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As I become older, more mature with society, almost everyday I am amazed about our life on this galaxy and I always ask myself could their really be more life forms somewhere out there. This movie made me believe it even more. Although I had no idea what mumbo jumbo Jodie Foster was talking about with her astronautical terms, I was still excited to see what was going to happen when she would come in contact with a outside life form.
I was confused when Matthew McConaughey asked Jodie if she believed in God. It makes more sense to me that they send someone to meet the others with someone who didn't have beliefs so they could understand the people of our planet. I won't put in my personal beliefs, but I just wanted to state an opinion.

I Am Legend

This is the other movie that our group decided to do a project on. Since both movies were based on the same book, this movie also had the same plot as "The Omega Man," except the zombies could not talk (which made me a little upset). This version was very depressing because Neville had a family and they died in a helicopter accident, what a terrible way to die. But Neville decides to stay and help survivors of the disease even though he is the only person in New York. I like this movie a little bit more because there wasn't a mixed media of ideals oh humans and zombies like in the other movie.
Will Smith makes this movie worth watching. Compared to "The Omega Man," this guy can actually ACT. The movie wasn't as funny as Omega, but it was still very enjoyable because of the special effects of the zombies and what New York would look like if it was abandoned. It was really well done.

Ender's Game (end)

I wish this book was a movie, but then again it would be a really long movie that would eventually not make sense. I liked the novel in the beginning because it reminded me a lot of the Harry Potter. The adventures in the battleroom. the administrator's techniques for Ender, and Ender's emotions wanted me to read a lot more.....for a while. Once Ender was transferred into Command school, I was lost.
The Demosthenes and Locke bothered me because Valentine kept complaining about her character and her hate for Peter when she could've just said no to him. The ansible confused me. I knew what it meant, but I didn't understand why they were mentioning it so much. I also couldn't understand the simulations at the Command school. If the simulations were real, how could they move without feeling anything. Or were they moving? I don't know.

The Omega Man

(Austin Powers' stunt double)

This movie was one of the two project on. The first movie we saw was "The Omega Man." This movie was about Dr. Neville, who found the cure for this 'zombie-like' disease that spread like wild fire. It eventually took over the human race and the cure wasn't able to reach anybody because Neville became the "last man on Earth". Neville didn't get the disease because he shot himself up with the vaccine and survived. He later on found other survivors who had successfully ran away from it all but they still needed the cure. Neville gave it to them by drawing his blood but sadly died from trying to fight off the zombie people.

This movie was terrible/weird. It is more interesting than "I Am Legend" only because there was some funny dialogue. Neville talks to himself way too much. It is understandable that you would go a little bit crazy if you had no one to talk to, but his crazy is something you would find in, "Acting for Dumbies." It was a good laugh though.

Ender's Game

Ender's Game is one of those books where you have to read it over twice to understand what they are talking about. Despite all the confusion I go through reading this book, I really like it. It reminds me of Harry Potter a lot, which makes things easier for me to understand. Ender reminds me of myself because he can excel in a lot of categories which the Battle School loves, but he doesn't know what to do with his intelligence sometimes. I do the same thing when it comes to athleticism. I learn from watching others and beating them because I know their strengths and weaknesses in a matter of minutes (it's cool I know). That is what makes me keep turning the page because it relates to the fantasy movies that I love and it relates to myself very well.

The Thing

WHY?! Why did this movie have to be so disgusting and strange?! The movie was pretty good but nothing that I could believe in. I can honestly say that after watching this movie, I do know that this could not happen. But if somehow it did, the species would be wiped out completely if it came close to heavier populated civilization.
I am surprised that we watched this movie in class because most of the movie that we watch have a purpose. The Thing was mostly about horror and crazy people with crazy names. I did enjoy the movie though. It kept me interested with the nonstop mutating of aliens, my love of digs, and of course Kurt Russell.

Aliens Essay

Like the author of this essay, I also believed that aliens were real. When I was little,  I would watch E.T. all the time because I wanted to have a friend from another world. Steven Spielberg created something that everyone could have suspected that almost makes me believe that if we encountered an alien, we would not be scared or surprised. I also think that aliens could only be a mere fantasy. I do believe that there is another form of life somewhere out there, but they would never find us and we would never find them.
I agreed with this essay because the author used many resources and used personal experiences that made me move to a certain side of believing in extra terrestrials. He mentions that most of our beliefs from aliens come from the media. How we expect them to look, eat, and act is all based off of other people's ideas. I agree to this statement because even though E.T. was awesome, he wasn't real. He was a creation from what we would want to see. But it was still a great movie.

Sandkings

One of the most horrifying stories I have ever read, Sandkings by George R.R. Martin was freakishly amazing. His details about the sandkings eating dead bodies and morphing into human form made me squirm and constantly itch. I have a fear of bugs crawling on me during the night and this story will surely give me nightmares. Martin's main character, Simon Kess, also made me hallucinate a little bit. Since I am so terrified of creepy crawlers, I could put myself in Kess' position and witness the horrific events. 

What was very interesting to me also was Martin's futuristic "tools". For example the skimmer which was a hovering car and skinthins which I still do not understand what they are, were things that I noticed. In the beginning of the story I wasn't very interested in Kess' animals so I suddenly dozed off (as always when I read any book). But once I started getting into it and trying to understand it, let's just say that I am still itching.

