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:Habits for happiness: tips for looking on the bright side of lifeHabits for happiness: tips for looking o…PersonalCarolyn Gombell Is Not a Real Person: #JusticeforCarolyn Is a Campaign…
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:Former student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last few weeks has c…AcademiaTweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled on…Came around the corner…
@ZCharisma Oh, now I feel bad. Similar:10 Rules of Internet – Anil DashA very useful, concise summary of web-en…BusinessParallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesOverheard at Quora: "Why after all these years is Moodle still so ugly?"Moodle is a free course-management tool …AcademiaMaybe I'll just delete these QUARTER OF A…
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:I have a daughter who does things. If demon curses and buckets of stage blood are your thi…I have a daughter who does things. If de…AmusingTevye from Fiddler on the Roof, Now a Rich Man, Receives a Letter from His HOADear Tevye, This letter is to inform …AmusingIn Defense Of Metaphors…
…she’s pretending to be “Spock in a Tree on Omicron Ceti III.” Similar:Frame of Mind (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 6, Episode 21) Riker is an asylum inmate who…Rewatching ST:TNG Riker overprepares …DramaFact check: You can safely ignore that "HOW TO FIGHT COVID AT HOME" meme I noticed this meme a few days ago. I…Current_EventsTWEEN GIRL:…
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 Klingon Christmas Carol' Translates Dickens' Scrooge Fable to 'Star Trek' Universe for…
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:Juror's CreedWhile researching my obligations for #ju…CultureProto iPads and Paper Coexist in Classic Star TrekRewatching the classic Trek episode “The…CybercultureDesert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller are involved with this s…BooksHow…
Not my item, but the pathos caught my eye. Similar:West Side Story (Aug 9-12) #somethingscomingCulturePipe Trouble’s government woes highlight gaming illiteracyInteresting discussion of a political ho…CultureThe Anatomy of an Amazon 6-pagerIn the halls of power at Amazon, busy ex…BusinessRedemption, Part I (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 4, Episode 26) Klingon Empire Faces Civ… Rewatching Star Trek:…
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:In Defense Of Metaphors In Science WritingWe live in an elegant universe. The c…CultureJudge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices.Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook pric…BooksParallel structure in writing: Use…
A new Emily Dickinson archive is online. Here is the opening of one of her most famous poems. Reading View for Fascicle 23. Similar:Fantasy football and the cold future of robot journalismFor fantasy football players, the servic…Businessink: Inkle's open source scripting language for writing interactive narrativeGearing up to teach “Digital Storytellin…CybercultureHow cult leaders brainwash followers…
My wonderfully geeky tween made these Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde pendants with her Rainbow Loom. Next on her list: making Pac-Man. Similar:ink: Inkle's open source scripting language for writing interactive narrativeGearing up to teach “Digital Storytellin…CybercultureThe Xplor Store: The Forgotten Carnegie Science Center Exhibit? (Guest Post by Leigh Jerz…The other day, my wife suggested…
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…