LiminalityIn anthropology, liminality (from Latinlimen'threshold') is the quality of ambiguity or disorientation that occurs in the middle stage of a rite of passage, when participants no longer hold their pre-ritual status but have not yet begun the transition to the status they will hold when the rite is complete.
The BackroomsThe Backrooms are a fictional location invented in a 2019 thread on the imageboard website 4chan. The Backrooms are usually portrayed as an impossibly large complex of empty rooms, accessed by exiting reality. They are one of the best-known examples of the liminal space aesthetic and the creepypasta genre. The concept began with an anonymous interpretation of a photo showing a large, empty room with an uncomfortable yellow atmosphere.
Built environmentThe term built environment refers to human-made conditions and is often used in architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, public health, sociology, and anthropology, among others. These curated spaces provide the setting for human activity and were created to fulfill human desires and needs.
4chanAnonymous imageboard website4chan is an anonymous English-language imageboard website. Launched by Christopher "moot" Poole in October 2003, the site hosts boards dedicated to a wide variety of topics, including video games, television, literature, cooking, weapons, music, history, technology, anime, physical fitness, politics, and sports, among others. Registration is not available, except for staff, and users typically post anonymously.
Uncanny valleyThe uncanny valley effect is a hypothesized psychological and aesthetic relation between an object's degree of resemblance to a human being and the emotional response to the object. The uncanny valley hypothesis predicts that an entity appearing almost human will elicit uncanny or eerie feelings in viewers.
NostalgiaNostalgia is an emotion which is often described as a bittersweet longing for the past, typically for a period of time accompanied by happy memories or emotions. It is often described as a sort of sad pleasure, which typically involves longing for a past memory, whether real or romanticized, that cannot be recovered. It can also refer to a type of homesickness.
Mark FisherMark Fisher (11 July 1968 – 13 January 2017), also known under his blogging alias k-punk, was an English writer, music critic, political and cultural theorist, philosopher, Marxist and teacher based in the Department of Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths, University of London. He initially achieved acclaim for his blogging as k-punk in the early 2000s, and was known for his writing on radical politics, music, and popular culture.
UncannyThe uncanny is the psychological experience of an event or thing that is unsettling in a way that feels oddly familiar, rather than simply mysterious. This phenomenon is used to describe incidents where a familiar entity is encountered in a frightening, eerie, or taboo context. Ernst Jentsch set out the concept of the uncanny, later elaborated on by Sigmund Freud in his 1919 essay "Das Unheimliche", which explores the eeriness of dolls and waxworks.
Urban legendAn urban legend (sometimes modern legend or urban myth) is a form of folklore consisting of unusual, humorous, or frightening stories that circulate as true accounts but are typically unverified or apocryphal. These narratives are often shared through word of mouth, social media, or news-like sources and typically involve shocking, mysterious, or cautionary themes.
AnthropologyScientific study of humans, human behavior, and societiesAnthropology is the scientific study of humanity that crosses biology and sociology, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavior, while cultural anthropology studies cultural meaning, including norms and values. The term sociocultural anthropology is commonly used today.
COVID-19 pandemicThe global COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. It spread to other parts of Asia and then worldwide in early 2020. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on 30 January 2020 and assessed it as having become a pandemic on 11 March.
Internet aestheticAn Internet aesthetic is a visual style, subculture, or thematic trend that originated and proliferated primarily through the Internet.
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