In my freshman writing class, my job is to teach students how to write a researched essay. I encourage students to pick topics that interest them, but I warn them that if they go into their project already convinced that one answer is correct (that euthanasia should/should not be legal, that abortion is murder/healthcare, that…
Similar:Lego goes steampunkBe still, my nerdy heart. Steampunk —…AestheticsLintels and chimneys for low-poly buildings in a #medievaltheater simulation project. #mys…Lintels and chimneys for low-poly buildi…PersonalTricking the eye to see 3D details in geometrically flat surfaces for my #steampunk #blend… AestheticsShort-range #neovictorian excursion craft, now with glowing power orbs! Over the past year…https://youtu.be/-cJp-kelrL8 AestheticsPushing and pulling…
Similar:Life would be so much better if all the interfaces we encountered looked like #Steampunk c…AestheticsMe, contemplating the implications of maybe doing a socialize this weekend.PersonalCome see Carolyn and her talented castmates in The Fantasticks (Theatre Factory, Trafford …PersonalLoud as a Whisper (ST:TNG Rewatch, Season 2, Episode 5)Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generatio…DramaI regularly teach…
On this date in 1999, I first dated an entry in the collection of web links I had been curating since at least that January. Similar:What If the Newspaper Industry Made a Colossal Mistake?This sounds a lot like wishful thinking,…BusinessThe daughter (giving the piggyback ride in pic 2) doing a thing that starts tomorrow. Tribune…
Above is my response to a meme that makes some shaky assumptions about the purpose of an English classroom. Exploring the intent of the author is a huge part of the English discipline, but it’s far from the only way to study (or teach) literature. Author intent, new historicism, reader-response, structuralism… the list goes on.…
I can sympathize with the sentiment, but the top part of this meme (the white text on black background) is not how I’d frame the situation. My take (which I’ve added underneath the original) is that when two sources disagree, assuming that one must be right and the other must be wrong is a form…
This fascinating essay, by the grandchild of a Nigerian slave trader, explores a complex cultural legacy. At least as provocative as “Did Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson Love Each Other?” and the stunning, bitter “Molasses to Rum (to Slaves)” from the otherwise cheery musical 1776. African intellectuals tend to blame the West for the slave…
My wife Leigh received a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts grant towards producing the small-cast drama Full Bloom. She’s found a good space and found the right cast, and so we’re doing the whole crazy “Hey, let’s put on a show” thing again! If you’re within shouting distance, and you think the arts should matter…
This is why journalism matters: The Atlantic offers a good overview of the confusing fact that the official transcripts published by the White House and the Russian government don’t match the video. Compare this transcript, of what actually happened, to the White House’s version. Here is the record of what took place, starting with the…
We’re all still reeling from Trump’s statement yesterday that he “didn’t see any reason why it would be” true that Russia had meddled with the US election. Standing there next to Putin, he publicly rejected the positions of multiple US intelligence authorities. Today, in the face of blistering criticism from foes and friends alike, including…
I have always taken a neutral stance in my journalism classes, modeling the objective nature of reporting the news “without fear or favor.” I shall continue to uphold reporting designed to publish objective truth, and criticize and expose exaggeration, rumor, wishful thinking, and outright lies presented in the guise of truth. Â This fall, I…
When a Facebook friend asked for tips on teaching a large class, I inventoried what I’ve learned about the flipped classroom. For the classes I teach on a regular basis, sometimes online and sometimes in-person, I’ve had many opportunities to develop stand-alone resources that I reuse. For example, I’ve recorded some stand-alone audio lectures on…
Journalist Sam Husseini, who had been holding a sign that said “Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty,” was forcibly removed from the Trump/Putin press briefing in Helsinki today.
10 points to CNN’s Oliver Darcy for working both “when asked about” and “this reporter” into a news story that was not written by a supporting character in a 1940s gangster flick. When asked by this reporter how the company could claim it was serious about tackling the problem of misinformation online while simultaneously allowing…
Similar:Orson Welles Radio Play "War of the Worlds" at 75 The New York Times reported “Many Fl…CultureYour first #blender3d retractable #steampunk landing wheels will be your worst. But you ha…Your first #blender3d retractable #steam…AestheticsSoldiers and Sailors Memorial and Museum Another visit to Pittsburgh with my his…CultureAn afternoon with Ben Franklin. Culture"Ill met by moonlight, proud…
Similar:On Death and iPods: A RequiemI never owned a classic iPod, though I d…CultureI’m a 12-year-old girl. Why don’t the characters in my apps look like me? I found that when an app did sell girl…BusinessThe Role of Higher Education in Career Development: Employer PerceptionsGPAs and majors don’t matter to employer…AcademiaWhen you need to record…
In my lit and writing classes, I regularly encounter STEM students who are frustrated because I won’t deliver a lecture that tells them “what the poem means” and then give them points for spitting back the “correct answer.” Likewise, when I teach a math unit in my journalism class, I regularly encounter word-oriented students who…
I don’t click on headlines that use words like “might be” or “possibly.” Journalists are not in the business of reporting what might happen. Neither do they repeat rumors. A thing is not necessarily true just because a source — such as the neighborhood busybody, a crook caught red-handed, a prankster, or the President of the…
At the Carnegie Museum of Art. Similar:Police Say A Lot Of ThingsIt’s not all cops who lie. Just the bad …CultureHow Bill Gates pulled off the swift Common Core revolutionWhile I appreciate the efficiency of uni…CultureWhat's wrong with the way I talk?Wife & daughter competing w each oth…AestheticsCanada's Stratford Festival losing 'Shakespeare' from its nameAttending…
This painting was inspired by the scene from Henry VI Part 2 that Carolyn used for her Shakespeare monologue last year. Similar:A selfie with a Chekov action figure after learning of Anton Yelchin's deathCurrent_EventsSeven Guitars ( #AugustWilson #CenturyCycle, 5 of 10)August Wilson’s Century Cycle > Spoi…BooksToday’s #blender3d modeling, inspired by a satellite photo courtesy of…