RT @textfiles: Hi internet. In another few minutes…

RT @textfiles: Hi internet. In another few minutes I go onstage to point everyone to archive.org/details/histor… and hopefully computer history … Similar:It's been nice knowing you, iPad3 It’s been nice knowing you, iPad3, but…TweetsParallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesJudge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices.Judge: Apple conspired to fix…

One of the Sadder Lost and Found Messages You’ll Probably See Today

Not my item, but the pathos caught my eye. Similar:Night Terrors (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 17) Trapped crew grows paranoi…Rewatching ST:TNG After discovering t…PersonalPracticing my Unity3D design skills. Forgot to turn on gravity.https://youtu.be/PkxxiPAmTFg I’m brus…AmusingWhy fake news worksFake news works on our emotions, usually…CybercultureTeaching “The Odyssey” at San QuentinThe opening of “The Odyssey”…

The Amazon Mystery: What America’s Strangest Tech Company Is Really Up To

Seriously: What is Amazon? A retail company? A media company? A logistics machine? The mystery of its strategy is deepened by two factors. First is the company’s communications department, which famously excels at not communicating. Three requests to speak with Amazon officials for this article were delayed and, inevitably, declined. This moves discussions of the…

Tween: “My friends say Bieber’s a jerk now.” Me: “…

Tween: “My friends say Bieber’s a jerk now.” Me: “It’s hard when your idols fall.” Tween: “That’s why I don’t have any. Except for you.” Similar:Hello, there, mini.Hello, there, mini. Let’s restore you fr…TweetsJudge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices.Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook pric…BooksTweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled…

Nerdy Rainbow Loom Crafting

My wonderfully geeky tween made these Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde pendants with her Rainbow Loom. Next on her list: making Pac-Man. Similar:Mariah Carey meets William Carlos Williams AmusingAbove the ready-room desk is the captain's power-napping loft, because self-care is i…AestheticsWhy Doesn’t Ancient Fiction Talk About Feelings?Not a day goes by without The Girl remin…BooksProud…

AP reporter’s mistake: Did the punishment fit the crime?

Reporters have been sometimes fired for willful misconduct, such as repeated instances of plagiarism or fabrication. Reporters who’ve suffered that fate, such as the New York Times’ Jayson Blair and The Washington Post’s Janet Cooke, were guilty of gross journalistic malpractice. But firing a reporter over an unintentional mistake is “extremely rare,” said Scott Maier,…

The Decline of Wikipedia: Even As More People Than Ever Rely on It, Fewer People Create It

I’m getting ready to introduce my freshman writing students to college-level research, so I found it helpful to read this brief introduction to the internal problems Wikipedia creates for itself. When a major news event takes place, such as the Boston Marathon bombings, complex, widely sourced entries spring up within hours and evolve by the…

“Does size matter?” — student journalist, making…

“Does size matter?” — student journalist, making a person-on-the street video interview about the new iPad. Similar:She doesn't have keys or a phone or an ID. Why does my tween need a purse?To stash her Lemonheads and Smarties. ht…AmusingYes, I do feel rather awesome right now.Lost brand-new earbuds. Reached in pocke…PersonalWhat kids do when Dad…

RT @joningold: Thing is, the freedom of the parser…

RT @joningold: Thing is, the freedom of the parser is a sham – not because it *doesn’t* understand everything but because no-one plays as t… Similar:RT @DDeClaudio: Who do you think controls the news…RT @DDeClaudio: Who do you think control…TweetsTweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled on…Came around the corner and saw…

Attribution, Editorializing and Defamation

In the Nightly Noodle Monthly, former North Adams Transcript journalist Isaac Avilucea posts this passage, which he says was removed from a sports feature that got him fired. But there’s a reason she’s not at MountGreylock anymore, choosing to transfer to a school with somewhat inferior academics and athletics. Part of it has to do with the stuffy social atmosphere that…

I just did the thing where you look everywhere for…

I just did the thing where you look everywhere for your glasses but you can’t find them because you are already wearing them. Similar:Desert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller are involved with this s…BooksI'm no longer surprised, but still want to document.This is really noteworthy. Today the Pre…Current_EventsParallel structure in writing:…

The t-shirt many professors would enjoy wearing

Inside Higher Ed Similar:On Immigration, Poetry Isn’t Policy, but Poetry Matters, by David French, National ReviewThe conservative National Review offers …ArtInterpretation and Intellectual Inquiry: A Charge To KeepI took a little break from evaluating a …ArtGathering background objects to create cluttered shelves. This Baby Gund “Rainbow Hector” …AmusingThe CRAFT of News Writing (Clear, Relevant, Accurate,…

Digital Storytelling (EL231: Topics in Creative Writing)

EL231 “Digital Storytelling” (Dec 18-Jan 22) Unit 1 (Dec 18-22) mostly experiencing digital stories (reading, watching, listening, playing, whatever), and reading articles & discussing them online. (We take a break Dec 23-Jan 1: no classes, no homework.) Unit 2 (Jan 2-7) trying out 4-5 tools for creating digital stories, and learning two in a little…

Why our future depends on libraries, reading and daydreaming

Neil Gaiman tells us why books matter: When you watch TV or see a film, you are looking at things happening to other people. Prose fiction is something you build up from 26 letters and a handful of punctuation marks, and you, and you alone, using your imagination, create a world and people it and…

In the publications office with student journalist…

In the publications office with student journalists. I’ve heard them saying “affirmative” and “negative.” The editor just said “Make it so.” Similar:Overheard at Quora: "Why after all these years is Moodle still so ugly?"Moodle is a free course-management tool …AcademiaYes, I do feel rather awesome right now.Lost brand-new earbuds. Reached in pocke…PersonalDesert Bus: The Worst…