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MLA Journals Adopt New Open-Access-Friendly Author Agreements

And there was much rejoicing.

The journals of the Modern Language Association, including PMLA, Profession, and the ADE and ADFL bulletins, have adopted new open-access-friendly author agreements, which will go into use with their next full issues. The revised agreements leave copyright with the authors and explicitly permit authors to deposit in open-access repositories and [...]

Amusing | Culture | Education | Games | Language | PopCult

Youngest-ever National Spelling Bee competitor says fatigue, stress led to misspelling onstage

“Overall, it was just boring. Really boring! Really boring!” –The Washington Post.

Aesthetics | Amusing | Culture | Design | Humanities | Journalism | Language | Writing

National Headline Contest 2011

Great headlines from winner David Bowman.

National Headline Contest 2011.

Academia | Education | Language | Rhetoric | Writing

I don’t really want to assign a grade to this draft…

I don’t really want to assign a grade to this draft… I just want to sit down with the student and have a conversation about why the words “cannot” and “because” mean completely different things according to context.

“The ice cannot be melted because the temperature is below freezing” uses “cannot” as a physical impossibility [...]

Academia | Amusing | Books | Health | Journalism | Language

Oh, the Lives That You’ll Save – Tweed – The Chronicle of Higher Education

His real name was Geisel, Theodor (with no “e”). An incredibly generous Author was he.

An alum from the class of nineteen twenty-five, They say he gave more than any alive. And for that they’ll remember him and his wife (the woman with whom he spent most of his life).

The medical school will carry [...]

Culture | Drama | Health | Language

Denise Pullen’s World Premiere of “Running in Traffic” at Seton Hill

I attended a read-through of this play a few months ago, and was impressed. Looking forward to seeing the production.

“Running in Traffic” focuses on Bolton, a nonverbal young man with autism who runs from home to attempt independence and becomes lost. He finds refuge on a traffic island when Stevie, a girl in a [...]

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Context for Halyes, My Mother Was a Computer

Hayles is an established authority on a humanities-centered approach to human-computer interactions, and My Mother Was a Computer (2005) is her third book on the topic.

At times she writes with the expectation that her readers already know some foundational topics that she may have spent more time introducing in her previous books.

In the [...]

Culture | Education | Ethics | Language | Rhetoric | Weirdness

War On Words: NYC Dept. Of Education Wants 50 ‘Forbidden’ Words Banned From Standardized Tests

War On Words: NYC Dept. Of Education Wants 50 'Forbidden' Words Banned From Standardized Tests « CBS New York.

The article presents a list of what the headline described as “banned words,” and we see whole concepts and topics, including “Children dealing with serious issues” and “Computers in the home (acceptable in a school or [...]

Business | Current_Events | Cyberculture | Games | Language | Science

Review: Angry Birds Space out of this world

Space seems like a fitting locale for the casual gaming franchise Angry Birds, considering its meteoric rise in popularity since launching 2009. –Review: Angry Birds Space out of this world.

Excuse me, but do meteors actually rise?

Business | Ethics | Journalism | Language | Media | Writing

Retracting “Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory” | This American Life

We’re horrified to have let something like this onto public radio. Many dedicated reporters and editors – our friends and colleagues – have worked for years to build the reputation for accuracy and integrity that the journalism on public radio enjoys. It’s trusted by so many people for good reason. Our program adheres to the [...]