In November 1999, I was blogging about John’s Book Pages (by a CS grad student who had recently read Gene Wolfe and Anthony Bourdain, among many others) What camomile tea has in common with the attack squadron over Skylon 4 (rec.humor newsgroup reference to a disastrous “tandem story” assignment) “Nimoy is, to say the least,…
Corridors in science-fiction movies. I love them. I wasted too much of my childhood and youth imitating and developing the superb production sketches of Ron Cobb, Syd Mead, Ralph McQuarrie and many others. I walked round Elstree studios collecting precious vacuum-formed sections of cloud-city corridor from The Empire Strikes Back, some months after principal photography stopped.…
Similar:A brief respite from grading. A brief respite from grading. PersonalChess again with my son.GamesAnother chess tournament with the boy.GamesRenata, Carolyn and Alex in a scene from this weekend's Pippin.CultureAnd now that June’s almost over, it’s time to start prepping for the fall term. (Sigh.)PersonalI voice the role of Electron Jones in this audio detective…
These people do important, amazing work. While shiny, digitally mastered vinyl releases pop up in big box stores everywhere, the real musical wealth lies in the past—in thousands upon thousands of LPs, 45s, 78s—relics of “the only consumer playback format we have that’s fully analog and fully lossless,” says vinyl mastering engineer Adam Gonsalves. Few institutions…
Similar:I regularly teach A Raisin in the Sun but haven't seen a live production in decades. Looki… AwesomeEducated, uplifted, boosted, and fed. Block party celebrating August Wilson continues thro…CultureAfter my conference talk, a post-audition, pre-Jane-Eyre-performance dinner with the girl.PersonalCongrats to all the winners at the Pittsburgh 48 Hour Film Project! Bit-Sized Productions …Bit-Sized Productions was…
“It has made me more confident in myself, and I don’t view Shakespeare’s work as intimidating anymore.” –freshman student reflecting on the first half of my “Shakespeare in Context” course. In lieu of reading comprehension quizzes, I have students post informal responses. They respond to an orientation lecture and each act of the play as…
In the past few years I have seen more students who are very bright, hard-working, and grade-conscious, who are very comfortable when they have a list facts to memorize, or a formula to follow. Rather than thinking of a revision as an opportunity to develop, these students think more transactionally than organically about their learning, and prefer to see revision as a punishment for not getting it right the first time. I see it instead as an integral part of the critical thinking process.
Márgarét, áre you gríeving
Over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leáves like the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Last night’s preview was a layered treat. A theatrical framing story, the story being dramatized, and a story being uncovered. twists and chills at every level. Well done. Similar:A young father sold his beloved sports car for “diaper money.” Years later, the man’s son …“While my dad has always spoken lovingly…AestheticsHow newsroom managers can invest…
Similar:That should be the top "Under 800" prize, but the plaque has an extra zero. #chessPeter spent the day at a chess tournamen…GamesCreating textures for background buildings in a medieval theater simulation project. I can…Creating textures for background buildin…AestheticsThe School of Humanities honors me and my colleagues @mikearnzen and Dan Martino as we com…The School…
Similar:CEO’s brutalist office, for a Zoom-based production of R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots)….Aesthetics“If music be the food of love, play on!” I may have mentioned that I have a daughter who d… CultureSlicing up a massively detailed trimsheet to simulate reflections and geometry for four va…PersonalAnother 10sq cm of background details for a #steampunk project.…
Similar:Overwhelmed? Start a new to-do list with "1) Breathe; 2) Make 'to-do' list" Felt momentarily overwhelmed by the da…CultureWooden document holders. Pretty routine, but practice is practice. #Blender3DPersonalI'm having scads of fun designing #steampunk control panels. #blender3d #blender3dart…AestheticsI love my students enough to teach them the difference between passive voice and past tens…If a goggles-for-brains…
Similar:On the way to the theater for the show! Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd.PersonalDid you see that guy’s license plate?Did you see that guy’s license plate? …AmusingOpening night. They've got magic to do! CultureNot a #carguy but I pried open the hatch of the van to change 4 bulbs. #adulting PersonalThey figured it out.PersonalSoldiers and Sailors…
Similar:In April, 2001 I was blogging about interactive fiction, Roget's Thesaurus, John Lennon, H… A student newspaper article about in…BooksStuffed planet Venus, made for me by my dear mother, around 1974.AestheticsFall 2023 Grades: Submitted! AcademiaI filed my grades early. I shall now, briefly, do something irresponsible.Grades submitted. I’ll reward myself wit…PersonalLovely #greebles give attractive details…
Similar:Desk blotters, with procedural leather and wood materials by Blendermada. #blender3dAestheticsLook how the box leads your eye down to the car, then the two signs lead your eye up to th…PersonalReally enjoyed watching Your Name with the family. Visuals hooked me, but the story kept m…AestheticsToday I didn't save the world, but I did help…
Similar:Why I Rarely Blog about My Home Building ProjectsWe’re kind of in the eye of the storm, b…ModdingThe girl as Mrs Lovett with Ben Federico as Sweeney Todd.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITqwfTCk…CultureLeftovers from the food my colleagues brought in to bribe/reward those few students who sh… Leftovers from the food my colleagues b…AcademiaI was perhaps a bit more conversational…
Similar:Keeping it classy. My 20yo son encounters the fruit-eating scene from the 1996 point-and-c…PersonalSparkle unicorn "Winston" lends ethos to a presentation on moral agency on anima…PersonalNext up for the girl: Amy, the youngest sister, in Little Women: The Broadway Musical. Nov…PersonalOverwhelmed? Start a new to-do list with "1) Breathe; 2) Make 'to-do' list" Felt momentarily…
Similar:Help! I may be running out of excuses for not wearing…Help! I may be running out of excuses fo…CultureMaking a villain's lair in #Blender3D (this weekend's relaxation)AestheticsYou aren’t doing it wrong… if no one knows what you are doing.PersonalThe geekling is 14 today.PersonalCan you really say you’ve designed #neovictorian uniforms for a fantasy #steampunk cruiser…AestheticsMy…
Similar:The Princess and the PaintFriday night, my daughter will be playin…AestheticsStuffed planet Venus, made for me by my dear mother, around 1974.AestheticsThe Outrageous Okona (TNG Rewatch, Season 2, Episode 4)Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generatio…PersonalAnime Treatment of Star WarsI am not particularly into anime, though…AestheticsIn Which I Bow Before the Mistress of Teen SnarkThe Girl:…
Similar:My 10yo Created Bookmarks to Express Her Complex Relationship with ReadingMy 10yo has a complex relationship with …BooksProfessor Sees Parallels Between Things, Other Things”By drawing parallels between things and…AcademiaHalf of my students have never read Hamlet. (I told them not to get too attached to any of…We focused just on Act I today — the…