My e-lit story!

http://terpconnect.umd.edu/~sroyle/Gemina/Gemina_TitlePage.html

Here is the link to A Pirate’s Life!

Writer: Jason Robinson

Editor: Justin Kanga

Director: Sara Royle

Mathew is known as a modern day Robin Hood in the city of Erlum. Eerlum, once a city of success and growth, has become infected with crime and poverty. As society became more dependent on technology and cyberspace, it became easier for white collar thieves and dirty politicians to gain enormous wealth at the cost of the general public and the health of the city.

Mathew, a naturally righteous and good natured individual, decided to use his gift of hacking to take a stand against the power and money hungry thieves. Thus began the cyber wars.

He began an underground hacking chain that’s purpose is to redistribute the stolen wealth back into the city and ultimately to the people. The Robin Hood Hackers, often referred to as the R.H.H., meet in the basement of an old abandoned elementary school. Only few know of the R.H.H.’s secret center. Located three stories below ground level, the elementary school basement is small but a safe place to hide from corrupt justice officials. If caught in association with the R.H.H one would most certainly be put to death.

Over the years Mathew has made sure his hackers stay safe by adding modifications to the basement. The walls have been lined with Oxyoxlin, a rare material that will prevent any outsider from monitoring or detecting web activity. The entrance of the basement appears dark and abandoned but each hacker knows where the eye scanner is located. After a hacker’s eyes are successfully scanned the door will click open and they can enter what Mathew likes to call the Room of Justice.

Mathew’s corner of the room is piled with stacks of documents on government funds. There is a large rectangular table topped with four computers and their monitors. Three of the four computers are tracking bank records, political activities, and individual threats. The fourth computer is where Mathew completes most of his hacking, addressing the problems highlighted by the tracking computers.

Posted on the wall by his desk are two photographs of his family. Mathew’s wife and daughter are the motivation that drives him to work so hard to try to bring the city back to a place of growth and good health instead of crime and turmoil. His ultimate goal is to create better life for his family.

One of my favorite games to play is Save the Sheriff. On the surface this game seems pretty simple but upon further examination it is evident that parts of the five aspects of morality are embedded in the game. The basic premise of the game is to save the sheriff by dodging several obstacles.

Harm/Care- This is probably one of the main aspects of morality present in this video game. One of the main and most used functions of the player is to kill the snakes and bandits that try to prevent them from advancing. There is definitely a kill or be killed mentality. If the player does not kill or effectively avoid opponents, than they will probably be killed by the bandits and snakes. A player will also gain points every time they kill which definitely adds an incentive to do harm. Care is not as prominent in this game other than in the overall goal of trying to save someone.

Fairness/reciprocity- There is definitely an aspect of reciprocity in this game. Throughout the game the player is given the option to lead a lost bird back to its home. This action would take time, effort, and put the player in more danger, but if the player completes this good deed they will gain a generous amount of points. The game rewards good deeds.

Ingroup/loyalty- There is really no in-group loyalty present in this game. The player works alone and never collaborates with anyone. The only sense of loyalty is towards the sheriff which as an absent character in the game.

Authority/respect- This aspect of morality is not present in the game. The player never encounters anyone who demands authority or respect. Bandits and wild animals are the only interaction available, and these characters are meant to be killed.

Purity/Sanctity- The premise of the game is pure. The main character is playing with the intention of saving a good person from bad people. The only people that the main character kills or hurts are bandits or animals that have the intention of killing first. Although the game may not appear pure because of all the killing, when observed on a deeper level it does have such a component. Even the aspect of rewarding good deeds, such as saving lost birds, reinforces the aspect of purity.

Based on the aspects of morality present in Save the Sheriff I would say that it is a game created for killers and achievers. There are many opportunities to kill opponent for the killers and several point recorded milestones for the achievers.

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5901658/Fire_Story

I decided to create a Wordle of the story I wrote for our week two homework assignments. This Wordle represents the story well. The largest words that appear on the Wordle are Fire, Suit, and Laura. These words accurately represent the main focus of the story which was about a girl named Laura and a fire suit.

The next largest words are started, observation, chamber, demonstration, and window. At first glance these words are difficult to interpret but after reading the story it is clear why they are frequent. The story is centered on testing a fire suit in a chamber for a demonstration which is observed through a window. Another word that appears large is bar. This word seems more random and harder to connect to the other large words. I even had to think about the connection for a moment before I remembered how a metal bar was crucial at one point in the story. In this case the Wordle actually revealed the significance of an object in the story that even I, the author, was not fully aware of.