GE WattStation

 Over the week, while I was researching my topic about EV (electric vehicle) charging stations, I stumbled upon the Ecomagination website. If you don't know about the Ecomagination Challenge, it is a quest to find the best projects to help our world become a cleaner one. GE and other companies funded $200 million into this program. There are many innovative projects for Ecomagination, but I only paid attention to this charging station. Designed by Yves Behar, this easy access charging station was created to make charging more realistic, fun, and interesting rather than a chore at the gas station. These stations will be places in parks, stores, or you can even buy one for the house. There will also be an iPhone application that will help find a charging station in your area. When charging at the station, it will be the same as at a gas station. All you have to do it park the car, slide your credit card which unlocks the handle, and plug it into your car. The screen at the top tell you where you are from full charge. For example, if the screen says 82%, it will also tell you that you have 45 minutes from full charge. Yes it does take a long time to charge, but like a cell phone, it is rare when you run on empty because the battery lasts for song long. The best part is the cost per kWhr. It is less than a dollar! I think I might just go and get an electric car after college.

Technologic

Like the baby in this picture, Americans are too dependent on technology. After watching 2001: A Space Odyssey, I realized how much I rely on my phone and my car. If those important “necessities” ever shut down or suddenly wanted to kill me, I would freak out and only worry about my technology than the rest of the world and it’s horrific problems. Then after reading Malcolm’s rant in Jurassic Park about how science is raping the natural world, it made me open my eyes to how corrupt our society is in the future as being technology everywhere and no one wants to mention the dangerous risks to using it. There are some benefits of technology in emergency situations and for medical purposes, but when it comes to entertainment, Americans don’t even bother to go outside for fresh air, they would rather play video games or keep up on their Facebook pages.

What would happen if all of our technology necessities suddenly disappeared? Would we have more healthy lifestyles or try to recreate our prized possessions? I believe that someone, maybe me, will soon step up and say enough is enough and that we need to start becoming a healthier future.

GATTACA

To me, this futuristic movie about changing DNA strands to create the best human being ever was too boring. Once I heard the meanings behind some of the scenes, the movie started to get really interesting. For instance the stair case as being Jerome's double helix and he has to stay at the bottom and Vincent stands at the top made me curious about how we could change someones identity like in Gattaca in the present. All you need is urine and blood and your problems are solved. That just made me think of an idea. What if someone used that technique to be someone else right now, like being someone else for a day. I would want to try that.

Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein (pronounced as Fraaankenschteene)

One of my favorite movies growing up, Young Frankenstein, was watched in my sci-fi class last week. Gene Wilder is an actor that I love. His screaming vocals in almost every scene is so intriguing to me. In this movie he plays the mad scientist Dr. Frankenstein (pronounced Fraankenschteene) who travels to his grandfather's lab and creates his own monster. The movie is nothing like the story. I think that is why I like this more because there is intentional comedy. The science elements in it are not explained into huge details but its the same as all the other Frankenstein movies by using electricity. Overall, the movie is a classic and a must see.

The ATOMIC Cafe

The atomic bomb was on of the dumbest inventions ever made. No one deserves to contain that much power. The bomb lead to chaos in the world and other bombs that could destroy the whole world. The movie, "Atomic Cafe," explained how U.S. citizens were brainwashed into thinking that atomic bombs and a friend and not a foe. It was quite comical. When they showed the "duck and cover" instructional video, I was thinking, oh yeah this is really going to save your life from a bomb. Then I started crying from laughing so hard.

Chicago's Greenest Home

     Recently in my sci-fi class, we have been researching technology topics that relates to science fiction. The first thing that came to my mind was this house. This is the greenest house in Chicago at the science museum. The reason it is the greenest is because it is run on many types of renewable energy resources like solar and wind. The most interesting part of the house is the newest technology that is used in the house. The most interesting piece of technology was an electric plug that didn't require a plug. It looks like a wooden cutting board on a kitchen countertop, but it was actually electromagnetic coils underneath. You can put any object that requires electricity by simply placing it on the board and it will turn on. This isn't even in the market yet and I got to see it. It was a fascinated tool to witness. However, I decided my technology project to be about public electric car chargers.

Mary Shelly's FRANKENSTEIN

  

     In this 1994 drama/horror film, Victor Frankenstein (Kenneth Branagh) creates an experiement that shames himself and his family. This mad scientist creates a monster (Robert De Niro) that Frankenstein is horrified by and he soon abandons that creature soon after he creates it. The monster is on his own growing up to find that humans are horrified by him and he starts revenge on Frankenstein.

    The monster starts going on a killing rant, murdering Frankenstein's brother, wife, father and close family member. Frankenstein then dies trying to run away from the horrifying creature. Then only short minutes after, the monster dies with his father by burning himself.
   In my opinion, this movie was not very well directed. The acting was over dramatic and the details in the killing scenes and in the creature was too much for me to handle. This movie also had accidental humor for it's over-the-top scenes and awkward situations. However, I would recommend this movie to others because of its outrageous acting is a must-see.

What was that one movie where the Earth stood still?

In our recent movie, "The Day the Earth Stood Still," many things ran through my noggin when I was watching the movie. Here is a quick review of the movie:

  The movie takes place in Washington in 1951 when atomic bombs were being created and further experimented. At a random time and day, a UFO comes flying down onto a baseball park. The people of Earth are in a panic because of the alien. The "army people" take the alien to a private room and a general tries to talk to him. He presents himself as Klaatu and explains that he needs to talk to all of the nations in the world because the planet is it great danger. The general refuses his request and Klaatu decides to leave. In the end, the "army people" decide to kill him but he comes back to life through his robot friend, Gort. Klaatu then gives the Earth a decision to stop making atomic bombs, or die from an explosion.

Pretty intense stuff. 

I thought the movie was very good. They used pretty decent futuristic ideas and special effects. Since this was one of the first sci-fi movies, the belief that aliens were coming to destroy the world was extremely over dramatic but it is understandable because we thought that hiding under a desk would save us from an atomic bomb. There was a lot of accidental comedic relief which I really enjoyed.  Overall, I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone because this is one of the most popular sci-fi movies ever and I believe that everyone should watch it. :]