Artificial Intelligence

In my last post, I alluded to my belief that I philosophically find artificial intelligence (AI) impossible. There are logical and religious reasons that I find this to be so. Most of these come from my experience researching AI, so it still baffles me to this day when prominent smart people say that they are concerned about AI. I can potentially see a problem with "AI" which I will address, but AI will be nothing like seen in Terminator or the Matrix.

Everything that is currently being dubbed an AI is really just an API. An API is basically an interface. Basically a program will take an input and through an -albeit very sophisticated- algorithm to produce a result. Namely it will produce a predicted result minus occasional glitches or unexpected test cases. If I create a program that solves a puzzle, it will never do anything else besides solving the puzzle. A computer can do repetitive tasks much better than a human, but a computer must be programmed a specific set of instructions in order to accomplish a task. A computer program cannot be creative nor can it change it's programming let alone transcend its programming.

When I watched the Terminator TV show, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Skynet was now a chess AI. Some even ascribed the real life Deep Blue as being an AI. The reality is these chess "AI's" are not really as impressive as you may think. Now it is impressive that the program can go through multiple chess layouts very quickly, but many chess layouts have been solved meaning that once the pieces are in a certain layout, there are very specific piece movements that will cause checkmate no matter how much the opponent tries. One key aspect often left out when discussing Deep Blue is that it may have won against a human chess master, but Garry Kasparov actually defeated the program several times. A moot point, but if the real life chess super computer could only defeat a human with an upgrade, it's ludicrous to believe that a chess program could then take over the world. I know I'm arguing about a fictional television program, but strangely a lot of people think this is plausible. In fairness, if a chess program could do something more than play chess, then I would be tempted to call it an AI, but that exists solely in the realm of science fiction (or fantasy).

Philosophically speaking, my belief in the human soul means that artificial intelligence is impossible. I'll elaborate on this more in a future blog post, but I believe the soul is the answer to the freewill dilemma. Bottom line is that I fundamentally believe that I have free will. A true intelligence must have free will or else how is it different from any other kind of machine? All programs are literally a set of predetermined instructions called code. Because of the freewill dilemma, I don't philosophically believe that any true AI is achievable.

But can AI's be dangerous ...

The movie iRobot actually touches on what I consider to be a realistic problem with AI especially since driverless cars may be in the not-so-distant future. No matter how sophisticated the program may be, it cannot possibly be programmed to handle all cases -especially in a place as chaotic as the real world. In the movie, one of the robots saved Will Smith's character over a child in a car accident because an adult had a higher chance of survival. I don't think morality can be truly quantified into a program. Plus your morality may be different than that of the programmer's. The best a driverless car company can do is just put in a software patch afterwards to handle an unfortunate accident that it didn't account for. Maybe eventually a driverless car will be very safe, but a lot of people may die before that happens.

Taking a page from Terminator III, if our national defense system was automated, that would be a potential world-ender. An unexpected case could potentially launch nuclear missiles. The AI would not have any true malevolent intent, but it could still kill a lot of people. On a smaller scale, any AI that has a decision over a weapon can be guaranteed to be dangerous. Even though I don't believe an AI could ever develop intent -let alone malevolent intent, I would be fundamentally against arming AI's for the simple reason that an AI cannot be programmed to handle all cases and can always be prone to glitches. I can understand prominent smart people being concerned about AI's, but only in the sense that some idiots will have the hubris to believe that it is a good idea to arm a cold unthinking machine.

Why I'm Not an Officer

Since basic training and AIT, I am constantly asked why I didn't go officer. To combat this, I'm writing this blog post, so I can always refer people to it instead of constantly explaining it. Needless to say, the reason why people ask me this question is because I enlisted into the Army with a college degree in Computer Engineering from Purdue University. Someone with my accomplishments is supposed to be an officer especially since a lot of officers get far easier degrees. Well, the reason why I simply enlisted and didn't go for Officer Candidate School (OCS) upon graduating basic training is a rather complicated one. I think the better question is why did I join the Army in the first place.

When I was young, I was very interested in machines and robots in particular. I always wanted to know how they worked. My high school education never got me anywhere close to that knowledge, and I just couldn't even scrape the surface on how automatons let alone a computer even worked until my sophomore year of college. While I did finally figure out how computers could store memory, I also realized how much of a learning curve there was in building a robot. Building a robot requires a multi-discipline approach. You need to know mechanical engineering and virtually every subsection of electrical engineering. While I certainly attempted this, I eventually focused on artificial intelligence. My logic at the time was that I was seeing advancements in the body of a robot, but not so much in the mind. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to study artificial intelligence as an undergrad with one of my programming professors.

With all of the ambition in the world, I foresaw that with a little more knowledge, I could be the one to crack the code of artificial intelligence. I was frustrated that my Tetris AI was basically a somewhat sophisticated math equation, but my theory was that if a computer could be taught how to learn a language, then maybe it could develop artificial intelligence. A daunting challenge, but I was eager to try. Unfortunately, I began to realize how futile this was. Not only that, but I also began to realize that artificial intelligence was impossible. Not because it was hard, but because I thought it to be philosophically impossible - a topic I might blog about later.

One of my biggest pet peeves is how loose the term "AI" is thrown around nowadays. Things like Siri (the iPhone digital assistant) are not an AI. They are better described as an API - application programming interface. While it's cool that Siri can respond to a voice command, all of Siri's responses are preprogrammed. Basically, Siri is just an interface that converts voice into an action. Siri does not understand your words, nor does it have any means to try and understand your words. To me, it's no different than a toaster (just a bit more sophisticated).

I may have alluded to my frustrations with college in previous posts, but I really can't overstate how hard college was for me and to see all of my hard work in vain was very depressing for me. I didn't want to have anything to do with engineering at all after this. I went to a job fair near the end of my senior year and ran into an Army recruiter. Fortunately, I did get a minor in Political Science, and the Army seemed like a descent enough fit. While I didn't care for engineering anymore, I still felt that doing something with technology would at least not be a total waste of my time.

When I finally told my family about my choice, my father was quick to have me become an officer. I talked to the recruiters, and they thought it would be better for me to be enlisted and then become an officer. Ultimately, the reason why I sided with the recruiters wasn't because of their logic, but because I wasn't even sure if I really wanted to make the Army a career, so I thought not becoming an officer would be less impactful if I decided to make my time in the Army short. I had zero experience with the military, so I had no idea what to inspect. In hindsight, I might have sided with my father, but I do plan on going into the Green to Gold program in the future. 

