Ephemerality
Ephemerality (from the Greek word , meaning 'lasting only one day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Typically the term ephemeral is used to describe objects found in nature, although it can describe a wide range of things, including human artifacts intentionally made to last for only a temporary period in order to increase their perceived aesthetic value. With respect to unique performances, for example, it has been noted that "[e]phemerality is a quality caused by the ebb and flow of the crowd's concentration on the performance and a reflection of the nostalgic character of  specific performances". Because different people may value the passage of time differently, "the concept of ephemerality is a relative one" and "there is no single definition of ephemerality". Natural examples. Geographical features. An ephemeral stream is that which only exists following precipitation. They are not the same as intermittent or seasonal waterbodies, which exist for longer periods, but not all year round. Ephemeral streams can be difficult to "conceptually defin[e]"; those that are discontinuous, due to altering between aggradation or degradation, have the appearance of continual change. Furthermore, the characteristics of terrain and rainfall are profound in affecting ephemeral streams . Ephemeral waterbodies experience formative change upon the end of a hydroperiod. "Due to lack of continuous hydrology data, the designation of sites as ephemeral or intermittent is necessarily tenuous". Ephemeral streams feature a low degree of hydrological connectivity. Small wetlands are often ephemeral and ephemeral ecosystems are often aquatic; ephemeral wetlands, streams and ponds are a varied and global occurrence. Hydroperiod, predation, competition and food availability are among the "highly heterogeneous" elements of these features. In tropical biomes, amphibians often reside in ephemeral habitats during dry seasons; opportunistic species utilise similar and ephemeral habitats for food, sleep or mating. Environments  akin to ephemeral ponds can be very significant sites of reproduction for amphibians; many other organism make use of ephemeral ponds. Tadpoles, however, are hindered by ephemeral streams, as can surrounding systems. Ephemeral habitat patches have repeatedly been assessed as deterimental to metapopulation persistence, although metapopulations aren't always negatively affected by ephemeral landscapes. These patches occur as a result of the habitat's turnover. Ephemeral streams have, relative to their perennial counterparts, lower species richness; the streams are "potentially demanding" for inhabitants, although some species do reside. The ephemerality of a river network is a particularly significant element in  the hydrological transmission of waterborne diseases, via a direct and indirect pressence in the transmission cycle – the nature of the disease and area covered are important factors as well. Examples of ephemeral streams are the Luni river in Rajasthan, India, Ugab River in Southern Africa, and a number of small ephemeral watercourses that drain Talak in northern Niger. Other notable ephemeral rivers include the Todd River and Sandover River in Central Australia as well as the Son River, Batha River and the Trabancos River. Any endorheic basin, or closed basin, that contains a playa (dry lake) at its drainage lowpoint  can become an ephemeral lake. Examples include Lake Carnegie in Western Australia, Lake Cowal in New South Wales, Mystic Lake and Rogers Lake in California, and Sevier Lake in Utah. Even the driest and lowest place in North America, Death Valley (more specifically Badwater Basin), became flooded with a short-lived ephemeral lake in the spring of 2005. Costelloe et al. (2009) describes salt lakes found in the arid zone of Australia as profoundly ephemeral. There are also ephemeral islands such as Banua Wuhu and Home Reef. These islands appear when volcanic activity increases their height above sea level, but  disappear over several years due to wave erosion. Bassas da India, on the other hand, is a near-sea level island that appears only at low tide. On account of changing demarcation, shores exist as ephemeral. Only a small amount of southern Costa Rica's secondary forests reach maturity, indicating that they may be "generally ephemeral". Deciduous forests, via the seasonal change of leaves, are subject to natural ephemeral changes. Landscapes feature ephemeral changes of both natural and man-made origin. Furrows, haystacks and sheaves are ephemeral aspects of a landscape. Biological processes. Plants whose life cycle is significantly less  than the time of a growing season are deemed ephemeral. Winter annuals, Epilobium and Senecio vulgaris are examples of ephemeral plants. The conditions for ephemeral plants are markedly present in deserts. Animals can be ephemeral, with brine shrimp and the mayfly being examples. The placenta is considered an ephemeral organ present during gestation and pregnancy. Ephemerality is a component of olfaction, breathing, speech and memory, aligned with permanency in the latter. With