This master thesis explores the media representation of deepfakes. The first part summarizes previous research followed by a comprehensive review of deepfakes, including the technology allowing for their emergence, current uses and methods of regulation and detection. The second part connects the phenomenon with important theoretical concepts such as social construction of reality and the crucial role of media in this process. The empirical part consists of research combining two methods - quantitative content analysis and qualitative critical discourse analysis. The research analysis is focused on media articles dealing with deepfakes in order to find out how the media represent this phenomenon. The results show that current media discourse of deepfakes is strongly negative as the media frame them as a security threat. This negative representation is highly speculative since journalists often invent their own stories of future disastrous consequences of the technology for national security due to lack of current examples. The findings show an apparent hierarchy of the harms posed by deepfakes which is present in media coverage, and reflects gender sereotypes and inequality in the current society. Harm in the form of non-consensual fake pornography targeting women is neglected in the media...

The medium is the message in the first place: the medium as presence, as the author. His contribution to the academic world is his academic Holographic Memoirs. His story, the author's memoirs, is a fictive-narrative discourse with an organic ubuntu open-endedness. The Hologram is both an autobiography, but also all the information at all places simultaneously – nonlocal in quantum physical terms - within an intense hallucinating dream: no illusion, but rather a HyperReality with all its Virtual Identities. The invention of tram hopping is the plot of the story. The plot is like an hourglass where the first part of the story is the emptying of the sand, the deconstruction of modernism, but while the top chamber runs empty and the bottom chamber fills up, so the deconstruction is simultaneously a dependent arising/(social) construction/ubuntuing to revival – the synagogal Shekinah presence of YAHWEH. The top chamber is the unreasonable Newtonian physics and the bottom chamber reasonable quantum physics. The metaphysics (before the physics) of the top chamber is poststructuralism and deconstruction, while the bottom chamber is the virtual Hebraic worldview that delutively merges ubuntu and Buddhism. The long narrow neck in the middle is the moonily narrative that lives us with psychology (Psycho-logic) lost in sociology (Social-physics). Hermeneutics is set forth in the same contrasting hourglass of the top chamber, the inherited tradition, emptying to what it should accomplish – (virtual) presence. / Philosophy & Systematic Theology / D. Th. (Systematic Theology)

ENGLISH SUMMARY The main objective of this thesis was to provide a complex perspective on the mutual relationship of gender and media in the age of post-modernity with a special attention to the stereotypical gender portrayal presented to us by the contemporary Czech advertising discourse. We chose to demonstrate this problematics through the methods of semiotic analysis on the analytical sample of 5 advertisements (consisting of selected TV commercials) representing various aspects of stereotypical gender images appearing in the today's Czech advertising contents. We then subjected these selected advertisements to the analytical methods in pursuit of finding the answers to the questions related to the media image of men, women and our society that the stereotypical gender depictions contained in these advertisements help to construct. Although many of these advertisements appear to be openly sexist or even misogynic on the first sight, using the mechanisms of semiotic analysis we came to a rather opposite conclusion proposing the analyzed contents are rather pro-feminine tending toward an extensive masculine critique. This result, however, is based mainly on the mechanisms of oppositional reading of the subjected texts. On the other hand, it is presumable that the "average media consumer" not having access...

The medium is the message in the first place: the medium as presence, as the author. His contribution to the academic world is his academic Holographic Memoirs. His story, the author's memoirs, is a fictive-narrative discourse with an organic ubuntu open-endedness. The Hologram is both an autobiography, but also all the information at all places simultaneously – nonlocal in quantum physical terms - within an intense hallucinating dream: no illusion, but rather a HyperReality with all its Virtual Identities. The invention of tram hopping is the plot of the story. The plot is like an hourglass where the first part of the story is the emptying of the sand, the deconstruction of modernism, but while the top chamber runs empty and the bottom chamber fills up, so the deconstruction is simultaneously a dependent arising/(social) construction/ubuntuing to revival – the synagogal Shekinah presence of YAHWEH. The top chamber is the unreasonable Newtonian physics and the bottom chamber reasonable quantum physics. The metaphysics (before the physics) of the top chamber is poststructuralism and deconstruction, while the bottom chamber is the virtual Hebraic worldview that delutively merges ubuntu and Buddhism. The long narrow neck in the middle is the moonily narrative that lives us with psychology (Psycho-logic) lost in sociology (Social-physics). Hermeneutics is set forth in the same contrasting hourglass of the top chamber, the inherited tradition, emptying to what it should accomplish – (virtual) presence. / Philosophy and Systematic Theology / D. Th. (Systematic Theology)