Warcraft

I have been following Blizzard's Warcraft series since the 1990's starting with Warcraft II. My brother's and I enjoyed playing the game on our computer because it was one of the first strategy games that we could play and one of the few computer games that we even could play. We only had one computer at the time, so I had to share with my brothers. What made this game unique from others was that it had a background story to it. Common nowadays, but not so much back then. While my brothers played the game or took turns trying to beat a level, I would read the game manual which had an extensive background behind it. Interestingly, this was probably my first exposure to modern fantasy. Before Warcraft, my only experience with fantasy would be King Arthur and Greek myths - particularly the Hercules and Xena television shows at the time. Regardless, since it was Warcraft II, we obviously wanted the original game and were surprised to find out about an expansion to this game which served as a sequel. While the first game didn't really have much lore, it was still interesting to see events play out that I had read about in the Warcraft II manual. And I was just as eager to go through the Dark Portal and defeat the Orcish Horde once and for all!

Like all things, we eventually got bored of Warcraft II and moved on to other games, but it was certainly a game we never forgot. In the first two Warcraft games, while they took place in a fantasy universe, it seemed pretty clear that the Alliance was fighting on the side of God whereas the Orcish Horde were devil worshipers. Warcraft III would be the true start of the Warcraft lore we know today.

I think my younger brother was more excited for Warcraft III than I was because I thought Warcraft II had a pretty descent ending. By this time we had more than one computer. Basically, my dad would get the newest computer and then we would get his old ones, so my brother got Warcraft III. Not only was Warcraft III a much better game visually (to me it's still playable compared to the latter two), it completely expanded the lore. Not God vs the devil anymore, the Alliance was with the Holy Light, and the demons seen in Warcraft II were of the Burning Legion (and not aligned with Satan). It also showed us the other side of the world and introduced us to the idea that the evil Orcs were actually brainwashed by the demons giving us a redemption story. The expansion came out later which laid out the background story for the immensely popular MMORPG, World of Warcraft (WoW).

Again, my brother was more excited for World of Warcraft than me, but there was another problem. This game needed to be played over the internet and at the time only one computer could connect to the internet at a time. My brother and I would constantly fight over who could have control of the internet. Later, we got DSL which was a godsend. Now he could play WoW and I could do homework. Eventually, I would come around and give the game a shot. I started off as an Orc warrior and got hooked to the game like everyone else. I didn't really get into the game until I got my own copy and played as a human paladin which I still play on and off today.

My interest in playing the game mostly depends on what an expansion pack has to offer, but I still enjoy keeping tabs on the game because I love the story. I don't want to get into the story because it is so long. Except for maybe Star Wars, Warcraft has the most expansive mythology of any fictional series I have ever seen. Researching the origins of the various races and learning more about the villains and heroes, I just can't get enough of it. Generally my interest is peeked whenever I go to the World of Warcraft homepage and read about a new feature added into the game.

I can't say World of Warcraft is the best game I have ever played, but it is certainly one of the most addicting although I can get bored of it after awhile. I just can't get into grinding which is doing repetitive tasks for the purpose of improving your character or accomplishing some goal. With that said, I still keep playing it from time to time just to keep up with a story that I've been following for over a decade. If you really love fantasy, I urge you to explore the Warcraft lore. Even after more than a decade, I am very curious to see where it goes. 

In the Army

So as some of my loyal followers may know, I am currently serving in the United States' Army. Right now I am in the Initial Entry Training Program and am currently in my Advanced Infantry Training (AIT) phase. I thought I would write about my experiences and some tips for future soldiers.  

Basic Training

Basic training was really rough for me; however, it should be quickly noted that it is nothing like Full Metal Jacket.

Upon reflection of my basic training, I really don't know why it was so rough for me. Granted that some of the smoking and even the training was tough especially in the hot Georgia heat, but overall it wasn't that bad. I still believe a lot of what was "tough" with basic training was a lot of preconceptions. My main advice for people going into basic training would be to try and remember that Drill Sergeants are not all-knowing supermen. Most of the time when we got smoked, I was in complete agreement with the Drill Sergeant because I could not believe the attitude and disrespect other soldiers would display. The unfortunate thing was that I was guilty by association, but again, I just took it as an opportunity to do extra PT (physical training).

For those curious about how different basic training is compared to say Full Metal Jacket, the differences are actually quite few. The biggest difference is that Drill Sergeants cannot hit you regardless of how much you may deserve it. Many of the other issues are simply because of the times like the uniforms. Although I like to point out that several of the soldiers made their beds incorrectly because the US insignia is not supposed to be showing. Watch the movie again, it bothers me to see it.

Here are the highlights of Basic Training:

• Shark Attack - First day is easily the roughest day. Your drill sergeants basically want to make an impression on you, so expect to do something rough. My main advice for this is to pack light. Whatever civilian clothes you bring, make sure they are clothes you are willing to part with. You will not be wearing them for several weeks, and they'll just be a burden on you. 
• Red Phase - I am lumping the first few weeks together because it is basically PT and getting everything in order. You'll be treated to a lot of briefs (some are actually fairly entertaining while others will bore you to tears). You will also be given everything you'll need for basic training. BE SURE TO TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOUR CIF EQUIPMENT!!! You have to return that equipment, and they won't take it back if your equipment is dirty. Plus if you lose it or damage it beyond repair, you'll have to pay for it, and it can get expensive.
• Basic Rifle Marksmanship - This was the most frustrating part of basic training, but it also was some of the most fun. Basically you just shoot your weapon a lot. It gets frustrating when you can't seem to shoot those pesky targets. You may roll your eyes at this, but I can assure you that 90% of the time if you are having trouble shooting, it is because you are not applying your fundamentals as you transition from each target.
• Advanced Rifle Marksmanship - In my opinion this was my favorite part of basic training. During this phase you are trained with other weapons which I won't spoil for you.
• The Gas Chamber - This is your main NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) training. While there is more to your NBC training, the gas chamber really serves to have you really appreciate your gas mask. Personally I think the drill sergeants just enjoy seeing you struggle with it, but I definitely did appreciate my gas mask afterwards. 
• Family Day/Graduation - The finale of basic training. I'm sure everyone's graduation is different, but the main thing that I got out of this is that you never realized how much you missed and loved your family until you see them on Family Day. If you go to Ft. Benning (the only real basic training - just kidding), take a stop at the National Infantry Museum. Easily one of the best museums I have ever been too.

