Nihilism is usually a word thrown around by philosophy students who have read too much Albert Camus. But lately, it’s been the source of internet entertainment for a number of memers.
Existential nihilism, a branch of nihilism that states that human existence is devoid of all meaning and value, is supplying the internet with a seemingly endless amount of jokes about “staring into the abyss” — an allusion to Nietzsche’s infamous quote “And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you,” — and about death being the only escape.Continue reading →
If you are one of the lucky ones who have purchased Kylie Jenner’s new (and sold out) lip glosses in early April, your lip gloss wands now probably look a cheap 99 cent store knockoff. If you complained about the quality of the high profile makeup line, you are not the only one.
But, it only took one complaint from Jeffree Star, a popular makeup artist and founder of Jeffree Star Cosmetics for Kylie to actually step up and take action on her defective products.
Virtual reality has finally become a reality — and its cooler than we imagined.
Large technology companies like Oculus, Valve and Sony are trailblazing this illusory path and behind them are an entire network of inventors, designers, and visionaries looking to capitalize on the bright, shining future of virtual video gaming.
While virtual reality technology isn’t totally brand new, it hasn’t been until now that game developers have given it its just due. Video game behemoth Sony is planning to launch their virtual reality apparatus for their PlayStation 4 system as early as this October.
The new virtual reality experience goes by the alias PlayStation VR and it will allow its users to experience gaming on a unique level. Retailing for $499.99 USD, gamers will be able to pre-order the headset as soon as the end of March. Containing everything that’s included in the PS VR “Core” bundle (the headset, cables, stereo headphones and demo disc), the limited “Launch” bundle will also contain a PlayStation Camera coupled with two Move motion controllers and the game PlayStation VR Worlds.
The future of virtual reality has been clouded by uncertainty. First introduced in the late 1980’s, VR flourished as educational and military applications, with a brief stint in the commercial world through peripherals like Nintendo’s Virtual Boy, Morton Heilig’s The Sensorama and VRML. Recently, however, achieving a viable and sustainable virtual reality model came closer to fruition thanks to the creative efforts Palmer Luckey, the California native that created the VR gaming device called Oculus Rift.
Also, with Google Cardboard and Samsung’s Gear VR apparatuses looming on the horizon, developers have actually reached a level of efficiency earlier than many expected — leaving many customers salivating over the perspective of owning a affordable and aggressive VR platform very soon. When people look at what VR has accomplished in such a small span, they will see why these economical friendly mobile VR systems have quickly mesmerized over 5 million users since their inception.
Among the 200,000 developers involved, and a minimum 700 startups globally, and of course the tech titans cited above, we are way past the “if” phase of Virtual Reality and on to the “when” aspect.
Not only have Oculus, Valve, and Sony made VR cost efficient, but they have also produced a quality of devices that move simulator sickness from a technical trial and error issue to one that good design can probably answer. Undoubtedly, there is still ample space for technical improvement for things like retina displays and haptic feedback issues, but even in the first iteration of these proper VR systems (which are bound to desktop computers or gaming consoles) are dominant by comparison.
Get ready, folks: your dream of total video game immersion is virutally a reality.
Constantly rewinding. Praying that the thin brown, reflective ream holding your favorite album doesn’t get caught in and pulled by the spokes of your boombox. Having to deal with the wonky sounds that came from over-playing.
Listening to cassettes was nothing short of nerve wracking in the decades before CD’s or iTunes. So, whennewsoutlets around the globe like Bloomberg report that cassette sales are “back and better than ever,” it’s hard to believe music consumers would take a daunting trip back in time when there are more convenient and accessible options available to them.
The Bernie or Hillary memes pit the two candidates against each other in non political ways. Courtesy of obviousplant.tumblr.com
Social media has become the watchdogs for many aspects of the 2016 U.S. presidential primary race. And because of the Internet’s keen attention to whom will become the next President of the United States, the mainstream public now has the unique task of cataloguing this pop culture examination of the jokes, memes, hashtags and gifs accompanying the races. One of the best memes displayed so far, created by and for Bernie supporters are the “Bernie or Hillary?” memes.
IHOP celebrates National Pancake Day unlike any other company. Courtesy of twitter.com
Holidays like New Years, Halloween and Christmas are well recognized in American culture. On New Year’s Eve, we watch the ball drop in Times Square; for Halloween we dress up in costumes and collect candy; and on Christmas, we sit around a decorated tree and open presents.
But what are we supposed to do on National Backward Day or National Cuddle Up Day? These daily holidays have been around for years but a recent resurgence in popularity has brought them back into the public eye through trending social media hashtags, categories that have propelled third tier events into the holiday major leagues.
Daaaaaaamn Daniel!, major keyssss, ohhhhh hell naaaahhhhh!!!,eyebrows on fleek !!! Internet catchphrases like these have become mainstays of pop culture through the power of social media. Apps like Twitter, Facebook and Snapchat have become essential parts of any smartphone home screen, transforming how people connect and communicate one Snap at a time.
According to Recode.net, Snapchat’s 100 million-plus daily users are watching a massive 8 billion videos a day collectively on the video-sharing app and devoting an average of 30 minutes on the app every day. With all the attention focused on this social media tool, millions of people seemingly decide what content is popular and “shareworthy” — and ultimately, a chosen few Snapchat superstars are catapulted into a new stratosphere by their digital peers: into the world of Internet super-stardom.
