“Me”tamorphosis

“Me”tamorphosis

Like a butterfly, I am growing and changing
and searching for my true colors in life.
Soon I will be having my wings
so that I can FLY~

“Me” morphing into a better version of myself, every season, every year (^_^)

Seats of Higher Learning

Every year, thousands of people enter the portals of these higher seats of learning commonly known as colleges or universities. And it’s also every year when thousands of people leave that same portals with a degree already attached into their names. That’s the way it is. But pondering deeply, it’s not as simple as it seems.

So, why do people attend a college or university?

I reckon, it’s a timely question. We are living in the 21st century, everyone! This is the era when everyone is tangled into a competitive jungle and having a college degree seems to be the prerequisite to thrive in that competition. Let’s just say, it makes the people sure-footed and it keeps them standing on the ground. You can never tell the economic situation of the world, hence, we sometimes need something to back us up.

Much being said, a college education indeed plays an important role in one’s personal success. Here are some of the reasons why I think so:

First, it is no secret that most companies (especially the industry giants) throughout the world seeks to hire individuals who are professional in certain fields of expertise. Just like surgeons, diplomats, lawyers, chemists, pilots, engineers and architects. Due to the gravity of these kinds of work, one must be equipped with knowledge and skills from years of study in those specific fields before he or she can be qualified for these jobs. Companies view college degrees as a testament that one is capable for that post.

Let’s face it: no one would normally hire a high school graduate for any of those aforementioned jobs.

Moreover, going to college is like an investment for one’s future. Like I’ve said earlier, it is an assurance if ever things in the corporate market get unstable. Most of the high-paying jobs in the society these days employ college graduates.

Another thing, a lot of students who enter university are still unsure of what they want to be or what they want to do. Many of them often take their education for granted. However, once he or she gets into college, he/she is exposed to a variety of extracurricular activities which would help him/her determine his/her real passion. I guess, college just helps students see past beyond the visible horizon.

Lastly, just the mere fact of earning a college degree brings about an inner satisfaction and pride for an individual. College is the closest resemblance to the real world, hence it is a good practice for young students as they prepare to face the world that awaits them after graduation.

This is just what I think, anyway. I admit there are also some advantages of going into college. But at the end of the day, it is still up to one’s discretion if college would be of much help for one’s future.

The Augmented Reality

This particular blog post is about the cyber-illusionist, Marco Tempest. So what’s so great about him?

Marco Tempest started as a magician based in New York. As time goes by and advances in technology are made, he tries to blend these cutting-edge technology into his creative ideas of illusion and magic. Hence, the name cyber-illusion.

Having a passion for science, illusion and magic, Marco Tempest “explores the borders between technology and magic, between what’s incredibly real and incredibly not.” He experimented with the augmented reality incorporating it with his storytelling and performance skills. And these unusual combinations became his trademark. His creative and innovative ideas have wowed audiences from around the world. He has received a lot of awards and has been featured in TV shows in dozens of countries.

Some people argue that cyber-illusion isn’t art. But other people, like me, believe that it is and Marco Tempest here is in every way an artist. As a matter of fact, I think everything where creativity is showcased can be called an art.

For those of you who didn’t know Marco Tempest yet, you might find it hard to understand what he does. As what was quoted earlier he experiments with reality and illusion. Really, it’s hard to capture into words the innovation that Marco Tempest brings.

By the way, Marco Tempest has had already five talks on TED. But for this post, I chose to feature this particular video because I find what he did here, completely cute and funny. Like his previous performances, I just like to think of this as another authentic……..deception.

Awesome, indeed!

Creating a film which is based on true stories indeed poses a great challenge for its creators. Just like for Rob Legato when he created the special effects for blockbuster films like the Apollo 13, Titanic and Hugo. Now, Apollo 13 and Titanic were both based on real-life stories (Well, for the case of the Titanic, the Jack-and-Rose-love-story may be fictionalized but the tragedy is very real). I think it is interesting to note that Legato had put into consideration the emotions of the viewers as he tried to recreate on the cinemas two of the memorable events in human history.

At the start of the talk he said that he discovered something about the human brain, which is quite true: what we feel alters our perception of things. I had personally watched the three aforementioned films. Legato’s replica of the sunken Titanic is no different from James Cameron’s actual footage of the ship when he went on an expedition miles below the Atlantic. Personally, during the film’s video playback, I could never tell which one is Legato’s model and which one is the real thing. Also I was surprised by the fact that on Apollo 13 no actual footage of the Saturn V mission was used during the filming because usually, film makers do that when they’re trying to put a true story on cinema. As what Ron Howard (Apollo 13 director) said, they basically started from scratch. And it’s amazing how Legato’s replica of the take-off impressed the astronaut Buzz Aldrin! I can say, Rob Legato’ special effects were really good that it almost look authentic for the viewers.