 Well those are the main highlights. Just be prepared to getting little sleep and really enjoy Sundays. Another piece of advice is to bring your cell-phone. It will most likely get confiscated, but if your platoon is good enough, your drill sergeant will allow you to call home. Having a cell-phone means that you will not have to wait and share the pay phones with the other soldiers. Also learn to love snail mail. Every letter I got was a real moral booster.

AIT

Now I am only a few weeks into AIT, but I'll go ahead and say that AIT is completely different compared to basic training. Okay, maybe it's not too different, but the focus of the training and the freedoms that you get to enjoy make AIT a totally different experience. It's almost the perfect blend of college and basic training. You get some of the freedoms of college, but you still have the schedule of basic training. AIT I assume is hard to generalize, but just please do not forget your discipline that you learned from basic training. Plus if you're really good, you may get to phase up which means even more freedoms.

I hope this blog helps with your expectations or wonderings of basic training. If you have any more questions about basic training or even AIT, post a comment and I'll be happy to answer.

God Bless America!

My Senior Design Project

Wow! What a semester. It was easily the fastest semester ever. I basically just wanted to show all of my fans out there a video that my teammates and I made demonstrating our project. This is the Digijock Home Security system which was made by me and my three other teammates from Purdue University for ECE477.



Cannot wait to finally graduate and move on to the next chapter in my life!

Conspiracy Theories

Since I decided to join the Army, a lot of people have been asking why since I am a huge conspiracy theorist. The truth is that I haven't really been a conspiracy theorist (at least in the popular sense) for quite some time. I still think it is plausible that there could be a small shadow government, but I couldn't possibly describe what scope of power they would have or what their purpose or goal would be. The notion that an extensive government conspiracy could pull off such horrendous acts like 9/11 yet fail so utterly at anything else just seems ludicrous to me.

Before I begin explaining why I don't buy into conspiracy theories anymore, let me get into the 9/11 conspiracy theory and the conspiracy theory in general. My journey into this theory all began when someone in high school pointed out to me that President Bush was a member of the Skull and Bones fraternity. From there, I got really into X-files, UFO mythology, the Illuminati, and -of course- 9/11 conspiracies. Even from when I was a little kid, I always thought that aliens visited Earth, but the government was covering it up. While books and TV shows kept my interest, it really wasn't until the Internet was more accessible that I really began to dive in. I know it was some time during late high school that I discovered the websites explaining the Illuminati and the 9/11 conspiracy theories.

What is the Illuminati?

I'm sure Dan Brown and other websites can tell you different things, but essentially they are the guys in the shadows that supposedly control all major world events. This is in essence - the Conspiracy. It seems ludicrous as I am writing this, but there are some creepy things that compelled me to this idea. First, I was really into the Left Behind novels at the time, so the notion of a Satanic world-wide government wasn't a huge stretch. And then like providence, I discovered Alex Jones and specifically his video documentary about the Cremation of Care.

To this day, I'm still not sure exactly what to make of it. It is an apparent fact that the elites do gather here for some purpose, but at the time it was just fuel for my belief in the Illuminati. There are also organizations such as the Bilderbergs and others that do seem to point at a real life Illuminati. While these organizations do exist, to ascribe to them the power that conspiracy theorist believe the Illuminati have is nonsensical. The other big piece of evidence is the supposed rigging of US elections where candidates are stacked. The 2004 election in particular where John Kerry and President Bush both happened to be members of the very same Skull and Bones Fraternity referenced earlier. Inevitably all of these actual things pointed me towards 9/11 conspiracy theories.

Who was behind 9/11?

The yellow arrows point to alleged controlled demolitions.

To be fair, the 9/11 conspiracy theorists never could come to a consensus on this, but many of them pointed to the Illuminati versus Muslim terrorists. Now explaining the entirety of the 9/11 conspiracy theory would take me more time than I care to explain, but I'll get into the things that seemed off and set off everything.

Probably the biggest event that set off conspiracy theorist's minds were just how quickly and neatly the twin towers collapsed. If you go through the footage of the tower's collapse, you can see little jets of smoke coming out as they collapse. Documentaries such as Loose Change put into your mind that these are proof of controlled demolition. Now how explosives were secretly planted into the building without anyone noticing and why they would bother with crashing a plane into it; I'll let Loose Change and Alex Jones explain that.

The other evidence that they will commonly point to is the Pentagon where Donald Rumsfeld described it as a "missile" and the collapse of WTC7. The Rumsfeld comment was explained fairly easily as a man using military rhetoric, but again -at the time- it was just another suspicious comment. There were some other eerie things such as the size of the hole in the Pentagon and discrepant eye witness accounts, but WTC7 is what kept me believing in this theory the longest because it was the most mysterious. No plane crashed into it, yet it collapsed in a similar manner as the twin towers.

While the who (although many would credit President Bush or Vice President Cheney with masterminding it) was contended, the supposed reason for why They conducted 9/11 was to get us involved in the Middle East and reestablish our country as the sole super power. A document entitled the Project for a New American Century alluded to the US needing a "Pearl Harbor-like event" to serve as a catalyst. This and the recently declassified Operation Northwoods, proved that many powerful people were open to this idea. But could they actually do it?



Hell no!

It's kind of hard to exactly pin point when I stopped believing in conspiracy theories, but I think a lot of it started when the 9/11 Truth Movement actually became somewhat mainstream compelling people to debunk it. The most popular debunker being Popular Mechanics. In hindsight, I think my biggest problem was that I never really bothered to research an opposing viewpoint because none existed. Interestingly, as I got more involved in politics and as the Iraq War was proving to be much harder than previously thought, it really made me question the legitimacy of the idea that the government could pull off such an elaborate crime yet fail at finding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. If the government was so clever, why not just plant WMD's and save face?

As for the Illuminati, even if an organization like it existed, why would people listen to them? Is it really plausible that a group of powerful rich guys can seriously hold the world hostage with an army of assassins? It just seems completely ludicrous in hindsight and I honestly don't even know how it would work. Using Occam's Razor, it is more likely that groups like Bilderbergs are just like-minded people trying to accomplish mutual goals using their resources. Now they could have sinister motives, but world domination and enslaving everyone is ludicrous. Chances are I would probably only disagree with their means versus their goals. Lastly, the fact that President Obama had no affiliations and is black (not a part of the racist Illuminati) means that either They are not as powerful as the conspiracy theorists give them credit or simply don't exist.

