco Giants,), YouTube hits (Bed Intruder), spoilers (wikileaks), celebrities/famous leaders (death of J.D. Salinger, Alexander McQueen, Lynn Redgrave, Dennis Hopper, Leslie Nielsen, Gary Coleman). We see countries around the world collapsing because of uncontrollable natural disasters (like in Haiti, Pakistan and China) while the U.S. economy is collapsing because our values are always about consuming more, buying more, having more which could have been avoided if people were a little more sensible. It just tells us that our society values indulging in entertainment and luxury.
That's not to say that everything that happened this year was entirely backwards either. On a more hopeful note, information such as the advancement in synthetic genome, the first face transplant, the international space station, solar impulse, first woman president elected in Costa Rica, rescue from the Chilean mine, and the freeing of Aung San Suu Kyi are all milestones in history that capture the spirit of our times. That no matter how tough things seem, we always find ways to improve the situation at hand.
Realistically, no society can ever be and will ever be completely flawless. And as the video clip ends, Ryan Tedder from One Republic sings, "Please tell me what there's to complain about?" and as we see the keyboard typing "2011: what's next?", leaving us hanging, I can't help but agree that as wrong as it is to live in a society very much concerned with consumption, entertainment and technology, we have been blessed to live in an era with so many inspirational achievements, advancements and milestones that have taken place, so what am I complaining about? In retrospect, it's been a good year and I can't imagine what next year has in store.
Hello!
ReplyDeleteOk so i can't figure out how to make a post lol, so i am just gonna write my post as a comment on this one. I read an article in the NYT about the popular app "Angry Birds". This article opened my eyes to the dangers of addicting games like this, especially their role in our society's over-dependance on technology. As a user of both Angry Birds and the popular iTouch, i never really realized how often i find myself either checking scores on my sports app, checking email, or playing mindless games, all while i should be doing more important things. This ties into the over-dependance on Facebook as well, because its a similar phenomenon whenever we go on the computer, doing important things and constantly checking back to facebook to talk to friends, read statuses or the popular term "facebook stalk". For example, in the amount of time it took me to write this blog post, i will have gone to the facebook homepage 4-7 times, as im sure almost everybody did while doing this assignment. What I'm saying really is that the 21st century's increasingly excessive use of technology is distracting us from what really is important, and apps such as "Angry Birds", however fun it may be (which it really, really is), is not helping.
-Fish
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ReplyDeleteThis was probably one of my favorite posts on the blog so far! It made me realize though, that although the internet and other technology may be detriments to society in some ways, in others they truly unite us. Through the struggles, the achievements, the tragedies, and the milestones, the world was able to be truly united. We shared the glory of our accomplishments, and we cooperated in times of tragedy. Our English class has been really focused on how much technology takes away from us that I think we tend to forget just how much it gives us. The internet is certainly a zeitgeist in our "age of technology," and it allows different people and cultures to connect and share in ways previously unheard of.
Hi
ReplyDeleteThis post made me really think about the internet and how it changed the way in which people live their life. How was life different before one could access a boat-load of information with the click of a button? I feel we as a society take advantage of this great source of information. Instead of using it to find out more about our world, the majority of people, use it to help with work or to go on Facebook. On the other hand, I agree that the internet has acted as a uniting force globally. Pictures of the conflict in Haiti were posted on FB before they even made it to the media. If only we utilized this power more, we could make the world a better place.
To synthesize some of what you said in your post, the internet, and more specifically Google, contains a breadth of knowledge for us to read and digest. Everything that happens in real life, becomes a simulacrum on the internet: a distorted/biased summary, picture, review, or video. No society can be flawless, but many people think the internet can be. The internet is a place where you can find information immediately without putting in any effort, nothing seems bad about that! There are negative consequences though of the internet instantly providing snippets of information about everything and we have read about many of them in our course. We can find out about what happened this year on the internet, but our vision remains clouded: each and everyone of us is a hero, but the internet cannot represent all of our achievements.
