CVL-Caledon Literary Group Transcript for 2018-07-12
Poul Anderson — The Light
| 16:49 | Heart Campfire Cushion - Single - Red Stripes | Hi Wordsmith Jarvinen! Touch me to change pose. Say /1a to Adjust. |
| 16:50 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Hi Val |
| 16:50 | Valibrarian Gregg | Hi Wordsmith- just sending a few last minute reminders |
| 16:50 | Valibrarian Gregg | I should have jotted down the names of those who came last month! I think I forgot |
| 16:51 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Chat log? |
| 16:51 | Valibrarian Gregg | Welcome Galamur |
| 16:51 | Galamur | hi! |
| 16:51 | Valibrarian Gregg | Feel free to sit on the pillows! |
| 16:51 | Valibrarian Gregg | Good to see you |
| 16:52 | Valibrarian Gregg | We will get started shortly |
| 16:52 | Valibrarian Gregg | Wordsmith- we will listen to the story together- right? |
| 16:53 | Galamur | ok |
| 16:53 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Right |
| 16:55 | Galamur | I want to listen |
| 16:56 | Valibrarian Gregg | Great Galamur |
| 16:57 | Valibrarian Gregg | This should be an interesting story :) |
| 16:57 | Valibrarian Gregg | and discussion |
| 16:57 | Valibrarian Gregg | You never know how many will come to summer time events! We had a nice turn out last month :) |
| 16:57 | Valibrarian Gregg | I see Savage is inworld now |
| 16:58 | Valibrarian Gregg | Welcome Savage |
| 16:59 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGBnarDgkoE |
| 16:59 | Valibrarian Gregg | We are going to listen to our story together here around the campfire |
| 16:59 | Valibrarian Gregg | and then Wordsmith will lead our discussion |
| 16:59 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And the actual story starts at 3:00 minutes into it. |
| 16:59 | Valibrarian Gregg | so---- tell us when to begin - ok Wordsmith? |
| 17:01 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | The context in the 1950's when this was written (and then recorded) is the cold war. |
| 17:01 | Savage Taurus | hi Val, hi Wordsmith, hi Galamur |
| 17:02 | Galamur | Hi Savage!! |
| 17:02 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | I don't think the recording uses these terms but "balance of power" and "mutually assured destruction" were key phrases at the time, along with school children learning to hide under desks. |
| 17:02 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Hi Savage and Galamur |
| 17:02 | Valibrarian Gregg | I remember doing that as a young child! (getting under a desk) or at least seeing a video about it |
| 17:03 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | This was also the McCarthy era with the House Committee on unamerican activities witch hunting and blacklists. |
| 17:03 | Savage Taurus | as the movies have taught us, hiding in a refrigerator also will protect you from a nuclear blast |
| 17:03 | Valibrarian Gregg | oh dear! |
| 17:04 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Amazingly, rather like the magic tent in day after tomorrow. |
| 17:04 | Valibrarian Gregg | Welcome Michael |
| 17:04 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | evening |
| 17:04 | Valibrarian Gregg | We are about to start our old time radio story- 3 minutes into this link https://youtu.be/RGBnarDgkoE |
| 17:04 | Savage Taurus | now we live in the Jenny McCarthy era were vaccinations cause autism in celebrities |
| 17:04 | Galamur | I studied it at school |
| 17:05 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | turns off the music |
| 17:05 | Savage Taurus | hi Michael |
| 17:05 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | hello savage |
| 17:05 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Any experience on the best organization, Val. Starting and stopping to discuss or listening through and then discussing or ... |
| 17:05 | Valibrarian Gregg | If you can think of a good stopping point- maybe midway? |
| 17:05 | Valibrarian Gregg | That might work well! |
| 17:05 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Okay. |
| 17:05 | Savage Taurus | when they find that the moon is made of cheese? |
| 17:06 | Valibrarian Gregg | Around 10-11 minutes in? maybe? |
| 17:06 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Val and I are both voice equipped so anyone can yell if they want to discuss something or type in chat. |
| 17:06 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | wait.. the moon isn't made of cheese? |
| 17:06 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | No Grommet, sadly it isn't. |
| 17:06 | Valibrarian Gregg | yes- or you can say "Let's stop" if you get to a point that might make for good discussion! |
| 17:07 | Galamur | ja ja ja Savage |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | i need to go now.. .. this is disappointing |
| 17:07 | Valibrarian Gregg | or questions/ clarifications etc |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | :P |
