Raindrops forcefully assaulted his exposed hands until Mark fitted his black leather gloves. - Spidersilk

Art 101

In Spidersilk, Mark is given a piece of art work to hold onto until a friend could pay him back for a loan. Mark, thoroughly impressed with the work, even displayed the art in his own home. So, what's the big deal? Well, if you remember correctly, the night this artwork is handed over to Mark the voices began to talk to him. Not only that, but the day the piece is returned to the creator the problem with the thieves is settled and Mark and his friends are victorious. It may be a coincidence, but there has been many objects throughout time that have opened up curses, hauntings and other dimensions to the people who possess the item.

For a list of ten creepy “haunted items: check out this fascinating list:

http://www.mandatory.com/2012/09/21/10-objects-believed-to-be-haunted/

You might also find this Egyptian artifact interesting:

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/pharaohs-curse-why-ancient-egyptian-statue-moves-its-own-6C10436447

“Who knows why? Perhaps we have valuables, and they think there is some way to get to them. Isn’t that the most common reason thieves pick their victims?” - Garrick in Spidersilk

It is verified, Ancient Egyptians wore jewelry that was from beyond planet earth and crafted with skill beyond expectations. Like the article says ..."The real question is, how were they made?"... What they may not realize is that is only a tiny window into the mystery.

http://www.livescience.com/38995-egyptian-beads-made-from-meteorites.html

the power of gaming

In Spidersilk, Mark has an amazing job designing an MMO game that he hopes gamers will fall in love with. An MMO game is a Massive Multiplayer Online game that allows players to work, in part, with one another to boost their skills and complete an objective. Although MMO games are often team based there is a still a lot for the individual to accomplish. Like Mark's dreams MMOs allow people to communicate and work with people they have never met before. On the other hand, some people are making a lot of noise about the way these types of games will affect our society as a whole. For many, the concept of the games promotes isolation, laziness, obesity and other less than desirable results. However, studies have shown that these types of games actually boost social skills, help promote higher levels of thinking and improve the way people learn. As previously stated, you can think of these games a lot like you would Mark's dreams. Mark had many friendships (or allies) within his dreams. He also gained the ability to push himself further and earn the skills and courage to stop his foes. What are your thoughts on MMOs and the part they play in the future?

To learned more about one of the many studies about MMO games check out this case study:

http://digis.ewha.ac.kr/data/Study/%B4%BA%B9%CC%B5%F0%BE%EE_%C5%AC%B7%A1%BD%BA%B7%EB%BF%A1%BC%AD%C0%C7_MMOGs.pdf

Hyper-transport

“Hi, yeah. I still retain the right to interfishbowl travel.” - Mark in Spidersilk

No matter how much money you have you cannot provision hyper-transport...yet.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/08/17/the-first-quantum-teleportation-in-a-computer-chip/

“The decor of the Cyberpad was futuristic as anything, yet Mark could see slight undertones of a time before the computer.” - Spidersilk

Without Technology

We have previously discussed the concept of technological addiction, or the cleansing of the addiction, that was mentioned in the book. We have not yet gone as far as to talk about the people who might have felt that technology was a problem. Just as in the book Spidersilk,there are people who have not embraced our heavily technological world. There are actually a number of technophobes, people who fear technology, in our society. These people don't necessarily disagree with technology, but find the concept of some of our most prized devices as frightening. There is another level of this anti-technology world though. These people are called Luddites and have been around since the 18^th century. Although Luddites originally stood for removing technology that altered their economic standing, today's Luddites tend to keep away from technology, especially newer devices, as much as possible. So, do you think the thieves in the books were Technophobes or Luddites or neither? This question might be tough given the fact that the leader ran a highly technological company!

For more information on Technophobia give this site a try:

http://www.thinkingclearly.org/phobia-fear-of-technology.htm

To learn about Luddites and their cause, click this site:

http://voices.yahoo.com/progressive-luddite-society-questions-progress-611705.html

The Curious power of Spidersilk

Had you ever heard of spider silk being protective prior to the novel? I certainly hadn't, so I had to take a deeper look into the powers that spider silk actually has. As a matter of fact, this insane silk is actually much stronger than steel (5 times, if you're curious) while still maintaining the ability to stretch out like rubber. This is great news for many industries that are looking to the future. Many medical and military facilities have already begun to realize the potential of this silk.

In the book, Mark was actually protected by the spider silk the spiders had left in another realm. This substance would certainly keep out any creepers, thanks to its numerous powers. If you think about it, the book, Spidersilk, is really setting the pace for the future as there is so many amazing things that spider silk will help the human race overcome.

To learn more about spider silk and its potential check out this site:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/med-tech/6-spider-silk-superpowers#slide-1

For a closer look at how spider silk is constructed, go here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/0/21685308

“It is more like ghost or spirit and doesn’t quite know what to make of us. It also cannot read us very well. Perhaps we can take advantage of the reading difficulty it seems to have.”- Jeff in Spidersilk