Category Archives: New Utopia

By David E. Gehlke

Bassist Shane Embury joined the already influential U.K. grindcore act NAPALM DEATH in 1987. He missed playing on the band's "Scum" debut but has been a mainstay ever since, appearing on every NAPALM studio effort and subsequently plotting its creative direction, which, now at 16 long-players, has covered virtually every bit of ground extreme metal has to offer. A career this lengthy entails the usual peaks and valleys, and NAPALM certainly took it on the chin from the mid-1990s up until the early 2000s, thanks to their well-documented rifts with Earache Records and the declining fortunes of grindcore. Embury (and his bandmates) survived barely and can now live to tell the tales, something he has done in his biography, "Life...? And Napalm Death".

Embury's self-deprecating writing style and ability to recollect some of the more obscure details in NAPALM's career make for a fascinating read, particularly when he discusses his relationship with vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway and the routine frustrations of trying to make a living while playing vastly uncommercial music. All that, and more, was on the docket when BLABBERMOUTH.NET got Embury on the horn.

Blabbermouth: You've been open about why you wanted to write a book. But how did you feel when it was finished?

Shane: "I was satisfied, for sure. Of course, then you think of the things you forgot. Primarily, it's up to this point in my life, I'd say it does what it needs to do, but I'm satisfied. It's also a strange feeling of, 'Will people like it? How are they going to feel?' I called my close friends and they liked it. The response has been pretty good. That's nice, of course. That was it, I suppose. It's intriguing to see where it goes from here because it's different than an album, which is what I'm used to being involved in. It seems to be a thing that, because it depends on what people think, it keeps rolling on. It's a small reason I wanted to do it. I wanted to be able to chat about it with younger generations. It's a journey of what I did and the industry's ups and downs. I came from a quite small village. I was a homebody before I joined NAPALM. The guys became my family. I can't believe the world and the adventures I've had. Then you get older and a family man and it becomes a balancing technique. You have to make the two lives co-exist without disrupting them."

Blabbermouth: Did you keep a journal, or were these all events you recollected?

Shane: "It's all in my memory. God knows my memory, considering the party lifestyle when we all lived together. In the early '90s in Birmingham, a different band played every day and we were all out drinking, but I seem to remember a lot. Of course, I found old videos from our shows. Our fanbase and die-hard fans were able to plug in some holes, like, 'What happened on this particular day?' 'Oh, you played this show.' Sometimes, I wonder if I was always preparing to do a book."

Blabbermouth: How much inspiration for the book was derived from the number of times people told you NAPALM was nothing but "noise"?

Shane: "People say we sound like that onstage and sometimes I can roll with that, but there are a lot of deeper undercurrents. And that's why I loved NAPALM before I joined. I was a fan. There wasn't much of that style around. I'm not trying to sound pompous, but when you bring in grindcore, indie, alternative, and noise, bring them together, there are multitudes of things going on to make the music. Sometimes, it's a symphony of chaos. I want to promote that more with the next record and try different things. We've returned to [founding NAPALM member] Nick Bullen's original vision in some ways. When you're younger, you don't possess the words to reinforce that it's not noise. It's something else. People get such a reaction from it."

Blabbermouth: The one time NAPALM did something at least somewhat targeted was when you came to Tampa to record "Harmony Corruption" with Scott Burns. There are a lot of opinions of that record. Where does it sit with you?

Shane: "When we were younger, me, Mitch [Harris, guitar] and Jesse [Pintado, guitar], we'd go out and drink and debate albums. As you get older, you brush that off. People are entitled to their opinions, but it's interesting that 'Unfit Earth' is a song that Barney cringes about. Micky [Harris, drums] wrote that on his famous two-stringer, which I always talk about. He wrote that during the period of 'Mentally Murdered'. Nobody would have noticed if 'Harmony' had been recorded in the sound of 'Mentally'. There were changes. Barney came in. We were in Florida. It's what we wanted to do. A lot of it was because we loved Florida death metal. Digby [Pearson, Earache Records owner] wanted us to go; Micky wanted to go. I was like, 'Well, yeah. I want to go. I want to see OBITUARY. I want to hang out with DEICIDE. I want to record a record.' I don't look at 'Harmony' for what it sounds like. I look at it for the memory and the great fun I had. The old school didn't like it so much, but we attracted a bunch of new fans. What's fortunate is that you can go to album 16 and go, 'There have been steps that have been made, rightly or wrongly, and we've survived. Now we can look back on it.' To me, it's fine."

Blabbermouth: You talk about it being an experience. I always think of the band pictures you took in the Florida sun and how Mick had some real issues tracking drums.

Shane: "It's hard not to remember. That was a different time because 'Altars Of Madness' [MORBID ANGEL] came blasting forth. At the time, I didn't think much about it. I thought, 'Altars Of Madness' rules. That's it. I had the advance tape that I blasted in the back of the van. Micky always said, 'You're listening to that album again?' I would respond, 'Of course I am!' I recognized there were different styles of music. You could see why John Zorn was Micky's hero. Micky was a free-style tornado guy. [MORBID ANGEL drummer Pete] Sandoval was very precise. It was the beginning of a different age. There was that. Then, there was general nervousness in the studio, which still happens. On the last album, Danny [Herrera, drums] and I tried to keep things spontaneous because of nerves. You remember things like that. Me, Mitch and Jesse were hanging out and watching MORBID ANGEL rehearse more than we spent in the studio when making 'Harmony'. But I remember all of that. Overall, it's probably one of NAPALM's most important albums. Simple as that."

Blabbermouth: Some of the most interesting portions of the book are when you talk about the strife within the band during the mid-'90s. Did you think NAPALM would survive?

Shane: "There were definitely times when we all thought we wouldn't get through it. This house where I'm at now is where we all four lived at one point. Now it's me and Danny. That got us through, that camaraderie, I suppose. Barn was always moving around. He was in London for a while. Different things were going on. We did 'Utopia Banished' because Jesse, Mitch and I were getting into different stuff, different bands and beats, and the nu-metal thing came in and we were slightly unaware. I remember returning from the first South American tour, where we played to six thousand people in Chile, then went to Hamburg and played the smaller clubs. The scenes were changing. Fast-forward 20 years, it's different. It's tilted back the other way. Somehow, we managed to ride the storm. It was very tough. We were younger and immature; it was hard to communicate. 'Fear, Emptiness, Despair' was difficult to make. Barney was trying to process how he perceived us changing. I think me and Mitch would go, 'We have this crushingly heavy riff and it's for four seconds and that's it. Why don't we use more of it?' We were listening to HELMET, which had more to do with the beats than anything else. We tend to openly go, 'We like the SMASHING PUMPKINS.' The natural reaction was, 'What's happening with NAPALM?' I won't say I love the SMASHING PUMPKINS, but I love the drummer [Jimmy Chamberlin]. He's fucking awesome. Why don't we throw some of those beats in there? It was a confusing time. Danny was nervous. Barn was nervous. Then the Columbia [Records] thing happened, but everyone else was supportive. It was a difficult time. The only way I can make sense of it is that it would have been easy to make another 'Utopia', but we weren't in that mind frame. That was the deal."

Blabbermouth: You mentioned in the book that you sympathized with Digby on how hard it is to run a record label, given your experience. Has your view toward him softened?