| 17:07 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | The link again is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGBnarDgkoE |
| 17:07 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And the story itself begins at 3 minutes in |
| 17:07 | Valibrarian Gregg | oh sorry Michael :) Nice to see you |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | hey there |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | lol |
| 17:07 | Valibrarian Gregg | ok- I am going to the 3 minutes mark |
| 17:07 | Valibrarian Gregg | Shall we begin now? |
| 17:07 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | lets |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | talking about the cheese ting Val not this |
| 17:07 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | lol |
| 17:07 | Valibrarian Gregg | great! Oh good! YOu are listening with us! |
| 17:08 | Valibrarian Gregg | Talk soon then |
| 17:08 | Galamur | ok. |
| 17:08 | Savage Taurus | take care Michael |
| 17:08 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | nods |
| 17:08 | Savage Taurus | oh was just a joke? |
| 17:08 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Everyone getting the stream okay? |
| 17:08 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | grrr Wordsmith told me that the moon isn't made of cheese.. so i said that was disappointing i best go |
| 17:08 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | lol |
| 17:08 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | i am |
| 17:09 | Valibrarian Gregg | Welcome quadrapop |
| 17:09 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Connection between science and art? |
| 17:09 | Savage Taurus | it funny how they all talk in that 50s voice |
| 17:09 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | hey a moon of cheese as long as it wasn't one of the smelly ones |
| 17:09 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | would be awesome |
| 17:09 | Savage Taurus | hi quadrapop |
| 17:10 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | imagine a cow big enough.. we're talking good steak |
| 17:10 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Radio link is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGBnarDgkoE 3 minutes in. |
| 17:10 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | Hi Quad |
| 17:10 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Prestige games between countries! |
| 17:10 | Savage Taurus | the art vs science thing is always a bit silly |
| 17:10 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | There, he did say "balance of power" |
| 17:11 | Valibrarian Gregg | yes Balance of Power (Russia or Us) |
| 17:12 | Valibrarian Gregg | They are on the moon! |
| 17:12 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Unlike the landing in 1969, no comm link to Earth. |
| 17:12 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | At least for a little while that's what I believe! (clue) |
| 17:13 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | love the melodramatic orchestra |
| 17:13 | Valibrarian Gregg | hahaha the music! |
| 17:13 | Savage Taurus | I like the sound effects. You don't often get that with in world readings |
| 17:13 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Old style radio drama |
| 17:13 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Notice the repeated comments about "the light"? |
| 17:14 | Savage Taurus | haha commercial break |
| 17:15 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | An interesting point -- time needed to change one's perception to be able to really make sense of what one sees. |
| 17:15 | Savage Taurus | lol using Judas Priest as a curse |
| 17:15 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | blasted too |
| 17:16 | Valibrarian Gregg | "The Light"- the title is described |
| 17:17 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | myst.. wasn't that a 3d exploration game? |
| 17:17 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | It was |
| 17:17 | Savage Taurus | its interesting how many things they got right, like walking in 1/6 G |
| 17:17 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Yes |
| 17:18 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And here's the unexpected. |
| 17:18 | Savage Taurus | and no atmosphere |
| 17:18 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Need more discussion at this point? |
| 17:18 | Valibrarian Gregg | Let us know if you want us to stop the video |
| 17:18 | Valibrarian Gregg | or type right through |
| 17:19 | Savage Taurus | I listened to it before, so this is my second listening |
| 17:19 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Typing currently seems to be working, but anyone wanting more just holler. |
| 17:19 | Valibrarian Gregg | ok |
| 17:19 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Anderson captures the ability of humans to argue. |