regards to witnessing an artwork in a museum, limited research indicates that the ephemerality of solely gazing at the artwork results in greater remembrance compared to the resulting  memory from taking a photograph. Ephemeral artifacts. Objects which are ephemeral, per one perspective, are those whose compositional material experience chemical or physical changes and are thus permanently altered; this process occurs in a matter of decades. Furthermore, ephemerality can be perceived as defiance of value or duability. Ephemerality can affect the entire spectrum of literature, from a "finely bound" Bible to a "hastily printed" handbill. Due to often outlasting their expressed purpose, these objects can be perceived as temporal and ontological oddities; ephemerality has been described as constitutionally liminal – ephemerality "is a present intensified by the mannerism of time ...caputur[ing] time in the imperceptible flux and interval of things, of beings and of what exists" wrote Christine Buci-Glucksmann. These objects, however, chiefly disappear; when preserved it is often knowingly, having been "rescued from ephemerality", though this practice is still fraught with uncertainty. Libraries, for example, "are perpetually engaged in contesting ephemerality" and the likes of Heinrich von Kleist sought to document ephemeral experiences via literature. Professor of English, Gillian Russell wrote that ephemerality "in both its material and conceptual senses can...be said to be a constitutive feature of the age of print that began in the mid -fifteenth century. It is increasingly constitutive of the emergent post-print age too". It's a matter of varying scale and even breath can convey "the most ephemeral..aspects of human existence". "Ephemeral" acquired its common meaning of short-living in the mid 19th century and has connotations of passing time, fragility, change, disappearance, transformation and the "philosophically ultimate vision of our own existence". During that greater period, the "similarly fleeting lives of flowers, illnesses, regimes, and persons" were aligned with the french term "éphémère" – which was closely aligned with the documentation of the quotdian: "éphémérides". According to Buci-Glucksmann , "the entire western history of the ephemeral seems to be dominated by melancholy", citing Baroque and Vanitas art as relevant examples; she notes "Mujō" as the Japanese concept of ephemeral and said that "More widely, there is a true culture of the ephemeral in Japan". The Japanese term "mono no aware" expresses further conceptualisation of ephemerality. Cultural scholar, Alessandra Campoli wrote that cultural awareness of ephemerality is prevalent, there existing attempts to either mitigate or embrace the occurance. Political scientist Roland Beiner, upon discussing political attempts to transform ephemerality, wrote that "neither theory nor practice will ever cure it in  a way we may wish it could" surmising it to be intrinsic to the human condition. Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett argued that "The ephemeral encompasses all forms of behavior – everyday activities, story-telling, ritual, dance, speech, performance of all kinds". Professor of Theatre Becky Becker said that "Ephemerality is an embodied concept, connected to desire and based in our physical experience in the world". Sarah Kofman questioned if "the beauty that conceals the evanescent nature of all things were itself ephemeral". Charles Baudelaire considered aesthetics to be centered around an interplay of the perennial and the ephemeral. Rather than melancholic, Sigmund  Freud and Walter Pater viewed ephemerality as valuable; awareness and acceptance were to Freud commendable. Buci-Glucksmann described "cosmic ephemeral[ity]" as a showcase of this perception. Defining ephemera, "the minor transient documents of everyday life" popularized notions of ephemerality and everyday life as intertwined. Samuel Johnson significantly contributed to the modern understanding of ephemerality, a burgeoning concept during his time. The etymology of "ephemeral" relates to the natural sciences; "ephemera," before Johnson, referred to mayflies, whose lifespan is a singular day. Art scholar Allyson Purpura opined that "the idea of the ephemeral is inherently poetic", noting that various artists have  drawn upon ephemerality to explore time and memory and, within artworks, it has been used to signify political critique, emotional introspection and spiritually. Art scholar Mary O'Neil wrote that depictions of death in these artworks is often not generalised and instead visceral. Kofman posited that art is utilised to abate the "intolerable nature of all ephemeral things". In the digital realm, online interactions have been said to straddle permanency and ephemerality, there existing a "rapid cycle" of new posts; participants adopt a social norm that "the discourse will pass and be forgotten as the past". Furthermore, digital media's encompassing  archival process means that information of varying importance can either be affixed or ephemeral; digital personas, on account of precariousness