Reina's Thoughts on the Performance

The performance came and went.

Success? I can never tell if my performances went well, I tend to leave that up to the audience. The typical response from my parents and friends who attended the performance was "I didn't get it all, you'll have to explain it to me."

Although 20 people responded to my invite to join the flashmob only about half actually came to the show and only 2 of those who did perform were actual audience members.

Below are links to pieces that friends taped for me, enjoy!

Invitation to Connect

Creativity & Cultural Improvisation

Around the World & Back

1 to 1 Hundred

Little Brother 

Reflections:
I felt pressured to create content, to create content with roles for the collaborators that in the end may not have been appropriate. Last year I felt that the Internet2 workshop was extremely successful, so I have begun to reflect on why I thought that workshop was more successful than this past performance. What did I do differently? How can I be a more successful collaborator?

I still feel that I did not achieve my own personal goals of knowing how to work the various types of technology that was introduced in this course. Rather I now know people who can work those devices.

In regards to technology, it is obvious that this is just the beginning of the learning process.

Reina's Thoughts on Her Pieces (cont.)

The pieces are coming along.

My original ideas have gone through a variety of transformations as I learn what is feasible with my collaborators both in the class and at the other sites.  

Over the weekend (April 20/21) a new idea came to me regarding my flashmob. I kept on wondering how I could make it more interesting for the audience. What if I got some of my friends to come to the show and join the original NYC dancer? This idea motivated me to choreograph the steps for the flashmob, record the set movements, and create a video to upload to YouTube entitled International Flashmob Choreography, and to create a facebook event inviting all my "friends" to join.

The stress of upcoming final projects, papers, and presentations made me want to work in advance regarding the creation of the performance program. However, the delay in receiving the info I needed led me to not be able to meet the deadlines I set up. Instead of trying to control the situation I realized I need to take a step back and chill about the whole process. Let things just happen, as trying to plan was just stressing me out and doing absolutely no good.

Reina's Thoughts on Her Pieces for Internet 2

Proposed Pieces:

Multiple Identities
Multiple Identities will be improvised, I just need to figure how the traditional NYC/USA music will sound and how the traditional NYC/USA dance will look.

International Flash Mob
Pretty excited for what I think is the first ever international flash mob. Ian and I were thinking of doing a pop-medley similar to this T-mobile advertisement.

To be continued...

Reina's Thoughts on Content Creation

I can easily come up with ideas for pieces. I try to create original works for every performance opportunity that I am given. I am all about increasing my "company's" repertory. Part of the problem of creating original dance works is finishing them in time for the performance. Way to often the piece is only finalized minutes before we go on stage and I heavily rely on my dancers to generate movement ideas and sometimes finish the dance without me.

Naturally, coming up with ideas for pieces for Internet 2 came easily to me. However, having them come to fruition is quite another story. Since these pieces are concept driven, I am a bit at a loss about what comes next, the movement or the music? I am so grateful that Ian has agreed to be my musical composer and advisor, however he needs to know more about the dance before creating the musical score and I feel that I need the music to inspire the movement. Hopefully after today's class we will have a breakthrough and be able to proceed with generating the actual content.

Reina's Frustrations

I feel under pressure from the faculty.  The need to create all this content for the final project is stressing me out. It takes time, inspiration, motivation, and dedication to create artistic work. I'm expected within days to formulate and articulate ideas. When I presented one piece at last year's Internet 2 I had been working months for a few hours a week on my piece. Now I'm expected to create multiple ideas in hours. I feel that in some ways we are being set up for failure or at least for doing a poor job. I also feel that the class itself needs to be longer and we need the opportunity to meet more than once a week to work on the actual art itself. We need studio time in addition to tech time.

Reina's Thoughts on March 20th

March 20th has come and passed. It's hard to rate the success of the performances. On the one hand we made connections all over the world and everyone had an opportunity to perform. On the other hand, we ran late, 2 people did all the "tech"work, and not all of the projects happened as they were envisioned.