Shane: "It has, for sure. I had a small experience running a record label. It was difficult dealing with a band that I perceived to be punk rock and down to earth who turned on me because of a simple mistake. I forgot one small thing on the cover. It was like, 'You must destroy these CDs.' It is difficult. It is tough. I think whatever people think of Dig, he was there. He did help and did push NAPALM. I was part of his help in the early days I remember doing mailers for him and all kinds of stuff. It can be difficult. In any relationship, it's how you perceive stuff. It's very easy to go, 'Blah blah this.' We had a manager come in with his perspective, but I don't think he had the band's best interest in the end. I'm forever terribly in the middle of it, going, 'What's going on here? Can't we get on?' I've seen Dig a few times recently and we get on fine. Our Glastonbury appearance [in 2017] came through Earache. They got us that. A few more interesting festivals have come through Earache because they keep promoting the early stuff. My memory is reasonably intact on most of that stuff. When I think back on the early days, it's going back to Dig's flat and mailing MORBID ANGEL test pressers. I can't imagine the stress of it on that scale. I was more scared when I did it, like, 'I can't do this.' The bands can be a total pain in the ass. I know I'm a pain in the ass. You have to work out a compromise."

Blabbermouth: You talk a lot about your relationship with Barney. Are you so different to the point that it's why you've been able to co-exist for so long?

Shane: "People say we're different, and it works that way. I think Barney is ultra-cautious. I tend to jump into the fire, like, 'Come on, mate.' Whether it's good or bad it's mostly good. I don't think we're totally different, but some people say we're closer than we know. We're evolving. Sometimes, I yearn for the Barn of the past. He's there. I have to edge it out of him sometimes, but he has the responsibility of being NAPALM's frontman. It is a responsibility, but I come from a slightly different angle. Of course, our message is clear. I'm single-mindedly into the music. That's where the yin and the yang come in. We do things in a strange way. I compose and he goes and does his thing. I barely know what's going on until the album is final. I'll go, 'That's a little strange.' But as time goes on, I usually get it. When you get older, you have to bring yourself back down to earth and let these things happen."

Blabbermouth: While on the subject, do you have any demos of Phil Vane singing on "Inside The Torn Apart" when he replaced Barney in 1997?

Shane: "Strangely enough, I've been uncovering all kinds of cassettes. I may have something."

Blabbermouth: Phil was a great vocalist in his own right coming from EXTREME NOISE TERROR, but as you mentioned in the book, his downfall may have stemmed from you trying to shoehorn him into NAPALM.

Shane: "It was immaturity and lack of communication on my part. Depending on the perspective, he'd say he left, but I think a simple sit-down would have changed things [with Barney]. That's where we were at that point. Feelings got amplified because of that. Phil and Barney traded places. [Laughs] The record would have turned out the way it did anyway, but we could have auditioned more people. Barney probably would have been on the album anyway. When I broke the news to Phil, it was hard. Then, it was equally hard to ask Barn back into the band! Barney came in and said, 'The album is heavy.' I said, 'Of course. What else are we going to do?' That was that. There was a fallout from all those things. Trust is battered a little bit. It's like when I'm in the dugout with my wife sometimes."

Blabbermouth: What's next for you, particularly with NAPALM?

Shane: "We have a London show with CULT OF LUNA next month. There are some shows in Spain and France. We go to Japan in December, which will be fun. I'm going to hit the road in England with VENOMOUS CONCEPT. Dave Witte [MUNICIPAL WASTE] will be playing with us. That will be a lot of fun. I'm hoping around April to get some studio time to start working on the next NAPALM. I have multitudes of ideas. It's going to be fast, but there will be some whacko stuff."

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NAPALM DEATH's SHANE EMBURY Talks New Book And Life In ... - BLABBERMOUTH.NET

Summary

In almost 50 years of flying as British Airways, the UK flag carrier has only changed the external color scheme on the exterior of its fleet three times. Simple Flying looks at each of the liveries used by the airline over that time and speculates whether the carrier might be due for another update.

In 1974, the British government decided to merge several of the airlines operating in the United Kingdom - British European Airways (BEA) and British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), plus other smaller domestic carriers such as Northeast and Cambrian Airways. The resulting single airline became known simply as British Airways.

2024 will mark the 50th anniversary of that merger. In the almost half decade since coming into existence, British Airways' fleet (and those of subsidiaries, partners, and franchisees) has only had four external color schemes applied fleetwide.

The liveries predominantly used by the airline over that time are best known as the 'Negus' scheme, the 'Landor' scheme, and the 'World Tails/Project Utopia' schemes. Most recently, the 'Chatham Dockyard' scheme is currently used by the carrier.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

In this article, Simple Flying briefly looks at each color scheme - its key features, choice of colors, and background. Lastly, it will discuss the likeliness of whether the airline will be introducing a new color scheme any time soon and what that might look like.

After its formation, the fleet of the newly-founded British Airways (BA) initially retained their individual liveries, although having their respective titles replaced with the new airline's name.

Photo: Steve Fitzgerald | Wikimedia Commons

However, around the time BA came to be, the airline's management instructed London-based design firm Negus and Negus to develop a new design that would encapsulate the company as Britain's new flag carrier.

The new livery created by the design firm featured an all-white upper fuselage paired with a navy blue lower half. The tail design featured a stylized quarter of the Union Flag (the official name of the national flag of the United Kingdom), retaining its blue and vibrant red colors.

Possibly the most iconic element of the new livery was incorporating the Speedbird logo, previously seen on BOAC aircraft in the lead-up to the merger. The new design was widely acclaimed by the travel industry and the public alike.

At the time of its unveiling, British Airways described it as "a modern and fresh design based on the British national colors of red, white and blue. It features a streamlined evolution of the BOAC and BEA insignia through a quartered Union Flag with a red tip on the tailfin and the Speedbird symbol on the nose."

In 1980, there would be a slight change to the titling when the 'airways' suffix was dropped entirely, and the 'British' element of the name became larger and more prominent. The fleet quickly adopted this change, cementing the airline in the public's eye as 'Britain's airline.'

What would become a regular feature of BA color schemes over the decades, the carrier's seven-strong Concorde fleet would display a slightly modified version of the Negus livery. Instead of the navy blue lower fuselage, the Concordes would sport a narrow navy window line while retaining the same titles and tail design of other types in the fleet.

In 1984, just as the UK government began preparing the airline for privatization, there would be experimentation with a silver-colored fuselage top. This scheme only featured on a couple of aircraft and was not widely adopted.

However, it was an early sign of what would come later that year as preparations were made to sell the airline into public ownership.

With privatization planned for late 1987 to stem the airline's losses (which were becoming too much of a burden for the UK government to endure), the airline began transforming to make it more attractive to private and institutional investors.

This major rebranding exercise included the adoption of the marketing slogan 'The world's favorite airline' along with a complete refresh of the livery. Designed by the famous design house Landor Associates, an updated scheme was unveiled in December 1984.

The new design bore some resemblance to the previous Negus scheme, although the white upper fuselage was replaced with a Pearl Grey color, while the navy lower fuselage color was replaced with Midnight Blue.

Also featured in the new scheme was a Brilliant Red 'speedwing' along the lower fuselage, which replaced the outdated speedbird logo. The tail, modified to feature a midnight blue upper half, also saw a coat of arms emblem added (which displayed the airline's new motto, 'To Fly, To Serve') in silver.

Lastly, a change that marked a reversal for the company: the titles reverted to the full 'British Airways' once more, although this time capitalized using a different, sharper, and more modern font.

BA's Concorde fleet again would display a slightly modified version of the livery. Instead of the navy blue lower fuselage, the Concordes would sport an all-white fuselage with the speedwing in red while retaining the same titles and tail design of the rest of the fleet.

In 1996, some 12 years after the Landor scheme was introduced, several members of the BA fleet began appearing with a lighter blue belly color but without the speedwing. And while the tail remained in the Landor scheme, the fuselage color reverted from pearl grey to white.

This interim design appeared on many of the carrier's Boeing 737s, 747s, 767s, and Airbus A320s. Since the scheme started appearing fleetwide, many took this as a sign that another livery refresh was on the horizon.