ReplyDeleteThis was by far one of my favorite posts. Seeing the past year in a mere 2 minutes and 54 seconds is shocking. The part that is scary to me is how fast this past year has gone, and a huge part of the American Zeigest is the speed of society. Everything is so fast paced without breathing room. I remember sitting on my couch over the summer watching the record breaking tennis match between Isner and Mahut, and now, it's just history. Times are changing extremely quickly whether we like it or not and the the internet is the hub of all this change. With the click of a button we can find all the information we could ever want to know, plus more. Our society is being inundated with all this information and all this change and we don't know what to do with it.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this video because it showed all aspects of the America, and the world, therefore it truly illustrates the Zeitgeist. It was different from most of the videos that have been posted because it shows the positive aspects of society rather than solely focusing on the negatives. It is not fair to describe America in negative terms, because as this video pointed out we have had many achievements and advancements recently. America is a place where anything can happen, and that is accurately encapsulated in this 3 minute clip.
ReplyDeleteThis was one of my favorite posts so far. In our class discussions, we have mostly been bashing on technology and what it's done our society. This video, however, portrays two sides. One, the positive, shows that technology has basically united our entire planet. Without it, it would take weeks, or months, or even years to find out about different occurrences, from the Haiti Earthquake, to the results of the World Cup. Different programs like Skype help us communicate with loved ones across oceans. It has really helped the world come together as one.
ReplyDeleteWhat really scared me, however, was how fast it went by. It reiterates the fact that society is always needing to multi-task to get everything done quicker. It seems as though this is speeding time up. But I just don't understand: what's the rush? If each year goes by this quickly, life will seem even shorter than it already is. What's the point then? I'm hoping that those who watch this video slow down a bit and live a little. Technology will always be there: life won't.
This post managed to portray both the positive and negative sides of technology in a short two minute clip. Google is a great representation of our times because we have often abused the use of this search engine. We have the capability of endless knowledge on the tip of our fingertips. Often times, we have abused this power searching up trivial subjects or answers to questions we are too lazy to look up the conventional way. Our lives have become too easy because of machines and in the future we may lack the knowledge we need in order to survive. Our ability to think has begun to decline since our machines are doing it for us. I remember that one day when google began to give search options when we typed in the first few letters. And as you can see through the clip, a suggestion of "angry birds" came up. I acknowledge that the game is quite addicting and entertaining, but it is also shocking how such a trivial event could be one of the top searched items. Although technology has produced multiple negatives it also contains a few positives. With the internet, we have the access to international information. In this way we could help others that are in need in easier ways.
ReplyDeleteCasting away the different topics google made reference to, i think its more reasonable to look at google and what it represents as the zeitgeist. to acquire information, it was once necessary for one to travel whatever difference to a school of sorts, where a teacher would give them the desired knowledge. Now, students have all the data they want at the tips of their fingers, and the issue lays in knowing how to apply an manage all of the information. Google has essentially re-invented the way children need to be taught in schools, and changed the way we learn. This directly corresponds tho the American Education problem, where students are still having information thrown at them, but no direction on how to apply it. The needs of the youth generation have changed, and school systems have not yet risen to meet that change. Google (and search engines like it,) for better or worse, have changed the way the world works, and is thus a major zeitgeist of out time.
ReplyDeleteAs Isabel was describing, this video perfectly shows the globalization of America. I do believe as most people are saying it is important to point out that this clip shows positive aspects of society which many forget. Even more importantly, though, it is a representation of America via examples throughout the world. The search at the beginning of the video is "AMERICAN Zeitgeist" and as Rachel said in class she just had to search "American zeitgeist" to find it. Isn't it interesting, then, how almost every single event/story/detail had very little to do directly with America? It is through the indirect methods--search buttons and website articles--that we find our American zeitgeist. For better or worse, technology has provided us with cultural unity. In a negative way, we have international corporations controlling our economy and politics and outsourcing lowering job availability in the United States. But still, one of the few references to America is a clip of Obama's pledge to help Haiti. Technology, Google in particular, has made us more interested and concerned about the world around us. In a way, couldn't it be said that this is making our society LESS superficial?
ReplyDeleteIn class today, we discussed whether this video really is a zeitgeist. Many came to the consensus that it indeed was not representative of our age, for it is impossible to capture the essence of a time in one short video. In addition, instead of trying to allow us to process and reflect upon the many life-changing events that occurred this past year, the video speeds through them, which doesn't help our already impatient mentality. I actually think that the song "Good Life" by OneRepublic (played in the video's background) is a better representation of how we run our lives. It addresses our need for superficial items (such as phones and pictures). Our foolish desire for more "friends" on Facebook is encapsulated in the line, "New names and numbers that I don't know." In addition, the lines, "My friends in L.A. they don't know/Where I've been for the past few years or so" show how society today has lost the closeness that it once possessed. Technology makes communication devoid of warmth or feeling, and it is easy for old friends to be forgotten in the rush of our busy lifestyles.