I also wonder what I could have done as a producer/director to have made the process smoother, created a more equal delegation of tasks, run an on-time performance, and made sure that all collaborations happened as they were envisioned.

For example, my piece did not happen as I originally intended, which seemed too complicated when I discussed my initial thoughts with Andreas and Stephen. (Looping live music and dance and layering it with additional live music and dance.) Although they seemed willing to try it, I was overwhelmed by the necessary steps to make it happen. What was slightly upsetting was that my plan B also did not happen as planned. Due to a faulty cable the camera that should have been used to project the live feed was not available. I wanted the projection to show the live dancing in front of the pre-recorded footage. Instead I think a weird angle of the live dance was projected. Ohh well, perhaps next time it will work out. At least, a connection was made and something was shown.

In terms of our final performance April 29th I wonder what will change. Will I become as capable as Stephen and Andreas when it comes to the tech components? How many times did they ask for cables and I had no idea what was what. When will I be fluent in these technologies?

Reina's Dilemma Resolved

It's amazing how over the course of time things just figure themselves out. I went to meet with my friend and he had already put thought and time into the project. So I decided to choose him over the cellist. The cellist understood and hopefully I can work with her in the future.

It's been a bit frustrating organizing the March 20th project. Individuals haven't been the most responsive. I wish we had more class time to discuss and organize. I also wish we had one class to test out connections and talk through our project face to face, rather than via google docs.

Reina's Dilemma

I really thought I was on top of my March 20^th collaboration. In mid-February I met a cellist who was interested in performing with me. I e-mailed her and facebooked message her a couple of times at the end of February and did not hear from her. I decided I needed a back-up in case she chose to ignore all my messages. A close friend of mine agreed to work with me. He plays drums, piano, and guitar recreationally. His repertoire consists of pop songs that he figures out how to play on his own, he does not write original music nor plays anything classical. Although it would be good enough for the performance, the cellist, a classically trained musician, would be a better fit for what I want to do. But something is better than nothing. I set up a time to meet with my backup artist when I finally get an e-mail from the cellist. She is available and is still interested to do the collaboration. Phew. I e-mail her back asking for sound clips, her schedule, what is the best way to be in touch, clearly e-mail is not her thing. I then head to meet with my back-up artist to let him know in person that my cellist finally got in touch with me, but at the same time secure him still for back up in case the cellist flakes out on me. Three days go by and I do not hear from my cellist. Now, I am getting nervous as we just had class and I feel this pressure to know what is going on. I confirm with my backup that I am going to use him and e-mail the cellist that it won't work out for this project but we might have an opportunity to collaborate in the future. For the first time in our correspondence the cellist e-mails me within the day apologizing for her delay and explaining her busy schedule and that over the next week she has spring break and will have time to collaborate. 

Here is the dilemma, my back up agreed to do it as long as I "really mean it" and I told him I did. But that was before the cellist e-mailed me explaining herself. Do I bail on my friend, because the cellist finally got back to me? She clearly isn't responsible, how hard is it to e-mail something to the affect of I'm really busy now but my schedule frees up the week before the performance let's talk then, etc.? At the same time we'd create a better piece and since when are the creative types the easiest to work with? 

So I'm not sure what to do. I told the cellist that I need to think this over as I feel really badly about stringing along my friend and that I would get back to her on Monday March 12th, which is today. 

Do I choose the better performer? But what if she once again doesn't communicate or worse never skype's in? Ugh. I'm really frustrated by this whole situation. 

To be continued... 

Reina's Thoughts on Sound Mixers

In our last class we were introduced to a sound mixer. I listened to Prof. Beyer’s presentation, I took notes on what he was saying, and I even had the opportunity to interact with it, and I still have no idea how it works. Getting sound in and out of the mixer is for me all trial and error. I turn every dial hoping this will be the action that will produce the necessary sound and every time I was wrong. Thankfully I am not the sound technician for our March 20^th showcase, but that does not make feel any better that I have no idea how to operate a sound mixer. In addition, I am bothered that for the performances on March 20^th each collaborator is taking on a familiar role rather than expanding his/her skills and trying something out of his/her comfort zone. At the same time, I remind myself that there is a time constraint and we want everything to run smoothly. In addition, we are getting assessed on how well we work together so it is natural that we want everyone to contribute with his/her strengths, enabling the best possible outcome. In short, having experienced technicians running audio and video is the wisest choice. 