Le roman de la route est un genre narratif propre à l’Amérique du Nord. Prenant la forme d’un récit de voyage, il met en scène les pérégrinations d’un narrateur sur les autoroutes des États Unis. Au Canada francophone, plus précisément, ce voyage transcontinental prend un nouveau sens. Parfois, il est motivé par la poursuite d’un frère perdu et se transforme avec le temps en quête identitaire : le narrateur, confronté à une culture inconnue, est obligé de faire face à des enjeux d’identité culturelle qui hantent le Canada francophone depuis l’époque coloniale. Au Québec, par exemple, on cite autant le voyage de Jack Waterman dans Volkswagen Blues (1984) de Jacques Poulin que celui de Sal Paradise dans On the Road de Jack Kerouac (1957) en ce qui concerne leur influence sur le genre. Certains auteurs moins connus du genre, cependant, sont des femmes. Leurs récits s’articulent autour d’un voyage identitaire particulier qui prend en compte des facteurs extérieurs à leur situation géoculturelle, tels que leur âge et leur sexe. Ce mémoire analysera les romans « de la route » de trois autrices canadiennes, à savoir De quoi t’ennuies-tu, Éveline ? (1982) de Gabrielle Roy, Soifs (1995) de Marie-Claire Blais et Distantly Related to Freud (2008) d’Ann Charney. Nous examinerons les raisons motivant le voyage aux États-Unis, pourquoi ceux-ci sont choisis comme lieu de destination et ce que les protagonistes des récits espèrent y retrouver. Curieusement, ce qu’ils trouvent tous à leur arrivée au pays est une société envahie par des formes de ce que le théoricien français Jean Baudrillard appelle l’hyperréalité ; c’est-à-dire une société submergée par des « modèles » du réel, ou des simulacres. Ces simulacres réussissent à brouiller la frontière entre le réel et le faux, désorientant complètement le voyageur. Notre mémoire examinera ces formes hyperréelles, leur représentation dans les trois récits comme inhérente à la société étatsunienne et, finalement, leur impact sur la quête identitaire des protagonistes. / The road novel is a narrative genre particular to North America. Taking the form of a travelogue, it depicts the narrator’s wanderings over the highways and byways of the United States. In French-speaking Canada, specifically, the transcontinental voyage of the road novel takes on a special meaning. Sometimes, it is motivated by the pursuit of a lost brother and transforms over time into a pursuit of the self: the narrator, faced with an unknown culture, is obliged to confront issues of cultural identity that have haunted francophone Canada since the colonial era. In Quebec, for instance, Jack Waterman’s journey in Jacques Poulin’s Volkswagen Blues (1984) is cited as frequently as Sal Paradise’s in Jack Kerouac’s On the Road (1957) with regards to their role in influencing the genre. Some lesser known authors of the genre, however, are women. Their stories are centered around a specific identity voyage that considers factors outside of their geocultural situation, such as their age and gender. This thesis analyzes the “road” novels of three Canadian authors, including Gabrielle Roy’s De quoi t’ennuies-tu, Éveline ? (1982), Marie-Claire Blais’ Soifs (1995), and Ann Charney’s Distantly Related to Freud (2008). We examine the reasons for making the journey to the United States, why this country has been chosen as a place of destination, and what the protagonists of these stories hope to find there. Curiously, what they all find upon arrival is a society dominated by forms of what French theorist Jean Baudrillard calls “hyperreality”; that is, a society overwhelmed by “models” of the real, or simulacra. These simulacra blur the lines between the real and the artificial, completely disorientating the traveler. Our thesis explores these hyperreal forms, their representation in the three narratives as being inherent to U.S. society, and, finally, their impact on the protagonists’ quest for identity.

