I was about to go to bed but right as I was taking my shower this idea popped into my head, so I need to quickly write this down before I forget.
*Not Intended To Be Factual Statements.
Language is probably evolving and I can't tell you the reasons, but I do have some questions. Gender, applications, and branding?
Starting off with the most obvious from my perspective. It's probably not a surprise to a lot of people that the way gender is thought about and expressed is radically changing. There is plenty of evidence especially in the past 5 years to support the idea that Gender is not grounded in Biology. From the perspective of a lot of my Cisgender friends, I've come to notice that their perception of Gender is so much around the genitals or the biological sex that they were assigned at birth. Which you might be noticing by now, may not be how a lot of other people view it. In fact an article came out by JWT Intelligence a couple months ago highlighted the recent findings on Generation Z.
"The study is covered in depth in an article published yesterday by the Vice media title Broadly. VICE News As the article notes,
Fifty-six percent of 13-to-20-year-olds said that they knew someone who went by gender-neutral pronouns such as "they," "them," or "ze," compared to 43 percent of people aged 28 to 34 years old."
It's clear that something is indeed happening with Gender. Something is happening between generations as close between Millenials and Generation Z. I recently did a video about Canadians and the importance of recognizing Generations.
If more young people are using They and Them instead of Him/His/She/Her pronouns and will continue to remove this concept of gender beyond the body, shouldn't this change the way we speak? Adapting to the feelings and thoughts of those that do not consent to having a gender, gender being a possible social construction outside of biology. Is this not a sign of evolution?
This is where things might get tricky so bear with me while I try my best to explain my thoughts. Software applications, decade after decade have been not just improving our lives it has been providing Accessibility. Access to instantaneous connection with multiple people around the world through software applications like Facebook, Twitter, Skype. Providing us access to other cities; with automobiles, airplanes, which could all be considered a form of 'hardware application' next to simple things like automatic doors and robotic limbs for those with physical disabilities. Slight changes in language have happened in the past 20 years because of these changes. To ask someone to "Follow Me", "Facebook Me", "Hashtag Me", "Subscribe!"... very basic social media terms but more significantly... commonly used terms in the world of the Internet.
Even asking someone if they 'have' a Reddit? Having a Reddit? Last time I checked Reddit wasn't a physical thing in my house that you could own. It's not a robot, that lives with me. You don't own a Reddit. You have an account with Reddit.
But even having an 'account' on Reddit has been an evolution. In the old days, when I say the old days I mean even before World War One. The concept of banking dates back to even the 14th Century but I'm speaking more about the 1800s. The only real 'account' anyone had was at a bank. You had to do paperwork and have an exchange of money to have an account at a bank. Even up until the 90's, having an 'account' meant being a part of some kind of institution where you paid money and you were receiving a service.
Reddit is free, and founded 10 years ago. May I remind all of you...the internet is basically only 45 years old. Four decades have passed since it's invention, it's birth.
Fast forward to 2016, there is even more to say about how the simplicity of a web or mobile application is changing the way we speak. So I was in the shower tonight and it crossed my mind, if this is true...then it's already happening. What about the Hardware Applications of 3D Scanning? It's clear that within the next few years 3D scanning will be in all of our phones. Should I even call it a phone anymore? If VR and AR are taking off right now, it's clear that there will need to be better access for everyday people to develop content for it.
Most people don't know what Structure Sensor is but they took off on Crowd Funding website Kickstarter only a couple years ago. Structure Sensor is a device you can put on most iPads. Because of iPad's 64-bit processor, the device (Which is basically a laser depth sensor from Xbox) is small enough to be powered by an iPad. This fantastic piece of hardware can work simultaneously with the software on a mobile device, a computer, and the internet.
You have to understand this a mind blowing human achievement to me. Less than 5 years ago, it would have taken multiple cameras and hours of rendering on a computer with a fairly expensive graphics card to be able to process a 3D rendering done from a scan. With Structure Sensor you have the ability to do a 3D scan in less than a minute, that is high quality which can be emailed to anyone instantly all under $400. Accessibility.
All the integrations done at Fleecer have been done using a Structure Sensor. All the materials enhancements were actually done on Sketchfab. (So I don't even need to post-process the files anywhere else!) Sketchfab is a website you can upload OBJ files and many kinds of other files on top of 360 photos or environments to be able to be rendered and viewed easily on; a website, mobile device, and even on a VR (Virtual Reality) headset.
