Friday, February 18, 2011

Evolution of Culture



This is an optional, participation type post.

Chris Anderson talks about the role of digital video sharing in spurring the evolution of culture.   He mentioned dance, and a number of other areas.   http://www.ted.com/talks/chris_anderson_how_web_video_powers_global_innovation.html

Explanation:   Here is an example from "freestyle soccer"  or street soccer juggling that I just ran across.   This video and related videos illustrate a growing subculture of soccer athletes unified by an interest in increasing and comparing skills in this area.  This particular video is impressive in that it seems to combine soccer with martial arts or gymnastic type movements.

Link:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHa0fQDsqyQ

Please feel free to post links to other potential examples in the comments.   Give a brief explanation along with the link just like I did here.  Finding and explaining good, new examples would be a great addition to your digital portfolio.

33 comments:

  1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x98jCBnWO8w

    A great example of this, which has sort of already been mentioned in the class is Parkour. A bunch of people have taken these crazy moves and evolved them into something really spectacular. It is interesting to see on Youtube that there is an American Parkour section. I think it is funny that this thing has evolved to the point where people are labeling styles with different countries.

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  2. cool-- thanks for that.

    here is a crazy sledding slide thing some folks made.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TjuXWAfAEs

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  3. Here are some music, culture and video game related posts. Basically, people playing video game themes on instruments.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crfrKqFp0Zg&feature=related

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5As159pvDs&feature

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  4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwoI9t0e11k

    This is an example of how digital video and Youtube has brought about a new subculture of thrill junkies and extreme sports enthusiasts. In this video, pro skier Mike Wilson combines mountain climbing with cliff diving, introducing a new way to feel that adrenaline rush.

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  5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjvyK7O5TDQ
    Its been around for a while but becoming exponentially popular... combining balancing acts with motorcycles

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  6. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-myAVlxWBGs

    An example of this is Extreme Zumba. This is a dancing fitness workout. This technique is being spread throughout the country by the internet and youtube videos. People are watching the videos and learning moves and techniques to work out and lose weight through dancing. Extreme Zumba is becoming very popular and more people are trying it everyday. It is a way for someone to come up with a routine and pass it to millions of people that are also interested in this way of working out.

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  7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhLxOwKEuXI

    This video is an example of how youtube is changing the way of tumbling, and how it is getting more and more evasive over the years.

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  8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0a-5hfWOiw

    This video of tennis freestyle tricks and skills displays an evolution in culture through the sharing of videos. The more videos such as these are shared, the more skills in tennis reappear in matches and the more they are being advanced. It raises a level in the ability to enhance accuracy in the sport, as well as up the level of tricks in the game.

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  9. Basketball has evolved over many years, both as collegiate and professional sport as well as at home as a recreational sport. Basketball is no longer only a competition between two teams but it has become a creative platform for many players. Basketball trick shots have grown through the creation of user generated content to display unconventional and sometimes seemingly impossible shots such as in this video:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXPOfStElLA

    Street basketball has also grown over the years. Any game of streetball can be played on public outdoor basketball courts, but this variation of basketball has many more impressive, entertaining plays such as alley oops and ridiculous dunks. There is less enforcement of formal basketball rules and allows players to display their talents and tricks on the court. Videos such as the following have allowed players across the world to learn new moves and implement them in their own games:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgIi7sycfmk

    Another variation of the game that was started in 2001 in order to create a more exagerated video-game like version of basketball is Slamball. The sport has been aired on television as well as having videos on Youtube. The game is a full contact game of basketball played with trampolines on each end of the court to allow players to obtain absurd amounts of air and execute amazing trick dunks:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ouXw328WYI

    The evolution of basketball is still continuing today and the addition of internet video allows more and more players to learn new moves and create more and more variations of the sport

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  10. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJmCem8qbTE

    There is a Gameshow on G4TV that is called "Ninja Warrior" where contestants are forced to run through obstacle courses trying to finish them in the shortest time possible, much like "American Gladiators", except on steroids. The contestants are required to have strength, agility and some times a knowledge of the free-running style "parkour". I like to think that this television show is demonstrating how culture changes over the years: not only are we looking to test our limits as far as they can go, but also looking to make some things nearly impossible to accomplish.

