Team Book Project Reflection

My group and I tried to show the concept of semiotics in different situations. We used our different videos as examples of semiotics. Whwether it was a black cat symbolizing superstition, or clothing representing representing an event we used such examples to explain the meaning of semiotics. He also explained semiotics through firstness, secondness, and thirdness.

 

The following are my video screenshots, which represent semiotics in my video BLSBlackCat BLSCrackedScreen BLSLadder BLSSalt

This is the text I wrote for my section of the book:

In this video the artist films people’s reactions to the “Bad Luck Spot.” Their reactions determine whether or not they are superstitious, which is why symbols of superstitious beliefs appear across the screen several times throughout the sequence. One of these symbols happens to be a black cat, which is a major icon of superstition.

In this particular image, a black cat subtlety appears on the screen. The drawn image blends into the background, creating a hidden symbol. Hidden symbols often go unnoticed, but unconsciously symbols tend to register in our mind.

The image, like the video itself contains no added tints because the original colors of the image are bright enough to symbolize the liveliness of this pavement. The video is proof that street art has a massive impact on the decisions that we make.  There is a lot of life happening in response to the “Bad Luck Spot” in the streets of New York.

Paper Towels Going to Waste

Back home I wasn’t required to wash the dishes as often as I do living in the dorms. Any kitchenware that I use needs to be immediately dried after the dishes are washed. The only problem with that is that there is no place for me to lay my dishes out to dry in my small dorm space. I end up having to use paper towels every time I wash a dish.

The amount of paper towels we use per day to dry our dishes is not helping me become a more eco-friendly person.  Before you tell me that I can become more eco-friendly by simply using a towel I would like to say that I’m possibly slightly OCD and I think its one of the most unhygienic things to do in a dorm. I had a white towel, which is currently brown. So a towel isn’t an option either.

The only solution I can think of is having more space for me to leave my things to dry on. I hope that whoever is planning on designing a kitchen space or any dorm in general remember to make space for people to lay out their dishes on.

Water Issues

Going on the ferry field trip today I realized that although New York may not be facing the major water shortage issues very present in Jordan, it still has to deal with water issues. We all live in different countries with different amounts of water available, but we all have to deal with making that water clean and safe. Through complex systems each country develops a way to deal with keeping the water clean.

Keeping the water clean isn’t so simple though. With a fight on both sides, between those who are dumping waste into the water and those trying to keep it clean, we are not going to get anywhere. New York is lucky enough to have plenty of available water, which is why it’s so sad that the water can’t even be kept clean.