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ReplyDeleteI really loved this post, and the video was quite interesting to watch. It's crazy to think that a short video like this could describe what has happend in the year of 2010. The internet is a wonderful place to gather information, there is no doubt about that. But the extent in which we use this source has gone totally over board. We are conditioned to think this is normal. An overload of information mixed with a fast paced movement,is the way to get ahead in today's world. We're so dependent on google because it gives us immediate answers to everything we want to know. I also thought the end of the video, where it said "2011: what's next?" was very enticing. It leaves us wondering, what else can happen in our crazy society in the years to come?
ReplyDeleteThis post is where its at. It's pretty rad that we watched this video in class also. Google is the internet in its most basic form. We use the internet to connect ourselves as well as give and receive information; Google is the most well known and most highly regarded vehicle by which people do this. The instant gratification that the internet has given us is now beginning to carry over into the non-technology portions of our lives (which is becoming less and less) hence the statement at the end that this year has gone by so fast. We have come to expect speed from everything; when in reality there are aspects of life that naturally need time to develop and fully present themselves. Also a recent comment stated that the video was effective in telling the story of 2010 in under three minutes. Check out my artifact (I am the second overall post, so it's pretty far down) its 83 seconds long and tells a story similar to this one but is much broader.
ReplyDeleteI really really liked this video for many reasons. One, it opened my eyes to how much I do not know about current events. That may seem like a reason for not liking the video yet I find it refreshing because it shows me how much of a technology-obsessed person I am. But, I don't use this technology-obsession for the right reasons. Instead of maybe reading up on current events, I read up on wall-posts/whatever else is on my Facebook. Instead of watching the news, I watch primetime TV shows like many other teenagers.
ReplyDeleteAnother reason I like this video is because it shows how much google has swallowed us up. I google all the time and I know that Guth has some issues with this as being a zeitgeist and he instead believes to be just a recount, I think it shows how we're the Google generation. Everything we do is online and this video has all the different technologies we use. Email, Instant messaging, search, video, online calling, etc. We use google as if its the bible for us. And it all reminds me of the Search Overload commercials with BING. Bing means Because it's not google...and instead of being a search engine, it claims to be a decision engine. That is just like Dima's phone commercial--a commercial about phones trying to sell yet another phone. Technology has become divided by section upon section with each overlapping. It's so disturbing.
I totally agree with everyone that this video was really good! Google may seem like it’s connected with the whole media obsession, but on the brighter side, by letting us be informed about what’s going on with the rest of the world, we are able to connect with them, therefore reviving a sense of unity. I praise Google in that it has let our world be together as one even though we are miles and miles apart; but we don’t let the distance stand in our way from being informed about what is going everywhere. The achievements, the disasters, the politics, successes, latest trends…everything can be found. Google is almost too open ended for us to handle, and that’s where the detrimental factors start to affect us. We always have to take everything farther than it should be. I agree with Allie C, being very disturbed that search overload has a cure: a different search engine! How wonderful, just what we need!
ReplyDeleteI have seen this video before and I find it so interesting that our year has been filled with so many highs and lows. I like how the video ends with a questioning: What's Next? feel. No one knows what the future holds but hopefully it's filled with more benefits than flaws. Many of those facts that I saw in the video I knew but some came as a huge surprise. I got goosebumps when I saw the first successful face transplant and how far technology has enhanced for the better. The music intensified the effect of the piece because without it the flow from one topic to the other wouldn't have been so impacting. -----Johanna Seitenbach
ReplyDeleteThis video in my opinion, captures the events through which we have gone through this year, and I think it does capture a zeitgeist. Although in class, we spoke about how it doesn't capture the spirit of the times, in my opinion, it does just that. The video has common themes that weave the events together, and I think these are the spirit of our times. We are proud of our scientific breakthroughs in medicine, astronomy, and physics. We all aid each other on a global scale when disaster strikes. We celebrate international sporting events, and truthfully, I think the world has gotten a lot smaller.
