In an opening lecture for my journalism class, I listed the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment to the US Constitution. I’ve referred to the importance of the First Amendment several times, but I haven’t listed the freedoms in class. One week after the opening lecture, I asked students to list those freedoms on…
Wish I’d known this technique when I spilled tea all over my JC Superstar script. (I did the paper towel and fan thing, but didn’t try leaving the book under weights overnight — probably because I needed to use the script at rehearsal.) Similar:Me (glares in iambic pentameter)Me: I need to post the opening lecture…
His despair is only part of his artistic journey. When researching Poe last year, I was surprised to come across an anecdote about him playing leap-frog with his wife and splitting his pants, causing both of them to collapse in fits of laughter. I’m sure it was the memory of joyful moments like this that haunted him as she lay dying and long after she was dead.
Similar:Being a dad-nerd means finding new ways to play.https://youtu.be/-c6IirtwFawAestheticsPortraits of my 11yo: Pretty, Goofy, and Pretty GoofyAmusingI'm honestly not sure where that came from.For my summer project, teaching myself t…AestheticsAugust Wilson Trifecta (Two Trains, Ma Rainey and Fences on the same day)Fences was performed in the backyard of …CultureQuidditch Comes to Seton HillwartsVisitors often remark…
Like vegan pizzas and secular Christmas celebrations, I can hear and understand the reasoning behind why people like football, but their explanation does nothing to make me want to participate on any level. So it’s very interesting to me to read this report of an apparent cultural shift, sparked by concerns about brain injury. You…
I’ve recently processed and absorbed my recognition of the “left brain vs right brain myth.” (One side of the brain may work harder on some tasks, but there’s no evidence to suggest that whether a person is logical or creative has anything to do with how that person’s brain hemispheres relate to each other.) The…
Your mileage may vary, but I immediately thought of Galadriel in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, who states this problem in negative terms. Yes, she’s a made-up character delivering a line in a movie about an imaginary ring from a fantasy book, but anyone who really understands Tolkien’s story will have reflected on the…
Kim Ash teaches the Newseum’s “Fighting Fake News” class. Whereas teachers once feared that teenagers would fall for everything they read online, now they’re concerned young people won’t believe anything they read. —Washington Post Similar:The ‘Cancelling’ of Flannery O’Connor? It Never Should Have HappenedI regularly teach Flannery O’Connor, and…AcademiaStill More FaceTime FunI realize that video-chatting…
Is your academic essay a bit short? First, make sure that you have formatted your draft as required (usually professors ask you to double-space). Faking a longer paper won’t make your writing any more persuasive or intelligent or analytical or factual. It won’t help you to learn what your instructor wants you to learn. My…
Similar:Pict Free Summer Webinar: Shakespeare’s HeroesCultureFinding downtime during orientation week is not a walk in the park. Except when the downti…PersonalShe was a musical ingenue Sunday, filmed a slasher movie past midnight Monday, and was pre…AcademiaSnape is not amused at this year's Hogwarts Feast.PersonalBeam me up, Chewie!AwesomePreparing for some serious nerd time with the family…
When you’re a homeschool parent, you go with what works. Yes, Carolyn, you may have my plaid bed sheet. Finish reading this book on Scottish history and I’ll take more pictures. No, you may not wear your kilt to church. Similar:SHU Community Lines Up to Honor JoAnne Boyle's Final Trip Up the HillJoAnne Boyle liked…
Carolyn: “Does no one have a kind word for my Scotland?” Similar:Little green owl, if your emotions depend this much on how often I practice, that’s defin…Little green owl, if your emotions depe…PersonalKirk's manly, sensitive advice to young CharlieIn popular culture, Captain Kirk from th…CultureMy big brother and my son facing off in chess. I…
Each element of the periodic table gets its own haiku. What a clever project — traditional haiku frequently celebrate nature. An interactive review of the periodic table — composed of 119 haiku The elements, in haiku Similar:Graphic Design Pun Cards Sara Heffernan designed these wonder…AestheticsI touched up an intro to hypertext essays from 2000.When I…
Wife: “What did you do with your bedsheet?” Me: “Is that my missing belt?” Girl: “Kilt-y as charged.” Similar:Toasting Shakespeare at the Bard's Birthday BashOrganized by Pittsburgh Shakespeare in t…CultureThe Writer Will Do Something by Matthew S. BurnsA hypertext choose-your-own adventure na…CybercultureIt appears there may be some audience participation in this outdoor production of Richard…
Similar:AP reporter’s mistake: Did the punishment fit the crime? Reporters have been sometimes fired …EthicsScratchy "Cloak of Darkness" on Scratch”Scratchy Cloak of Darkness” is based on…AestheticsJane Elliott’s “National Brotherhood Week” Lesson https://youtu.be/oGvoXeXCoUYCulturexkcd: Headlines It: nailed. xkcd: Headlines.AmusingWhy Study Humanities? What I Tell Engineering FreshmenScience writer Jon Horgan writes: We li…AcademiaMaking a journalism game to teach…
Fascinating academic effort to find a pattern in apparently random conspiracy theories that regularly pop up in our infostreams during social crises. Experts usually dismiss them because they are so wild and unlikely, and have thus failed to notice their impact. Starbird’s insight was to map the digital connections between all this buzzing on Twitter…
I did in fact search YouTube for videos featuring corridors on the starship Enterprise. And I found this bizarrely satisfying video, featuring not just corridors, but also doors. (Whoosh! Whoosh!) I remember this — our first look at Captain Kirk in the 1979 “Star Trek the Motion Picture.” Similar:Trees (an "Interpretive Travesty")A tree whose hungry…
Similar:Little Women (the daughter plays Amy, the youngest sister)PersonalNew stamp commemorates Irish priest who saved thousands from the NazisI recall being very moved by the 1980s G…EmpathyReplaying Childhood: On Gifting my Video Games to the Library of CongressTevor Owens writes: Giving up my games…CultureThe Penance of Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester, by Edwin Austin Abbey.This painting…
Student (shouldering backpack and heading for door): Why does MLA Style have to keep changing? Me (checks clock): Well… Similar:If I don’t hang my own artwork on the walls of my #steampunk fantasy ship-of-the-line, who…AestheticsMy parents doing their daily crossword. I’m spending a few days visiting my …PersonalMy students were awesome. So many thoughtful final…
I posted a new handout with tips on surviving group projects in college. Employers value applicants who can work in groups. Most college students say they hate group work, but in the real world, few people work alone. Your assigned partner for a class project may be slow to respond because he or she is dealing…