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:Behind the bar in the officers' pub, from the #steampunk bedtime stories I used to tell my…AestheticsLeveling up my skills in #blender3D. Using invisible shapes to cut holes …DesignIt’s something to do.PersonalA performance, two auditions and a cast party. #busyweekendPersonalColossal Cave: The Board Game by Arthur O'DwyerThe kids and I enjoy nerdy board games.…
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…
Hey, Newsweek, alert your webmaster. I can still see some news through your wall of ads. Similar:Enterprise-D Blueprints As a newlywed, when my in-laws were …BooksMSU asks faculty & staff to volunteer in short-staffed dining halls; @MSU_Football tweets …MSU, instead of asking your profs to vol…AcademiaLife Support (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch, Season 3, Episode 13) Bashir…
(Lights up on a college journalism classroom. The professor enters, surveys the room.) Professor: Math! Students: (Shocked reaction.) Professor: Math!! Students: (Scattered cries of “No!”) Professor: MATH!!! Students: NO!!! (Blackout.) (40 minutes later.) Professor: So, at the very least when you encounter numbers in your reporting, contact sources who can help you…
I saw Seton Hill’s production of The Drowsy Chaperone last night, which I loved. After I left the theater, I realized I left my hat under the seat, so I went back into the house for it. As I passed in front of the stage, Karen Glass and a line of black-clad theater technicians walked…
Similar:A gangway, flanked by still more #steampunk control panels, leads forward from the chief e…AestheticsMedea at Seton Hill University.CultureWhy I Rarely Blog about My Home Building ProjectsWe’re kind of in the eye of the storm, b…ModdingYahoo, You Nagged Me Too Many Times; Bye!I have a Yahoo account that I use when a…BusinessEpic Game of Thrones…
When is it legal to make a video in a public place? A kerfluffle at my local mall involves a restaurant owner accused of mocking and taking video of a special needs person having a meltdown. Several times a week I take my son to the food court and hand him my credit card. More…
We had a case recently where a dying man wanted to see his grandchild, but it would not have been born in time. His daughter was able to rent an infant for the day.
Otero goes into great detail describing her criteria for placing the various news sources. She changed a few labels and shifted position for a few sources. It’s not perfect. It’s not the only answer. It is, nevertheless, a very useful way to get us to think about what we’re clicking on, reading, and sharing. Update,…
Most of the students in my “News Writing” class don’t want to be journalists, but they all want to make a living from their writing skills. I’m trying to emphasize some of the markers that journalists put into their work, in order to signal that their work is credible. For instance, one saying in journalism…
Similar:Sold out opening night of Mamet’s Oleanna. Chilling. Gasps from the audience. Office furni…Sold out opening night of Mamet’s Oleann…PersonalI just discovered what will grind up a significant portion of my free time over the break.So Khan Academy now has a grammar unit. …PersonalAmazing show. Young lovers, a witty (but often stupid) servant, speeches,…
You won’t usually catch me saying anything nice about Microsoft. (Ok, Flight Simulator was good.) A few days ago when life was a little more stressful than usual, I found myself nearly overwhelmed by what should have been a routine editing task. Then I stumbled across MS-Words’s View->Focus mode, which hides most of the intrusive…
Similar:Learn from this typesetter's mistakeWisdom to keep in mind as I plan for thi…LiteracyStar Trek The Original SeriesAmazing mural. Amazing. …AestheticsHumanities and STEM Can and Should Get Along BetterIn my lit and writing classes, I regular…AcademiaIt's a Didactic Day in the Neighborhood: Mister Rogers and Educational IdeologyI recently lamented that my kids are gro…AestheticsNew…
Fake news works on our emotions, usually by stoking our fears or confirming our biases. Real news relies on verifiable facts, including emotions only by attributing them to credible sources, and placing those emotions in context. We help spread fake news when we let our emotions guide our reactions, rather than taking a minute to…
This review of a book about early photography offers some thoughtful reflections on how technology has been frequently used to distort the truth rather than reveal it. It’s a quote — I’d never seen it before — from Franz Kafka: “Nothing can be so deceiving as a photograph.” It immediately caught my interest because it…
Here is the transcript the girl provided, of her pun battle with my former student and Stage Right’s resident lyricist & character actor Greg Kerestan.
Similar:Memories of Toronto Yonge Street EncountersI arrived in Toronto in 1992 as a 22yo g…CultureOn the upside, no fake news is currently being shared on Facebook. Can't think of a do…PersonalI know that look.This was my 9yo today. She doesn’…AmusingThank you, Bogdan, for fixing and dropping off my light.PersonalNipper Hears "His Master's Voice"As a…
Similar:Happy memories of PC games I played with my son (now 19) sitting on my lap.While doing some spring cleaning around …CultureStage Right Arts4Homeschoolers present Hello Dolly Apr 28 & 29.My daughter will be playing Dolly Levi F…CultureTeaching Composition with Interactive FictionI’m on a committee that is exploring a m…AcademiaWhat does the girl do with…
I recently spoke with the Sarah Sutton, General Manager of the Walmart on Victory Boulevard, and she’d like me to express to you all that while she’s still willing to permit any adjunct faculty members in need of shelter to sleep in the loading bay behind the store, trapping and consuming the seagulls that flock…