Even Geek Girls get the Blues

I’m struggling today with something that certainly isn’t new, but it’s persistent. No, we’re not talking a new programming language or attaining the next level in the latest MMORPG.

I’m talking about depression.

I wonder sometimes if maybe geeks might be prone to just a little higher probability of depression than the rest of the world. Here’s my thoughts, with minimal scientific data to back it up (sorry, too…meh…to do more than Google) :

1. Geeks tend towards the higher end of the IQ spectrum. In the article “Depression and Intelligence” at RecurrentDepression.com the author states: “In fact, a high IQ is a good predictor of depression. Why? Simply because those with higher intelligence are amazingly “creative” with their inner dialogues.”

2. The nature of the Geek life itself tends towards isolation. If you’ve ever seen “Welcome to the NHK,” an anime about the Hikikomiri life, you’ll see where hours of anime and gaming can lead to an actual documented illness as the individual pulls away from life in general.

3. Geeks…let’s face it…tend not to have the network of friends to support them when they start getting ‘down.’ If all your friends are online, who’s going to see past the IMed responses to see how you really are?

4. Geek activities tend to feed into the depression. While the non-geek population might think a night out clubbing or shopping is the cure to the blues, the Geek gravitates towards their favorite pastimes of computer games and all weekend anime marathons. While physical activity (so all that window shopping and dancing) will actually stimulate the release of endorphins to raise mood levels, there have been studies that show video gaming can lead to adrenalin rushes that will actually dump dopamine into your brain…much like crack will. The problem comes afterwards when the rush fades. In the wake of the rush, your body will crash, and hard. Your mood will in fact be worse than when you started.

5. Geeks are human. I hate to break this to you…but they are. And guess what? If depression affects as many as 19 million Americans every year, it just might well be your turn. After all, geeks have the same money/relationship/life stress the rest of the world does.

So what to do? If you suspect you have a severe problem with depression, please talk to someone. Anyone. I would suggest starting with your doctor.

And as for me? I’m going to get away from the computer a bit and get outside, maybe take a walk and scuff through the leaves with someone I love.

How do you beat the blues?

Disclaimer: One Geek Girl's View

It’s not often that this geek girl gets up on her soapbox, but something needs to be said.

Yesterday some big changes came down the pike in regards to the FTC and guidelines regarding reviewing of material on blogs.

Because we here at the G33K Project on occasion like to talk about the cool new stuff we’ve found, this has bearing to what we’re doing. Simply put, the FTC is requiring now for bloggers to disclose when they receive an item free to review. But also (and no one seems to be paying much attention to this) to point out that when we review something and include say an Amazon link so that our readers can buy the product, that this too needs disclosure. Let’s face it, those little Amazon links are usually through associate programs that could potentially generate an income for the blogger.

What amazes me in this micromanaged world, is that anyone feels the need to regulate this at all. I know someone with a large website with considerable traffic. He says in the space of a year, his Amazon links generated somewhere around $80. While I’m sure some people out there might be making real money from reviews, I’m personally not seeing why this has to be such a fuss.

Does anyone besides me feel this is all just a touch Big Brother?

Well, I am not adverse to reviewing things over here at G33K Project like I do on other blogs. And honestly, if anyone wanted to give me something free (anime companies are you listening? * looks up hopefully *) I would certainly disclose from this point on where I got it. Because the way I see it, a review is not an endorsement, I have the freedom to say “this stinks” as much as I do “this rocks!” And I think my readers are smart enough to see the difference and not care where I got the item from.

(OK, I have to say it...I found the image on a website dedicated to conspiracy theories. There is some STRANGE stuff out there...but by posting this, just how many government agencies just put me on The List?)


That’s just my two cents worth. What do YOU think?

Do You Speak Geek?

“Ah but then the 386 came out and I thought I was STYLIN’….”

“When I got that first hard drive with one gig, I thought, man I’ll NEVER use all that…”

“So I replaced that whole startup song Windows used to have…remember it? With an 8 minute long Dr. Who theme….it had to play ALL the way through before the machine would boot. She was SO mad…”

I enjoyed a total Geek Lunch the other day with a couple of friends who have been into computers since they (the computers, not my friends) were monstrous things taking up an entire room. You know you’re in Geek Heaven when we’re talking reverently of Univac and Eniac and any other –ac you can come up with.

