The narrative that Dr. Hunt wove from his years of research on the island turned out to be quite different. Strangely, at the beginning of his research, he truly believed he was merely going to catalog the evidence that was going to support the assumptions of previous researchers who had proposed the human driven ecological collapse. A different picture began to emerge.
Tag Archives: research
Holy Shit! I’m fucking done.
It’s the end of an age for me. I was awarded my Masters degree today after my thesis defense. It was funny that it offered few insights for improvisers, but it was the bomb for anthropologists and a few people from other disciplines. I’ve forgotten how much improvisers take what they do and know forContinue reading “Holy Shit! I’m fucking done.”
College Bureaucracy
Now begins the grand arranging of the thesis defense. For the uninitiated, a thesis defense consists of you presenting your research and findings (via your thesis) to a committee of 3 professors (who have all presumably read your thesis) along with any of the public who attend. There is a break when the public isContinue reading “College Bureaucracy”
Take a peak at the thesis
TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………….. iii I. Introduction…………………………………………………………………….. 1 The Setting and Subjects……………………………………………… 6 Methods………………………………………………………………. 10 Summary……………………………………………………………… 14 II. History of the Art and Research of Improvised Theater…………………. 17 History and Background of Improvisational Theater……………………. 17 Studies of Chicago Improvisation and Useful Social Theories.……… Continue reading “Take a peak at the thesis”
Here comes the thesis.
After about 5+ months of writing work, I’m fast approaching a submittable edit of my thesis. If anyone is interested in reading an anthropological study focused on looking at the social effects of long-form improvised theater, shout out. It would be nice to get some feedback from folks. It’s 95 pages long, but it documentsContinue reading “Here comes the thesis.”
Getting caught up.
I’ve been negligent about updating for a while. So here’s the skinny: I’ve got 50 pages of my thesis draft written. I’ve got to try to keep it under 100. I’ve had to swear off improv until my thesis is finished because I got a day job doing archeology. My good friend, Nate Halloran, hasContinue reading “Getting caught up.”
The finer art of Transcription.
Since returning to Portland, I’ve fallen into transcribing the 45 hours or so of one-on-one interviews I compiled during my fieldwork studying the improv scene of Rochester, NY. When I look at the numbers, it seems daunting. When I look at how much time I have before I absolutely need to have a job, itContinue reading “The finer art of Transcription.”
Collaboration Celebration
As my time in Rochester winds to a close, I’m becoming romantic and reflective. Nate Halloran and I just finished a short run of shows by knocking it out of the park last night to a great crowd. We ended up pushing a piano out onto the stage on a whim before the show, andContinue reading “Collaboration Celebration”
Favorite quote from an audience interview.
Ok. So I’m in the midst of doing interviews of audience members from Improv shows out here. Here’s a great one from the voice of the uninformed and uninitiated about suggestions. This was this guy’s first “professional” improv show he had ever seen. “I like it when they don’t take those suggestions like ‘gynecologist’ andContinue reading “Favorite quote from an audience interview.”
Rochester, aka “The Pit of Despair”
Let me start by saying that my research here is going great. Living with family is as you would imagine to be (well maybe better than you imagine if you don’t get along with your family). I haven’t lived in the east in over a decade, and the thing I’m being reminded of is howContinue reading “Rochester, aka “The Pit of Despair””
Brad Fortier 