These thoughts reminded me of why I disliked “So you think you can dance” when I saw it for the first time during its inaugural season. I remember initially thinking to myself: This is fantastic, dancers are being pushed to learn new styles and genres of dance! When it came time for the final performances my initial reaction soon changed to disdain. Dancers reverted back to their original style of dance, hardly anyone incorporated something new that they learned while on the show. I remember thinking to myself what is the point of this show? The final performances are almost a replica of the auditions. What are these dancers learning from their experiences on the show? Well for starters the show is entertainment that is its objective, not learning. But our class is different and learning is part of its intrinsic value. I do hope that over the course of the next month in preparation for the final performance we take on roles that were originally unfamiliar to us, showing ourselves and one another that we are not just relying on past strengths, but new ones. 

Reina's Thoughts on Teaching and Technology Conference

 On Friday, February 24th, I attended NYU's "Teaching and Technology Conference." Although there were a few presentations that were over my head, they were a few speakers who really resonated with me.


Keynote speaker, Clay Shirky, made an astute comment. He is of the belief that by incorporating technologies into the classroom, they do not replace what was, but they transform the classroom into something new. This comment made me think about the arts and in particular dance and how many choreographers and dance teachers are hesitant about incorporating technology into their work/teaching, stating that by adding such tools replace live movement and live dancers. However, if one takes Shirky's comment to heart, technology does not replace the artform but transforms it into something else. It becomes just another tool for the artist to use.


Shirky as well as subsequent speakers mentioned that live face to face conversation is still essential. That there is something powerful about individuals coming together and discussing ideas and responding to one another in real time, in the moment. We should not loose those forms of interaction despite the advances of technology.


He cited Chris Avenir's story as one in which technological advances do not replace what was, but creates something new. Although I do not have a link to the actual keynote address I found Shirky explaining the Avenir story in another presentation.


During the "Innovations Panel" it was interesting to hear and see new forms of presenting materials.  Kenneth Perlin, previewed a new format for e-books, where on one side is a page of text and on the other side the entire book can be mapped out. Diana Taylor, gave us a tour of the Hemispheric Institutes website, a performance arts website that is presenting research material differently. Transcripts and articles are presented with direct links to footage of the performance being mentioned.  


At the resource fair I was most interested in NYU's Wikis, unlike blackboard where access is denied post graduation, Wikis enable students and faculty to upload/post content that can be accessed indefinitely. Thereby, enabling students and faculty to continue collaborating in the future. I am looking to create a space for my graduating Dance Ed. class so that we can continue to share lesson plans, dance videos, etc. and hopefully migrate blackboard items so that we do not loose access to them upon graduation. 


Jan L. Pass presented the work of the "Gaming for Learning Institute" showing how games can be used for learning. This really interested me as I have been wanting to use the technology of the Kinnect dance games to teach choreography or to use in a dance piece. I also learned that he teaches a course at NYU that teaches one to create learning games. Sadly, I learned about it a bit too late. 


I find that I belong to a generation whose formative years existed in a world without cellphones, smart boards, and Internet, however, I will be teaching a generation who cannot remember a world without those advances. If one remains nostalgic for the classroom of old one will become obsolete. Rather one must welcome a new type of classroom, replete in technology that has transformed it, but not replaced it. 