See what I did just there? I said INTEGRATIONS, not 3D scans. See, it's going to be common practice eventually so someone's got to come up with a handy word to use when we all start 3D scanning. Eventually.
I'm not even thinking about capitalizing or profiting off this realization. It's probably because I believe VR and AR have the ability to improve the way we view economics and move us towards a future of self-sustainability but that's another article.
This is a good segway into the last way I think language is evolving.
You see...integrations isn't a company. It's not a brand. It's a verb not a noun. Facebook became a verb because it became a service and a company that became a necessity. It became its own grid. It's own mainstream. It became a way of life. Social Media became a way of life but as you know there are many different types of Social Media. There are many different ways to access to the internet now, access other people on the internet. All of these internet platforms now can be both accessed using a website and/or mobile application. Everything is becoming integrated.
Google, Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Medium, Reddit, Imgur..to name a few. All of these platforms are ways or VERBS to connect with each other through content. They are also companies AND they are also BRANDS.
A friend of mine and I were chatting the other day about the current state of fashion, the current state of culture. Her name is Golnaz Ashtiani. Another beautiful mind; designer and composer of bodies, composer of clothing.
Her and I were talking about how not only are trends dying. Trends in Fashion, and the concept of Trends...something else is evolving. She calls it, Micro Cultures. Sound familiar? Micro Blogging of the early 2010's. A couple years ago it was about being an individual; doing what you want, and it got messy. Everyone was just experimenting. Now there are mini cultures. Mini communities. She spoke about a designer in the UK that started a brand that is geared at selling conventionally viewed 'ugly' clothing. You have other brands that only sell t-shirts with cats on them and brands geared for; hiking, yoga, knitting, reading, vegans, LGBT, ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING IS BECOMING A BRAND. This is probably happening because technology is now allowing us this accessibility and convenience to do so. What's happening is quite beautiful if you think about it.
A couple years ago it was more about me and now things are slowly becoming about..
...us.
But the interesting thing about our conversation was that we don't need a business card anymore. We are both designers, and when someone asks us where to find our work, how to look us up? We respond with our handle...what's your handle?
Handle is a word now used to describe the name you go by or avatar you go by on a certain platform like Twitter, or Instagram. The funny thing is that I would also ask someone else for their handle if I wanted to find out more information on their work. The @____ tends to be how a handle is presented on any platform.
Naz and I were saying that, it makes sense that in the future no one needs a brand. Just a 'handle'. That handle can be anything you want, it doesn't have to be you. In fact someone can have multiple handles, maybe they have multiple Instagram accounts. It also makes sense that; Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, App Developers and Programmers are going to need the help of Fashion Designers. We understand textiles, we understand materials, we understand culture. The bodies that exist in these different cultures and what our bodies need to exist in these cultures. VR/AR environments, simulations, games are all simply made out of object/audio files and material files. Eventually technology and fashion designers will need to come together and help each other create more immersive, relatable, and culture based VR/AR experiences. Better UX. User Experiences. VR Experiences. Virtual Reality Simulations; etc. Wink Wink Cubicle Ninjas, vTime, and Cerevrum.
Back to language, the concept of branding is dying simply because technology is creating the kind of accessibility where we don't need it anymore. BECAUSE EVERYONE CAN BE A BRAND NOW. You can communicate directly with the designer, the creator through social media. The future really is third party applications. You have me you have you and you have the application.
One, Two, Three, Simple as that.
Or maybe this future doesn't exist, because it already exist. Maybe we just need to look harder, from a different perspective.
If the 'handle' will destroy the concept of a brand...then what is next? I started this article about language, and then I spoke about the advances in technology of hardware and software and it's applications in real life. I spoke about Branding. I like to think soon everything will be a verb not a noun. Where we have moved past innovation. Where every innovation isn't started by a company or a brand. Where integration happens; everything and everyone comes together. Something new is born where things aren't based on traditions or sociology; we're here just to exist, explore, and design a better world.
I'll be honest, I'm still figuring out what this 'something new' is.
This is where I want to end this article, with live streaming video. I have written in a past article about my rationale for having a live stream of my home on Fleecer. Tonight someone I've never met sent me this...
It was of link to their own 'livefeed' and then...it hit me... this is the next 'handle'. For if a click of a button; you can send me the who, what, why, where, how, of your existence and instantly connect?
Isn't it finally happening? Isn't this more than language evolving?
Tomorrow, will you send me your handle.. your feed, your existence?