| 17:19 | Valibrarian Gregg | Court marshall me later if you want! |
| 17:19 | Savage Taurus | true |
| 17:20 | Savage Taurus | interesting fact., NASA is a branch of the military |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | no it's not |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | lol |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | army |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | navy |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | air force |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | normally us marines |
| 17:22 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And notice this story is told / narrated after the fact. |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | and nominally coast guard |
| 17:22 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | but NASA is not military |
| 17:22 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | cavorite? (Jules Verne) |
| 17:23 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Leonardo_da_Vinci_Virgin_of_the_Rocks_%28National_Gallery_London%29.jpg/800px-Leonardo_da_Vinci_Virgin_of_the_Rocks_%28National_Gallery_London%29.jpg |
| 17:23 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | "The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research." |
| 17:23 | Savage Taurus | ah thanks Wordsmith |
| 17:23 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | more like the EPA |
| 17:24 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | oh that's tragic |
| 17:24 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | a character in my novel Knight Raven |
| 17:24 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | is Wolfsbane |
| 17:24 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | So, an interesting twist on someone got here first. And who, and how it was recognized. |
| 17:25 | Valibrarian Gregg | wow- done....that was interesting |
| 17:25 | Valibrarian Gregg | the music and narration added to it |
| 17:26 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | smiles very cool stuff you all.. when you want to do the detective ones like The Shadow or Doc Savage.. i'd be game for that |
| 17:26 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | So sci-fi not focused on battles or details of technology but asking as "what if". |
| 17:26 | Valibrarian Gregg | The image you shared, Wordsmith- the rocks- can you explain how it relates? |
| 17:26 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | That's the painting he mentioned right at the end. |
| 17:26 | Valibrarian Gregg | oh yes! |
| 17:26 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | That blueish light |
| 17:27 | Valibrarian Gregg | and you mentioned Jules Verne- Cavorite- is that a story? |
| 17:27 | Valibrarian Gregg | I just finished "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"- for the first time! |
| 17:27 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | A hard light, not diffuse, but cast sharp shadows. |
| 17:28 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_the_Earth_to_the_Moon |
| 17:28 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Verne's from the Earth to the Moon |
| 17:28 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | and Cavorite being a mineral that disobeys gravity |
| 17:29 | Michael Romani (michaelromani) | aww you all have a great night.. I'm being messaged to death about some sort of writing project.. nite and aloha |
| 17:29 | Valibrarian Gregg | Yes! I have heard that Jules Verne really got some technology predictions pretty close to what happened. |
| 17:30 | Valibrarian Gregg | So- you mentioned this story THE LIGHT was not the usual (focus on tech) but asks what if? How would you complete this question? WHAT IF..... ? I mean what was Poul Anderson seeking here? |
| 17:30 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And Cavorite from H.G. Wells. |
| 17:31 | Valibrarian Gregg | oooh cool- I just found Cavorita :) from Dr. Cavor https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cavorite |
| 17:31 | Valibrarian Gregg | *Cavorite not Cavorita! |
| 17:31 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Basing a story on "is there another way to skin a cat" on propulsion. |
| 17:32 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_First_Men_in_the_Moon |
| 17:32 | Savage Taurus | well the more recent focus on space battles, know as space operas, are just a small part of the sci fi genre |
| 17:33 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Yes, I'm generally frustrated by the sparsity of themes that go into movies. |
| 17:33 | Valibrarian Gregg | and don't you think SCI FI is getting really focused on artificial reality? currently? (the new Blade Runner movie) |
| 17:33 | Valibrarian Gregg | Right- but movies are very driven by mainstream popularity |
| 17:33 | Valibrarian Gregg | Not too many "literary" focused movies |