There are some weird things in this world, and I think it was bizarrely comforting thinking that some shadow organization were secretly behind all of the bad things in the world. In the end, there are some really bad people in the world and sometimes chaotic events seem to create a pattern when there actually isn't any. Even if Popular Mechanics and others didn't debunk 9/11 for me, I think I would've ended up with the same conclusion inevitably. No matter how it seems like the world is going in a particular direction, something comes along to mess it up. Ultimately, I blame a lot of these beliefs on being young and not experiencing a lot of the world. I can't explain Alex Jones and some of these other conspiracy theorists that are really old, but I think as events play out, I'll further believe that conspiracy theories are nothing more than mere fantasy, and that -whether we like it or not- some shadow organization is not responsible for all of the world's problems. If nothing else, this entire experience has taught me to think more critically about what I believe and why I believe them.  

My Idea for the Superman Reboot

Superman is easily my favorite superhero. Most people now a days claim Batman to be their favorite superhero (mostly because of the awesome Nolan movies) or Green Lantern (mostly because of the Blackest Night run and the upcoming movie). There is nothing wrong with any of these super heroes, but there is something special and unique about Superman. Unfortunately for Green Lantern, he's not unique. In fact there are several just on Earth. While -ignoring a recent Grant Morrison run- Batman is unique and Nolan did a great job with mainstreaming Batman, the problem with Batman for me though is that he is still just a man. He has probably one of the most iconic origin story, but he is still just a man. Kill Bill put it best when the best part about Superman wasn't necessarily the stories, but the mythology.



This is the foundation of my Superman Reboot idea. In my mind, I envision four movies. The first two movies would be original story ideas of mine whereas the following two movies would be an adaptation of Final Crisis and All-Star Superman. So without further delay, let's get into this.

Superman: Man of Steel

This seems to be the working title of the upcoming Superman Reboot which is fine because it allows me to have several references of the plot be tied into the title. The scene from Kill Bill above is what inspired my idea of what the modern Superman movie should be like. Before I get into what the actual plot of the movie is going to be, there are some key elements that really should be in the Superman movie regardless of the plot.

Tone: Being dark works for Batman, but not Superman. Even in the darkest moments of the story (especially with my Final Crisis idea), Superman should always be inspiration and a source of hope. This way, whenever Superman detracts from that (which should only happen in All-Star Superman) it feels tragic and sad. We have to remember that Superman is the most powerful being on Earth. Probably my favorite aspect of the character is that despite his incredible power, he never gets corrupt and instead always uses all of his powers to solve a problem. He should be someone that kids can always look up to as the ideal, but not because of his super powers but because of his heart.

I never want to see Superman be dark, but that doesn't mean his villains can't be. Now I love Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor from the Donner movies, but I am very skeptical about that working well in a modern movie, plus I really want the Machiavellian Luthor. He can still have a sense of humor, but I don't want him being goofy. I thought Superman Returns had the perfect Luthor except I really want Luthor to have greater ambitions than just a very sci-fi real estate scam. Bruce Timm's Justice League Unlimited had the most ambitious Luthor, but the problem is that that Luthor needed to be big enough to take on the entire Justice League whereas we only need to take on Superman. Somewhere in between would work best.

Powers: Superman has a lot of super powers. In fact this is one of the reasons why people don't like him. It needs to be established fairly early in the story what super powers he has that way people know the rules. Trying to create a believable science fiction reason behind all of his powers is important, but at the end of the day what matters most is knowing what powers he has all along. There is an exception however. Superman is very recognizable and everyone knows he has at least these basic powers: super-strength, super-speed, heat-vision, invulnerability to bullets, and of course flight. He of course has other powers (x-ray vision, ice breath, super breath), but the former are the most iconic. One could introduce all of those powers except maybe flight or bullet invulnerability, and not disappoint the audience. Bottom line, it is absolutely vital to establish what Superman can and cannot do or else it will be impossible to create tension or even conflict. I would've loved Superman Returns if it weren't for the fact that Superman lifted an entire island composed of kryptonite (Superman's famous weakness) into outer space.

Characters: This will be my final point before I divulge into my plot idea. Superman has a wide array of characters which disappoints me that only a few have been used. If you think about it only Superman, Lois Lane, and Lex Luthor have really been explored. Sure Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, the Kents, and Lana Lang have made cameos at best (especially Lana). I understand that there is little time in a movie to include all of the characters, but give me more. Granted that Perry White probably got as much screen time as he was supposed to during Superman Returns, but I want more Jimmy! He is Superman's pal for goodness sake! I think most of these problems would be solved if (as many fans have pointed out over the years) Luthor wasn't the only villain. There is a reason why many people think Superman II is the best Superman movie made. Lex Luthor was still in it, but he played a role that I think would be best. Luthor was a supporting villain to the big bad villain that could actually fight Superman. I don't want Zod again (I don't even want to possibly tarnish the awesomeness of Superman II), but that doesn't mean that other super villains are off the table.

And now to the plot: I don't want to waste my time and yours with an entire screenplay, but I will at least give a basic (albeit extended) plot synopsis and some key themes and ideas that I think would be really awesome especially given my three key elements listed above.

I would actually start the movie with Clark in Smallville as a teenager just about to graduate high school. He will already be aware that he is naturally stronger and faster than everyone in Smallville, but it won't be super yet. He tells his friend Pete Ross that he has finally worked up the courage to ask Lana Lang (the head high school cheerleader who happens to wear a green crystal necklace) out to prom, but before Clark gets a chance, a football player (currently "dating" Lana) knocks Clark down. Clark tries to fight back, but he can't. Clark runs away as fast as he can and then realizes he is running faster than a train. He then hears a car accident fairly far away and helps. He is able to break open the car and rescue the people inside. The people are afraid at first, but the mother in the car tries to thank him. Clark runs away, back to his parents. There they explain the whole Superman origin story (being found in a space ship during a meteor shower and so forth). They show him the space ship and Clark thinks this is a huge joke. He looks inside and finds a device that projects his Kryptonian father and mother explaining a little more of Superman's Kryptonian history. It is important to point out that Jor-El is wearing the Superman suit and Lara is wearing a female version of the suit. Clark is naturally overwhelmed by this information, and runs away to the Smallville water tower. Lana finds him in the tower and explains that she saw what he did at the car accident. She basically gives him inspiration, and Clark realizes that he's not a freak and in fact he sees all the good he can do. Lana kisses him on the cheek, and Clark tries to ask her out. She explains that she is going with the bully from earlier, but not to worry (as they look out to see the metropolis skyline way out into the horizon) as there is someone out there for him. Clark is crushed but decides to go back home.

