Changed Musical Interests

One thing I've been thinking about lately a lot is how and why my music taste has changed so drastically. Growing up, Rhythm and Blues and Electronic were my two favorite genres and I would spend tons of time searching them up, as well as even attempting to produce them. Occasionally, orchestrals as well. But as time has gone on, I've really switched interests. It probably started when I was 23 years old and I picked up a guitar, determined to learn new skills and areas. There was a change inside of me, along with a lot of rapid transitions into different hobbies in my life.

Now when I hear RnB, I find it catchy, but am bored by it. Nice genre, but doesn't capture what I want from a genre anymore. The lyrics weren't even important to me in the first place, I just liked the way the sound was. But not nearly as much anymore. Surprisingly to me, I went through a Beatles phase a few years ago and I was never into The Beatles as a kid. Only their 70s music though, as I still find their 60s songs cheesy and repetitive. I didn't even realize the large change in their musical direction from the 60s to the 70s. Matter of fact, I started paying attention to their background stories as well. This is another aspect I rarely got into as a kid. Personal biographies on artists.

The only genres I can really listen for prolonged periods of time nowadays is a lot of Metal and a bit of Rock. My favorite bands are Black Sabbath and Type O Negative and I would have never been able to tell you what songs they've made or who the lead singers were fifteen years ago. 

Now I recognize just about every song of theirs and have a bit of knowledge about their lead vocalists. I listened lightly to Smashing Pumpkins in the 90s and it's still nice to revisit their albums though. A lot of this music I listen to now is fresh to me and maybe I just relate to it more. 

Alexander Seid

IS101-2003

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Catching Up On Classics

After many years of hearing phrases mentioned and plotlines discussed from famous movies, I've finally had enough and decided to watch a few series I've never gotten around to growing up. The past few weekends, I laid down and indulged in the original Star Wars movie trilogy, as well as finishing the first Lord of the Rings film. I must declare, I wasn't disappointed.  

I was actually thinking I wouldn't like Star Wars as much as everybody else seemed to, but once I embraced it with an open mind, it turned out to be revealing of how great it was. Maybe my skepticism came partly from being uninterested in the newer Star Wars content and also how people wouldn't stop talking about it, bringing the hipster out in me to refuting its glory. George Lucas wrote the original series spendidly, as it captures one major quality I realized that is lacking in modern media: charm. The whole thing was very charming and positive. Finally, I know what people are talking about when they say "Han shot first" or "Greedo shot first". It probably largely depends on edition and has been verified by Lucas already, but the edition I watched, it clearly looked like Greedo shot first and missed, then Han shot the alien dead.

People would probably think I'm crazy stating I like the High Fantasy genre, yet never watched Lord of the Rings. Well, I felt obligated to get rid of that label and take a dive into it. I can't say I made it too far yet, but I've watched the first one as of now. The first aspect that stood out to me was the cinematography. The scenes were absolutely, visually stunning and I haven't seen any piece of media that has compared to it, ever, at least in the Fantasy genre. Apparently, the movie was shot in New Zealand, and it has persuaded me that this is one place surely worth visiting. I found the Hobbit village odd and funny, as well as Gandalf the wizard's involvement in it. It just appeared to me as some old wizard walking around, babysitting a race of little people called "hobbits" and smoking out of a pipe all day.

But as whimsical as the beginning was, it got into some creative lore regarding how much power is in this ring and the strength of its allure on anybody, good-natured or not. The depictions of darkness and righteousness were enthralling. One example of the darkness theme being the ones called the "Black Riders" who were undead and essentially servants of the dark lord who forged and wore the ring, dutifully seeking out where the ring was to retrieve it back at all costs. The example of righteousness was elves' abilities to give impactful gifts to the other races and have enormous power over nature. I look forward to seeing the other two movies in the series. 

A few other side noted series' that I started getting into as well was Babylon 5 and more Star Trek, although I've already seen a lot of it. Has anyone else had references brought up that you've never caught or bothered to look into? If so, which ones? Maybe even from the two series I've posted.