While I go back as far as a tape drive to store data, and the thrill of being able to go from 16K to a 32K computer (yes, that’s K as in kilobyte…) these guys are the ultimate geeks. We laughed for two hours over hacks and practical jokes, lowering voices to talk about a virus written to change the graphics settings on a machine twenty years go…because revenge is best served, apparently, on a black screen with black text…

I marvel at the language and how easily we speak it. I don’t remember absorbing this technology and I suspect it’s been a gradual thing over the years. Was there truly a time when I didn’t know the difference between ROM and RAM? Between bits and bytes? But then I started early, programming in basic by the age of twelve (and freezing the machine because I had this dream of putting music WITH graphics WITH animation into a computer game. Yes, on that aforementioned 32K machine.

What I tend to forget though, is not everyone speaks my language. No more than the non anime fan looks at me quizzically when I mutter ‘baka’ under my breath or say ‘moshi moshi’ when I answer the phone (a habit I’m currently trying to break). So an anime like Yokuwakaru Gendai Maho might be something I totally get (and love, but then anytime you can code in a computer and have it manifest as magic in the real world is beyond sugoi…), but that the average person is going to look at and say, “What??”

So for today, I shall strive for clarity of speech. No more Geek Speak in mixed company....Well, unless I run across one of my programmer or otaku friends. In which case all bets are off. Ja ne!

What is YOUR language?

INNOVATION! INNOVATION! INNOVATIOON!!

Yet another article on innovation, this is what the thousandth time someone has talked about innovation in video games. By now talking about it is like beat a dead horse or trying to drop kick the air. Nonetheless it is still worth discussing.

The video game industry is arguably one of the most creative businesses to get into, but in most cases originality is lacking. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve played a game of any genre and felt like I’ve played it before. Now don’t be mistaken I am not trying to bash anything or anyone with this article. I’m just trying to give my take on the current state of originality and innovation in the gaming industry. I understand that this is a business and in a business sometimes you have to play it safe. In order to make money sometimes you have to stand on old reliable. But when do you say it’s time to try something new? We know that originality and innovation, when done correctly, gives both the developers and publishers a lot of success. Take games like Bioshock and Mirrors Edge for example. One took the horror genre and flipped it on its head. The other took first person gaming to a whole new level. Both games saw huge success, and both were innovative in their own way. If these games can do it why not others? Even smaller games like Portal and Flower are highly innovative, and they were critically acclaimed.

Listen up developers I’m just asking for you to use a bit more creativity, don’t just come up with another generic shooter or generic RPG, and be innovative! And publishers, be willing to take chances on your developers. LET THEM DO THEIR JOBS! Let them do creative things; let them make games that haven’t been seen in the mainstream. Look this article will probably only be read by one or two people, and it most likely won’t make much change in the gaming industry. But I had to let people know how I felt.

How about you guys, are there any gripes you have with the gaming industry?

P.S. If you’re able to count how many times I used the word innovation you get a lollipop!

What Calls Your Name?

After a night spent watching endless episodes of Beck, I can't help but think about those guilty pleasures and just what precisely makes them so fun. While I'm not sure what portion of my soul badly sung English lyrics and a patchwork dog exactly feeds into, I do know a few things about obsession.

Take Shangri-la. A show I discovered over at Crunchyroll recently that required an entire afternoon to devour. While this one had me worried on the silly / inane factor with the crossdressing mentor and adorable little girl set out to take over the world, I discovered a depth and interest here that carried me from that first episode and on into the rest with barely a pause to refresh the Pocky supplies.

But where does obsession go wrong and we find ourselves skating into the world of the Japanese definition of otaku? Was it the two day spree of Eureka 7 - all 50 episodes? Or is it really not until things take a more sinister note and the surfing goes from Crunchyroll into the darker denizens of the hentai infested websites and obesessions that will curl up in your brain and make a nest there?

Maybe I'm coming off overly thoughtful tonight but it's been a difficult week in RL (or what we call Real Life). I've seen my 12 year old son in screaming hysteria when he was banned from a certain computer game due to some homework assignments that he missed rather than give up a moment of gaming.

Now I'm no stranger to gaming addiction. Three years ago I fell headfirst into a MMORPG and didn't come out until several months had passed and my friends were ready to stage a full blown intervention. It's a scary world in here, and one all to easy to get lost in. So comes the time to be the responsible parent and pull the plug.

Uh, yeah, you first mom.