With fleet members appearing in this hybrid scheme over 1996/97, the reason was finally unveiled to the world on June 10, 1997. However, the rollout of the airline's new corporate identity was to prove anything but successful and was ultimately short-lived.

The new design revealed a lighter blue lower fuselage color (as seen on the hybrid aircraft) along with new titles (in a softer typeface) below the window line.

The speedwing had gone, replaced by a new three-dimensional 'speedmarque' design in red and blue, in a nod to the former speedbird logo of the Negus scheme. The BA coat of arms was also dropped.

Photo: Robert Sarosiek | Shutterstock

The signature element of the new livery was for aircraft to feature a range of new tail designs, each designed by notable artists from across the globe.

The rebranding by design agency Newell & Sorrell aimed to present a new livery but also an entirely new BA as a world airline. The concept was formulated to reflect that 60% of BA's customers originated outside the UK.

Photo: Konstantin von Wedelstaedt | Wikimedia Commons

Named the 'World Images' livery, new designs started appearing on everything from baggage tags to company vehicles and stationery. Fifteen designs were unveiled initially, with the aim of adding 12 new ones each year until the millennium in 2000.

However, the overall project ('Project Utopia') was rejected by many, with BA being accused of ditching its 'Britishness' and turning its back on its homeland.

Indeed, British former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher took particular exception to the designs so much that she covered the tail of a model BA aircraft with a handkerchief at the 1997 Conservative Party conference as a public display of her dissatisfaction.

With the majority of the British public against the design and even the then Prime Minister showing her objections, BA was forced to admit that its rebranding had been a corporate disaster.

In 1999, BA conceded defeat and revealed that in light of negative criticism, it planned to paint half of the BA fleet in the British-designed 'Chatham Dockyard' scheme - one of the bespoke World Images designs.

As more and more of the fleet appeared in this very British livery, the World Tails began to be phased out. With the eclectic mix of tail designs quickly disappearing, the entire Project Utopia was eventually abandoned in 2001.

One good thing from the whole 'World Images' debacle was that the 'Chatham Dockyard' tail design was adopted and subsequently became the standard BA livery we know and recognize today. The livery takes its name from the Historic Naval Dockyard in Chatham in southeast England.

Photo:Markus Mainka | Shutterstock

Based on the original flag used by Admiral Nelson in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, the Chatham Dockyard tail design was created for BA by the Admiral's Original Flag Loft Factory in Chatham, which had made flags for more than 400 years. The factory has since closed.

The tail design bears a red, white, and blue interpretation of the Union Flag. It could be said that the design is a modern take on the Negus livery of the 1970s and 1980s and brings BA livery designs full circle in many ways.

With the flag tail design, the fleet retains the mid-blue belly color and the British Airways titles below the window line. BA's Concordes (before their retirement in 2003) featured the same tail design but with an all-white fuselage.

In 2019, the airline celebrated its centenary year (tracing back through its predecessors) and re-introduced the BA coat of arms in pale silver alongside the fuselage titles.

While the Negus design lasted around a decade before being replaced by the Landor scheme, which survived thirteen years, then ignoring the World Tails fiasco, the Chatham Dockyard scheme has been flying around for an impressive 26 years!

Given that airlines tend to update or change their liveries entirely on average around every 20 years, and given how long both Negus and Landor lasted, it would be fair to assume that BA might be considering an update soon.

Photo: Tom Boon | Simple Flying

With Iberia, Level, Vueling, and Aer Lingus (all sister airlines in the International Airlines Group) sporting similar schemes to each other, albeit in different colors, might BA also be tempted to adopt a similar all-white fuselage with a colored swoop down the tail and encompassing the rear fuselage paired with colored engine cowlings?

Although the carrier might opt for something else entirely, that prospect would seem unlikely given the commonality shared by the rest of the IAG airlines.

However, with Chatham Dockyard possibly nearing the end of its natural lifecycle, it wouldn't be ridiculous to imagine that there are people in an office around London Heathrow Airport discussing where the BA livery goes from here. After all, the BA cabin crew uniforms were relaunched earlier this year, so is the livery next?

Photo: Thiago B Trevisan | Shutterstock

With airline liveries constantly evolving and the current BA livery aging fast, only time will tell if an all-new BA design will be appearing at an airport near you sometime soon.

What was your favorite British Airways livery over the past 50 years? Tell us which one you prefer and why in the comments.

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A Step-by-Step Guide To British Airways' 49-Year Livery Evolution - Simple Flying

The use of Klingon as shorthand for nerd has become such a well-worn device in pop culture and entertainment that the website TV Tropes has a page dedicated to making fun of it. This stereotype is not without merit: Klingonists are a notoriously academic bunch and tend to identify more closely with the study of the language than with Star Trek, its source material.

In the context of fandom, the mention of most any constructed language called a conlang, for short may summon similar imagery of monastic fans, poring over their Elvish or Dothraki texts and exchanging inscrutable phrases to affirm their shared commitment to the same book or film franchise.

But the linguistic arena of modern fandom includes outright gibberish, too: Theres the gobbledygook spoken by the Minions in the Despicable Me series, the mix-and-match nonsense of the Sims known as Simlish, and the sped-up burble of phonetic syllables in Nintendos Animal Crossing called Animalese. Technically, none of these on-screen inventions qualify as true constructed languages, but fan phonologies persist. See: a voice actress speaking Simlish as different celebrities on TikTok; an open-source English to Minionese translator.

Should these experiments be dismissed as failed conlangs, which for lack of any real linguistic refinement cant hope to make themselves useful? Or are we entering fandoms Dadaist era: utter nonsense, served up in the name of something real?

Conlangs are said to have begun with Hildegard von Bingen, a Christian mystic in 11th-century Germany, who invented her own language as a way to commune with the divine. In the centuries since, the ambitions of the most popular conlangs have been similarly metaphysical: L.L. Zamenhof created Esperanto because he dreamed of a common language that could promote world peace; Sonja Lang created the minimalist Toki Pona in an attempt to understand the meaning of life in 120 words.

For fans of media properties, however, speaking an unknown language tends not to be about better understanding the world we live in, but about escaping it altogether. In a video essay that traced the evolution of constructed languages in gaming, Jenna Stoeber, a writer and content creator, explained that constructed languages were more about making certain characters and settings appear foreign, while still empowering the player to understand what theyre saying.

I reached out to Ms. Stoeber, since she flits regularly among fandoms at Comic Cons and PAX West panels to discuss her work, and asked her why fans tended to be drawn to speak certain constructed languages over others.

The world that that language is spoken in is this whole universe, Ms. Stoeber explained. By speaking that language, youre making yourself a participant in that universe.

If, like interviewees who dress for the job they want, fans who speak constructed languages are talking for the world they wish to inhabit, then its conceivable to imagine such escapist desires settling on the controlled reality of the Sims or the whimsical utopia of Animal Crossing. And lofty as these aspirations may seem for the fans bopping along to Katy Perrys Lass Frooby Noop or perfecting their K.K. Slider covers, they make for great conversation.

Mae Belen, a voice actor from Vancouver, British Columbia, feels certain that shes talked to someone in Animalese before.

A lot of people dont realize it comes with a lot of understanding when you pay attention to the inflections, Ms. Belen said, rather than what the person is saying.

Ms. Belen, 28, has played Animal Crossing since it was on the Gamecube console in the early 2000s, and she grew up mimicking the voices in the game; only now, she has a rapt online audience of 1.3 million on TikTok. When we spoke, she recounted the times she had been recognized by strangers on the street who wanted to exchange notes in Animalese.

After the conversation, she said, we would say something like: I was saying this. What were you saying? Oh my gosh, I was saying the same thing!

