The Monolith's act as stages throughout the movie of human development/evolution. And every monolith up until this point has seemed to be the human as a creator of technology and being able to use it, but it's at this point that the monolith represents a transition into a type of 'superhuman' as shown in the rebirth scene. No longer are humans evolving by creating something, but by improving themselves. This seems especially poignant when HAL's disconnection is considered as well. David had to 'unplug' HAL in order to get to this next step. He had to, in essence, kill the very thing that had led humans to this point of evolution.

This scene, as with many others, represents a crucial point in the movie. I think this also has some connection of what was discussed on the first day of class in relations to singularity. One student suggested that singularity in an astronomical context seems to be a black hole that implodes on itself. Further discussed in a linguistics context, we described how singularity shares connections with being alone or unique and individual. In the "into the wormhole" scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey, all of humankind is erased except for David. Advancements in technology had reached its peak to a point where David literally enters a black hole or a worm hole, in which he lives the rest of his life alone and passes away quietly. This signifying mankind imploding on themselves and being reborn. His passage signifies the rebirth of humankind and presents the idea of the cycle of life, where technology is nonexistent and life begins again. There is a sense of reverse chronology in the movie as the ending scene is continued at the beginning of the movie where the monkeys demonstrate their journey towards intelligence once more.

"Datta," "Dayadhvam," and "Damyata" are part of Hindu Buddhist teachings meaning "give", "compassion", and "control", respectively. These are responsibilities of peoples. With the repetitive "DA", it suggests that thunder foreshadows rain and rebirth in the wasteland.

Water represents both death and rebirth. Water can symbolize washing away of sins in preparation for a new start/ future.

People are left to wander in spiritual darkness. Not sure what's supposed to come next.

April is a time of rebirth, good for people with loved ones, but can be a lonely time for people who are alone. Winter seems like a better time of year because you can numb your emotions. And take joy in small doses (dried tubers).