So for the next week I'm imposing a few limits. Not just on the kids, but on myself. Because you know something...there's enough lousy things going on in the world right now, that I don't need to get lost in here too.

After all, all this stuff will be here when we get back.

I told you mine...what tempts you online?

Daft Punk and electronica (fight the "What? Electronica?" gag reflex)

Daft Punk is a little electronica duo from France. This may sound familiar: most electronica groups are in the form of "a little electronica [duo/trio/foursome] from [country in Europe]." Honestly (IMO, of course) most of them should stay in their hometowns, only bugging the people within earshot of the members' houses.

Most electronica (again, IMO, although this opinion is shared by a significant portion of the population of the world) is repetitive, boring, and... well, repetitive and boring. That's just about all it was...

... Until I discovered Daft Punk. To be more specific, their album Discovery (their second). It's not just electronica-techno-funky stuff, like most of the realm of electronica; it's got, not just good beats, but also melodies and harmonies. It's kind of like a crossover between electronica and real music. (Sounds like a bad idea? Yes. But it was well executed.) Their first album, Homework, was mostly just electronica-ish junk, though it was actually somewhat endurable.

Daft Punk, if nothing else, is a good medium for expressing your inner nerd. I'll admit it: if there's no one else around, sometimes I'll put some Daft Punk on the stereo after getting out of the shower and just nerd it out. Turn out my room is a good place to air-guitar, air-synth, air-explosive-drums, dance in nothing but a towel... Good times.

My personal favourite songs on the album:

• Veridis Quo — this one might just be because I'm a piano nerd, but maybe not.
• Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger — A classic. This song actually became popular in the mainstream. Then it became popular again when Kanye remixed it for his song "Stronger." Yes, this was the song you heard in the background.)
• Too Long — The background lyrics are "too long," but I think the real reason this song was named this was because it's over 10 minutes long. It's a gem of boy-band-like vocals combined with Daft Punk shenanigans.

Weekly Randomness

Hi fellow geeks Jerel here with something new. Now you might be asking yourself, "What is this something new?" Well it's your Weekly dose of Randomness!

This week's dose is all about, music. People who know me well enough will tell you that I'm a music whore. I love it all from Sinatra to Feist, from Jay-Z to Miley Cyrus. It doesn't matter to me who sings it, just as long as the song can take me on a ride. Music has no barriers, whoever you are where ever you are music can reach you.

Currently I'm listening to Ingrid Michelson religiously, so what are you listening to at the moment? Are you a music whore like myself, or do you have a certain taste?

In the spirit of this week's little article here's some links to some random music:

http://tinyurl.com/ntwfft

http://tinyurl.com/lkuyw7

http://tinyurl.com/4xgkxy

Geek Girl, Unexpected Absences, and the iPhone 3GS

Well that certainly didn’t go as planned.

A week and a half ago I had intended to submit my first blog, introducing you to the geek girl that I am with some light-hearted post combining a little otaku spirit and techno-babble. Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans…

In a strange coincidental dual-dosage of trauma, my husband (yes this Geek Girl is married) and I both landed in the hospital with an attempt at “Buy one foot surgery, get a second one free.” That didn’t quite work though we did both manage to get laid up for a time. While my own surgery was minor, his certainly wasn’t so I spent a lot of time up at Memorial Hospital. Which was a good thing because it gave me a chance to explore my new iPhone 3GS.

Now I’m not recommending cell phone usage in a hospital. There are signs everywhere saying “Please do not use cell phones around medical equipment.” At the same time, no one told me which equipment you can and can’t use cell phones around. I tended to go with the theory that someone would happen along and say, “Excuse me, could you please turn that off” or perhaps “Shut that thing down, you’re killing him!”

Some things I DID learn:

• The iPhone apps will save your life. Whether it’s posting progress (or lack thereof) to Facebook or whiling away the hours launching sheep into the stratosphere they will keep you busy at the least. And trust me, you’ll need to keep busy.
• Your battery will die long before they will release you even if they promise “We’re just waiting on one more paper from your doctor.” Bring your charger.
• Free wifi connection might abound in some parts of the hospital…but not all. And you will probably have to click a user agreement in your browser to get to it. When in doubt how to connect, ask. Thankfully your iPhone tends to remember things like this when you visit the second time (and third..and fourth...).
• When sobbing tearfully into your phone blubbering that they have to CUT your toe, remember that the cubicles aren’t really soundproof. Everyone can hear your convo, especially if you’re upset. Keep your voice down. At the least you’re amusing the other patients…worst case, you might be scaring them.
• Not everyone appreciates that you googled your suspected disease while waiting. BUT, once you have a diagnosis, looking it up isn’t a bad thing to do. Just be sure you stick with the reputable sites like WebMD or Mayo Clinic for your information.
• Do immortalize these interesting experiences. The family really appreciated the pics of the kids visiting Dad in the hospital. But um…ask first. And make sure the hospital gown has proper…er….placement before you hit ‘send.’
• The iPhone map is invaluable when you leave and need to find the nearest pharmacy to get your prescriptions filled. Love that you can just type in Walgreens and get directions.
• Lastly…put the phone away and rest. You are, after all, there for a reason.

OK, as you can see, not my best week ever. So how about you? Had any interesting adventures lately?

Outside-In: Geek Charity

So....hey.

Yes, I'm a contributor here. Haven't seen me around yet, but that's because I've been fully absorbed in Batman: Arkham Asylum (something on the evolution of licensed video games is forthcoming, I promise). But right out of the gate, I figured I'd speak to something that's an odd part of geek culture - the charitable impulse.

Face it, charity isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think geek. We're best known for our extravagant spending on ourselves, after all - $600 video game machines, $1000 first issues, hordes of baseball cards or a credit card maxed out on "Special Edition" Blu-Ray discs. In fact, one could even go so far as to say that greed is what defines a geek, a certain kind of hording impulse that causes us to squander our personal time and resources on our own obsessions.

And yet...look at the bizarrely social nature of the geek. If you cut out the internet (which isn't socialization - it's group play with no consequences), you get groups of disparate people that come together to enjoy a hobby. We're oddly merit-based most of the time - except on the internet, race, gender, disability, appearance are usually (if grudgingly, in some cases) trumped by skill and knowledge. I can't tell you the number of times I've been flat out GIVEN things by my fellow geeks who just want me to enjoy what they enjoy.

So is it any wonder that a bunch of so-called "Geek Charities" have been springing up? Look at the recent Mario Marathon for charity. Or Extra Life (support it! It's for a good cause). Or the grand-daddy of them all, Child's Play. It taps our geeky impulse to do what we want, when we want...but also to share that feeling of accomplishment and turn it in to something that makes others feel good.

Ignore the internet. Don't listen to your X-Box Live headset. Being a geek is about giving through what you love.

Extra Life

I'm proud to say that The Geek Project will be participating in Extra Life. Now for those of you who don't know about Extra Life it's a fundraiser started by Sarcastic Gamer to raise money for pediatric cancer. The fundraiser is a 24-hour gaming marathon from October 17 to October 18. And if you want to help you can do one of four things, or a combination of the four. You can donate to us by going to our donation page or by clicking on the Extra Life ad on our site. You could sponsor us during the event, this means you would have to give us at least a dollar an hour for every hour we play. That would be a total of $24. You could also start your own team and get to work raising money for Extra Life. Or you could just give your money to one of the many other teams that are participating in the event. Whatever you do you'll be helping in the fight against pediatric cancer.

MTV: Strangulation of the true underground.

MTV: Strangulation of the true underground.

MTV sucks, and pretty much always has. Besides the advent of a few good programs such as: Beavis and Butthead, Aeon Flux, The Maxx, Daria, and all those other depressing 90’s shows, they are deader then hell; and the tombstone reads,” MTV: 1981 – 1997ish”. The network itself is 28 years old, yet has reverted to satisfying the needs of middle school girls, and college kids that are immature enough to watch middle school girl shows. For example: look at the programming guide for the next month. Do you see anything that isn’t a scripted “reality show” about some 16 year old “daddy’s girl” spoiled bitch, or some bullshit about “date my mom”? The original idea of the network was to show music videos, and feed the need for the “underground” of the time period (which primarily consisted of mainstream music with an alternative twist added on for market value).

Now this is all well and good, but where is the music? I have yet to see any… and if there is this supposed music played on this alleged music network, what is the quality of said music? Standards have dropped dramatically over the last decade in the mainstream culture, and MTV documents every second of it, while fattening their pockets along the way. Has anyone except me noticed that modern talent is nothing compared to our predecessors? Every generation before us has released heart felt, and meaningful artwork (their music). Modern music is essentially garbage, based on the fact the lyrics themselves aren’t written by the actual artist. The videos promote sex appeal designed to reach younger and younger crowds as time goes on. It is no secret the “music” industry is based around greed, and the artists themselves are to blame. The networks are based around greed as well. Consumers love to eat this corporate shit seeing as they don’t know any different.