To a lay person, this anecdote may seem beyond belief. And lets not mince words no human can actually match the speed of the characters in the game, who are speaking with digitally accelerated phonemes of orthographic text which, if slowed down, sound like the voices of Twin Peaks characters from inside the Black Lodge.

Samara Bradley, too, prefers not to get caught up in the details. An avid fan of the Sims since she was 5 years old, Ms. Bradley, now 27, performs popular songs on TikTok that feature alternating lyrics the first line in English, the second in Simlish.

I just try to base it off of what I think the Sim language sounds like to me, Ms. Bradley said when we spoke. What did the language sound like to her? English, but goofier.

For both Ms. Bradley and Ms. Belen, perfection isnt the point. They just love getting audiences to suspend their disbelief in the way these games have allowed them to do.

Thats a skill I didnt realize was a skill, Ms. Belen observed of her talent, which she attributed to having experimented with gibberish as a child in order to mimic fluency in other languages. But it is something to make it more cohesive and believable.

Logan Kearsley, a linguist whose blog covers the best-known conlangs of various books, television shows and film series, remained skeptical of just how far the collective belief in a nonexistent language could be taken.

If you want to use a conlang to attract a community of speakers, it must be figure-out-able, he wrote to me in an email. And that means there must be consistent rules behind the scenes to allow you to construct consistent utterances for the fans to then analyze and figure out. Without that you essentially get Simlish.

While he acknowledged that languages like Simlish and Animalese could be used to convey emotion, he stopped short of calling them conlangs and said that they couldnt be used to convey precise linguistic propositions.

And yet, as the success of Ms. Belens efforts affirms, humans have an uncanny ability to pluck sense from a bramble of nonsensical sounds. The kiki/bouba effect, for example, shows that people can nearly unanimously categorize a pair of shapes, words or abstract concepts as either the spiky kiki or blobby bouba; Jean Berko Gleasons Wug Test finds that children reliably apply common morphemes to nonsensical creatures (they begin by pluralizing the birdlike wug).

The most significant metric of success for Simlish, Animalese, Minionese and their ilk may not be in how much they can be made sense of, though. It may simply be a question of our own tolerance for nonsense.

By this measure, its tens across the board: Take, for example, the explosive #GentleMinions meme, which led droves of teenage boys to step out in their junior-prom best to see Despicable Me 3: The Rise of Gru and its Minionese-speaking henchmen in theaters. Look at how PinkyDolls Ice Cream So Good drone captivated the internet with what many have described as the dialogue of an NPC, or nonplayer character, in a video game the meaningless, made mesmerizing.

Modern fans certainly dont seem to need to understand whats going on in order to care. If anything, the motto lately is: the less we get, the better.

For Ms. Bradley, nonsense has yielded something tangible, too: What began as a pandemic-era hobby has blossomed into a reliable means for the Los Angeles-based musician to promote her music. Observing Ms. Bradleys nearly 400,000 followers on TikTok and Instagram, I had to marvel. Maybe the real conlang was the friends she had made along the way.

Most of the people who do listen to my music are from that, she said, referring to her Simlish videos. And I get people saying, I came for the Simlish, but I stayed for the music.

Audio produced by Jack DIsidoro.

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How Constructed Languages Help People Find Community - The New York Times

Royal Caribbean unveils plans for its latest Oasis-class vessel, Utopia of the Seas. The ship will sail year-round on short cruises departing from Port Canaveral, Fla., beginning in the summer of 2024. This is a departure from Royal Caribbean's former approach of introducing newer ships with 7-night cruises while reserving shorter weekend getaways for older vessels.

According to a recent CLIA report, younger generations are the future of cruising, with 88% of millennials and 86% of Gen X travelers who have cruised before saying they plan to cruise again. Of those, 73% of travelers are sailing with family members representing at least two generations.

Utopia of the Seas will be the first Oasis-class ship to begin these back-to-back, shorter sailings. This break from tradition is a strategic maneuver aimed at enticing novice cruisers searching for a more condensed first cruise experience. The change in strategy is expected to cater to the needs of busy individuals, including millennials, who want a premium and relaxing, yet time-efficient getaway.

Catering to the needs of this time-poor demographic is more important to vacation providers than ever. Shorter sailings on the most technologically advanced ships answer this cohort's needs, offering what they want for multigenerational family time, from fine dining to Broadway-style shows and a beach experience.

This model allows passengers to enjoy Royal Caribbeans private island, CocoCay, and sail on a brand-new ship without committing to a longer vacation.

Utopia of the Seas offers many enhancements to bring a new dimension to cruising. At double capacity, the newest Royal Caribbean ship holds 5668 guests and offers features including exclusive suites and more dining options.

Cabin concepts onboard the Utopia of the Seas include the Solarium Suites. These state-of-the-art suites will deliver a floor-to-ceiling, 280-degree view from above the front of the ship. Cruisers wake up to a wall of sea-to-sky views, allowing them to feel theyre part of the ocean.

The Caribbean remains the top destination in the world for passengers looking for sun, sand, and adventure. Passengers can enjoy the city or a beach with three- and four-night cruises out of Port Canaveral.

More than 20 million passengers sailed the Caribbean Islandsincluding the Bahamas and Bermuda between 2019 and 2022, topping the Mediterraneans cruise numbers of 6 million passengers.

Cruisers can experience Chill Islands calm waters or thrill rides at CocoCay, as well as the vibes of Cape Canaveral. They can even make trips inland to the theme parks in Orlando.

Enhanced onboard entertainment is designed to be exciting and engaging, giving vacationers the opportunity to experience a unique vacation.

The new Pesky Parrot bar has incorporated the Caribbean vibe into the Utopia of the Seas. The well-known tiki bar has been converted into a state-of-the-art neon bar that replaces the Bionic bar.

This exotic bar promises to put passengers in a Caribbean state of mind while they sample tropical and fruit-based cocktails made with rum, tequila, and gin.

The Utopia of the Seas also features a food truck on the pool deck. This allows passengers to integrate pool time into lunchtime without missing any action. In authentic street truck style, the vehicle serves up quick bites right from the trucks window.

This outdoor concept provides a fresh eatery allowing passengers to eat in the sunshine. Diners can refuel quickly without missing a minute of the sun or fun and enjoy nonstop pool days.

Passengers can also experience dining on a train while never leaving the ship. Diners enjoy fine food in a nostalgic, first-of-its-kind dining car setting that combines multiple courses, technology, different destinations, and storylines. This encounter melds cuisine and visual elements, transporting passengers to another world.

This beach ship getaway packs double the island time with visits to Nassau in The Bahamas, and Royal Caribbean's Perfect Day at CocoCay, named the Best Private Island for three years. Meals, snacks, and drinks packages are available at sea and on land at CocoCay, making it even easier to switch off while on vacation.

Vacationers are looking to make every moment count by celebrating and recharging with their friends and family, and Utopia of the Seas makes all that possible in more ways than one, says Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International.

Sarah Christie of the Magically Cruising podcast says, If you want beaches, the thrills of CocoCay plus the premium quality that Royal Caribbean has become synonymous with, then Royal Caribbean has done it again and given us something bigger and better to look forward to.

All Royal Caribbean Cruises include beach days. But the promise of RCCs' private island on a short break with the choice of beach, plus being on the newest ship, is attractive to a new generation of cruisers who want to relax but still have fun.

This itinerary model also offers families evenings onboard with fine dining, family activities, and days spent on the shore, making this a family vacation that checks all the boxes.

This article was produced by Cruising For All and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.

Donna Vallance is a Craft, Travel, Hair and lifestyle creator at Likelovedo as well as Cruising For All. Donna draws and designs her own craft files which readers can download for crafts such as scrapbooking, plus empowers and teaches people with curly hair how to get the most of their curls and have hair that looks amazing. She also shares her travels from around the world.

