Twilight Zone: Season 1 Episode 1 Where is everybody?

Work Title: Twilight Zone: Season 1 Episode 1 Where is everybody?
Medium: TV Episode
Episode Title: Where is everybody?
Year: 1959
Writer(s): Rod Serling
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: No
Summary:

Mike Ferris finds himself in a town strangely devoid of people. But despite the emptiness, he has the odd feeling that he's being watched. From Amazon.com

  • Self-Written?:
  • Source Name: Amazon
  • Source URL:
Era/Year of Portrayal: present_day
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

There was no single person in the town except the man. Apparently it was a town which used for bombing testing.

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: The black box with some devices that attach to body.
  • Description of the technology: The black box that is big enough to put in a person in there. The subject is attached some wires which make him create the illusion of a empty town. The subject can vividly enter the world that is created by the black box. He feels he is actually walking, eating, and calling on the phone in the illusionary world. The sense of immersion is too real and twoo strong that finally drives the subject crazy.
  • Nature of task or activity: He is attached to the devices. His heart rate and blood pressure are being measured. He has to stay in the box alone. The majot task for the subject is testing how long a person can live by himself alone.
  • Performance of the Technology: The black box and the devices work really well from the beginning to the end.
  • Description of creator(s): The researchers and officers in the air force. They are all males and probably in the age of 40 to 50.
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): To test how long a person can stand the loneliness.
  • Description of users of technology: A young male lieutenant in air force.
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: spatial_presence
  • Description of presence experience: At first the man was confused and didn't know who and where he was. After a while, he started to realize that he was the only person in the town. He started to panic and anxious to find companion. He felt that he might be watched by other people. At the end, he went crazy and was pulled from the black box. He finally knew that he was just a subject in an experiment.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: He didn't realize the technology until the end.
  • Valence of experience: The man went crazy and anxious using the technology.
  • Specific responses: He has strong emotional response and physiological arousal.
Long-term consequences:

There is no one can stay in the technology for long since people are long for group and companion. The consequences are bad and sad.

Other:

It is not only a presence for technology user but for audiences as well.

Coder name: Bi-Hsuan Chien
Coder email: tuc70057@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: BTMM Temple University