A good exploration, in the light of current interest in “fake news,” of the troubled relationship between conservative Christianity’s understanding of truth and secular experts’ understanding of facts. (Mainstream Protestantism and Catholicism have negotiated this difference much more smoothly.) But it wasn’t Christianity, or religious faith itself in general, that helped make Republican voters more likely…
Analyzing humor, as E.B. White famously said, is like dissecting a frog; few people are interested and the frog dies of it. Nonetheless, writing humor is a highly logical exercise — fit idea X into form Y for humorous result Z — and can therefore be broken down in ways that more slippery kinds of…
Similar:Two classes will turn in final revisions at midnight Sunday, and final multimedia project…Still plenty of work to do before I fini…AcademiaI broke the garage door when I left for work this morning. Fixed it when I got home.PersonalVibing to a park saxophonist as I code for an upcoming conference presentation, and wait t…Vibing…
Art conveys significance; however, much of that significance is constructed by the receiver. That’s why I care less about what a work of art “means” and more about what it “does.” Understanding what a work of art does requires interpretation. The context of a work of art can contribute to the significance of the artwork in surprising…
Similar:Shy Preschooler Won't Say Her Lines in "Peter Pan" Rehearsal (Stage Right! Greensburg)Little Maggie isn’t so sure she wants to…DramaLiving Room PhysicsI’ve blogged before about my eight-year-…EducationGreen / mahogany variation of the vibe I'm working on for a fantasy #steampunk #blend…PersonalSondra's Garden: Butterfly Release Honors Dr. Lettrich (Seton Hill University)”Every good lesson plan has…
Similar:A Man, a Plan, a Pointless(?) ProgramI readily admit that my accomplishment h…AmusingDespicable Me 2 "Bottom" gag will do for A Midsummer Night's Dream what Disney's Little Me…The name “Bottom” in A Midsummer Night’s…CultureWhere No One Has Gone Before (TNG Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 5) Wes's warp-drive guru help…Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break….CulturePower Play…
Phllip Lopate writes a good essay on the challenges of writing a celebrity profile. My take: Just as Plato argued that ideal leaders would be so well-balanced that they would not desire to lead (and thus would not have the power-lust that would enable them to rise above their competitors), it follows that ideal celebrity profile writers would be…
“Doctor dragged off United flight was felon who traded prescription drugs for secret gay sex with patient half his age and took them himself – and he needed anger management, was ‘not forthright’ and had control issues, psychiatrist found,” wrote The Daily Mail this week of Dr David Dao, in probably the longest headline ever…
The language in the official United response to the “re-accommodation” incident deserves some analysis . Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville was overbooked. After our team looked for volunteers, one customer refused to leave the aircraft voluntarily and law enforcement was asked to come to the gate. We apologize for the overbook situation. If you “refuse…
Slate has a good article about William “Captain Kirk” Shatner’s involvement with a Twitter incident that involved Autism Speaks, the alleged connection between vaccines and autism, and the ready availability of easily Googled but unreliable “information.” Shatner is a celebrity, which means that he has outsized influence. That he would use his platform to lend…
Similar:“If music be the food of love, play on!” I may have mentioned that I have a daughter who d… CultureTaking a break from my syllabustering in order to design some stairs. I’ve learned so much…Taking a break from my syllabustering in…PersonalJournalists are vital to the health of a free nation. #firstamendnent #freepressPersonalEnjoying a…
Similar:That felt sooo good!PersonalEnterprise-D Blueprints As a newlywed, when my in-laws were …BooksWhen you accidentally send a "Dear Satan" letter.My family and I are in the voice cast of…PersonalThe Missing Will, by Agatha Christie (WAOB Audio Theatre)I had a great time playing Hastings in t…CultureEnjoyed watching the restored version of the hugely influential 1927…
Peter was the lowest-ranked player to enter the tournament, but ended up tied for second place. Similar:"The face of the last man on Earth." #alquist #rur #robots #capek #virtual #theater Gettin…AestheticsIn Pittsburgh, science gets playfulImagine: sharing a secret with a friend …AestheticsCarolyn at about 7yo drew Titania in love with Bottom. #tbt #midsummerArtToday's annoying adventures…
Similar:Edgar Allan Poe Was a Broke-Ass Freelancer – The MillionsHis despair is only part of his artistic…BooksSweaters from Rover?From Awful Library Books. For more schad…BooksAnother delightful section of #neovictorian #steampunk control panel, intended for backgro…One of many steampunk control panels I’v…AestheticsPeople with autism spectrum disorder avoid eye contact because it causes anxietyMy culture has taught…
This short film reminds us why art matters. Spend 8 minutes watching it. Two heart-wrenching twists, at 5:26 and 5;48 (and the story continues during the closing credits). Similar:Looking up an elevator shaft on a #steampunk #blender3D project. #design #aesthetics #blen… AestheticsHarper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, dies aged 89Harper Lee, whose 1961…
A letter, published a few weeks ago, in which the inventor of the World Wide Web discusses personal security, fake news, and political transparency. Today marks 28 years since I submitted my original proposal for the world wide web. I imagined the web as an open platform that would allow everyone, everywhere to share information,…
Similar:The insect apocalypse: ‘Our world will grind to a halt without them’It is 50 years since I first collected t…CultureHitting the weekend with just 6 ungraded papers. #partylikeaprof Hitting the weekend with just 6 ungrad…PersonalDragging Myself to a New Skill Level with Blender 3DWorking on some very complex stuff in Bl…AestheticsAgain with the chess.I try…
Facebook wants you to spend more time on Facebook, so why should they promote links pointing to content that exists outside of Facebook? Facebook’s approach to content control means that communities that use Facebook have to play by Facebook’s rules. Users have limited ability to communicate with Facebook’s administrators when there’s a problem, as we’ve seen…
I am definitely on team revise-to-avoid-using-“they”-as-a-singular-pronoun, but the 2017 edition of the AP Stylebook (the industry standard writing guide for journalists) acknowledges the limited use of “they” as a singular pronoun. As always, the goal is clarity, not rigid adherence to a rule. They/them/their is acceptable in limited cases as a singular and-or gender-neutral pronoun, when…
California’s Ed Chau withdrew his proposed legislation that would have criminalized the willing sharing of “a false or deceptive statement designed to influence the vote” on any issue or candidate. (The Electronic Frontier Foundation objected to the bill: “You can’t fight fake news with a bad law.”) The bill would also make it unlawful for…