Secondary World: The Limits of Ludonarrative is a series of short narrative animations that are a theoretical treatise on the limitations of western storytelling in video games. The series covers specific topics relating to film theory, game design and art theory: specifically those associated with Gilles Deleuze, Jean Baudrillard, Jay Bolter, Richard Grusin and Andy Clark. The use of imagery, editing and presentation is intended to physically represent an extension of myself and my thinking process and which are united through the common thread of my personal feelings, thoughts and experiences in the digital age.

Master of Philosophy (MPhil) / Informationist Science Fiction theory provides a way of analysing science fiction texts and narratives in order to demonstrate on an informational basis the uniqueness of science fiction proper as a mode of fiction writing. The theoretical framework presented can be applied to all types of written texts, including non-fictional texts. In "Informationist Science Fiction Theory and Informationist Science Fiction" the author applies the theoretical framework and its specific methods and principles to various contemporary science fiction works, including works by William Gibson, Neal Stephenson and Vernor Vinge. The theoretical framework introduces a new informational theoretic re-framing of existing science fiction literary theoretic posits such as Darko Suvin's novum, the mega-text as conceived of by Damien Broderick, and the work of Samuel R Delany in investigating the subjunctive mood in SF. An informational aesthetics of SF proper is established, and the influence of analytic philosophy - especially modal logic - is investigated. The materialist foundations of the metaphysical outlook of SF proper is investigated with a view to elucidating the importance of the relationship between scientific materialism and SF. SF is presented as The Fiction of Veridical, Counterfactual and Heterogeneous Information.

Master of Philosophy (MPhil) / Informationist Science Fiction theory provides a way of analysing science fiction texts and narratives in order to demonstrate on an informational basis the uniqueness of science fiction proper as a mode of fiction writing. The theoretical framework presented can be applied to all types of written texts, including non-fictional texts. In "Informationist Science Fiction Theory and Informationist Science Fiction" the author applies the theoretical framework and its specific methods and principles to various contemporary science fiction works, including works by William Gibson, Neal Stephenson and Vernor Vinge. The theoretical framework introduces a new informational theoretic re-framing of existing science fiction literary theoretic posits such as Darko Suvin's novum, the mega-text as conceived of by Damien Broderick, and the work of Samuel R Delany in investigating the subjunctive mood in SF. An informational aesthetics of SF proper is established, and the influence of analytic philosophy - especially modal logic - is investigated. The materialist foundations of the metaphysical outlook of SF proper is investigated with a view to elucidating the importance of the relationship between scientific materialism and SF. SF is presented as The Fiction of Veridical, Counterfactual and Heterogeneous Information.

Denna masteruppsats diskuterar naturens läkande effekt på människan genom att analysera nuvarande forskningsläge i både svenskt och internationellt perspektiv. Analysen förstås genom en teoretisk modell som baserar sig på ekologisk perceptionsfenomenologi, hyperrealitet och relationsinramning. Uppsatsens slutsats är att naturens läkande effekt kan förklaras med en perceptiv relation mellan människan och den mer-än-mänskliga världen, men också, att mer forskning behövs. / This master thesis discusses the healing properties of nature on the human being through an analysis of current Swedish and international research. The analysis is made by using a theoretical model based on ecological perception phenomenology, hyperreality and relational frame theory. The conclusion of the thesis is that the healing properties of nature may be explained by the perceptive relation between the human being and the more-than-human world, but also that more research is needed.