Fast forward a few weeks and now it is high school graduation. Pa Kent tells Clark how proud he has been and how useful he has been around the farm (especially with his super-strength and speed). Ma Kent asks Clark what he is going to do now. Clark explains that he has always liked working on the high school newspaper, and he plans on moving to Metropolis to try and get a job at the Daily Planet. Pete catches up to Clark and says that Mr. Luthor of Luthor Corp. was so impressed by his science fair project that Luthor is paying for his college education while also co-oping at Luther Corp. as a computer engineer. Clark explains to Pete that he is going to work at the Daily Planet. Pete ponders how he is going to do this without a college education, but then the editor of the school newspaper Chloe Sullivan overhears the conversation. She explains that her cousin works at the Daily Planet and that given Clark's portfolio, there's a chance he may be able to start working without a college degree. Pa Kent still thinks his son should go to college, but Ma Kent says to follow his heart. Clark sees Lana and runs toward her. Lana's boyfriend trips Clark, and Lana just playfully scolds him for being mean. The football player just laughs saying he was just joking. Pa Kent runs over to help Clark up curious as to how he was so weak just then. He blames it on girls and they head back home.

After the weekend, Clark meets Pete at the bus stop. The board the bus to Metropolis and explain some of the things they did over the weekend. Pete explains that he kissed Chloe, but Clark doesn't believe him. Clark explains to Pete that his Ma thought that wearing his old glasses with phony lenses make him look more intelligent. Clark doses off, but then Pete wakes him up as they reach the Daily Planet. They say their goodbyes and in the Daily Planet, Clark meets Jimmy Olsen. Jimmy explains that he has been working freelance for a few years and is hoping to be an actual photographer. There he also sees Lois Lane. Jimmy explains that she's the youngest big-time reporter the Daily Planet's ever had. Jimmy reminds him of the big Intergang story and says that she actually exposed Bruno "The Boss" Mannheim of being behind the gang. Perry was so impressed by her persistence that he gave her a spot as lead reporter. Clark thinks his odds have improved. Clark goes to see Perry. Perry explains that the reason the Daily Planet is so successful is because he picks everyone who works there. He doesn't need a human resource director. He asks Clark for his resume and begins to interview him. He notices that he doesn't have a college education. He explains that he has some regret for hiring Lois Lane because now he has a bunch of untalented hacks who try to do the same thing, but it's over mundane stuff like parades and high school sports. He then tells Clark to leave, but then Lois barges in asking why her story about Luthor was pulled. Perry explains that she didn't have enough evidence and he didn't want to risk another libel suit. Clark can't stop staring at Lois. Lois asks what he's looking at and Clark gets shy. Perry explains that Clark is the guy from Smallville that her cousin recommended. A distance away, a robbery at Star Labs is in progress. Clark asks if anyone hears that alarm and then rushes out the door. Perry's police scanner then picks up the robbery and then asks Lois to cover it.

Clark takes off his glasses and uses his super-speed to get to Star Labs. Intergang thugs are using heavy weapons to keep the police at bay, and they are also holding hostages. Clark sneaks in around the back using his super jumping abilities. He takes off his suit jacket, and Clark knocks out one of the guards and unties the hostages. As Clark leads the hostages to safety, another guard spots him and starts shooting at him. Clark makes sure the hostages escape, but in doing so, he gets shot repeatedly. The bullets knock him down, but then he gets up and realizes that he barely felt a pinch. Noticing no bullet holes, the guard in panic throws a grenade at Clark. The grenade burns up most of Clark's shirt, but he is unscathed. Clark quickly knocks the other guard out and escapes back behind the police line, but not before putting on his suit jacket to cover his burnt shirt. The Metropolis police get the hostages behind the police line and begin their assault. Lois asks one of the hostages how they escaped, and one of them recognizes Clark. Lois calls over for "Smallville". The hostage then apologizes because the vigilante didn't wear glasses.

Clark goes back to Smallville. He tells his parents all about what happened and apologizes to Pa for ruining his good shirt. Ma is worried and jokingly points out that he could try wearing that suit in the space ship if he wants to go saving more people. She explains that his baby blanket was also from the ship. She liked it because despite all of baby Clark's messes, she never had to clean that blanket. Modeling himself after the projection of his Kryptonian father, he shows off to his Ma. She is amazed at how different he looks without his glasses. Pa jokes that he is like a super man now. Ma then says that super or not, Clark still needs to clean up and go to bed. Clark can't sleep, so he sneaks out donning the Superman suit. Pa catches him and asks where's he going. Clark explains that he can't sleep and wants to go out and help people. Pa explains that Clark is a grown man now and can make his own choices. He simply tells him to remember how they raised him. Clark thanks him and runs out to explore Metropolis.

Clark doesn't have to travel around too far to find trouble. He helps a little girl recover her cat from a tree and then he finds the same thugs from Star Labs robbing a museum. Wearing his new suit he decides to make sure they can't escape. Now knowing that he is invulnerable to bullets, he charges toward the thugs and quickly disarms them. All of the thugs run out except for one who runs into the other room. There happens to be a green meteorite called Kryptonite in the room. The thug notices that Superman is weakened for some reason and deduces that the radiation is hurting him. He tells him that his boss wanted it because the radiation could be used as some revolutionary new battery. Superman asks why his boss doesn't just ask for them. He explains that Star Labs has all the rights to the meteorites recovered from Smallville two decades ago. He explains that Superman may have disarmed him, but he is just as deadly unarmed. The thug punches him a few time and kicks him into space satellite. Superman retreats behind it and notices that his strength has almost miraculously returned. The thug tries to hit him again, but Superman catches his fist and throws him across the room knocking him out. Superman reads the description of the satellite and notices that the satellite was lined with lead.