Reina's Thoughts on Skyscrapers

From the moment I saw the paper materials on the table I got excited. Being tasked with a creative assignment, building a skyscraper out of limited materials; paper, staples, and tape was empowering. At the end of the class when we discussed the reasons for such a task the obvious responses were given, teamwork, bonding, delegation of tasks, fun yet productive, etc. A big take away was that the skills we exhibited in this assignment should transfer over when we assemble tech instruments. However, what was not mentioned was how this creative task is different from all the "techy" ones that we do. What was so exciting about this "skyscraper assignment" was that there was no right way to do it. All creative approaches were successful. With the tech set-up, however, there is only one way to do it. A certain plug must be put in the correct input/output. There is a right way and a wrong way. The creative aspect of the course is in the art we produce utilizing the technology. However, there is only one way to set up those devices.

Reina's Thoughts on Cables

Before last week's class I tried to review all that we had learned the previous week. I went on to wikipedia and searched RCA, BNC, SVideo, and HDMI. I then copied and pasted pictures into my notes. Despite my review I still felt a bit of trial and error regarding the set-up. However, I am pleased to report that my knowledge of the cameras are getting better as I can differentiate between the various cameras and have begun to recognize the slight differences in set up as some of the cameras have a side hook up to the power cords while others are behind the battery pack. Instead of getting frustrated about what I still have yet to commit to memory I should be impressed with the knowledge I have acquired and figure out how to challenge myself in the coming up class, picking a task I have yet to master, such as setting up the really large camera or a videomixer or the input/output of the projector.

This morning I was listening to an ad on the radio for GoToMeeting a collaborative tool for online meetings. It made me think about the future of collaboration. Over the past few years I have worked on various community projects and google docs have become my go to tool for creating agendas, forms, spreadsheets, etc. I appreciate the real time access it offers all its collaborators and that individuals can view the forms at the same time. A couple of frustrations that I have is the inability to easily convert google docs to word docs and vice versa, the formatting gets completely messed up. In addition, the inability to track changes can be slightly frustrating when writing a joint paper. But then again google docs are a free product perhaps GoToMeeting provides a better product without any of these glitches.

Just as I published this post I noticed someone else's blogpost on google docs, "Use Google Docs to Facilitate a Digital Writer's Workshop," posted to my Language and Literacy scoop.it! page.

Reina's Thoughts on Video Calling

I had arranged to skype call Melanie on Monday between 4pm-5pm. On that Monday morning my brother, who has been in India since January 16th, connected with me for the first time since he left on vacation. He gchatted me and I immediately wanted to videochat him. We eventually changed to skype as the connection was clearer. How is it that on the same computer with the same Internet connection one means of video calling can be better than another? In the past I have attempted to video call my mom and we have come to realize that facetime is the best, the clearest and most reliable connection for us.

What differentiates one service from another?

On my skype call with Melanie I first heard an echo of myself, but it soon ended. There is a definite delay in sound from when I hear myself clap and see myself clap however I see and hear Melanie's clap as happening at the same time. This led us to discuss what is easier to execute when anticipating a delay, music and dance that is improvised or dancing to a set piece of music? I also discussed the Internet 2 piece that I collaborated with Cheng-i Wang. Perhaps what worked was that there was a musician and dancer at each site, however the music overlapped well despite the delay. So I'm still confused on how to create work while accounting for the delay.

I also noticed that when one of us moved fast the image left a slight blurry lingering affect, which I believe has to do with the speed of how the video is being transmitted.

The ability to video call someone is relatively new. I wonder how long it will take for it to be a clear image and sound without any delays?

Reina's Thoughts on Camera Set Up

Tom Beyer began class by informing the students that we need to pick up equipment form the eighth floor, a grocery list of, I believe, 2 cameras, 3 tripods, and a videomixer. Once all the equipment from the eighth floor and additional items from the sixth floor closet were gathered in the studio, Tom Beyer informed us that 4 cameras one in each corner needed to be set up on tripods and powered, he ended with GO!

It was as if a starting bell had been rung and we began to execute our challenge. It seemed that a bit of our process was trial and error. Something that hopefully over time will be eliminated. Throughout the class we were presented with additional tasks, learning on the spot about attaching cameras to videomixers and projectors.

