I seriously just flipped out when I clicked on the link and found it was XKCD (my favorite webcomic ever-- sometime last year I decided to start from the beginning and read all of them, and so far I'm at 900. Maybe I'm obsessed, but look! Now it's even teacher approved!)
The nostalgia cycle is intriguing to me-- how people are talking about how horrible modern society is and wishing for the "old days," even though people have been wishing for the old days since, well, the old days. I actually thought of a similar paradox recently: when swing dance was invented, it was considered scandalous. Now swing dance is taught in junior high gym class, and certain *other* forms of dance recently invented are seen as inappropriate and corrupting America's youth. Does that mean that someday the aforementioned dance styles will be readily accepted by everyone, and new, even crazier styles will emerge to take their place? If so, I almost think I should be scared for the future.
You are officially the most well-read XKCD'er I know! Here's a thought regarding the past, present, and future: what if we're not passive spectators, but actively CREATING our experience of each (i.e., memories, moment-by-moment decisions, and intentions/expectations) as we go along? This is a rich topic worth discussing further here and in class...
For sure, I definitely think that people experience eras in vastly different ways depending on age, circumstance, and emotional state. Maybe that's what causes the nostalgia cycle-- children tend to see the good parts of the world while adults tend to see more of the bad, making it seem like the years spent during one's childhood/young adulthood (the "old days") were better than one's older adulthood when looking back.
On the topic of XKCD, can you believe that "Time" is STILL going? I've been following the flash animation version for weeks :D
I seriously just flipped out when I clicked on the link and found it was XKCD (my favorite webcomic ever-- sometime last year I decided to start from the beginning and read all of them, and so far I'm at 900. Maybe I'm obsessed, but look! Now it's even teacher approved!)
ReplyDeleteThe nostalgia cycle is intriguing to me-- how people are talking about how horrible modern society is and wishing for the "old days," even though people have been wishing for the old days since, well, the old days. I actually thought of a similar paradox recently: when swing dance was invented, it was considered scandalous. Now swing dance is taught in junior high gym class, and certain *other* forms of dance recently invented are seen as inappropriate and corrupting America's youth. Does that mean that someday the aforementioned dance styles will be readily accepted by everyone, and new, even crazier styles will emerge to take their place? If so, I almost think I should be scared for the future.
You are officially the most well-read XKCD'er I know! Here's a thought regarding the past, present, and future: what if we're not passive spectators, but actively CREATING our experience of each (i.e., memories, moment-by-moment decisions, and intentions/expectations) as we go along? This is a rich topic worth discussing further here and in class...
DeleteFor sure, I definitely think that people experience eras in vastly different ways depending on age, circumstance, and emotional state. Maybe that's what causes the nostalgia cycle-- children tend to see the good parts of the world while adults tend to see more of the bad, making it seem like the years spent during one's childhood/young adulthood (the "old days") were better than one's older adulthood when looking back.
DeleteOn the topic of XKCD, can you believe that "Time" is STILL going? I've been following the flash animation version for weeks :D