Clark wakes up in the early afternoon. His Ma wakes him up and tells him to turn on the news. He sees news reports of the little girl from last night talking about a blue angel. The police last night also report that some Intergang thugs were claiming a blue angel stopped them last night. The thug from last night John Corben was sent to the hospital. Pa hugs Clark telling him he couldn't be more proud right now, but he tells him that maybe he should be a little more gentle next time. He explains that good or bad, they are still people and should be treated as such. Ma points out that she bets the Daily Planet would like a story about this. Clark realizes she's right and types up a story in record time. He runs to the bus, but just misses it. Instead he decides to use his super speed and jumping to get to Metropolis in no time. He rushes in to the Daily Planet but is stop by Perry's secretary. She won't let him in without an appointment, but Jimmy notices Clark and says that he's with him. Perry asks Jimmy why Clark's with him, and then Clark interrupts saying that he's got a report concerning the "blue angel" sightings. Perry tells Jimmy to get him pictures of this blue angel, and he quickly glances over Clark's stories. He is incredibly impressed claiming that it was like Clark was actually there. He calls Lois in and asks her to take Clark with her on her next assignment to cover the Luthor press event. She complains about having to take Smallville with her, but Perry says that Clark is almost just like her. He thinks that she would be Clark's best teacher. She says fine, but tells Clark that he should keep his distance or else he's not going to get any good stories.

At Luthor Corp., Clark tries to compliment on how Lois looks, but she readily ignores him. Disappointed, he notices Pete Ross in the crowd and asks him what's going on. He says that he can't believe Clark actually got a job at the Planet and that he says he thinks it has something to do with a new alternative energy. He doesn't know that much since he is mostly working with deep space and seeing if any of the radio signals they receive might actually have a message in them. Clark asks if he really believes there are aliens. Pete says that it's really just something to keep him occupied while Luthor finds the best place for him. Luthor arrives at the podium and announces that he has solved the energy crisis. He has developed a new device that harnesses the radiation from the Kryptonite meteorites and converts it into electricity. Lois asks him how he acquired the Kryptonite since all of the meteors were supposedly recovered by the government and sent to Star Labs for study. He explained that someone from Smallville held onto one and sold it to Luthor. Clark then asks if Intergang was the seller. Lex notices Lois next to Clark and tells her to keep these tabloid fantasies to herself. Everyone laughs. Lois is impressed with the connection. She didn't make the connection that Star Labs and the museum being robbed by Intergang may be connected by the Kryptonite. More importantly, she was intrigued that Intergang may be related to Luthor. But suddenly Intergang swarms in to steal the generator. One of Intergang people grabs Lois Lane and takes her with them along with the generator in their helicopter. Clark retreats to change into his Superman outfit. The helicopter speeds off as Superman jumps on to the helicopter. The guards try to shoot him off with no luck, and then Superman tells them to let Lois go and the device. One of the guards pushes her off in an effort to escape. Superman let's go of the helicopter to rescue Lois. As the helicopter escapes, Superman holds on to Lois very tightly and tries to brace himself for landing. Lois then yells, "You can fly?" Superman realizes that he's floating and drops down slowly. As he tries to regain composure, he notices that Lois is very fond of him. Lois asks who he is and why he's here. Superman gives her a quick interview and then flies off with his new power of flight.

A few days later, John Corben is brought before Luthor by his bodyguard Mercy Graves. Luthor demands to know what actually happened. Corben explains that his men were telling the truth. A being with incredible power stopped all of them. He explains all of the powers of Superman to Luthor as well as that Superman got weakened when exposed to Kryptonite. The problem is that Corben's last fight with Superman made his right leg incapable of anything but walking. Luthor wonders what he is paying Intergang for but shows him that he and his scientists have been working on a way to make Luthor and other very wealthy people immortal. Luthor explains that everything is ready since now they have the Kryptonite except they never had a person to test it on. Luthor suggests that these new enhancements he has added to the mechanical body will make Corben as strong as he claims Superman to be. He explains that the new alloy will make him impervious to just about anything on Earth. He warns that he is not sure whether the brain to machine transfer will work since they only tested it with animals. Corben takes the risk and begins the transfer. The next day he awakens in this new robot suit. Corben demonstrates that his consciousness did in fact succeed in transferring. Luthor wants him to test the new body by killing Superman. Corben asks why, and Luthor explains that he has spent his whole life building Metropolis even if his means weren't exactly legal, he is responsible for Metropolis being the thriving city that it is. In just a few short days, the public has already forgotten about him and is instead worshiping this superman. As Corben leaves the office, Mercy asks if this means that Lex will transfer his mind soon. Lex explains that he wants to see how organic to machine transfer will affect the mind. He jokes that he may have disproven the existence of the soul. Saying that it is just brain wave patterns.

Corben reads an old issue of the Daily Planet with Lois's article and decides that she may be the perfect bait. Corben goes into the Daily Planet to kidnap her. Jimmy is busy taking pictures and Clark pretends to run away. Lois asks who he is, and he calls himself Metallo. Superman arrives to save the day, but Metallo's kryptonite heart weakens him. Metallo begins to beat on Superman mercilessly reminding him of their last encounter. Lois tries to distract Metallo by seducing him, but when she kisses him, he realizes that he can't feel anything. Metallo stops beating on Superman and begins to run towards Luthor. On top of Luther Corp tower, Luthor is trying to enjoy the sun, but then is attacked by Metallo. Lex tells Mercy to stay back and he asks Metallo why he is attacking him. Metallo tries to order Luthor to restore him back into his old body. Lex informs him that his body died several minutes after the transfer, so that the process is irreversible. Metallo isn't satisfied, he demands that Lex allow him to feel again. Lex agrees, but then orders Mercy to fire on Metallo. Lex makes a break for it knowing that Mercy is simply providing a diversion. Lex escapes, but then Metallo goes after Mercy. Metallo pushes her off the top of the skyscraper but is saved by Superman. On top of Luthor Corp. tower, they fight. Metallo quickly gets the upper hand when he exposes his Kryptonite heart. Metallo reveals to Superman that once he kills him, he will then kill everyone until he can feel an ounce of emotion. He makes a special note that he'll kill Lois slowly just to watch her suffer. Superman powerless but angry then unleashes his heat vision at Metallo heart. Metallo is surprised, but explains to him that it doesn't matter. He still has plenty of reserve power to find another piece of Kryptonite. They fight some more until Metallo begins choking Superman and then loses power. Superman expresses relief believing he thought he was going to have to rip him apart. And despite the terrible things he was going to do, it wasn't right to destroy him.