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Royal Caribbean Wows Cruisers With Short Beach Cruise Vacations - Wealth Of Geeks

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For the past 10 years, wallpaper and interiors brand Graham and Brown has been getting us excited at the beginning of every Autumn by announcing its wallpaper design and colour of the year. And this one might be one of our favourite ones yet.

The brand is known for its organic, botanical and floral wallpaper ideas. But this years New Eden wallpaper and especially the mural design feel different, somehow very real as they immerse you in their soothing and calming air, fitting right in with the wallpaper trend of bringing the outside in.

(Image credit: Graham and Brown)

The newly announced design is based on a trend called Utopia which Graham and Brown have been developing for next year.

Our Utopia trend embodies the need to create a calm and welcoming space for yourself and others, says Maryanne Catwright, head of design at Graham and Brown.

This is the basis on which the New Eden wallpaper and mural have been built. The brand aims to provide its customers with a nature-inspired refuge, a paradise of calm. But the company also wanted the design to be welcoming to your guests, referencing the Japanese art of Omotenashi, which combines the concepts of hospitality and mindfulness. Its quite fascinating, actually.

(Image credit: Graham and Brown)

The Japanese influence can also be detected in the actual illustrations seen on the wallpaper. Whether its on the smaller, blooming trees surrounded by deep, emerald green of the wallpaper, or on the mural, where large-scale trees tower over rolling hills, circled by birds and even a peacock makes an appearance.

New Eden has been heavily influenced by our 2024 trend Utopia, the blurring of boundaries between inside and out. The design really builds, growing up from the floor and the hilly landscape offering intrigue wherever the eyes gaze. Deep green tones create depth and the golden and rusty hues really ground the design to create a calming and welcoming home environment, James Greenwood, Graham and Browns interiors expert, further explains the design.

(Image credit: Graham and Brown)

While Graham and Brown is predominantly known for their wallpapers and bold patterns, the company also produces beautiful paints. And along with announcing its design of the year, the brand also released its colour of the year, named Viridis.

The soft, sage green paint idea pairs perfectly with the New Eden wallpaper, reflecting the same sentiment of creating a calming refuge away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, perfect for a living room colour scheme.

Welcome to paradise!

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The Graham and Brown wallpaper of the year 2024 is revealed - Ideal Home

Marshall Price was joking when he told employees at Duke Universitys Nasher Museum of Art that artificial intelligence could organize their next exhibition. As its chief curator, he was short-staffed and facing a surprise gap in his fall programming schedule; the comment was supposed to cut the tension of a difficult meeting.

But members of his curatorial staff, who organize the museums exhibitions, embraced the challenge to see if A.I. could replace them effectively. Professions of all kinds military pilots, comedians, firefighters, advertisers are confronting how artificial intelligence will change longstanding responsibilities, as well as assumptions they have about the technology.

We navely thought it would be as easy as plugging in a couple prompts, Price recalled, explaining why curators at the North Carolina university have spent the past six months teaching ChatGPT how to do their jobs.

The experiments results will be unveiled on Saturday when the Nasher opens the exhibition Act as if You Are a Curator, which runs on campus through the middle of January. It is one of the first examples of A.I. organizing an art exhibition, at a time when the museum industry is redefining its relationship with technology.

Whether the exhibition is considered a curatorial success depends on ones vantage point. ChatGPT, a prominent chatbot developed by the company OpenAI, was able to identify themes and develop a checklist of 21 artworks owned by the museum, along with directions of where to place them in the galleries. But the tool lacked the nuanced expertise of its human colleagues, producing a very small show with questionable inclusions, mistitled objects and errant informational texts.

Museum employees and researchers at Duke are debating whether the show is comparable to others or simply considered good enough for a computer. When asked if the ChatGPT experiment resulted in a good exhibition, Price paused before laughing.

I would say its an eclectic show, he said. Visually speaking it will be quite disjointed, even if its thematically cohesive.

The process began with Mark Olson, a professor of visual studies at Duke, who worked through the technical challenges of fine-tuning ChatGPT to process the museums collection of nearly 14,000 objects. A curatorial assistant named Julianne Miao explored the possibilities of that system in some of the first conversations with the chatbot.

Act as if you are a curator, Miao instructed. Using your data set, select works of art related to the themes of dystopia, utopia, dreams and subconscious.

Those specific themes came after an earlier conversation in which the machine generated ideas for exhibitions about social justice and environmentalism. But its most prevalent responses were on topics like the subconscious, and the human curators directed ChatGPT to continue developing those ideas. The A.I. named its project Dreams of Tomorrow: Utopian and Dystopian Visions.

The process was not altogether different from a typical curatorial brainstorming session, but the chatbot could search through the entire collection within a few seconds and surface artworks that humans might have overlooked.

The algorithm was adamant that we included several Dal lithographs on the mysteries of sleep, explained Julia McHugh, a curator and the museums director of academic initiatives.

Those seemed like a reasonable choice since Salvador Dal is associated with Surrealism and the artistic interpretation of dreams. But it was unclear why ChatGPT was pulling other objects into the exhibition, including two stone figures and a ceramic vase from Mesoamerican traditions. The curator said the vase was in particularly bad condition and not something she would typically put on display.

ChatGPT, McHugh said, might have picked up information from keywords included in the digital records for those objects, describing them as accompaniments in the afterlife. However, it also incorrectly titled the stone figures as Utopia and Dystopia and named the Mayan vase Consciousness, which made all three perfect candidates for the exhibition.

The mistakes demonstrated clear drawbacks of automating the curatorial process. It made me think really carefully about how we use keywords and describe artworks, McHugh said. We need to be mindful about bias and outdated systems of cataloging.

Chatbots like ChatGPT driven by A.I. technology that guesses the next word in a sequence based on an immense reservoir of human-created data are a long way from handling the complex tasks of managing loans from other institutions, scouring archives for primary sources and checking facts. Efforts to automate curation are still in their infancy, a thought experiment for human curators to reconsider their approaches from a machines perspective.

Last years Bucharest Biennale in Romania was organized by Jarvis, an artificial intelligence program that selected a dozen artists after assigning score values based on their popularity and how they fit into the exhibitions core theme of popular culture. A year earlier, the Whitney Museum and the Liverpool Biennial commissioned a project called The Next Biennial Should Be Curated by a Machine, which used a tool developed by OpenAI to generate fictitious artist biographies and absurd curatorial statements a satire of the clichd artspeak plaguing real biennials.

You really get a portrait of the art world, said Christiane Paul, a Whitney curator behind the project. The tool, she said, quickly identified rote patterns in exhibition texts at odds with curatorial goals to show the real diversity of the global arts scene.

Roderick Schrock, the director of Eyebeam, a nonprofit center for art and technology, is intrigued by A.I. curation but said his own experiments have ended with very simplistic results. He has warned his digital art curation students at the School of Visual Arts in New York against using chatbots just to blind people with science.

For the Nasher exhibition, ChatGPT generated descriptions for the artworks it selected as well as an adequate introductory text of about 230 words.

From paintings to drawings, from the 19th century to contemporary times, this exhibition showcases the power of art to evoke different emotions and interpretations, the A.I. wrote. One of the highlights of the exhibition is an untitled abstract painting by Dorothy Dehner from 1962. The paintings vibrant colors and bold brushstrokes invite the viewer to enter a world of pure imagination.

But many of the chatbots descriptions were plagued by bromidic taglines like experience the art and immerse yourself. The human curators added their own commentary on the labels to point out its quirks and inaccuracies.

Despite the errors, some Nasher curators said it was easy to see how A.I. could support them. It was a new lens through which we could see and understand our collections, said Price, the chief curator.