| 17:34 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Matrix movies, and more ones inside VR |
| 17:34 | Valibrarian Gregg | I recently found two Faulkner books made in to movies by James Franco. surprise! |
| 17:35 | Savage Taurus | yea I'm getting a bit tired of robot movies as well |
| 17:35 | Valibrarian Gregg | yes VR is getting all the hype!!! Do you sometimes feel people think VR is so cool but have no clue about the advantages of virtual worlds? |
| 17:35 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Or the limitations -- currently |
| 17:35 | Valibrarian Gregg | At this point in time. .. virtual worlds have WAY more to offer than VR headsets |
| 17:35 | Savage Taurus | I think the term virtual reality gets used in so many different ways |
| 17:36 | Valibrarian Gregg | yet- I have yet to bring teacher colleagues in here (that steep learning curve they always mention) |
| 17:36 | Savage Taurus | yes i agree...a simple 3d environment on a flat screen is all you need |
| 17:36 | Valibrarian Gregg | true Savage...I suppose you could call sitting around this campfire "VR" |
| 17:36 | Savage Taurus | there are some 3d worlds now that are very simple |
| 17:37 | Valibrarian Gregg | yet we divide digital spaces: virtual worlds, virtual reality, augmented reality |
| 17:37 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Haven't watched it yet, but a movie I ran into on Amazon. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B06Y26DJQ5/ref=atv_wtlp_wtl_12 |
| 17:37 | Savage Taurus | I think augmented reality will become a much bigger thing because people are addicted to their phones |
| 17:37 | Valibrarian Gregg | yes- the web-based virtual worlds like Cybalounge and 3dwebworldz (Community Virtual Library has space there) |
| 17:38 | Valibrarian Gregg | BETA- looks like an interesting movie! |
| 17:39 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Add it to my watch list ... Now if I quite building so much in Blender and SL, and actually watch it..... |
| 17:39 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | *quit building. |
| 17:39 | Valibrarian Gregg | Hard to find time! yes Wordsmith |
| 17:40 | Valibrarian Gregg | Sometimes I think people use phones for what I call "disposable media" just scrolling scrolling and swiping (delete)....but in a virtual world there is "intentional immersion". more real purpose |
| 17:40 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Tron was early VR, and I recall a 2nd "sky kids" movie -- "Game Over" |
| 17:41 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | "Spy kids" (not sky) |
| 17:41 | Savage Taurus | https://hubs.mozilla.com/0e6c5hsfthv/naras-nook |
| 17:41 | Valibrarian Gregg | yes- Many videogame movies...are in the VR genre |
| 17:41 | Savage Taurus | unfortunately, that one requires a mic...no text |
| 17:42 | Valibrarian Gregg | /me will look into Nara's Nook later thanks |
| 17:42 | Savage Taurus | but its representative of what simple web based VR worlds will be soon |
| 17:42 | Savage Taurus | you can enter it in seconds |
| 17:42 | Savage Taurus | I'm in there now |
| 17:43 | Valibrarian Gregg | Have you watched any "Black Mirror" episodes (speaking of SCI-Fi and phone addiction & VR) |
| 17:43 | Savage Taurus | I haven't |
| 17:44 | Valibrarian Gregg | Black Mirror is really dark.....like the Twilight Zone for digital culture |
| 17:44 | Valibrarian Gregg | Welcome Hannah |
| 17:44 | Valibrarian Gregg | We are discussing sci-fi stories and movies :) |
| 17:44 | Valibrarian Gregg | as well as VR! |
| 17:45 | Savage Taurus | oh it has real time shadows too..nice |
| 17:45 | Savage Taurus | hi Hannah |
| 17:45 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | /me waves hello |
| 17:45 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Hi Hannah |
| 17:45 | Valibrarian Gregg | and...in case any of you are interested- our CVL book of the month is Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea! (discussion will be July 27 6pm) |
| 17:45 | Valibrarian Gregg | so Naras Nook is an open sim type virtual world |
| 17:45 | Savage Taurus | your name is a palindrome |
| 17:46 | Savage Taurus | well yes Nara's Nook is an open sim grid |
| 17:46 | Savage Taurus | the link I sent you was just a 3d meeting place using webgl |
| 17:47 | Savage Taurus | right in the browser |
| 17:47 | Valibrarian Gregg | I really liked listening to the story together this time! Made for a great experience |
| 17:48 | Savage Taurus | yes it was nice to listen to the story and discuss it at the same time |
| 17:48 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | There's been some interesting research on remote haptic senses. Applications like being able to buy fabric remotely and being able to judge the "feel" and draping of the fabric. |
| 17:49 | Valibrarian Gregg | wow Wordsmith- imagine how that will change shopping probably- Amazon is already taking over mall shopping! |