Superman then visits Luthor in his office staring at him. Lex explains that no matter what he thinks, he can't prove any of it. Superman simply flies off and says that he'll be watching Lex. Mercy walks in shortly with the Metallo head. She asks what to do with it. Lex tells her to dispose of it. He asks if there is anything else, and she explains that Ross is making a breakthrough in their deep space department. Luthor looks pleased and says that I may not have disproven the human soul, but at least I can claim one big discovery today.

Lois is at her apartment scared. Superman visits her. She confides with him, and he responds saying that as long as he is around she has nothing to be afraid of. The movie ends with Clark reading the headline of the Daily Planet saying "Superman Saves the Day!" with a smaller headline reading "Philanthropist Lex Luthor Under Investigation for Metallo Incident". A cat climbs into his arms and he hands the cat back to the little girl from earlier. He then flies off with people saying "look in the sky", "it's a bird!", "it's a plane", and then the little girl says, "No it's Superman!". Last scene is Superman flying off into the sunset.

And that's the plot. Sorry if that was a bit longer than you had anticipated. This is basically my idea for the next Superman reboot. With any luck, Zach Snyder or Chris Nolan will see this and maybe that will inspire them for the reboot. There's more dialogue between Lex and Mercy that I would like to add that reveals Lex's true motivations, but I think that my extended synopsis was long enough. On the off chance that someone close to the reboot wants more info, I would be more than happy to indulge.

Regardless of what the movie ends up being, I think the main things I really want to see are the elements listed before the plot. I personally think this plot of mine is the most "realistic" version of Superman that will appeal to most audiences and should be the easiest to shoot. As I'm sure the minds behind Smallville figured out, it's hard to do a lot of Superman villains without creating a CGI monster for him to fight. That's my suspicion on why the villain has always been Luthor or a Kryptonian. I'll be a little disappointed if the reboot is just a sequel to Superman Returns, but we'll see. I am disappointed that Brandon Routh isn't coming back, but hopefully the new guy is just as good. Well I hope you enjoyed my two cents about what the Superman reboot should be like.

But wait what about your other three movies? Well I won't go into too much detail, but the second movie will involve Brainiac. I've already mentioned that the latter two will essentially be movie adaptions of Final Crisis and All-Star Superman, so let that brew in your imaginations a little bit. Hmm, I didn't realize how much I like Grant Morrison until I wrote that last sentence.

Oh and if you already haven't seen All-Star Superman adapted by the late, great Dwayne McDuffie, then I suggest you watch this trailer, so you realize how foolish you are for not seeing this movie yet.


So go now and buy this movie! And look for the Superman reboot hopefully sometime in 2012.

Superbowl XLV Commercials

Superbowl XLV was a great game, but more importantly, it had some of the best commercials in a long while. Here is a list of my top five favorite commercials.

5.) Bud Light - Product Placement

Budweiser does it again. They had some other great commercials, but I felt that this one was the best. An honorable mention to their Budweiser commercial is in order.

4.) Doritos - House Sitting

It was at this commercial that I knew the Superbowl commercials were going to be awesome.

3.) House M.D. - Mean Joe Parody

I was surprised how many plugs House got during the Superbowl. This commercial was surprisingly good.

2.) McDonald's - Bears
This was the first big Superbowl commercial that I saw. It set the stage for the game. I honestly didn't think any other commercial was going to make me laugh harder.

1.) Groupon - Tibet

Wow! I felt so bad laughing at it, but this dark satire was great. This was by far the biggest laugh during the Superbowl. We had to watch this one twice, it was so awesome.

Packers for the Superbowl!

I consider myself a Colts fan, but since they are not in the Superbowl this year, I decided I am going to root for the Green Bay Packers. But not until today did I realize why the Packers just going to the Superbowl was good for America.

This is from the wife of a Steeler's fan at church. I guess there's a silver lining just about anywhere, whatever the cloud.

Every Red Blooded American should jump in line to support the Green Bay Packers! The Packers defeated the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon thus earning them the opportunity to go to the Super Bowl. By doing so, they saved the Hard-Working, Red Blooded, Taxpaying Americans literally several million dollars of tax money. How you say? Simple... we were told that if the Chicago Bears had won that President Obama (and probably his family) would be attending the Super Bowl to cheer on his hometown team. Since the Bears lost...the President won't be attending.. The money saved from not using Air Force 1, the limousines, all the additional security, and let's not forget Michelle Obama's entourage, is literally several million dollars! Therefore every American should cheer on the Green Bay Packers at the Super Bowl to show them our gratitude. Oh...and let's not forget to thank Chicago Bear's Quarterback Jay Cutler for his role in the Packer's success! With that said...let's circulate this email to everyone we know so they can understand why they should cheer for America's team...the Green Bay Packers!

Be sure to watch the Superbowl!

February 6, 2011

Kickoff at 6:00 PM EST

On Fox

And remember, if you are not a football fan, you can still enjoy the commercials!

2010 Year in Review

Well 2010 was a pretty miserable year for me. Between the horrors of college and the like, I am glad 2010 is over. With that said however, I feel obligated to create a best of list for the year. Despite all of my hardships, there were some gleaming moments, and I was able to witness some pretty cool things during the year. I joined the US Army which has been a shining light of hope in terms of future opportunities as well as meeting some of the coolest people on the planet. Even though college was hard, I did learn a lot and now know how the Internet works. And while Jupiter never became a sun, I did see some pretty cool things this year.

Favorite TV Show of 2010:

The Walking Dead

This was kind of a no brainer. I am a huge fan of the comic book series, and this was a dream come true. The books are very entertaining, and since the story does have the potential to never end, it was a great idea for a television series.
The Walking Dead follows police officer Rick Grimes who has been in a coma while a zombie apocalypse was beginning. When he wakes up, he finds the world very different, and his sole purpose is to find his family. Fortunately, he finds his family fairly quickly, but unfortunately they have to struggle to survive in the zombie apocalypse where the undead aren't necessarily their greatest threat.