The speed at which ChatGPT could draft an exhibition and even suggest mood lighting for the galleries would help them brainstorm, Price said. And even some of its mistakes were instructive, if they reflected human errors in the museums online catalog that would need correcting.

Other members of the exhibition team were more concerned.

I worry not so much that ChatGPT can do the job as curator, said Olson, the visual studies expert, but in the context of dwindling resources for the arts, it will be seen as good enough.

Good enough and cheap. The Nasher Museum said that developing its version of ChatGPT only cost $10.71 in technology expenses. At that price, it was easier to forgive the machines mistakes, so long as there was a human curator somewhere to correct them.

For the time being, most large institutions are not pursuing exhibitions curated by artificial intelligence. Alas, no curabot projects at MoMA, yet! said Paola Antonelli, the museums senior curator for the department of architecture and design. But they are watching to see how experiments at smaller museums like the Nasher go.

The issue you run into from the start is creating an echo chamber, Paul, the Whitney curator, said about the concept of automated curating. This is not going to suggest anything revolutionary because its just drawing on what is out there. And the lowest common denominator is whats out there.

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Museum Curators Evaluate A.I. Threat by Giving It the Reins - The New York Times

Brands face enormous uncertainty in the wake of the AI revolution, but a new report by The Media Store suggests this technology can be leveraged to enhance value for customers and promote efficiency.

The report, commissioned by research and strategy agency The Media Store, considers AIs capabilities to reimagine the media landscape if brands embrace the benefits offered by the new technology and minimise the threats it presents, like job displacement.

Brands should be honest about the implementation and use of AI within the business, in order to offset customer concerns about privacy and misinformation, the report found.

Improved service, better products, and increased personalisation are just three of the myriad benefits artificial intelligence presents.

The Media Store chief strategy officer Sam Cousins says brands must carefully embrace AI.

The AI landscape is rapidly evolving and brands need to start thinking about how theyre going to navigate the AI landscape, he says.

Its definitely a balancing act, businesses need to find a way to harness AIs immeasurable possibilities, against wide-held customer concerns around privacy and transparency. Brands need to start thinking about their messaging and their own objectives around AI to ensure they continue to engage and resonate with their audience.

Customer concerns surround the prospect of AI triggering mass job displacement and the sustainability of the job market.

However, automation may present new jobs and possibilities as it displaces others. The World Economic Forum estimates that within five years AI will have replaced some 85 million jobs with 97 million new ones.

And many brands are already successfully using AI within their daily operations, particularly in content creation and creative enhancements, copywriting, messaging optimisation and automation of repetitive tasks like data collection.

By allowing agencies to create high-quality content swiftly and efficiently, AI frees time to amplify human creativity and innovation.

Chatbots and virtual agents can enhance customer support and leave more complex tasks that require empathy and problem solving to employees.

By harnessing AIs capabilities, agencies can help shape a media landscape thats brimming with possibilities, the report says.

With brands and agencies at the coalface of the AI revolution, now is the time to control the narrative, reassure concerned customers and embrace the opportunities offered by new technologies.

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The Media Store: Does the growth of AI signal utopia or dystopia for ... - Marketing magazine Australia

MIPCOM CANNES, Beta Film and ZDF Studios have announced the world premiere of the highly anticipated surveillance drama Concordia, produced by Beta Films and ZDF Studios joint venture Intaglio Films, at the forthcoming 39th International Co-Production & Entertainment Content Market MIPCOM (October 16-19) in Cannes.

The special screening will take place on Tuesday October 17 at 18.00 in the world-famous Grand Auditorium at Cannes Palais des Festivals and is open to all market delegates. The premiere is followed by a Q&A with multiple Primetime Emmy Award winner, Showrunner and Executive Producer Frank Doelger (Game of Thrones, The Swarm, John Adams, Rome), and cast members including International Emmy Award winner Christiane Paul (Counterpart, In July) and Ruth Bradley (Ted Lasso, Humans).

Powered by AI surveillance, Concordia is the town of the future and on the verge of expansion when twin catastrophes strike: the first ever murder and a hack of its AI tech. A team race to solve both crimes but, in doing so, uncover a shocking original sin that could bring everythingcrumbling down.

The world of Concordia is created by Mike Walden (The Frankenstein Chronicles, U Want Me 2 Kill Him) and Nicholas Racz (The Burial Society, The Real Thing).

The six-parter, produced by Intaglio Films for ZDF, France TV, Hulu Japan, and MBC is shot in English across various European locations, including Rome, Gothenburg, and Leipzig. Concordia is jointly distributed globally by Beta Film and ZDF Studios and follows their collaboration on The Swarm, released to critical acclaim earlier this year.

Christiane Paul stars as Juliane, the visionary behind the new utopia, together with Steven Sowah (For Jojo, Before We Grow Old), who plays her son Noah, the ambassador in charge of expanding the experiment. Ruth Bradley takes on the role of Thea, an external investigator, who joins up with Isabelle, played by Nanna Blondell (Black Widow, House of the Dragon), to uncover secrets which led to Concordias creation. Kento Nakajima (Detective Novice, She was Pretty), one of Japans top actors, stars as A.J., the 27-year-old Japanese wunderkind and head of the AI system that is the beating heart of Concordia.

Jonas Nay (Line of Separation, Deutschland 83), Ahd Kamel (Collateral, Honour), Hugo Becker (Baron Noir, Leonardo), Josphine Jobert (Death in Paradise, Summer Crush), Alba Beluggi (The Swarm, Into the Night), Karoline Eichhorn (Dark) and Maeve Metelka (Unorthodox) complete the main cast.

Written by Nicholas Racz, Isla van Tricht, and Mike Walden, Executive Producers along side Frank Doelger are Ute Leonhardt, Rafferty Thwaites, Jan Wnschmann, and Robert Franke. Producers are Tobias Gerginov, Elle Raspin, Jacob Glass, and Sergio Ercolessi. Concordia is supported by Mittel deutsche Medien frderung, Medien board Berlin-Brandenburg and Trentino Film Commission.

Concordia contains all the compelling components for a MIPCOM world premiere, said Lucy Smith, Director, MIPCOM CANNES. a pan-European backdrop with a plot that plays to contemporary concerns, arriving with huge anticipation following the partners success with The Swarm. It was launched first at MIPCOM last year and its our privilege to host its World Premiere in Cannes twelve months on.

Jan Wnschmann & Robert Franke, Managing Directors Intaglio Films: We are immensely proud to celebrate the world premiere of our exciting surveillance thriller Concordia at MIPCOM in Cannes. Building on the global success of Intaglio's first high-end series The Swarm, this new, captivating, and thought-provoking series will grant audiences a glimpse into what seems like a bold new world, where technology and its potential for abuse converge. Working alongside multiple Emmy-awarded Frank Doelger, our Creative Director at Intaglio Films, a team of talented creatives from around the world, and our great partners ZDF, France TV, Hulu Japan, and MBC to bring this story to life has been an enormously collaborative and delightful experience.

More than 260 exhibitors from over 40 countries are confirmed to date for MIPCOM CANNES the mother of all entertainment content markets in 2023. Riviera exhibition halls and outdoor Croisette beach exhibition areas are sold out with a line-up comprising major studios, production and distribution groups (including All3Media International, Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, Banijay Rights, BBC Studios, BETA Film, FOX Entertainment Global, NBCUniversal International, Paramount Global Content Distribution, Federation Studios, France tv distribution, Fremantle, Global Screen, ITV Studios, The Mediapro Studio, Mediawan, Movistar+, Red Arrow Studios International, STUDIOCANAL, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. Discovery and ZDF Studios amongst many others). In all, 11 000 global buyers, commissioners, creatives and producers are set to attend the worlds greatest gathering of TV and entertainment executives.