and caprice, can be entierly ephemeral, without any record. Russell surmised that digital ephemeral material conjures an ostensibly perennial fear of an "undead" past persisting indefinitely, thus haunting the present. Ephemeral aspects are evident in instant messages, as they "[simulate] a fleeting moment in time" – in person interactions also feature ephemerality. A significant amounts of living is ephemeral and the emergence of new digital media and technology develops what we deem ephemeral, to the point that, scholar of material culture , Sarah Wasserman questioned if ephemerality is an "outdated concept". Websites such as Snapchat and Wickr make use of ephemerality, which is a technologically and socially reliant concept – relative and historically changing, as well. Russell wrote that "ephemerality conditions the transformation of written communication in the digital sphere, as much as it did in the second phase of the print era". The rudimentary technology of early radio led to the media broadcast being ephemeral and for a substantial amount of time spoken communication was ephemeral. Within the context of modern media dissemination, YouTube videos, viral emails and photos have been identified  as ephemeral; as have means of advertising, both physical and digital and the internet collectively. "Ephemeral media" has been described as that which is brief in duration and/or circulation, adjacent to "the primary texts of contemporary entertainment culture". YouTube has "become a hugely successful aggregator of ephemeral media". In 2009, Ian Christie considered that a substantial amount of modern media, aligned with "rapid proliferati[on]", "may prove much more ephemeral than the flip-book". By the early 20th century, film was being used to document and combat ephemeral aspects of human development, such as "girlhood"; by the late 20th century, T.  C. Worsley dubbed television the "ephemeral art". Due to the social and temporal precariousness of film, media scholar Maria Antonia Velez Serna reflected that, philosophically speaking, ""all" cinema is ephemeral". Film professor Vinzenz Hediger described film as "Even more ephemeral than the book". Multiple academics, such as Clive Phillpot and William Hazlitt, have described various aspects of literature as ephemeral, including novels and definitions, bilateral when regarding physical and digital books. "Ephemeral" was first used colloquially in reference to printed matters. By 1750, an "expansion of all kinds of ephemeral print" had occurred; Russell described "all printed texts" as ephemeral . Hazlitt contended that such ephemerality was the result of widespread aestheticism, thus the creations were subject to being abruptly disregarded due to the cascading "gaze of fashion". Wallace Stevens adjusted his poetic standards due to a "perception of ephemerality" that living in New York City instigated. Art Spiegelman asserted that the format of comics, even during degradation, defies ephemerality, although they have been deemed as such. Women's writing, the likes of diaries and political pamphlets, have amassed a status as long being ephemeral, acknowledged by some affected in the then-present. The ubiquity of digital media has spurred the  opinion that print material is comparatively less ephemeral. Elisa New and Anna Akhmatova varyingly opined that poetry is a means of repealing mortal ephemerality – Akhamatova invoked the aphorism "ars longa vita brevis". Wang Tao, Stevens and Rubem Fonseca evoked ephemerality via female characters; Virginia Woolf used the rainbow as a symbol whereas grass occupies a similar role in the Bible; F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Keats elicited melancholic ephemerality in showcases of consumption. Historically, the ephemerality of dreams was utilised in ample East Asian literature as a metaphor for immaterial reality. Scholar of comparative literature Stuart Lasine noted that writers  have frequently invoked ephemerality as a negative aspect of the human condition. Ephemerality was profound to Dōgen and was intertwined with sorrow and regret; he used "the imagery of ephemerality" in a "waka" concerning death. Ephemerality has received increased attention from modern academics, in fields such as: literary studies, art history, book history, digital media studies, performance studies – "and the 'archival turn' in the humanities as a whole". The ephemerality of dance has engendered concern since at least the sixteenth century. Curators of modern and contemporary art have increasingly expressed a similar interest; curator of said genres Jan Schall described  them as varyingly ephemeral. Ephemerality present in digital literature and poetry has seen critical analysis. Russell questioned if scholarly conceptions of "the everyday" was deeply intertwined with ephemerality, despite attention to a relation being thus far faint. Social historians and historians of sound have contended their subject's ephemerality by utilising more material forms; creative soundwork has long been subordinate to these forms on account of its ephemerality. Artworks of an intentionally