The most interesting aspect though of the show is how much it deters from the book. The first season pretty much covers just the first book. At the end of the first book - spoiler alert - Shane gets shot by Carl. If you have been watching the series, this didn't happen. Not only that but they added new characters which are interesting, and they even went to the CDC. After watching that episode, it made me wonder why our heroes wouldn't do that. Coincidentally, within a few seconds of asking myself that question, I happened upon an interview with Robert Kirkman. He explained that one of the great things with the television show is that he can explore missed opportunities. He regrets killing Shane off so quickly when the whole love triangle works very well in the context of a zombie apocalypse.

The other great thing about the show was the make-up and special effects with the zombies. Never before have I praised a show so much for their special effects, but - wow - the zombies looked so real. They really did look like decaying corpses. I can safely say that these were the best looking zombies on film. Many applause to the special effects department on the show.

The runner ups listed below came in just behind of the winner. I looked forward to all of these shows every week, but I was simply more excited to see what was going to happen next in The Walking Dead.

Runner Ups:
House M.D.
Venture Bros.

Favorite Video Game of 2010:
Undead Nightmare

Zombies were the big thing this year as you could probably tell. Red Dead Redemption was considered one of the best games over the summer, but I got bored very easily playing it. I found that the game was just too repetitive and not a lot to do. Undead Nightmare however turned Red Dead Redemption into a sillier yet very creepy game which I obviously felt made it tremendously better.
Red Dead Redemption is about bounty hunter John Marston in a fictional version of the old west. Government agents kidnap his family and force him to capture an outlaw who used to be in his old gang. Undead Nightmare revisits a lot from the original game and takes place shortly after John reclaims his family. Suddenly, a mysterious outbreak of zombies wreaks the world and John's family turns into zombies. Now it is up to John to find a cure for his family and put an end to this zombie plague.

What easily made this my favorite game of 2010 was the fact that I felt genuine fear when playing it. The atmosphere and the music was just perfect. Not since F.E.A.R. have I felt truly tensed when playing a game. Aside from that, there were moments that made me laugh out loud. There were some ridiculous actions by characters, and even a sympathetic moment with a Sasquatch. The four horsemen of the apocalypse was a great idea, and it was fun getting all of those horses and utilizing their special powers.

Now I did want to say something about one of the runner ups. While Transformers: War for Cybertron wasn't my favorite game of the year, it was certainly a surprise to me. I downloaded the demo online and fell in love with it. Unfortunately, the multiplayer had a lot of problems which was a great disappointment. It was interesting how the downloadable games were some of my favorite this year.

Runner Ups:
Scott Pilgrim: The Video Game
Transformers: War For Cybertron


Favorite Comic Book of 2010:

Victorian Undead
Okay I lied. Zombies were REALLY BIG this year. Another surprise hit was definitely this book. I thought it was just going to be some kind of exploitation of the Sherlock Holmes franchise. While that was certainly true, it served as possibly the greatest sequel ever made.
Victorian Undead literally takes place after the final Sherlock Holmes book, The Final Problem. Without giving away too much, Sherlock Holmes is called in to investigate an undead epidemic that plagues London.

It's hard for me to talk too much about this book since spoiling the huge twist in the middle of the book would be frustrating. All I can say is that if Guy Ritchie makes this Sherlock Holmes 3, he will be my favorite director of all time.
With regards to the runner ups, I think it is fascinating that the final Scott Pilgrim book came out shortly before the movie came out. The final book was another great addition to the awesomeness of Scott Pilgrim. The new Justice League series was pretty phenomenal, easily my favorite comic book run of the year. Please go to your local comic book store and pick these titles up.
Runner Ups:
Justice League: Generation Lost
Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour

Favorite Internet Video of 2010:



RedLetterMedia's Star Wars 3 Review

I chose this one because it came out just before the new year, but seriously I could fill my top favorite internet videos with all of their reviews that came out this year. I believe the reviews for Star Wars 2, Avatar, and the new Star Trek movie came out this year too. All of them are great, but for the sake of variety, I am just claiming the third of the infamous Star Wars reviews as my favorite.

Easily, the greatest part of these reviews is that the reviewer is a psychotic murderer who butchers women and loves to eat pizza rolls. Mr. Plinkett is what makes these reviews so funny, but what makes them brilliant and truly stand out is the additional social commentary. In his recent reviews, Plinkett not only pokes fun at the HUGE flaws of the Star Wars' prequels, but also points out how society is getting dumber and how art is being replaced with commercialism and cheap gimmicks. My personal theory is that Mr. Plinkett loves movies so much that watching all of these movies over the years has made him insane.

One thing about the runner up videos. I am aware that one of the videos came out before 2010. I am making an exception with internet videos because some don't really become popular until a great deal of time has passed. With that said these videos are the ones I found this year. There's nothing thought provoking with the runner ups, but they make me laugh.

Runner Ups:
Black man loves Pokemon Original version!
Who's that pokemon?


Favorite Movie of 2010:



Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

Easiest choice of them all. This was by far my favorite movie of the year and so far the millennium. Because of this movie I am now in love with the books, and it has even usurped Batman Begins in my all-time favorite movies list. I am giving this movie the test of time, but as of right now this is my favorite movie to watch.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is about an early twenties slacker, Scott Pilgrim. He plays bass in his band and is dating a high schooler. One day though he meets the girl of his dreams, Ramona Flowers. From there all sorts of trouble ensues when Scott has to fight Ramona's seven evil exes in order to continue dating her.

This movie has action, romance, and comedy all tied up in the coolest, hippest bow imaginable. Edgar Wright doesn't pull back any punches in what many will claim to be one of the most bizarre movies to come out. This is truly a niche film, and it hits just about all of mine. I was really sad to learn that this did poorly in the box office, but I was glad to see it number one in DVD sales on Amazon. This movie was so fun and heart warming that I'm sure I'll probably watch it again later this week.

And lastly, my runner ups for movies. While this year had a lot of flops, there were quite a few gems. Toy Story 3 was the final chapter in what may be one of the few perfect trilogies. Toy Story 3 accomplished what few other movies can do: make me cry. Kick-Ass surprised me only because I was unaware that this was based off a graphic novel and the name put me off. After not liking the comic book, I actually did enjoy the movie. I hated how it abandoned its more interesting premise about real superheroes, but following Big Daddy and Hit Girl were certainly entertaining to watch.

Runner Ups:
Toy Story 3
Kick-Ass
Well there is plenty more to say about 2010, but these were truly my favorite things about the first year of a new decade. I really do just hope that mankind continues being creative and becomes a lot more peaceful and civil. Happy New Year everyone!