The hardest part of this class for me right now is initially watching how to do things without the opportunity to test it out right there and then. The only way to become more conversant in the technologies being used is to work with the equipment. An opportunity that is available outside of the classroom whenever we want to borrow the equipment but hard to do in class when there are two videomixers and two projectors available for 10 students. But perhaps in next week's class we will have the opportunity to work with the videomixers more intimately.

The other aspect of this course which is hard for me is the technology jargon that is being used. I recognize the terms but do not fully comprehend their definitions. Hopefully over time I can become fluent in this language.

Reina's Thoughts on Collaborative Projects an NYU Course

When Jennifer placed the video camera in my face and prompted me to respond to why I was taking this course, I responded by giving some of my reasons but not all of them. While I was listening to everyone else talk about their motives I realized my initial response was nearly the complete opposite of their thoughts. Most students mentioned their excitement in collaborating with fellow students/artists, while I discussed how I had collaborated in the past with a music technology student, Cheng-I Wang, and was more interested in becoming a more well rounded independent artist by learning how to use the technology on my own without needing a technologist. Just to clarify, I am extremely excited to collaborate with the other students in the class. Recently, in my own work, I have been seeking collaborators, i.e. musicians, technologists, and other dancers. It is more challenging to work with others, but leads to, in my opinion, more interesting work. I would hope anyone taking this course is interested in collaborating, as it seems to be a necessary and vital component. The point I was trying to make is that I am also excited about learning how to use and incorporate the various technologies that we will be studying so that I can be an even better future collaborator.

This blog, Reina’s Thoughts, was started in the spring of 2011 for another course that I took at NYU, Resources in Technology. The background for the blog, books, was chosen because of their seemingly archaic nature with the advance of new technologies. Actual books are being replaced by e-books/e-documents etc. I wrote in my initial blog post how my use of technology is limited. As a Sabbath observant Orthodox Jew, I interact with technology six out of seven days of the week. From sundown Friday night to sundown Saturday night many technologies such as computers, the Internet, cell-phones, televisions, etc. are off limits. For me, actual books are not yet obsolete. The background of this blog, books, is a reminder to both my readers and me of a world that to many seems to be part of the past, but for me is still an integral part of my present.

Last semester I began working on a piece with Cheng-I Wang, which was initially presented in the Spring 2011 Internet 2 performance as well as in an Internet 2 workshop under the title “Tracing A Memory” and in its final form was performed in NYU’s Steinhardt Dance Education MA Concert under the title “Memory Trace.” The inspiration for those dances came from Mayumana’s "Momentum" (Mayumana used both live video feed and sound capture in sections of their show) and Pilobolus’s collaboration (video describing the collaboration) with Art Spiegleman on "Hapless Hooligan in 'Still Moving'" (show highlights). Over this past winter break I saw a dance piece by Zoe/Juniper entitled "A Crack in Everything," which incorporated pre-recorded video.    

Towards the end of our first class, when we were being shown the various cameras, I kept on thinking to myself, I wish I had a glossary of terms. I realized after class that I had already forgotten some of the terms that were mentioned and had to look up composite in order to be reminded that the other term was not contrast but rather component. I wonder if there are other terms that I have already forgotten or, more likely, have replaced with other words...

  

Reina's Thoughts on Creating a Website

Exciting.
Frustrating.
Learning.
Confusion.
Completion.

In short, I have and had many thoughts about my website while and after creating it: Reina's Website.

It is here that I wish to address some of my thoughts as well as explain some of my shortcomings while creating my website.

When I first began creating my website, I was beyond thrilled. I had never worked with technology in this manner. For the first time I was successfully opening and using programs on my computer such as  iMovie, photoshop, and much more. Before I began on this assignment I believed those programs were meant for the amateur professional, a status I was not sure I could obtain.

