Cats are superb predators which prey mostly on rodents, birds, and other small animals. Their claws allow them to climb trees with ease. They are well known for almost always landing on their feet. This is due to their tails that provide them with excellent balance.
It was originally thought that cats were first domesticated in Egypt. This is not true. There have been cat bones and human bones discovered buried together in Cyprus around 9,500 years ago. Scientists believe cat domestication began in the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East.
Many cultures have revered cats. One of the main ones is Egypt. There are many paintings that depict cats. One of their gods, Bastet, was often drawn with cat-like features. Japan views cats as lucky especially the "Maneki-neko" which is image or statue of a cat with a waving paw. These are usually very decorated. The popular icon, "Hello Kitty," is fashioned after this welcoming cat.
Cats have become an integral part of pop culture. They have been used in cartoons such as "Tom and Jerry" and "Sagawa." "Garfield" is a whole comic strip dedicated to a cat. "America's Funniest Home Videos" is known for having segments of the show featuring funny cats. Cat videos have saturated YouTube and other video websites. Who can resist those funny cat videos? I know I have wasted quite a bit of time watching hilarious videos about cats.
This ties into the Manovich text I will use to add meaning and analysis to this website. Manovich's main idea is to make a record and comment on the change before, during, and after the age of computers. He believes there have been drastic transformations to our culture and daily lives as a result of advances in technology.
There are phrases and words that didn't even exist fifty years ago. It's now common to say "Google it" or "Hashtag." Most of our parents and grandparents have no idea what we are talking about if we use these phrases. We have become a society where information is just a click away. No more having to go to the library and sort through cards to find information. We can now just look it up on our iPhone or tablet.
The shift to computers has resulted in "media as the message" which means the actual medium is an integral part of the information conveyed. This is especially prevalent in websites where hyperlinking adds multiple layers of information. Manovich believes five principles are an important part of the technological age. These are numerical representation, automation, variation, modulation, and transcoding which will be discussed further in relation to the content of the rest of this website.
I think your intro might be a little long, mine is too. But there is some good info there. Your discussion of Manovich covers a lot of good ideas. I think the whole thing just needs to be condensed a little.
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