Today's workload included requesting a "less-depressing used chair" #lowexpectations #partylikeaprofessor

Similar:MS-Word's helpful "View -> Focus" mode delays stress-related breakdowns.You won’t usually catch me saying anythi…CybercultureWall display by the talented Jess Lohr, interpreting an infographic by Norton (textbook pu…PersonalDaughter is in 2 theatrical productions opening this weekendThe daughter plays Laertes in Seton Hill…BooksThe YouTube "Blender3D to Unity UMA" tutorials blow through all the steps in a…

Survivorship Bias – You Are Not So Smart

Successful people may just be lucky; focusing too much on their successes can silence the honorable failures that we can all stand to learn from. People who consider themselves “lucky” take more risks, and are therefore more likely to discover opportunities. They brush off their failures rather than dwell on them. People who consider themselves…

Saints and Poets, Maybe They Do Some

I wrote the following in 2004, when my son was 6 and my daughter was 2. The time is waning that my son will want nothing more than to play Battleship and The Magnificent Race with me all afternoon. Some day I’ll make a silly joke, and my daughter won’t giggle with glee, she will…

Think Before You Tweet In the Wake of an Attack

Sobering analysis. Would I be able to follow this advice in the unthinkable event I had a personal account to share? Terrorists use social media to recruit, but they also depend on you and the media to use it to amplify their message…. The motivation for terrorism is not mere murder or maiming but the…

Digital Humanities: A Definition

Does the world need another working definition of digital humanities? Do you have one? Here’s mine. Digital Humanities is the deliberate, critical application of emerging technology to the study of traditional subjects such as literature, art, philosophy, and language, often (but not always) with a focus on how those traditional fields are now using emerging…

Prototypes in Technical Writing: What are They?

Many a high school student has muddled through a book report in a single caffeine-fueled sitting, but successful research term papers or quarterly progress reports require planning. In technical writing, a prototype might be a full table of contents (with summaries for each major section) and one or two complete chapters. If conducting a survey is…

Adding a little Middle-Earth drama to a photo shoot.

The girl was concerned she wasn’t nerdy enough, so she’s taken to wearing a prop ring on a chain around her neck and calling it “My Precious.” (Photo credit: Kelly Tunney.) Similar:Geometry and color maps for wooden desk tray. #Blender3D #practiceThe blue image is a “normal map,” which …AestheticsTWEEN GIRL: "What's a tribble?"TWEEN GIRL: “What’s…

Amazing High School Yearbook Politics Spread

I’m gobsmacked by the creativity that went into researching, writing, and crafting this layout. A look at how students in the Kansas City region commemorated the campaign in keepsakes meant to be enjoyed by all classmates, no matter their leanings. Source: It Was Hard This Year to Keep Politics Out of High School Yearbooks Similar:Local…

Washington Post, Breaking News, Is Also Breaking New Ground

The Washington Post, famous for breaking the Watergate scandal that brought down Nixon’s presidency, is churning out top-quality journalism in the age of Trump. As an organization the Post is gaining readers, hiring journalists and scooping its competition. As a private company since 2013, when the deep-pocketed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos bought it for $250…

Same photo, two different interpretations.

This is why I spend time teaching my journalism students about how to write photo captions. Which description is more trustworthy? Which description will likely get more shares on social media? Similar:Thank you, Bogdan, for fixing and dropping off my light.PersonalI played hooky from work to see Wild Robot with my familyI played hooky to…

The girl enjoyed seeing Alex Noble and the rest of the cast of Sive. (Last shows, 2 & 8 today.)

Similar:Understanding The Fake News Universe The fake news universe is vast and eph…CultureStage Right's 'Seussical' offers songs, messagesThe Tribune-Review does a great job cove…Current_EventsDozens of Plagiarism Incidents Are Reported in Coursera's Free Online Courses”If we really are trying to teach the wo…AcademiaAn afternoon with Ben Franklin. CulturePart II of the Mon Valley Medium was a…

Salesman at Pittsburgh Public Theatre.

Similar:I am a dog and I am a good boy and I am prepping my Spring courses.AcademiaStuffed planet Venus, made for me by my dear mother, around 1974.AestheticsJust reminding myself that these moments do and will exits. I’ve evaluated every student s…PersonalExcited for Annette Vee’s visit. My journalism students have to submit a story…

Why Doesn’t Ancient Fiction Talk About Feelings?

Not a day goes by without The Girl reminding us that everyone else her age has a phone — but she also compares her desire for a phone to Gollum’s desire for The Ring. Many adults have told her she’s lucky not to carry around the burden of social media updates, though part of her…

Old English Has a Serious Image Problem

This fall I will be teaching Shakespeare again; but thereafter, as part of a curriculum redesign, Shakespeare will be rolled into a “Shakespeare in Context” course that will also need to address Beowulf, medieval drama, Arthurian legend, Chaucer, Marlowe, etc. I intend to do this by teaching five different Shakespeare plays, focusing on one play…

In Defense of Liking Things

It used to bother me that people got all excited about the color shirt that was being worn by a particular person holding (or throwing, or tossing, or avoiding) a small round object. Then I read the Onion article “Walking Sports Database Scorns Walking Sci-Fi Database:” A self-described “sports fanatic” who experiences vicarious thrills through…

Procession #classof2017

Similar:Lonely Among Us (TNG Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 6) Crew-posessing spark roams and a droid …Conflict between two species who petitio…AestheticsThank you, 1993 Dennis, for documenting this low-resolution (the background image was 640x…Thank you, 1993 Dennis, for documenting …AestheticsIn May, 2000, I was blogging about the 'I Love You' virus, hacking URLs, PG Wodehouse, and…In…

You may move your tassels from right to left. #classof2017

Similar:8k trimsheets baked as efficient building blocks for my #fantasy #steampunk #cgi cruiser. …PersonalSteampunk officer uniforms — test #Blender3D #Unity3Dhttps://youtu.be/SDh4TW8ujNg The vide…AestheticsWooden document holders. Pretty routine, but practice is practice. #Blender3DPersonalCarnegie Science Center: Roboworld (and a bit of SportsWorks)Here’s a brief video, made up of clips I…CultureSee The Nutcracker!@laurelballetperformingco dancers and full @westmorelandsymphony orches…DanceOne…

Graduation procession #classof2017

Similar:Sorry, not sorry. I don't want such friends. Back in 2003, shortly after I moved …CultureMe (glares in iambic pentameter)Me: I need to post the opening lecture f…AcademiaNature walks 2012 and 2018.AestheticsAll three shows have been sold out for over a month. Opens tomorrow.DramaJames Goodwin Clonney: Mother's WatchThis painting, of two impish children ta…AestheticsCarolyn is…

About to launch.

Similar:Midterm Grades Submitted.AcademiaThoreau's Cellphone ExperimentWhen I teach “Intro to Literary Study,” …AcademiaAirlock for a #steampunk #blender3d project featuring #neovictorian #greebles. #blender3da… AestheticsThe Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow: Icelandic bromance, with weapons, secret panels, and…I try to read to my kids for an hour eve…BooksThe Daughter's 21st Birthday Current_EventsHappy retirement celebration to two…

Faculty assembling in launch tube beneath Salvitti Gym. #classof2017 @setonhilluniversity

Similar:I love my students enough to teach them the difference between passive voice and past tens…If a goggles-for-brains Lego character c…EducationIt's a lie that having zero assignments to mark means I have nothing "to do," but this par… A relief.AcademiaWrite instructions for busy grouches.Updating the graphic for a writing hando…AcademiaComputers and Writing 2020 Funding Request:…