摘要 組織乃社會網絡的一員，其必須正視後現代主義者對當今後現代社會的觀察，以及必須面臨的嚴苛挑戰! 本論文旨在探討後現代主義思潮對當代組織的影響與啟示為何?部分當代管理情境(或稱後現代情境)， 例如，追求一切可能性、對簡單之渴望、感性的思維、 不確定性、 快速變遷、不連續性、模糊、 無界限、解構、 去中間化、 片斷化、 以族群取代社會階級、 多元化、尊重差異、超現實、以及反宰制性規則等等，對當代組織(或稱後現代組織)現在或未來在策略擬定時的影響與啟示為何? 面對後現代情境及其挑戰 ， 後現代組織現在或未來對策略之再思考為何? 後現代組織未來可能適用之新的組織模式為何? 以及後現代組織對策略之再思考的實務作為為何? 本研究主要以文獻探討與次級資料檢索之檔案研究法為主，資料檢索的對象(含個案資料之來源)是以探討較高層次的概念性策略新思維為主。至於屬於研究輔助性質之個案部分，則以屬於營利性質之全球知名多國籍企業、由製造導向轉型為服務導向者、或者可印證本研究所探討之策略新思維者為主。 經由本探索研究後發現，面對後現代主義思維的衝擊，以及後現代管理情境的挑戰，組織應該重新檢視其前提假設、回歸策略本質、勾勒遠大的構想、開創新的價值曲線以避開面對面競爭、重新尋找組織在數位世界的價值定位與經營模式、專注核心、建立社群、培養廣義「顧客」----利害關係人之新的忠誠度、善用所有利害關係人的關係與優勢、 注重組織內外部的整合以及策略要素之間的整合與一致性、擺脫語言牢籠(規則)的束縛而賦予員工彈性、持續尋找任何強調彈性結構、網絡關係、溝通效率、以及民主化機制的組織模式或概念。 最後，對於全球的多國籍企業，本研究建議其必須在全球的產業分工體系之下，勾勒遠大的構想、開創新的價值曲線、發展世界級的核心能力、建立或主導某些內外部社群或電子企業社群、採行time pacing策略以穩健成長、強化跨產業或跨國之組織與策略整合的作為、時時檢視與修改任何宰制性的政策或規則、以及繼續尋找與試行任何可能且可行的組織模式或概念。 / Abstract Organizations that are parts of social network must take into account those issues discovered and criticized by Postmodernist and those severe challenges facing organizations. This dissertation tries to explore those impact and implications aroused by postmodernist for contemporary organizations, those contemporary scenario (postmodern scenario) facing organizations, such as in search of possibilities, in need of simplicity, sensuous thinking, indeterminacy, a rapidly changing environment, discontinuity, ambiguity, boundarylessness, borderless, deconstruction, disintermediation, fragmentation, social class replaced by tribes, diversity, apprizing difference or otherness, hyperreality, and against governing rules, that will affect the strategic planning of organizations at present or in the coming future. In addition, this dissertation also tries to explore that currently or in the coming future how organizations rethink their strategies while facing postmodern scenario and its rigorous challenges, what forms, models or concepts of organization design that organizations can apply, and those managerial practices that organizations have ever executed. The research methodology adopted by this dissertation is primarily literature review and secondary data exploration. The target data including cases are focused on those conceptual strategic thinking. Those cases that are mainly complement to this dissertation are those distinguished multinational corporations (MNC) that have ever been transformed from manufacturing-oriented to service-oriented, or are able to prove partial strategic thinking reviewed in the dissertation. In the face of those thinking impact stirred by postmodernist and challenges resulted from postmodern managerial scenario, this dissertation concludes that organizations should review and rethink their assumption for the world, revisit the essence of strategy, picture and propose the big ideas, create or explore new value curves to avoid cruel face-to-face competition, explore new value positions and business models in the digital world, focus and develop core businesses and competence, build and manage communities, cultivate new types of royalty for those stakeholders partnering with organizations, utilize the relationships with and advantages from stakeholders, emphasize and advocate internal and external organizational integration and consistence and alignment for strategies, free from the cage of language and empower employees, keep exploring those organizational models or concepts that advocate or propose flexibility, networks of people, efficiency of communication, and spirit of democracy. In conclusion, this dissertation suggests that under global industrial value chains, multinational corporations should picture and propose the big ideas, create and explore new value curves, develop best-in-world core competence, form or dominate some internal or external communities or e-business communities, adopt strategy of time pacing for sound and moderate growth, reinforce cross-industry or cross-nation integration for organizations and strategies, keep reviewing and modifying any governing policy or rules, and keep searching and experimenting any latest possible and feasible models or concepts of organization.