by Chris Billowsin Republic of Bloggers0 commentstags: Defining Life, Human Condition, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
Thank you Chris for inviting others to suggest a topic for your Virtuous Cyborg project and thank you for your treatment of my suggestion on nostalgia. Your post elicited my own nostalgic experience. It is as if you mentioning Micronauts acted as a chemical trail to other memories such other action figures, comics, Choose Your Own Adventure, D&D, and Fighting Fantasy. I remember vividly being at home during the summer break in 1982, lying on a bed, watching music videos on a small box television, and playing Final Fantasy/Sorcery books. It was one of those moments in time that is seared in my mind and brings a smile. Thinking about the past in this way initiates a sub-routine program in myself. This is not simply a bunch of electrons firing off, there is an actual change in my mood which has been documented in people who are exposed to nostalgia. There is no doubt that computers are chemical creations (drawing a circuit board alters the state of it) and I would propose that establishing nostalgia is like the etching of a circuit board in our nervous system. We know that nostalgia makes us emotionally settled but what is it […]
by Chris Billowsin Playstates Theory0 commentstags: Playstates, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
An open letter to Chris Bateman responding to his blog-letter The Language of Games at Only A Game as part of the Republic of Bloggers. Feel welcome to provide your own input via the Comments! Dear Chris, I agree with you that language is important and is part of the reason we have some of the turf wars taking place in Game Development. By not agreeing on terms, limiting if you will, we end up arguing over things that should have been settled. In the music industry, we see accepted practices like pitch; keys, and time signatures. Yet despite a common language and tool set, we see new music being created all of the time. Limits help creativity. How else can we explain that with 26 letters we can write so much? I think that placing limits can paradoxically lead to a kind of liberation. Below I respond to specific points in your blog-letter: You wrote: ” I personally find this a fascinating perspective, particularly because I have not encountered this before.” I find this to be surprising since I consider my point that games are about the play of measurement to be a elucidation on your definition […]
by Chris Billowsin Mental Mischief, Republic of Bloggers0 commentstags: Blogging, Human Condition, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
An open letter to Chris Bateman responding to his blog-letter Top Ten Cybergs at Only A Game as part of the Republic of Bloggers. Feel welcome to provide your own input via the Comments! Dear Chris, What an great concept. It makes so much sense to link human networks with its inherent technology. The term Cyberg emphasizes the linked aspect of humanity, technology, and networks. It got me thinking about some additional Cyberg applications that were not included in your list, but I’m not sure where would these fit in your hierarchy of top Cybergs. I think that a few of them may warrant some attention. 1) Literacy Literacy is a tool and technology to symbol understanding. I think it might be the very first connection system, being one of the fundamental pillars that supports civilization. While this technology is not cyber based it is definitely a network that communicates ideas and thoughts. 2) Toys Toys, like Literacy appears to be older than any of the other cybergs as it is so fundamental to human and animal development. While it is not a network, I think the the fact that it is shared cross-species, it is as if […]
by Chris Billowsin Playstates Theory, Political Ponderings, Republic of Bloggers2 commentstags: Blogging, Human Condition, Political Opinion, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
Brian Green wrote on his Psychochild blog an interesting post about how MMO games are a means to understanding Socialism. First of all, its an interesting post to just think about games in terms of political economics. Second of all, I think Brian makes a typical mistake of associating positive qualities with something he favors, known as the Halo Effect. Games as Socialism… I’ve run into an interesting situation with some people in FFXIV. Many times people have needed items which I have gladly been able to provide (or acquire easily), but people feel bad taking the items from me. They insist on paying for the items somehow, or they want to trade. One friend said she felt bad always asking me for stuff, even if I offer on a regular basis. I wanted to take a look at this, and look at why it really didn’t bother me to offer these items or services to others. Why I’m a big-hearted socialist in MMOs. Okay, I used “the scary S-word” in the title. Intentionally. 😉 Since many Americans have a terrible understanding of what socialism is, let me give a basic definition here. This delves into some economic theory, […]
by Chris Billowsin Republic of Bloggers0 commentstags: Blogging, Change of Mind, Comprehensive Analysis, Human Condition, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
An open letter to Chris Bateman responding to his blog-letter Wherefore Philosophy? Whence Emotions? at Only A Game as part of the Republic of Bloggers. Feel welcome to provide your own input via the Comments! Dear Chris, Thank you for your letter as it was written with such care and attention I could really see your passion for your discipline of Philosophy and your commitment to virtuous discourse. It was heart-warming and welcome. I do feel that you have interpreted my articulated disinterest in the discipline of Philosophy as some kind of failure on my part. There are many topics in the world that we can readily admit to having little interest in knowing more about it, or in actively engaging with it. My interest in this discussion was to see if I could articulate my disinterest to a spectrum of Philosophy. Yet, as I think about it I’m not really disinterested in Philosophy. Disinterest is actually the bane of an engaged person. What I did was think deeply about why when I think of Philosophy (the Discipline) it holds little appeal to me. Most people would just accept their apathy and not even engage with it. I chose to […]
by Chris Billowsin Republic of Bloggers0 commentstags: Human Condition, Republic of Bloggers, Virtuous Discourse
An open letter to Chris Bateman responding to his blog-letter Wisdom in Practice at Only A Game as part of the Republic of Bloggers. Feel welcome to provide your own input via the Comments! Dear Chris, Thank you for your response on December 8, 2015. My apologies for the tardiness of my reply. It is an undertaking to write a response that captures something I feel convinced off but struggled to articulate, especially something that I find to be complex. These letters have offered an opportunity to validate my biases and convictions so many thanks for engaging with me on this matter. We both agree that Modern Philosophy does have practices where smartness is placed above wisdom (the tone of your response in places is *smart*, but that’s fair given you’re a Philosopher practicing in Modern times – Ha!). It is at these times I would argue that Modern Philosophy could be ‘missing the boat’ despite claiming to be a vehicle of transport. Modern Philosophy is a cognitive exercise, which you consider to be a virtue as it provides a playground for nerds, intellectuals, and thinkers. This is the rub for me. While I value the cognitive intellect, I do […]
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