ReplyDeleteThe word zeitgeist is so tossed around these days, it seems the slightest change in the culture becomes a seismic shift. This is true with the way we toss "zeitgeist" around, in reality very few of these images will be remembered years from now. With googles established power, it is able to dictate what's important and what isn't. When google calls "Bedroom Intruder" a zeitgeist, doesn't this prove how meainingless our culture has become? If you go back forty years you had a decade filled with The Beatles, The Doors, and The Rolling Stones. What did 2010 produce? An idiot auto-tuning a newscast.
ReplyDeleteRACHEL i loved this video!
ReplyDeleteI just felt that the song choice is not really fitting with everything that happened in 2010. So many tragedies happened this year, the bp oil spill, the european debt issues, american unemployment; America is getting more and more involved in worldy affairs. So really the American zeitgeist for 2010 is "connection". From facebook, the World Cup, to the Haitian earthquake - America is connected with everyone globally. We are always on top of things, we stay in tune with the rest of the world.
I also found interesting that in the beginning google typed "What the world searched" and at the end Google says "search on". When google searched "what the world searched" everything that happened in 2010 showed up and after all of the tragedies and accomplishments, google encourages us to keep searching. But what are we searching for?
Great discussion, AP Peeps!
ReplyDeleteI agree that years from now, when it is easier to characterize an age, we may very well name this time period's zeitgeist: "Connection" or "Googlization."
This video personally made me realize something. I don't know what is going on in America. A lot of the topics that were brought up in the video were unknown to me or things i have never really paid attention to. The fact that costa Rica elected the first women president, or even that J.D Salinger died is new information to me. This news was probably discussed in news papers or news programs which our generation seems to not find an interest in. When we think of the newpaper, most kids think it is a place for people to write articles about boring stuff. The truth is, all of these 'boring things' will end up effecting us later in life. I think the video did a good job portraying that our past can't be left behind because it will have a great impact on our future. The fact that we would rather turn to advertisments and reality TV, shows just how oblivious we are to what is happening in the real world.
ReplyDelete-Nicole Talbi
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ReplyDeleteI would disagree about calling our age "connection". It may be true that we may be more connected with people and events around the world, but at the same time, we are more disconnected with the world, and maybe even reality. The connection that we see is a superficial one, and the things that make up a true connection, like friendship, and physical "togetherness" is lacking. The events portrayed in the video were all shown in some way by the media, but what may be momentous events are simply shrugged off, maybe with a "that's interesting" but thats it. We are becoming desensitized: we are presented with so much information that we no longer explore the significance of each and just treat it as "just another piece of news". Hence, the age would be more aptly named "superficial connections" or "desensitized"
ReplyDeleteWhile the video itself was very interesting, I couldn't help but notice the integration of Google technology throughout. It's almost as if the video functions as a advertisement for Google while still seeming to be a purely altruistic action--"adtruistic" if you will. The content itself, taken independent of the technological display, is well-done and mildly entertaining, but nothing ground-breaking. I'm not criticizing Google's motives--they're free to do what they want, and the video does provide a public service--but to watch the video without thinking about the commercial implications is at best naive, and at worst, being a willing mark for a con.
ReplyDeleteThis video is like a time capsule. I can't wait to watch this again ten or twenty years from now and recall everything that happened this year. I wonder how things will have changed, and if technology will have taken evern more of a hold over our lives. I found interesting the choice of content here. One second we're watching the Thai political crisis and seeing the American unemployment rate, and the next second we're watching Justin Bieber giving out hugs. Funny the things we consider important...
ReplyDeleteThis video, I believe, addresses the idea of mediation, and how our experience of reality is filtered through various forms, especially the media.This video, which recaps the year entirely through a series of google searches, reminded me of just how much of what we experience in a year is through google. We don't really pay attention to whole events or stories, all we see are small pieces, one sentence summaries,stamp sized pictures, and minute long clips. this sort of scrolling through life must have a substantial effect on the way we experience events.
ReplyDeleteThis video gave me the chills! As I watched the first time in class it was almost exciting waiting to see what news they would cover next in the year 2010 as I guessed along. I remember so clearly the coverage of the Haiti earthquake, so when disasters began to be recapped I knew it was coming. I soon began to realize after they depicted this particular disaster that the internet and the media is all I know about what happened in Haiti. I have never been there and I know noone there during the earthquake. Google has the power to post whatever they choose about events and would have millions of belivers. I wonder if we are giving them far too much power. It's almost as if we no longer search google but they search us. They know what we want to search: the tears, the joy, and the drama, so that's what they upload to their site.
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