The New York Times reported “Many Flee Homes to Escape `Gas Raid From Mars’–Phone Calls Swamp Police at Broadcast of Wells Fantasy” and the story of the hoax is firmly embedded in the history books. But the reports of streets full of panicked citizens don’t hold up to scrutiny. There’s only one problem: The supposed…
@ZCharisma On my blog I said my wife usually gives me nerdy DVDs (e.g. Mazes & Monsters), so I expect she’ll give me Zero Charisma one day. Similar:Former student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last few weeks has c…AcademiaParallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels…
My student journos were given one class period to film, edit, and publish a 2-min TV news story. Speed journalism! blogs.setonhill.edu/el200-2013-fa/… Similar:Hello, there, mini.Hello, there, mini. Let’s restore you fr…TweetsJury Duty UpdateI’m a happy, responsible, and no-longer-…GovernmentYes, I do feel rather awesome right now.Lost brand-new earbuds. Reached in pocke…PersonalI'm no longer surprised, but still want…
@ZCharisma Oh, now I feel bad. Similar:Former student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last few weeks has c…AcademiaCarolyn Gombell Is Not a Real Person: #JusticeforCarolyn Is a Campaign Against Twitter Ref…Fascinating use of social media. To be c…Current_EventsTweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids…
What can parents do to minimize their children’s risk of being hurt or killed by poison or sharp objects in Halloween candy? How many children would you say die each year from eating poisoned candy (or candy with razor blades and such) each Halloween? Just two or three? Maybe only one every few years? In…
My wife usually gives me nerd-themed DVDs as gifts, so I probably won’t make any effort to see this movie on my own. Still, I’m glad to know someone has made a movie that touches on the hipsterization of nerd culture, and I enjoyed reading the well-written review. Like lots of apologists and upholders of…
It: nailed. xkcd: Headlines. Similar:Reading Game/Text: EverQuest, Alienation, and Digital Communitiesthough Limbaugh is wrong to decide that …Cyberculture‘Tentacles squelching wetly’: the human subtitle writers under threat from AIArtificial intelligence is making steady…Art‘It’s mindblowing’: US meteorologists face death threats as hurricane conspiracies surge“Murdering meteorologists won’t stop hur…Current_EventsWhat Jane [Austen] Saw: 1796 Shakespeare GalleryYou are invited to…
…she’s pretending to be “Spock in a Tree on Omicron Ceti III.” Similar:To Apple, Love TaylorApple changes its plans, after initially…BusinessMore delightful #steampunk control panels. These are computationally efficient bitmap rect…PersonalFirst Day in the Theatre for Twelfth Night (May 3-12) Daughter: (is sad her “first day in …CultureFeeding a Neighbor's LambsA neighbor invited us over…
The observation car Pearl sings of her love for Rusty, in the “Like ‘Cats’ but with Trains” show “Starlight Express.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma4FusuIgSM By the way, that’s a Star Wars Stormtrooper outfit, with pink accents added by my wife. Post by Stage Right. Similar:A Beginner's Guide to HTML & CSSFiling this wonderful resource for the n…CybercultureA…
Back in my grad school days, I was called a “run-of-the-mill programmer” by a brilliant IT genius. For a guy whose only computer coursework consists of a Pascal class in high school (“taught” by a math teacher who didn’t know the language, and checked my answers against those in the teacher’s manual), I still consider…
King Henry rallies his troops just before the decisive Battle of Agincourt. From this day to the ending of the world, But we in it shall be remembered- We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,…
RT @textfiles: Hi internet. In another few minutes I go onstage to point everyone to archive.org/details/histor… and hopefully computer history … 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…
Not my item, but the pathos caught my eye. Similar:Seven Guitars ( #AugustWilson #CenturyCycle, 5 of 10)August Wilson’s Century Cycle > Spoi…BooksParadise Lost #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 4, Episode 12) Sisko Uncovers a Conspiracy on…Rewatching ST:DS9 Continuing from P…EthicsShutting the Door on the Hard-Knock LifeIn sync with the resurgence of labor act…BusinessDefiant (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch,…
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: “It’s hard when your idols fall.” Tween: “That’s why I don’t have any. Except for you.” Similar:Former student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last few weeks has c…AcademiaCarolyn Gombell Is Not a Real Person: #JusticeforCarolyn Is a…
A new Emily Dickinson archive is online. Here is the opening of one of her most famous poems. Reading View for Fascicle 23. Similar:Tom Jones, librettist for "The Fantasticks," dies at 95I was so glad to see my daughter in this…AestheticsWhile at Sadecky's Puppets to record the role of Heidi, Carolyn met a new friend.We…
My wonderfully geeky tween made these Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde pendants with her Rainbow Loom. Next on her list: making Pac-Man. Similar:New Renaissance Theatre Company's The Merry Wives of Windsor (in rep with The Tempest…PersonalFun with Geometry — Biological and TheoreticalFor some reason today I was thinking of …AcademiaHearing "Godzilla on My Mind" author…
Have you heard the story about the lady who spilled coffee on herself and won millions of dollars from McDonald’s? Have you looked up the details on the story, or do you just know the story as a TV show punch line? Stella became a symbol for frivolous lawsuits and fodder for talk show hosts,…
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,…
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…