Yesterday, I asked my students, “How many of you spent $4 on a cup of coffee in the last month? How many have spent that much to support local news?” “If people don’t get local news, they don’t know what’s going on in their community. If they don’t know what’s going on in their community,…
Similar:Is this why oldsters love nostalgia? I’m 50. I’m in my office casually sharp…CultureThe Offspring (StarTrek:TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 16) Data Experiences FatherhoodRewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break….CybercultureChurning Out More Non-profit Arts PromosAs part of my volunteer work for a local…AestheticsWhen you see a show alone often you can get really good seats. Idaspe…
Similar:Seeing the Barebones production of The Sound Inside. (Support the arts in your community!)PersonalEducated, uplifted, boosted, and fed. Block party celebrating August Wilson continues thro…CultureAnother very rough day. Students are cheerful and patient, obviously happy to be here.Another very rough day. Students are che…AcademiaThat's what's been bothering me since yesterday's #AirPod reveal. #manamanaNumber of times…
Similar:A 20 sq cm section of #steampunk #blender3d goodness. #blender3dartAestheticsWall display by the talented Jess Lohr, interpreting an infographic by Norton (textbook pu…PersonalOnce On This Island (next weekend)PersonalI just thought of a time before you were born when I should have been kind, but I can't re… Sometimes when I’m driving along los…AcademiaI had a…
This looks like a deliberate attempt to plant a “fake news” story, presumably in order to discredit the Washington Post for falling for it. Verify, verify, verify. The Post did its homework, and did not fall into the trap. Sadly, this story will be used to discredit people who come forward with legitimate sexual assault…
I spend a lot of time re-educating my students, assuring them that my job as a college professor is not to give them a checklist, and then award points for each item they ticked off correctly; nor is my job to teach to a test. Shortly after I started teaching in my current job, a…
Similar:The girl is intrigued by the plot twists in _The Mayor of Casterbridge_.PersonalThese buildings are so much better than my first try about a month ago, and good enough fo…These buildings are so much better than …PersonalI had a grand time recording this little story about a misunderstood genius who just wants… The Cask…
I’m frustrated by these accursed conference proposal maximum word counts. (10) Curse you, conference proposal word limits. (6) Damn proposal word counts!! (4) Cut wherever possible. (3) Trim wordiness. (2) Simplify. (1) Actually, that helped. Back at it. Similar:Why Drag It Out?The ways that the informal speech of wom…CultureTraditional Reporters and Data-driven Analysts Both Underestimated…
Did you share fake news from Russia during the US Presidential election? Grudgingly following up on a Congressional order, Facebook will permit you to jump through hoops to find out. Because Facebook apparently does not have the technology to insert items of its choosing directly in user feeds, the social media company has helpfully provided…
A few minutes ago I heard about HQ for the first time, through a friend’s Facebook post. An item or two down in my feed I saw a different FB friend had linked to this story. The Daily Beast describes a tense encounter with a CEO who calls a reporter, threatens to fire his own…
Editor and columnist Jonah Goldberg questions his fellow conservatives who call for the resignation of Al Franken (a Democrat; junior senator from Minnesota), equating the allegations against him with the allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, all the while downplaying the serious allegations against Roy Moore (a Republication; Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of…
I have nothing against essays, but not every writing task requires an essay. I tell my students they will be more successful if they produce a narrative personal essay because it’s the right genre for the occasion, not because it’s the only genre they feel comfortable writing. This handout is my latest attempt to help…
Similar:Modular components to mix and match. The upper storeys are next. #blender3d #medievalyork …Modular components to mix and match. The…AestheticsIt's such a privilege to introduce these young people to Shakespeare's body of work.After starting my 200-level “Shakespeare…AcademiaMisleading to suggest that because I have nothing left to mark that I have nothing to do, …PersonalToo…
The other day I found myself very annoyed at how much headspace was occupied by a free game I had downloaded on my phone. So I deleted it. I still go into fight-or-flight mode when I’m drafting a text and a phone call comes in. I like to page through the my notebooks full of…
Similar:Respect the Text: Teaching Textual Primacy to Non-English MajorsIn the past, I have used the first day o…AcademiaSupport the arts in your community! @geyer_pac Hello Dolly!AmusingPreview of "The Fantasticks" (thanks, Tribune-Review, for covering the arts community)For Luisa, Jerz’s character, “the world …CulturePreparing for some serious nerd time with the family this summerSet phasers to “nerd”!…
Similar:Snazzy officer uniforms from the #steampunk bedtime stories I used to tell my now-adult ch…AestheticsAdded a pilot and cockpit details to my flyby of a #steampunk scout ship. Costume is a pr…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyvR90jm…AestheticsNow that I have polished so many details, I'm working on more selective lighting. #steampu… AestheticsHere's to the grim-based photojournalist who saved my bacon…
Similar:Learn to code? No: Learn a real languageI don’t see learning to code as a substi…CultureCNN's Chris Cillizza on Trump's definition of "Fake News"Here’s some excellent analysis of Trump’…CultureIf Wishes Were Horses (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 16) Hallucinations become…Rewatching ST:DS9 Quark tries to inte…Culture10 top writing tips and the psychology behind themThere are…
During the Christmas break of 1996, when I was working on my Ph.D. at the University of Toronto, I asked my boss at the Engineering Writing Center if I could log about 10 hours converting a bunch of paper handouts into hyperlinked web documents. I actually put in about 20 hours, and slapped into shape…
Similar:After your shift at the protocol station, join me in the officers' lounge, just up the spi… AestheticsReport to the bridge so the captain can assess your virtual upholstery skills. #blender3d …AestheticsThe Girl at rehearsal (where else?).PersonalOh the Overthinks You Can Overthink: Horton the Elephant, the Wickersham Brothers, and Mas…Yesterday, I performed in a…
Numerical errors usually occur for one of these five reasons: A journalist mishears a correct number given to them by a source and fails to double-check it. A source unwittingly provides a mistaken piece of information and the journalist fails to verify it. A source deliberately fudges the numbers and the journalist fails to verify…