volatile or finite status are those deemed "ephemeral art", a global and long-standing occurrence, often potent in installation and ritual art. The Mapocho River embarkment had long  served as a notable vessel for ephemeral art. Ephemeral elements of decorative arts include: silver, glass, ceramics and furniture; Diane Victor uses the likes of glass, ash and smoke to accentuate themes of ephemerality. Performance art has been described as ephemeral in nature; with regards to historical performances, the traces: playbills, scrapbooks of newspaper clippings and material artifacts are themselves ephemeral. Witnessing a dance that will be rendered ephemeral is resultingly commodified and of greater desire to prospecting audiences; true is same of fairs. Muñoz posisted that the physical proximation of dance, which coupled with the "shared rhythm", results in  a unified yet ephemeral status of those engaged. "La Sylphide" sees ephemerality as a notable theme. Professor of Dance Mark Franko contended that the artform is approaching a state of being "post-ephemeral". The documentation of other ephemeral events: protests, installations, exhibitions, are often meager – public events, of varying size, naturally generate ephemeral material. "[Ephemerality] and disposability" have been perceived as components "of an American ethos"; alternative history novels "The Man in the High Castle" and "The Plot Against America" depict Americana and the nation itself as ephemeral. Ephemerality is central to the dominant religion of Thailand, "Theravāda." Ephemerality has  been identified as relevant to queer cultures; José Esteban Muñoz argued that queerness and ephemerality are intertwined, as the former has been expressed in methods which are prone to fade upon the "touch of those who would erase queer possibility". Freud considered culture as the prevailing element exempt from ephemerality. During the Baroque period, wealthy patrons would commission ephemeral creations from well-known artists of the time. "[N]otions of ephemerality" were a "pivotal concept" in the Victorian era, according to, scholar of Victorian literature, Paul Fyfe; broadsides of the time, he wrote, "seemed to take ephemerality to an extreme". Textual  media then employed various bold and ornate visual and tactile methods to eschew ephemerality however by the mid 18th century varied ephemeral prints were integral to "almost every literate person's daily life" – the cheap print culture of that century was conceived as intentionally ephemeral. Culturally, the late Georgian era rendered upon many critics as an "ephemeral age", definied by a precipitous regard to new materials; the advent of the telegraph, camera and film projector further instilled an understanding of ephemeral media. "A taste for ephemeral was increasingly important over the course of the nineteenth century" and "As the nineteenth  century progressed, ephemerality increasingly threatened to become a general condition", a condition contemporaries perceived as the "spirit of the age". Ephemerality, expressed both socially and materially, was profound in modernity and has "long been identified as [a] core attribute"; it was an iconoclastic feature of then-artworks and present in those of the later Dada and Fluxus movements. The Surrealists sought an "adequate presentation of life's ephemerality". Baudelaire defined the artistic componet of modernity by its purported ephemeral quality, a sentiment that modernists would later similarly echo. The likes of Baudelaire, Georg Simmel and Walter Benjamin saw the distinctly  and intentionally ephemeral practice of fashion as emblematic of modernity; it was due to them from which the perception of modernity as ephemeral arose. Ephemerality was furthermore promient in the late 20th century, on account of multiple social features; Reiko Tomii described ephemerality as a "defining issue of the 1960s". In the 21st century, ephemerality, Russell wrote, "continues to signify concerns about the overflow of information, its evanescence, and questions of what or should be preserved". David Harvey defined postmodernism as "a total acceptance of ephemerality". Various forms of African visual art, such as Kuba art and traditional arts, have  ephemerality as a key component; ephemeral art is a cultural feature in acts of coping, cautioning, protection and self-determination. Lee Ufan noted a "very strong sense of ephemerality" in the works of fellow Mono-ha artists. Ephemeral nature was a conceit of "ukiyo-e" prints. Architecture of an ephemeral nature appears as increasingly commonplace, on account of global and capricious hyper-mobility and mass displacement. Marc Augé observed ephemerality as key to the likes of airports, malls, supermarkets, offices blocks, and hotels thus rendering them, per his definition, "non-places". Architecture scholar Anastasia Karandinou argued that the practice's  modern relation to ephemerality correlated with digital media's evolution, which she says has enabled new conceptions of space and everyday thinking. Of an indefinite and contentious nature, the definition of a region is ephemeral.