Some of the much smaller words such as crash, smashed, panic, and screaming suggest that the story has some form of action or drama. This is an accurate portrayal of the overall tone of the story because it is very much centered on action and drama. Not all of the small words were this easy to interpret. The small words such as red, members, research, music and cold seem different and cannot be used to make a fast generalization about the story.

An improvement to a distant reading tool I would suggest would be the addition of a time element. If a program, like Wordle, could categorize the most frequently used words with respect to the time in the story, this would add great insight. With this visualization we could easily discover the differences between the beginning, middle, and end of a story.

“Friendship Bracelet”

http://mith.umd.edu/arguing/admin/items/show/35

From observing this bracelet it is clear that Monica is actually a spy for the Central Intelligence Agency. The old and ratty looking bracelet is just a disguise for a very advanced tracking device. Much like a young James Bond, Monica accepts dangerous missions from the C.I.A. risking her life for the sake of Justice. The danger of the missions is evident in the wear and tear on the bracelet. Upon closer inspection we can see, hidden in the knot on the string, a tracking device. The microchip electronics hidden inside the string help Monica’s C.I.A. handler monitor her heart rate and GPS coordinates. With this technology, they can determine if Monica is injured and her location. Monica claims the bracelet was a present from an old friend which I confidently deem untrue. As we can see in the picture, the bracelet is discolored at some sections and emits a dark halo. These are classic qualities of Type-C Norium, a substance created and used only by the C.I.A.. I would know this because I once was invited to work as a spy for this agency. This bracelet is a great display of modern technology and I hope Monica will post more “innocent looking” items to her archive.

“Tyreese: A New branch of my life!”

http://mith.umd.edu/arguing/admin/items/show/41

This picture may look like a perfectly innocent moment but the truth lies behind the three smiling people. I would like to argue that the basis of this photo is not joy of the arrival of a niece, but in fact an attempt to cover up a terrible accident. With an analytical eye one can clearly discover that the smiles on each face are fake and that all three subjects in the photo are conveniently hovered over the baby to hide the area behind them. The first supporting point of my theory is the red substance that is peeking out from under the man’s chest. This red substance must be blood which is clearly coming from the man. As a face reader, I can tell that behind the man’s smile is pain and anguish. He has clearly been injured. How he got injured is the main focus of the elaborate cover-up. Tyreese and the two other people in the photograph broke their Mom’s favorite antique desk. During the disastrous break the man was injured which explains the blood. As soon as Mom’s footsteps were heard, Tyreese and her partners in crime grabbed the baby and used her as a distraction. Mystery solved!

Tuesday September 11^th, 2001- 9:00am WJLA (USA)

At 9:00 the first twin tower has already been hit. The screen is a live shot of the flaming building. The reporters discuss personal experiences with flying in airplanes around the World Trade Center and with looking down on airplanes from the top floors of the Twin Towers. At around 9:01am the camera zoom’s in on the gaping hole in the side of the building while the reporters discuss possible casualties. They mention that one of the towers had an observation deck which was a popular tourist attraction. At around 9:02 the reporters begin to interview an eyewitness. A few seconds into the interview a plane hits the second building. This footage was captured and aired live so the audience got the immediate reactions of the reporters and the eyewitness in New York. The angle of the live shot was not ideal because the second building was hidden by the first building. The only visible part of the attack was the fireball after the collision. After the second collision the reporters assert that the plane crashes must be a “concerted effort” against the World Trade Center. The next two minutes that follow are replay and analysis of the collision that was caught on tape. The female commentator mentions that a plane was seen in the footage earlier and expressed curiosity in knowing if this was the same plane that just hit the second tower. Throughout this whole five minute section the visual was always footage of the towers.

Monday September 17^th, 2001- 12:00 WJLA(USA)

Immediately it is noticeable that this news segment is much more planned and organized than the live report on September 11^th. The segment is introduced as “America Recovers.” Latest news is outlined on a bulleted slide. These bulleted items are followed by video footage and voice over comments. The first footage shown is Bush shaking hands with federal workers as they head back to work. The voice over mentions that Bush believes the best way to fight back against the terrorist attack is to head back to work and not let the tragedy affect workers.  What follows is footage of the tower ruins while an onsite reporter discusses the rescue and clean-up operations. Lastly the topic of Wall Street re-opening is discussed through voice over as footage of the workers is displayed. The delivery of information in this report was much more organized than the sporadic bursts of information that was given in the initial 9/11 report.