And then came the frustration: "Why isn't it working for me?" Not understanding why my page is not looking like the professors. Over time I realized that one mis-type in html code, uploading the wrong document, or using a different browser were simple explanations to why things weren't working. I began to be frustrated by the time consuming endeavor of changing a simple mistake. I would first work on the html code in jedit, upload the document to my files, refresh my website, just to realize I needed to make more changes and begin the three-prong process all over again!  A simple lack of an apostrophe required three steps to correct.

After a few months, I began to understand the logic behind the code. I started to figure out, through trial and error, how to complete the assignments. However, I am still confused as to why some of my pages are not exactly how I aesthetically would prefer them to look.

I would like to discuss the following assignments/pages:
Animation.
iMovie.
Powerpoint.
Table.

Both my animation, masksani3.gif, and iMovie in their final stages of creation appear with some issues. After uploading my filtered mask images to gifbuilder and added the set length of time of each image and looped them I notices a red tint to some of the images. I have no idea how to get rid of it! Similarly, with my iMovie in the application itself the pictures and images look great and after converting the movie to .mov in vlc it still looks great. But after embedding it in the webpage a couple of the images/transitions disfigure the images. I have no idea how to fix it.

I am very proud of my powerpoint. As a .ppt file the transitions are as I wish them to be and in the last slide I figured out how to embed videos, which play by clicking the boxes below the video's title. However, after saving the file as a movie the transitions changed and the videos do not play. I did however attach a link to the file so viewers can view the slideshow in ppt and hopefully see it and access the material as originally conceived.

Lastly, let's discuss my tables. Under assigmnet #7 there are two tables. The first one was originally conceived where the table would be the entire page with 25% of the page white and 75% purple. I was unable to figure out how to make it appear that way and settled with how it looks now with the table appearing as just taking up the top of the page. My Pilobolus table and my final project which are both tables, for some weird reason, don't get smaller or larger when the page is decreased or enlarged, rather it is a set size and one must scroll to view it all. The first table however does change, so I can't tell what is different in the codes.

I am very proud of my work, but I also had to give up some of my aesthetic preferences while creating this website. On May 11th, my mac computer started to slow down and completely stalled the following day. I had to spend an entire morning at the apple store and proceeded to reinstall my software over the weekend. Despite my huge strides over the semester when dealing with technology, I freaked out about the thought of completely wiping my hard-drive clean. Even though my entire computer was backed up with time machine and documents were on a usb drive and dropbox online, I was scared.

Despite the lack of having my own mac computer to work on, I was able to complete my website with the help of my Mom's pc and the Steinhardt computer lab. It was not ideal, but it got the job done. It was a bit frustrating not to have my entire iTunes library available to me when choosing background music for my iMovie and final project, time consuming to teach myself how to use a different computer and download the necessary programs and plugins to finish the remaining projects, and slightly inconvenient to head to NYU to use the computers, I was still able to get the job done. I did notice that on the various computers I used my webpages appeared differently. Music started on its own despite the code stating: autostart = "false", controllers and movies had weird borders, etc. I can only hope that the webpage is viewed as intended, even though that seems unlikely depending on the computer and browser it is being viewed on.

I was surprised how I have enjoyed blogging. Although I do not think I will continue blogging after this class, I felt I was able to explore some of my thoughts on technology and took greater interest in how the media discussed various aspects of technology.

On a final note, I have a website devoted to me as an artist, teacher, and student and hope to use it as a way to promote myself in the future. I have finally learned how to use various computer applications, which would have otherwise remained a mystery. Lastly, I have just offered to work on a website for a community project that I co-created and co-run, Flattening the Hills Street Fair: A Celebration of Jewish Life in Washington Heights, an endeavor I would have never volunteered for before this course. 


So in short, I learned a lot, and still have a lot to learn. 

Reina's Thoughts on Internet 2

Over the past semester, I had the wonderful opportunity to collaborate with Music Tech student Cheng-i Wang. We have been exploring the use of live video capture in a dance piece. While we were preparing for my class showing, Cheng-i asked me if I would be willing to adapt my choreography for Internet 2, a performance that streams footage live from various sites. This year three different sites were scheduled to participate. Cheng-i created a score that would be played at the three locations and accompany my choreography set at each site.