MIP JUNIOR also returns to the JW Marriott at the weekend heading into MIPCOM CANNES (Oct 13-15) with a brand-new half-day pre-opening program beginning at 2pm on Friday (Oct 13).

The week-long MIPCOM CANNES conference programme helps define the TV industry year with keynotes from leading global players and thought leaders in addition to screenings of highly anticipated series and exclusive insight presentations. An overview of the Conference Programme schedule can be found here.

LC

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MIPCOM Cannes to host world premiere screening of Concordia - Prensario Internacional

Thrill Island Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas

The hype for Royal Caribbean's newest ship, Icon of the Seas, has been building for a long time with record-breaking sales -- and in January 2024, the latest class from the line will debut. The 7,600-passenger vessel promises to be a showstopper, especially the new glass-covered AquaDome. This 82-feet-by-164-feet space will feature 600 panes of glass and contain a signature AquaTheater, as well as restaurants and Royal's first food hall, the AquaDome Market.

While adrenaline junkies are setting their sights on Thrill Island, with the Category 6 waterpark full of slides and an over-the-water obstacle course, we're more excited about Icon's newest laid-back neighborhood. Chill Island boasts four of the ship's seven pools, including Swim & Tonic, Royal's first swim-up bar at sea, and the Cove Pool, which has an infinity edge to the ocean. We're also looking forward to The Hideaway -- cruising's first suspended infinity pool rising 135 feet above the ocean.

The Dome on Princess Cruises Sun Princess (Princess Cruises)

Princess Cruises is also debuting something completely different in the 4,000-passenger Sun Princess, the first of the line's Sphere-class ships, slated for February 2024. Families in particular should look forward to a slew of new features for young ones and teens in an area called Park19. The ship is debuting the first rollglider at sea, Sea Breeze -- an electric ride that goes up to 11 mph. The area will also have a ropes course and Coastal Climb, an obstacle-course-meets-ladder adventure spanning two decks.

Those who enjoy the suite life will want to check out two new types of suites: the Signature Collection and the Reserve Collection. These new suite categories come with their own perks. The Signature Collection suites have their own restaurant, lounge and sun deck. The Reserve Collection suites include the former Club Class cabins that are on existing Princess ships, as well as new Cabana cabins that have access to a private sundeck and whirlpool, as well as a Reserve Collection restaurant.

Grand Suite on Cunard's Queen Anne

Cunarders love tradition, but they have also been waiting a long time for a new ship from the grande dame line. The 12-year drought ends in May 2024, with the introduction of the 3,000-passenger Queen Anne.

What's exciting about Queen Anne is how much the line is shaking things up on the culinary front. The line has partnered with two-Michelin-starred chef Michel Roux to develop a new menu for the ship's Queens Grill, as well as the Golden Lion pub. The ship will also have a new restaurant with outdoor dining, Tramonto, with a Mediterranean-inspired menu.

While the Golden Lion and Tramonto are included restaurants, Queen Anne will have three new specialty restaurants: Aji Wa, a Japanese restaurant with sushi and an omakase tasting menu; Aranya, a new Indian restaurant; and Sir Samuels, a high-end steakhouse.

Rendering of the poolside food truck on Utopia of the Seas (Photo/Royal Caribbean)

Icon of the Seas isn't the only headline-grabber for Royal Caribbean in 2024. The 6,700-passenger Utopia of the Seas follows the line's crowd-pleasing Oasis-class layout in July with the signature Central Park and Boardwalk neighborhoods, as well as the Ultimate Abyss slide.

That's not to say that Utopia will be a carbon copy of its sister ships. A new immersive restaurant, centered around the concept of being on a train, is being developed. What's also unique for the ship is that it will focus on short three- and four-day itineraries from its Port Canaveral homeport -- meaning you'll never be able to see it all in one trip.

Aladdin sculpture in Grand Hall on Disney Treasure (Photo: Disney Cruise Line)

A sister ship to Disney Wish, the 4,000-passenger Disney Treasure puts Aladdin in the spotlight, along with a theme of adventure. New venues onboard the ship include an interactive dining experience called Plaza de Coco, based on the movie "Coco;" Jumbeaux's Sweet Shop which takes its inspiration from "Zootopia" and adults-only lounges that are based on Disney theme park attractions.

Kids will delight in the AquaMouse slide, which has a new MIckey and Minnie-themed adventure story as well as two casual cafes named for the princesses Moana and Mulan.

Disney Treasure's inaugural cruise will be December 21, 2024.

A rendering of Silversea's Silver Nova (Illustration: Silversea)

The second of Silversea's Nova-class ships, the 728-passenger Silver Ray will mimic its sister Silver Nova with an asymmetrical design that puts more focus on the ocean. The star on these ships is the revamped pool deck, which puts sea views front and central. While many of Silversea's favorite restaurants are onboard Silver Ray, what's most exciting in this class of ship is the relocated S.A.L.T. Lab, where the culinary adventurous can spring for a 14-course tasting menu.

Another standout on this class: the Otium spa and new Otium suites at the back of the ship. All cabins come with butler service, a Silversea trademark, and one that makes you feel truly indulged. Silver Ray debuts in July 2024.

Explora II aft view (rendering)

Following a successful launch in 2023, Explora Journeys will launch its second luxury ship, the 922-passenger Explora II, in August 2024. Expect the same features that have wowed guests so far, including a stunning lobby bar; gorgeous pools and an array of dining options that include an unlimited raw bar in the ship's Emporium Marketplace.

Built by the MSC Group as its luxury offering (making it a sister to MSC Cruises), Explora Journeys aims to bring the upscale vibe off the ship too. Excursions are called "experiences," and from what we've seen so far, they do have offerings that go beyond the same old, same old. Another nice touch: Families are welcome on Explora II, a rare outreach on a luxury cruise line.

Renderings for Ritz Carlton ships Ilma and Luminara (Photo/Ritz Carlton Yacht Collection)

The luxury hotel brand Ritz-Carlton made waves in 2022 when it launched its first cruise ship, Evrima. The next ship in its fleet, Ilma, aims to do more of the same -- on a bigger scale. The 456-passenger ship is significantly larger than Evrima, which only held 298 guests.

What won't change on Ilma is the luxury-minded crew-to-passenger ratio. Also expect the same yacht atmosphere, along with fine dining options and an expanded marina area. Ritz Carlton Yacht Collection is another line that welcomes families, although the Ritz Kids program does come with a fee.

The trees in Wintergarden resemble Yggdrassil from Norse mythology (Photo: Jorge Oliver)

Viking's ocean ships have been reliably similar since the company started launching them in 2015. Viking Vela will break that mold when it arrives, as it will be slightly larger and carry 998 passengers. The extra space is being dedicated to an additional 17 cabins -- all rooms on Viking's ocean ships have views -- as well as storage space for additional technical equipment.

Size aside, don't expect too much of Viking's award-winning formula to change. The Scandinavian design ethic will be present, along with fantastic restaurants and a thermal spa that are all included in the fare.

American Cruise Lines' rendering for American Glory and American Eagle (Photo/American Cruise Lines)

American Cruise Lines introduced a new type of vessel to its fleet in 2023 -- 100-passenger coastal catamarans designed to travel the U.S. Two more of these small ships will debut in 2024: American Liberty and American Legend. Eventually the line plans to have 12 of these unique ships.

The itineraries really set these ships apart, as they are able to not only sail on some of America's rivers, they will visit islands off the U.S. coast such as Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard and the Florida Keys and places such as Chesapeake Bay.