Tuesday September 11^th, 2001- 9:00am BBC (London)

At 9:00am the visual is a live shot of the burning tower. This footage is zoomed in on the large whole in the side of the building. Just like the WJLA footage, only the first tower is actually visible and the second tower is hidden by the first tower. The reporter narrates a vague description of what happened. She states that a plane crashed into the side of the building. She then quotes an eyewitness account stating that the plane was flying low and hit the building at an angle. All the reporter’s comments seem to be very fact based. She does not make many personal comments. She repeats the same facts several times and mentions that there is no information on casualties. A male commentator joins to give the latest update but he basically restates what was already known. At around 9:02 the reporter begins an interview with someone in New York. Just as the reporter introduces the speaker the second tower is hit. There is a delayed reaction from the reporter. The collision was less visible on this station than on WJLA because the frame was zoomed in and part of the explosion was covered by the “Live Breaking News” subtitle box. The eyewitness describes the chaos that is being caused by the second explosion. During this description better footage, showing both burning towers, is displayed on the screen.  For the next two minutes the reporters discuss the damage on the buildings as multiple photographic angles of the buildings are displayed.

Monday September 17^th, 2001- 12:00 BBC(London)

This news report is clearly more organized and planned than the news report on the morning of September 11^th. The report begins with a short summary of what will be discussed in the next section of the news. While the reporter lists the next topics of discussion footage of Wall Street, the World Trade Center ruins, Osama bin Laden, and Virgin Mobile airplanes are shown. This short commercial clip is the first indication of a more structured report. What follows is a live report by an on-site reporter, in front of the tower ruins. This report mentions the Taliban and Osama bin Laden. About minute later information on “Terror in America” is displayed on a PowerPoint like visual while the anchor discusses the main talking points. This segment gave much more information on the disaster than the segment on 9/11.

Comparison of Stations:

Both stations had similar approaches to delivering the news. On both channels footage of the towers was shown the whole time during September 11^th. A main difference I noticed between the American broadcast and the London broadcast was the emotional and personal comments. The American reporters had a more emotional reaction to the second plane crash and made personal comments throughout the report. The BBC reporter only stated facts and did not have any personal information to add about the buildings like the American reporters. The secondary reports on September 17^th were much more similar for both stations.

Sara Royle was born on March 3rd 1993 to David and Rosa Royle. She has an older sister, Amy Royle, of three years. Sara often visits Guatemala to visit her extended family. She is currently studying Fire Protection Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park. One of her favorite hobbies is playing music. Sara began learning the violin at the age of nine and was involved in several youth orchestras throughout her middle school and high school years.

Digital elements to include:

• A picture of me
• A picture of my Dad, Mom, and sister
• A picture of my family and I in Guatemala
• A video of me playing the violin
• A picture of my Potomac Valley Youth Orchestra plaque

The following is a narrative from the perspective of the pig in the video game “Save The Sheriff”

link to the game:  http://www.primarygames.com/arcade/adventure/savesheriff/

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I may be dirty, smelly, and gross; but hey I’m pink. That should count for something, right?

Regardless, I won’t let the human stereotype of pigs hold me back from saving my master. Not only have those scoundrels taken all of the town’s money, they have also taken hostage my town’s beloved sheriff.

Now the robbers will have to face my wrath. The wrath of a small, some would say cute, little pink pig. I am the sheriff’s number one pet and I know I am his only hope; especially since the Humans are currently consumed by panic and disorganization.

Where could those bandits have taken him?  … Only time and adventure will tell.

The Colorado sun is hot and unforgiving. I wish the desert had mud pits, like in the village valley, but any sort of water is painfully absent. My daily mud baths will just have to be put on hold during my search. Apparently my appetite will have to suffer too. I see barley any vegetation for miles and my stomach is already starting to grumble with hunger. In the rush to catch the bandits I forgot to pack a lunch. How uncharacteristic for a pig to forget food! The absence of my master must really be affecting me.

As the day progresses the afternoon heat becomes more intense and the obstacles of the dry desert become ever more present. My stomach is still growling with hunger but I must ignore this discomfort and keep an alert mind. At this point finding food is the least of my concerns.

Frogs and snakes, creatures I already find most abominable, become more vicious and a main enemy in my quest for justice deep in the desert. However, I am no weak individual. With one clean swoop I can eliminate any predator. The element of surprise is the only tactic an attacker can have against me. With every valley I jump, every mountain I climb, and every turn I make, there – waiting for me – are the attacks of villainous desperados.

Even with careful caution I am poisoned by snakes, hit by frogs, and attacked by bandits. I am left paralyzed, to die. But, my will for justice is strong. I will recover and continue my journey into the unknown to prove my loyalty to my town and to my sheriff.

Come with me, to Save the Sheriff.

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