As a generation we have been taught to accept, and lie down on our backs, belly up. We should accept the fact talent is going extinct, while the talent-less strut the big impressive red carpet. MTV is killing the little that’s left of the underground, but hey the counterculture is alive and kicking. That’s why we keep it hush hush, baby.

-PCP

Halo 3 Ego Trip

Halo 3 Ego Trip

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A few months ago I won the Millington Naval Base’s Halo 3 tournament; I barely pulled this feat off seeing as I had an appropriate adversary. Now, I’m not going to say I’m perfect, but I’m damn near close to it when it comes to Halo. This is something earned (skill), not necessarily gained seeing as you have to be unemployed, or basically live with your parents and have no social life what so ever. Headshots are attained… three shot BR isn’t luck, it’s skill… Being an egotistical asshole is attained as well, which is why I quit playing Halo 3 for the most part. Xbox live has been going strong since it’s release in 2002, but the entire system promotes a nation wide pissing contest.

I guess I started to think about quitting Xbox live after I started several arguments via email; that led to arguments over the phone. Yelling at the top of my lungs through a headpiece at opponents wasn’t quite enough for me, so I needed to yell over the phone as well. I believe I have personally threatened the life of many people via live…That just doesn’t seem mentally sound. I never threatened to kill anyone, but I have made many propositions to fight in real life after I got wiped across the floor on MLG Guardian/MLG Slayer game type (Whatever the fuck its called.. All the MLG kids name the shit like ,“M..L.G. TSK5.50” and other little fancy abbreviations).

Anyway, the online gaming is typically a pissing contest. I used to get infuriated when I lost, even if it was a stupid game mode meant to be fun, I took my head shots very seriously. I still despise “Infection” game types for the most part because it isn’t serious at all, but it is good to play for fun which is what most of us forget about. I quit playing based on the fact that I genuinely felt guilty after killing that same noob for the 18th time in a row. I just know there is somebody having a terrible day out there, and me shooting them over and over in the face and then calling them a bitch isn’t helping matters at all. I got so good, I just decided to quit for my sake, and others because “karma” exists just as the air we breath.

If you really think about it, video games are similar to drugs. It gets you through problems in life by getting the user basically ignoring them. Here, focus on something else for a while. Lose out there, but in here, safe in your room, you can win! An internal attitude like that is designed for epic failure. These are rather abstract concepts, but the lines become sharper when you look at the issue as a whole. The ego trips are an escape from some sort of shortcoming in reality. My ego issue was I didn’t have a job, and at the time I was literally 100 pounds over weight… I wonder why? My Halo skills corresponded with my weight if you get my drift. Instead of bicep curls, I was killing Master Chief zombies. Instead of 100 crunches, you could catch me simply zoned in on “the next battle to be won”. I was losing the war, that was the only problem.

Personally absolute trust in God has helped me see a clear path ahead. I would suggest the reader to maybe look in the mirror. Are the games just fun, or is it truly an escape? Are you lying, or are you being honest with yourself? Is it your life, or your lifestyle? Some people are balanced and happy, but I’m just here to remind you even people that claim to plan on making a mental escape of some kind. Plan for this week: I’m going to focus on reality and throw the virtual reality to the pros.

-PCP

We Got A Podcast!!

I’m proud to introduce The Geek Project podcast. In this episode of the podcast Greg and I talk video games and technology. Give it a listen will ya.

http://www.mevio.com/episode/174908/First+Episodes+Suck

Welcome

I would like to be the first to welcome our very first writer to the blog, Kristine Pratt! I am looking forward to some amazing articles from her in the future. And she is just the first that will grace us with their presence, so be on the look out for even more wonderful writers.

Hello World

The Geek Project is a very ambitious plan to combine all things Geek. To us here at the geek project a geek is just someone who has a strong passion for a certain subject. Those subjects can range from fashion to video games. Here at The Geek Project blog we will cover fashion, anime , books, music, video games, sports, comic books, movies, technology, and pop culture. I strongly believe that this blog will successfully combined all of these topics and more.

-Jerel Smith