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  11. Another example of blending together multiple things for onc finished product is what the Harlem Globetrotters do. Not only do they play basketball, they are also entertainers and usually make the crowd laugh and get them involved in many different ways
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaO-2k5gBH0

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  12. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXqmRAUsn9U

    This is an example of longboarding, which is a lot like skateboarding, but on a longer board and one is able to do more tricks. In this culture, people can watch millions of videos online about different tricks being invented everyday, then try them out themselves and add to it, thus evolving the sport by creating more tricks and posting them for everyone to see.

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  13. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec67RiTelE4
    The video I found that shows how the internet and specifically YouTube is making people better at things is about pool basketball trick shots. This is something that my friends and I did in my buddy’s backyard. A group of kids in Texas with a video camera a basketball and a pool made a video that got over 100,000 person audience to watch them doing some risky dunks. This is an example of how media is changing and how simplistic the ides of the "producer" can be and still attract a lot of attention.

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  14. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8B9bcYerXs

    This is an example of a short movie that my friends and I made during our senior year of high school. It's called Epic Pongin and it features a number of unique and technical pong shots, some of which were inspired by videos we had previously seen on youtube.

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  15. http://www.wimp.com/crazytricks/

    beer pong in itself has become largely popular in the past decade or so due to college campuses (and I'm sure we did our part. With pong came trick shots, and with digital media and the internet the complexity and difficulty of skilled shots could be documented and shared with others in a pseudo competition for best trick shot/video.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9ZkddHsdpA

    building on that, somewhere along the lines some joker came up with the idea of pong dunking, and with rules like "on-fire" the game of pong has evolved to be much more like a live action NBA jam game.

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  17. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzucpFgi7Xk


    http://www.metacafe.com/watch/2373194/dominos_with_beer_bottles/

    also it's purely interesting what people are doing with the empty bottles...

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  18. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idZOVqdcqno

    That is a south park episode about youtube =)

    Check it out its pretty funny

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  19. This is a video of happiness. Simple as that. Watching this 25 second video will make you happy. It will also make you want to lead crowds. I, for example, want to be this toddler because his life is more complete than mine.
    www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DY7lJpFwAcCs

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  20. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tmY0ahyVgY

    This is a video of the Ohio University paintball team. Over the years the sport has evolved from a recreational activity to a competitive and intriguing sport. Since its creation in 1976 by Hayes Noel there have been many innovations in paintball technology. Along with this there are now different styles of play. Traditionally tournament paintball was limited to being played in the woods. Now it is often played on inflatable courses in different formats. Speedball is the newer competitive format of paintball with different variations. X-ball is an example of a popular variety of speedball that is now played by amateurs and professionals across the nation.

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  21. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mADhOt6qRlk

    This video shows how we have been able to make comedy from something that many people are excited for (if that made sense). It is the Literal Halo Reach trailer where Toby makes up words that go along with what we see on the screen. The best part is that you can get some of the songs on iTunes!!!

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  22. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUrJuSh0evE

    Ballet dancing used to be very traditional and strict but now people can upload videos of ballet online to inspire people to practice it even if you don't attend a ballet studio. This opens up this style of dance to a larger audience than ever before. Traditionally you could only practice ballet if you attended a dance academy but now "Anaheim Ballet" in California believes it's available to anyone who has a computer.

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  23. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2Qy21LLhP8&feature=topvideos

    This video is of Blake Griffin during the slam dunk contest. I think all star weekend in general is an example of this. Its a weekend filled with a mix of basketball twists. Theres the celebrety game where its a bunch of famous people playing basketball. Also the slam dunk contest and 3 point contest are players from the league who excel at this field of play. The slam dunk in general has evolved over the years. It started with who can just do a cool looking dunk, then came props in the contest such as a the car you see here or the candle in a cupcake which was put behind the rim last year and blown out by a participant while he was dunking. Whats next?

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  24. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfeDFJMzjMU

    An example would be the rise of UFC/MMA. This sport is the combination of boxing/kickboxing and Wresting and other forms of ground game. This sport allows mixed martial artists from around the world to compete with each other and it also shows every kind of skill need to be the perfect fighter. Many boxers now are getting upset that the UFC is taking over the fighting world, a former heavyweight boxing champion James Toney wanted to be apart of the UFC and they gave him a fight. Before the end of the first round Toney was already beat, this just shows that you have to be well diverse in multiple martial art skills. Another example would be street fighter Kimbo Slice, he was put into the UFC ring after all of his Youtube publicity and he was also beat in the first round.