Alexander Seid

IS101-2003

The Obscure Increase In Health Problems

Many reports have shown a steady uptick in depression and general health abnormalities worldwide, so much that it has led to it becoming a costly industry. But where is this increase coming from?

I think if we are considering external factors, it can be multiple culprits. Processed foods, preservatives, heavy metals and method of food preparation can be one. All of these can contribute to a reduction of nutrients recieved from the food as well as unnatural interactions with our cells inducing inflammation, oxidation and stress. Normal function would subsequently be compromised. These three factors, inflammation, oxidation and stress have pointed to be paramount contributers to a myriad of health diseases and disorders. Countries with the highest amounts of anti-inflammatory food actually have been correlated, maybe looser than I would like, to having lower such health incidents. Heart disease, cancer, and depression to list three. Maybe another culprit is the type of technology we are bombarded with on a daily basis and of which continues to grow. We now are in the time period of 5th Generation wireless technology (5G), which runs in the microwave range of the electromagnetic frequency spectrum. People want faster download and upload speeds, but this can very well be at the expense of our health. There have been scientific studies showing rats developing tumors when exposed to such high electromagnetic radiation. My third idea of what can be adding to the health epidemic is lack of vitamin D and sunlight. Vitamin D is crucial in synthesizing neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine, which are frequently targetted in people with mood disorders. Lack of these two things would also imply lack of physical activity usually, which wouldn't serve very well. On the backburner, which isn't something I have thought enough about to make any bold claims is the constant attention and negativity we receive from social media and popular culture. 

One interesting tidbit is it has been studied in people with high suicidal ideation and suicide victims that their brains shows significantly low levels of the protein Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, which is commonly abbreviated to "BDNF". This is known to function in creating new brain cells and maintain a healthy lifespan of them. It can obviously be deducted that BDNF can very well be lacking due to cellular damage from earlier problems I've mentioned earlier in this post. There are supplements, drugs and physical activities that can tremendously improve BDNF levels. 

This leads to my last question and note. What can be done to combat this situation? I wonder if aside from finding personal solutions to it, there are industry solutions we can bring to work towards.

Alexander Seid

IS101-2003

Healthy Habits During COVID

    Statistics have shown that more people have been depressed and it has shown through extreme cases of violence upon oneself and/or others during this COVID crisis. Whether it is from being torn away from personal hobbies, loss of business and/or COVID deaths in the family, this epidemic has been shown to affect people's lifestyle in one way or another. I luckily don't have much hobbies that have been discontinued from this epidemic, but finding a job has been harder and in the meantime, I have been trying to find ways to focus on improving my quality of life, along with skillsets, and make the most out of our time quarantined. 

    Developing healthy habits during COVID quarantine is very important and can even lead to new interests. From personal experience, although I've gained a bit of weight during this time period, I've also been reading a lot on computer science, extensively about biochemistry, practicing power yoga and have been able to focus on finally creating full songs on my guitar, which I am aiming to take further. With all the time left to oneself, people must adapt to their situation and turn it into a positive experience, or at least maintain a healthy lifestyle. Applying some effort into doing things that will give you some positive relief and keep you in good spirits can have a huge beneficial impact.  Keeping the mind busy is important to warding off negativity and unhealthy mental spirals. I am always interested in how other people have been handling this crisis and their gains from it.

Alexander Seid
IS101-2003

Intro to Information Technology

    IT can be mind-opening. Imagine learning how the technology people use today works and even becoming proficient at it. This is definetely a skill well-needed in modern society and should be saught after to gain an edge in the competitive workplace. IS101, I believe, is a great step in that direction. I can see why it is an introductory course in the program towards IT degrees, but a vital one, at that, and even if one doesn't pursue their degree all the way through, finishing this class can have tremendous benefits for practicality and job resumes. So, let us begin, into the fascinating world of computers and learn how a lot of these business applications work.

Alexander Seid

IS101-2003