Sadly, I missed the Internet 2 performance. I was celebrating the Jewish Holiday of Passover with my family and was unable to be at NYU. As an observant Jew, I was unable to even connect to the Internet to watch the live stream. On the day of the performance, surrounded by my extended family, I still wished I was at NYU watching the performance. When Cheng-i informed me that there will be another Internet 2 workshop, where only our piece would be performed, I was ecstatic!

I can't even begin to explain how amazing it was to see everything come together. Once we overcame the technical issues, the end result was awesome. At one showing my choreography was being performed internationally: NYC, Norway, and Stockholm.

I can't wait for the next opportunity to work through live stream!

Check out the footage from the workshop: Internet 2 workshop

Reina's Thoughts on Gadgets

I am sitting in my seat on my New York City bound plane, surrounded by upper middle class Jewish kids. One boy to my right is actually throwing a hissy fit because his in-flight entertainment console is not working. Ok, I know how much it sucks when those things do not work. But this kid up until this point was playing on his hand held gaming device. His sister, seated next to him, is fidgeting with an I-pad and I can only imagine what other gadgets he has on him.

The stewardess tries to console him telling him that they are not supposed to work until after take-off. He shrieks, “but his works” as he points to the person seated in front of him. The stewardess replies that what he sees does not indicate that his won’t work after take-off. He was unsatisfied, but there was nothing else to be done at the point.

Of course I was struck by his spoiled attitude, but I also wondered if I am any different? Granted I have a much better attitude, however, I too am connected to my gadgets. I don’t go anywhere without at least one of my devices. My phone, Ipod, and computer can all connect to the Internet through wifi. I am currently typing on my computer while hooked-up to my in-flight entertainment consle, listening to music.

Am I any different?

I have always valued my weekly Sabbath respite from these gadgets, pride myself that I attend a monthly in person book (not nook) club, and appreciate that my profession requires me to move to music in real time and space.

Once again I am reminded what my professors told me before embarking on a dance piece that utilizes technology. Envision a dance whose artistic aesthetic is enhanced by the technology you are using not one that is simply about using technology. I am beginning to believe that this principle should seep into my every day life. Allow the technology to enhance ones life not be its essence.

As I return to my New York City life, final projects, and the beginning of summer, I have started to envision how my days will unfold. I would like to connect to the people and places that are important to me, using technology to get me there, but once there I hope to be fully present and not to still be connected to my devices.  

Reina's Thoughts on the Internet

Over this past Passover Holiday I was able to spend some quality time reading. I came across an old issue of New York Magazine entitled "PORN and Junior-High Culture, the vanishing male libido, and the google of smut plus: Emily Nussbaum on 'Skins' and NC-17 TV." Although I was at first struck by the provocative cover article, the segment on Junior-High culture in this February 7, 2011 issue was very informative.

Time and time again we are hearing about the impact technology and, in particular, the Internet is having on our youth. I have already witnessed how it has affected my generation, no one really talks on the phone anymore people prefer the impersonal nature of texting, relationships are developed on g-chat rather than in person, and the boundary between what is personal and public has been completely blurred by social networking. As an educator who works with K-12 and, part of the Y generation, I am sandwiched in between two realms. I remember, appreciate, and grew up in the times of old, as well as value, understand, and utilize the technologies of new. I am also in direct contact with today’s youth.

Am I expected as a young teacher to help navigate students through this “newish” frontier for them?

Alex Morris, in his article “They Know What Boys Want,” focuses on young teen relationships. He discusses that this generation of kids’ “sexual maturation is inextricably bound up with technology.” They are exposed to more, they have access to more, and they live behind a screen. Morris mentions a teen who ignores her “boyfriend” in public, where they act like they are just friends, but have extremely intimate online conversations. It is as if this generation of youths can only communicate online.