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  25. Another example of this that ive noticed that has been spreading around this campus is called Pen Spinning.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q7s4E94-No

    Starting in Japan the making of viral videos like this one spread different techniques and even new tricks. I Watched this video in Highschool and after getting down one of the moves taught it to a couple of my friends. Who leaned and spread the same way i did. In almost every one of my classes now i can spot atleast one other individual twirling his/her pens in crazy and interesting ways.

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  26. My example is a little different...

    http://www.youtube.com/TROPFEST

    This is a video CHANNEL on youtube.com, where people can submit short films that they have created. This is giving a chance for film makers to gain international and internet fame. On the channel, it has a list of film artists that became famous for submitting their short films. It also gives film makers a chance to connect with other people with the same interests. If you become a finalist, you have your video featured on their page. They have over 12500 subscribers. This changed culture because it gives film makers an easier and more unique way to become famous.

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  27. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iANRO3I30nM
    I submitted this video for the clip of the week one week, and look! Cleary and Harding in a McDonalds commercial:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQBqKAXTVE0&feature=related
    The most interesting thing to me about this video (and commercial) is that these two people are Irish dancers; all the tapping they're doing with their hands, they can do with their feet. I think this video as well as the other videos on their youtube channel show how a unique subset of their dance culture has formed as a result of the availability of internet video. They do shows with their unique performance art and clearly have become popular or entertaining enough to show up in a Mcdonalds commercial.

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  28. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_rslXAXE6Y

    This is a video of different kids showing off their whiffle ball pitches. This video revolutionized the game of whiffle ball because it personally changed the way i play the game. THese kids pitches have over 100,000 views and are showing that whiffle ball players are adapting to a more competitive style of pitching, where that batter has less of a chance. Their video is vital because without it I would not have even though of throwing the whiffle ball like the kids in the video. Personally, as a whiffle ball player it changed the culture of the game completely. OUr backyard games are now twice as competitive and fun.

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  29. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNPcxEiT-A0

    This is an example of a girl who actually went to my high school singing on facebook. She is doing a cover for the sing Teenage Dream, and also playing the piano to it. I first ran accross the video on Face Book as she posts them all on her wall. I've noticed lately a lot of young aspiring singers are posting videos of themselves singing on cites like Face Book and youtube. It seems as though it started with a couple kids from my high school, and it's spread to have the kids who sang at my high school. Now, I've seen friends from college with the videos posted. What's interesting is a lot of the times they do the same song and put their own spin on it. There often times getting new ideas from each other and adding it into their videos. I have to say I think I've seen a million different versions of Bruno Mars, Just the way you are.

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  30. http://demotivatorsblog.com/slow-down/

    very interesting and different idea on the evolution of culture and what it has done to us

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  31. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOXIcNT31Uc

    I think this applies to the evolution of culture in many ways. First, this is taken from a performance on America's got Talent, a TV show that broadcasts the skills of others and basically promote's the different contestants skills and puts their name out in the world. Shows like this, and American Idol have changed the way ordinary people with extraordinary talents become famous in our society.

    What is also interesting about this video is, any time you want to watch a defying Gravity performance, you can simply go on YouTube, type in Defying Gravity and find their performance. Without YouTube and America's Got Talent, these men would have never been able to broadcast their interesting and unique skill.

    By watching Defying Gravity's videos over and over, the audience can almost see how the men do what they do, as to eventually replicate it. YouTube makes it possible to expand unique skills across the globe.

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  32. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe3St1GgoHQ

    There is this new "sport" called Liquid Mountaineering. Liquid Mountaineering is "walk on water" the way you would skip a rock. These guys describe their technique as a "sewing machine" because they move their legs up and down so quickly. I think that this is an evolution of sport as well as the an evolution of advertisement through youtube.

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  33. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIUQqYTxW1c

    My friends made a video ordering at McDonald's through song. There are my other videos that are related, and it looks like one of the related videos is about teens getting arrested for rapping their order at McDonald's? It shows how people are learning music and being influenced by other people to use their music in new circumstances and to get the courage to write a song about burgers and sing it at a restaurant.

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