Similar:Gil Gerard (1943-2025) I built a model of the two-pronged Sta…CultureCrabby 10yo Ties Self to Pole to Protest InjusticeMy wife confiscated my preteen daughter’…CultureRay Harryhousen, visual effects pioneer, dies The Harryhausen family regret to…AestheticsDelighted, amused, touched, and quite frankly weirded out (so… many… puppets…) by @t…PersonalThey figured it out.PersonalProfessor Sees Parallels Between Things, Other…
During Fall Break, I filmed my scenes for the horror indie The First Night of Summer. My character is a cheesy dad who’s trying too hard to engage with his sullen teenager — played by my daughter. While coaching us on the set, director Mark Sciubba described the dynamic he was looking for, and asked…
I ſhall always treaſure the pleaſant ſurpriſe of ſeeing the “long s” while reading Epicoene, by Ben Jonſon. Similar:We don’t need more STEM majors. We need more STEM majors with liberal arts training.A chemist celebrates the liberal arts. …AcademiaStudy confirms that ending your texts with a period is terrible.Language evolves, so oldsters like me sh…CybercultureFantasticks…
Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break. Riker accepts a temporary assignment as first officer of a Klingon vessel. “A Matter of Honor” offers a thoughtful, enjoyable dramatization of differences between Federation and Klingon culture, and a good B-plot in which Wesley helps a visiting officer adapt to routine operations on the Enterprise. It’s a nice touch…
Similar:Pipe Trouble’s government woes highlight gaming illiteracyInteresting discussion of a political ho…CultureTwitter and the "Two Minutes Hate"Another of the many, many reflections on…CultureMy wonderful daughter.PersonalPoint Park cancels 'The Adding Machine: The Musical' after student objections to offensive…Citing student objections to offensive c…AcademiaEssay on how much a professor learned about teaching from his mentorI had a…
Chants of “no justice, no peace” drifted from the hallway into the the 204th District Court, and then Botham Jean’s 18-year-old brother stepped up to the witness stand Wednesday. This was Brandt Jean’s chance to tell Guyger exactly what he thought of the former Dallas officer after she was sentenced to 10 years in prison…
Similar:Freelance Writing Online: What Are You Worth?Freelance writers have to be entrepreneu…BusinessThis is what happened when a KDKA-TV journalist showed biasSocial media platforms are full of peopl…CultureThe Visitor #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 4, Episode 3) Old Jake Reflects on the life-cha…Rewatching ST:DS9 On a dark and storm…BooksMake your case stronger – argue against yourselfAcademic argument…
Turns out, getting a STEM education may help you get a good job early but if you want a good career, you’re better off in liberal arts lane. In other words, even if you’re only measuring money, a liberal arts education is probably worth a ton more than most people may think. […] [B]y the time…
Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation after a 20-year break. Tension mounts between Captain Picard and Dr. Pulaski as the Enterprise encounters a rapid-aging disease. I rather liked how Picard, who just last week quoted part of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18, is in his ready room reading a book when Troi reminds him he wanted to…
Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation after a 20-year break. In his final hours, an arrogant, crotchety cybernetics genius takes a liking to Data. After the genius dies, Data starts acting arrogant and crotchety. Hmm. This early in the run of TNG, we’ve already seen the trope of a brilliant, older professional man supported and…
Saving for the next time I teach “Intro to English Study.” It’s all well and good to sing “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd” to the tune of “Hallelujah,” but why can’t you do it the other way around? For that matter, why does it work only when you limit yourself to the first two lines…
Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation after a 20-year break. A mediator who communicates via a telepathic chorus is a warring planet’s only hope for peace. While the episode isn’t perfect, nothing made me want to facepalm. I cared about Riva (the mediator) and his romantic (but at the same time respectful and professionally empathetic) interest…
Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation after a 20-year break. A pony-tailed pirate-shirt-wearing pile of charisma steps out of a Renaissance Festival sideshow onto the Enterprise for a silly low-stakes caper. Meanwhile, Data tries stand-up comedy. I cringed when the guest star put the moves on the pretty transporter technician (played by a before-she-was-famous Teri…
A librarian at the University of Virginia kindly scanned and emailed the review I wrote, as an undergraduate student journalist, of the pre-Broadway tryout of A Few Good Men, in September 1989. I was prepared to cringe, but I was actually kind of proud of the lead, which applies equally to the professional production now…
Similar:Students say "math class is stupid and boring," and they are right. –Mathematician Paul L…I am working on some conference papers t…CulturePreparing for some serious nerd time with the family this summerSet phasers to “nerd”! This summer I’ll…CultureOfficial Rules to NanofictionaryI was at a youth car wash today, watchin…DesignLego faces are getting angrier, study findsThe…
Felt momentarily overwhelmed by the day’s tasks. Made the following list: 1) Breathe. 2) Make “to do” list. 3) Post blog entry about “to do” list. 4) Go to lunch. 5) Prioritize to-do list. (Break up the intimidating tasks into smaller steps.) 6) Do first important item on list. (Repeat as necessary.) I’m…
Similar:Theory Trading CardsThis set of 21 Theory Trading Cards, pub…AcademiaRude mechanical sighting! Shakespearing it up with @newrentheatreco.PersonalMy 13yo and 18yo enthralled by WarGames.Wife likes movies. Son likes military th…CultureIn November 2001 I was blogging aboutIn November 2001, I was blogging about …AmusingStage Right Water SpriteLast week my daughter and I were a littl…AestheticsNow I can…
Image description: A teen girl in a spring dress, with her hair up. Text: “You’re so beautiful,” I told my daughter. She rolled her eyes. I asked her what I should say instead. She thought a bit. “You should say, ‘You shall prevail.’” “You shall prevail,” I said. She smiled. Similar:The Case Against High-School Sports”I’ve…
The Associated Press was widely criticized by readers for publishing a story last week under the headline “Sam Smith announces his pronouns are ‘they’ and ‘them’”. The body of the story also used male pronouns, in passages like “He added that he was ‘very nervous’ about the announcement because he cares to much about what…
When I tried teaching The Wizard of Oz in a literature class, I was a little frustrated with myself that I couldn’t bring the class discussion much farther than “how this book is different from the movie” and lists of one-to-one symbolism (“the yellow brick road represents the gold standard,” or ‘the scarecrow represents agriculture,…