So what is the big deal?

Teens also realize that it is not only easier to communicate online but is also easier to conceal the truth. Words of commitment and devotion can be written and copied to many “girl/boyfriends.” Actual emotions, whether good or bad, are only expressed through emoticons rather than visual confirmations and/or confrontations.

There is so much lost and gained by exposing our children to the Internet, so how do we keep up?


Over this past Passover I had the great opportunity of spending time with my cousins in Israel. They are all Israeli and range from 14 to 2 years of age. Technology exists in each one of their lives in different ways. I had the great pleasure of watching the Disney Channel with my 7-year old cousin. We were watching an episode from the TV series “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.” In that particular episode characters of the show take part in a virtual online community where their self made avatars roam. One character describes it as an online world featuring their better selves. My cousin who was reading the Hebrew subtitles exclaimed that he wanted to join such a community. He immediately went to the Internet to search for it. After a few minutes, he came back to ask me if I could search for the program in English as he was not sure how to spell it. I was all of a sudden searching for “virtual world” and trying to navigate through the hundreds of hits. At some point I stopped and sat my cousin down next to me. I explained to him that what was taking me so much time was that I was trying to find a child appropriate world. He asked me why? I tried to explain to him that just as adults and children visit different places in the real world so too in the virtual world. Fortunately for me, he accepted this explanation. The last thing I needed was for his parents to find out that I gave their 7-year old access to a virtual stripper club or worse. I kept on thinking what would happen if he ended up on the wrong site and interacted with the wrong avatars. Isn’t the nightly news full of these horror stories? At the same time a lot of the kid sites had animal avatars, not realistic looking ones. I finally decided to look up the actual TV episode, I found out that Disney made up the program used on the show that was similar to but not identical to second city, which does not exist for children. After another search, I found something and we began to navigate the program together. Within half an hour my cousin lost interest.

This experience made me think about how I, as an adult, want children to navigate the web. More than anything I have learned that I cannot control what they view, but hopefully I can inform them how to search for appropriate material. 

Recently, I came across an article that uses “Second Life to Enhance Classroom Management Practice in Teacher Education.” 

Reina's Thoughts on Singularity

The February 21, 2011 issue of TIME Magazine was entitled "2045 The Year Man Becomes Immortal*." The asterisk led to the bottom right corner of the cover, "*if you believe humans and machines will become one. Welcome to the Singularity movement." I proceeded to read about and expose myself for the first time to the concept of singularity. The cover article begins with a dictionary definition. "sin·gu·lar·i·ty n: The moment when technological change becomes so rapid and profound, it represents a rupture in the fabric of human history." 

The idea that artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually outperform the capabilities of humans does not surprise me. Right now there exists artificial intelligence that outsmarts humans. For example, Watson the computer that played on Jeopardy! competed against trivia champions. As of now, what remains the same is that these AIs are being programed by man. Technology is not creating original thought nor producing innovative work. What is being suggested by singularists is that by 2015 AI will surpass the brainpower of a mouse, by 2023 surpass the brainpower of a human, and by 2045 surpass the brainpower equivalent to that of all human brains combined! Some even theorize that humans and machines will become one. Man will insert chips into their brains to function better. Eventually the line between human intelligence and artificial intelligence will be blurred.

So how does this affect me as an artist, as a person whose craft is based on creativity, on original thought?

Over the past semester I have embarked on a journey to incorporate technology into my art. My dance and technology professors alike have been warning/reminding me to use technology as a means to enhance my artistic vision, not to become the work. The artistic driving force behind the piece can not be the use of technology. So what happens when technology becomes a part of us? When there is no thought without it?

The article ends with the following thought: "Singularitarianism is grounded in the idea that change is real and that humanity is in charge of its own fate and that history might not be as simple as one damn thing after another." Whether I like it or not technology is changing at a much faster rate then I can keep up. It seems every few months another device is being launched and the current models are becoming outdated, while I struggle to find a way to stay relevant.