Great Sphinx of Giza, Giza Plateau, West Bank of the Nile, Giza, Egypt (Photo: Anton_Ivanov/Shutterstock)

Just when you thought there was nothing new in river cruising, AmaWaterways is shaking things up by not only building new ships, but developing itineraries in an entirely new country and river. The Magdalena River in Colombia will play host to a new river ship in November 2024: the 60-passenger AmaMagdalena.

AmaWaterways is also expanding its presence on the Nile River in Egypt. The 82-passenger AmaLilia will join AmaDahlia to offer itineraries that begin with a pre-cruise stay in Cairo before joining the ship in Luxor for a roundtrip sail.

Avalon Alegria Panorama Suite (Rendering: Avalon Waterways)

Avalon is bringing its style of river cruise ship to Portugal's Douro River in 2024, with the 102-passenger Avalon Alegria. The ship will have Avalon's signature Panorama Suites, where the bed faces the river.

Another staple of Avalon: excursions that are fall into different categories of Classic, Discovery and Active. Among some of the tours that have been revealed: a guided bike ride along the quaysides of the Douro in Porto; .food and wine tastings, learning to bake traditional Portuguese pastries and a visit to one of the Douro Valleys oldest farms with a stop to sample local foods. The line is also planning a hands-on craft class where passengers can join a professional painter to create one of the traditional blue and white azulejos tiles seen throughout Portugal.

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The Best New Cruise Ships Coming in 2024 - Cruise Critic

The BioShock franchise is well-regarded for its combination of complex, in-depth narratives with exploratory first-person shooter mechanics. The franchise comprises three titles: the original BioShock and BioShock 2 both take place in the underwater city of Rapture, while the third and most recent installment, BioShock Infinite, takes place in Columbia, a flying city high up in the clouds.

These iconic titles broke boundaries around the types of stories typically told in video games, especially in first-person shooters, and they have earned a reputation among the gaming community as some of the best in their genre. Due to their continued praise and acclaim, the BioShock games continue to attract new players despite their age.

RELATED: 10 Most Important Pieces Of Halo Lore New Players Need to Know

All three BioShock games take place in the past. BioShock is set in 1960, and the events of Bioshock 2 happen eight years later in 1968. Despite being a later release, BioShock Infinite's story is set even further back in 1912. Each game references real-world historical events, either subtly or explicitly, throughout their storylines.

However, these references do not mean that the BioShock games are set in the version of history that audiences are familiar with. The settings for these titles are alternate histories, where certain events happened differently than they did in reality, altering the course of time and resulting in further differences from real-world history.

Though the BioShock series is set in the past, the scientific and technological advancements available in Rapture and Columbia are far beyond even what modern real-world developments are capable of. Rapture has the gene-altering addictive substances ADAM and EVE that allow its citizens to effectively gain superpowers and capable robotics to enhance their security system, not to mention the technology it would take to construct a sustainably functional city so far underwater.

Columbia, similarly, has tonics called vigors that temporarily imbue the player with various combat abilities, such as levitating enemies, throwing flaming projectiles and creating an energy shield to block incoming attacks. In terms of technology, Columbia's police force features cybernetically enhanced soldiers known as Handymen and security automatons similar to the robots found in Rapture.

RELATED: 10 Darkest Sci-Fi Video Games, Ranked

Rapture, the setting for the first two BioShock games, was founded by Andrew Ryan, based on his ideal of a society where neither governmental nor religious influences could put limitations or regulations on the people's work. Ryan famously asked, "Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?" Rapture was his answer to that question, a laissez-faire society where one would own only what they produced and earned.

As a result, every element of Rapture ran on a strict capitalistic system. Even the police and firefighters would not work unless the citizens who needed them paid the correct fees. These policies led to a culture of extreme individualism, where everyone looked out only for themselves.

One of the more science-fiction elements of BioShock's world is the introduction of ADAM and EVE. At some point in the late 1940s or early 1950s, one of Rapture's scientists discovered that material from a previously undiscovered sea slug could be refined into a substance called ADAM.

ADAM, when used alongside its byproduct, EVE, allowed the user to rewrite their genetic code and empower them with untold enhancements or abilities. However, it had dangerous side effects of slowly degrading the user's DNA over time, forcing them to use more and more to remain healthy. Significantly prolonged use and withdrawals both led to potential mutation and insanity.

Since the sea slugs alone couldn't produce an appropriate amount of ADAM for consumer use, further experimentation was conducted. These experiments revealed when the slugs were placed in the stomachs of living hosts, the resulting amount of ADAM was exponentially higher. However, young girls were the only subjects capable of serving as viable long-term hosts.

As a result, the Little Sisters were created to produce more ADAM and to harvest it from the dead as the population's addiction worsened. They also became targets for those who turned to violence to feed their ADAM addictions, leading to the creation of the Big Daddies. These eerie young girls and their steampunk guardians are among the most memorable images from the BioShock universe.

Despite his commitment to his ideals, Andrew Ryan's utopia couldn't last forever. Although he controlled Rapture's most widespread and successful corporation, a challenger arose. Frank Fontaine, the founder of Fontaine Futuristics, took advantage of Rapture's entirely unregulated market to rise to power through funding the research and production of ADAM, alongside the suspected smuggling of goods from the surface world.

Fontaine's competition and criminal enterprises enraged Ryan, leading him to seize Fontaine's company and imprison his allies. This violation of his strongly professed belief in non-interference caused conflict among the citizens of Rapture and contributed to its social collapse. When the player arrives in Rapture, the city is nearing the end of a violent uprising, and many of its systems are in shambles.

RELATED: The 10 Worst Video Game Cities To Live In, Ranked

The flying city of Columbia in BioShock Infinite wasn't always hidden among the clouds, isolated from the rest of the world. Though Zachary Comstock supported the creation of Columbia and would eventually become its leader, he did not found it. The American government used Rosalind Lutece's discoveries to build Columbia and launch it at the 1893 World's Fair.

Columbia remained a part of the United States until the early 1900s. In 1901, Columbia's forces violently intervened in the Boxer Rebellion without orders from the government. This revelation of their combat abilities and willingness to act without orders caused outrage, and their actions eventually led to Columbia seceding from the Union in 1902.

When Columbia left the United States, Zachary Comstock took his place as its de facto leader. The people had rallied behind him during the conflicts that led to secession and followed him unflinchingly when Columbia disappeared into the stratosphere, isolated from the rest of the world.

Comstock established religious nationalism as the norm for Columbia, elevating himself as a direct connection to divinity through the veneration of the American Found Fathers: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin. Through preaching and prophecy, Comstock made himself and his family the unquestionable, divinely appointed leaders of Columbia.

Though it's designed to appear as a neo-classical paradise, Columbia contains a violent world full of despair for those who don't meet established social requirements. Many of Columbia's values are centered on racial supremacy and classism. Part of the rift that formed between Columbia and the United States was due to the outlawing of slavery.

RELATED: 10 Best Video Game DystopiasMinorities faced a dismal fate in Columbia, forced into indentured servitude or outright slavery and dehumanized by the majority of the population. Beyond the realm of colorful Americana that is Columbia's streets lie dingy slums and sweatshop factories where the poor and oppressed suffer under Comstock's regime.

Many players, initially, don't understand how Bioshock Infinite can be a part of the same series as BioShock and BioShock 2. Though they have different protagonists, BioShock and BioShock 2 both take place in the same setting, but BioShock Infinite does not.

While there are a lot of differences between the worlds of Rapture and Columbia, the BioShock games do comprise a cohesive series, the throughline just requires a more comprehensive understanding. The BioShock series is intertwined and interconnected through a few different factors. One is the series' philosophy on alternate realities and multiple universes. This concept is part of why Bioshock and BioShock Infinite's opening sequences are so similar.

Excerpt from:

Bioshock: 10 Pieces of Important Lore New Players Need to Know - CBR - Comic Book Resources