The Nexus of Art and Science: Term Paper Two

Computer Scientist Alan Kay once said “the best way to predict the future, is to invent it.” While we don’t particularly have a strong grip on the future of our future, one way to do so is to grab a hold onto human progression. And this is such a big reason as to why science and popular culture are intertwined in a rigorous feedback loop, infinitely influencing each other based off their innovations. This is the essence of human progression. Enter, Pokemon, the 90s sensation that enamored the world. Though the premise is simple enough, a world inhabited by various fantastic beasts that are trained by the humans around them, this franchise has taken the world by storm, becoming one of the most enduring series after more than 20 years. But what is more interesting about the world of Pokemon is its influence on the scientific world. Because while it’s not the most scientifically accurate franchise, the influence of Pokemon has shaped the world into becoming more open minded toward science as a whole.

The Pokemon universe is actually one heavily grounded in conceptual science. Like many fictional universes, “science” drives its functions. Rather than being magical or alien creatures, the physical Pokemon creatures in the Pokemon universe are kept track of, analyzed and studied, just as regular animals are in the real world. The scientific community of the Pokemon world is a prominent part of their society, ensuring that the world is properly looked after upon, despite their less than conventional ecosystem. Many attributes of Pokemon adhere to basic biology principles that almost mirror our own.  For example, the Pokemon universe confirms the concept of a common ancestor: Mew, the universal ancestor of all pokemon, portrays the theory that all life on earth can be traced back to a singular species, evolving as time goes on. However, this popular franchise does not necessarily adhere to all science perfectly. Pokemon is not scientifically accurate to our modern world. The concept of “evolution” physically transforms the Pokemon into new creatures entirely, rather than the gradual development of Darwinism as in our world. but is still influenced by real biology (ie animals and their abilities, albeit exaggerated, find their place in pokemon’s inspirations). More recently, Pokemon Sun and Moon feature region specific variations of Pokemon, which imply Pokemon also are succeptable to region exclusive adaptations, which they require for survival, mirroring wildlife in our universe. Also, Many of the prominent characters in the pokemon universe have scientific occupations, such as researchers or professors, professions portrayed in the pokemon universe are particularly science based, such as those who study pokemon behavior, or those who note the particular relationships between pokemon.These characters legitimize a career in science for a younger generation, exposing them to (albeit fictionalized versions) of real scientific careers. The impact pokemon has on society plants a seed of scientific curiosity within its target audience, piquing curiosity and driving their future.

Being the cultural phenomenon that it is, Pokemon has influenced the scientific world in more ways than one. One of the most prominent references to Pokemon in the scientific community is pikachurium: an amino acid named after the mascot, Pikachu. The scientists claimed that Pikachurium’s electric and lightning fast communication drew many familiar parallels to the electric mouse from the anime, and as such, became known as Pikachurium. Those same people influenced by the popularity of Pokemon have allowed for In addition to contributing to a large spike in physical activity in 2016, the popular smartphone game Pokemon Go influenced and inspired the progression of Augumented Reality. The popularity of the game provided the inspiration toward future innovation of the technology as it provided a much needed mainstream exposure to propel the technology forward. Not to mention the Pokewalker, a pedometer esque peripheral created for Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver, was designed to be one of the most accurate pedometers ever created, due to its precision based step counting, filtering out any other movements that could off put the accuracy of the count. Overall, Pokemon’s cultural influence traces its way back into science, propelling innovation for a new society as time progresses.

As the world as we know it expands, so does the pokemon universe. The Pokemon developers, Game Freak, are constantly looking for new ways to expand the Pokemon Universe. Whether it be updating new regions to be represented in the games, or scientific data influencing their designs, the Pokemon Universe looks more and more like ours every day. Pokemon might not be the pinnacle of science, but it certainly functions as a valuable resource as an inspiration and influence toward the future as a whole.

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