| 17:50 | Valibrarian Gregg | I can bet even the sense of smell will be implanted in VR |
| 17:51 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | A controlled scent release mechanism. |
| 17:52 | Valibrarian Gregg | Even now- movies have such high quality visuals...nature sometimes pales in comparison! |
| 17:52 | Savage Taurus | oh god not smell-o-vision |
| 17:52 | Savage Taurus | I hated cinemas in theme parks with that |
| 17:52 | Savage Taurus | breathing in weird smelly chemicals |
| 17:53 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | pizza ads will become impossible to resist |
| 17:53 | Savage Taurus | I think the chemistry of the molecules is too complex to replicate every scent effectively |
| 17:53 | Valibrarian Gregg | Have you all heard of the Virtual World MOOC taking place next month (all of August)? |
| 17:54 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | no |
| 17:54 | Valibrarian Gregg | I am think our Literary Study group in August might coincide- so I can promote to the mooc...sound good? |
| 17:54 | Savage Taurus | sure |
| 17:54 | Valibrarian Gregg | Wordsmith...did we talk about this story for August? STORY: The Love Letter by Jack Finney |
| 17:55 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | That would be a good one. |
| 17:55 | Valibrarian Gregg | I think sharing with the VW MOOC would be a good way help people know about the short story discussions. |
| 17:55 | Valibrarian Gregg | Dropping you the nc for Aug 6 |
| 17:56 | Savage Taurus | thanks |
| 17:56 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | yes, being able to pull in from a larger audience. |
| 17:56 | Valibrarian Gregg | Wordsmith- is The Love Letter as SCI-FI story? |
| 17:56 | Savage Taurus | in The Light, I felt the idea of Da Vinci visiting the moon too far fetched...it made me laugh |
| 17:57 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | It is, in that it it's a "time travel" theme. |
| 17:57 | Valibrarian Gregg | so maybe THE LIGHT was more fantasy? :) |
| 17:57 | Savage Taurus | wondering which space craft he used...this one https://globalizationicas.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/img-mid-market.jpg |
| 17:57 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | And Finney is considered to be among the Sci-Fi writers. |
| 17:58 | Valibrarian Gregg | oh great- I will mention the time-travel focus in the MOOC promo. |
| 17:58 | Savage Taurus | or this one http://matznerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Leonardo_da_Vinci_helicopter.jpg |
| 17:58 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | "The Light" has a bit of a Steampunk aspect to it. |
| 17:58 | Valibrarian Gregg | Leonardo da Vinci was pretty cross curricular-- art/math/science- amazing |
| 17:58 | Valibrarian Gregg | oh yes I can see the Steampunk feel |
| 17:59 | Valibrarian Gregg | and I just watched the Disney version of 20000 leagues under the sea- first thing I thought of was Steampunk. |
| 17:59 | Savage Taurus | yes very steam punk |
| 18:00 | Valibrarian Gregg | Don't you think sharing some of these old sci-fi stories is really as important as learning history? |
| 18:00 | Valibrarian Gregg | Literature does influence us all :) |
| 18:00 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | But then, so would Jules Verne and H.G. Wells. |
| 18:00 | Savage Taurus | yes I like reading old sci fi |
| 18:01 | Valibrarian Gregg | I hope we can find another audio one too!! |
| 18:01 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Here's a short video on the HapTex project that ended in 2007 on virtual fabric. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ibr-1qe6xFw |
| 18:01 | Savage Taurus | frankenstein was true science fiction, based on new science of the time |
| 18:01 | Valibrarian Gregg | Thanks so much for facilitating, Wordsmith. You do a really great job |
| 18:01 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Thanks. I'll look for some more audio ones |
| 18:02 | Valibrarian Gregg | excellent! |
| 18:02 | Valibrarian Gregg | I must head out now.... |
| 18:02 | Valibrarian Gregg | good night to you all! |
| 18:02 | Savage Taurus | take care Val |
| 18:02 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | gn |
| 18:02 | Valibrarian Gregg | and I look forward to next time :) |
| 18:03 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | /me waves bye |
| 18:03 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | tc all. Journey well. |
| 18:03 | Hannah (hannahferalcat) | sorry i was late :) |
| 18:03 | Savage Taurus | bye Hannah |
| 18:03 | Savage Taurus | glad you were here |
| 18:03 | Valibrarian Gregg | no problem Hannah- glad you came! |
| 18:03 | Valibrarian Gregg | bye now |
| 18:03 | Savage Taurus | take care Wordsmith |
| 18:04 | Wordsmith Jarvinen | Thanks for all you add, Savage. |
| 18:04 | Savage Taurus | thanks for hosting |
| 18:04 | Savage Taurus | see you next time |
