Hello, there, mini.

Hello, there, mini. Let’s restore you from your backup and get to work! Note to self: next time, before handing in iPad, take screenshots of the icon configuration. (I’m glad I blogged my goodbye to the old model,  because I can reconstruct the home screen from that photo.) Similar:RT @DDeClaudio: Who do you think controls…

It’s been nice knowing you, iPad3

It’s been nice knowing you, iPad3, but #SetonHill is upgrading me to a mini. Serve your new owner well! Similar:Parallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesJury Duty UpdateI’m a happy, responsible, and no-longer-…GovernmentJuror's CreedWhile researching my obligations for #ju…CultureHow hate and misinformation go viral: A case study of a Trump…

3 KTVU staff fired over airing of fake Asiana Airl…

3 KTVU staff fired over airing of fake Asiana Airlines pilot names. richliebermanreport.blogspot.com/2013/07/exclus… Similar:Former student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last few weeks has c…AcademiaHabits for happiness: tips for looking on the bright side of lifeHabits for happiness: tips for looking o…PersonalI asked my geekling whether…

62 of the World’s Most Beautiful Libraries

Mental Floss. Similar:Today's 10 sq cm of retro #steampunk control panel. #blender3d #blender3dartAestheticsMore #steampunk #neovictorian goodness. Bring the wood polish. #design #aesthetics #blende… AestheticsYou are personally responsible for becoming more ethical than the society you grew up in.Some people out there will never like yo…CultureDo Cultural Critics Have Any Value Left?[T]he Internet has dramatically changed…

Overheard at Quora: “Why after all these years is Moodle still so ugly?”

Moodle is a free course-management tool that many schools (including mine) use to manage the online components of courses (including computer-graded quizzes, discussion forums, and the submission of online papers). The tool is powerful, but the interface offers a bewildering array of options, so that casual users are often dismayed by how many checkboxes it…

An Evening with a Board Game and Grandma

By the way, I won. Similar:Top U800. #chesstournamentPersonalVolunteering at our local food bankEthicsStupid Puns For the WinMy daughter just trounced me in a pun wa…AmusingMasked up, so I don't infect you, in case you are in a vulnerable group. Feeling healthy. …CultureWhy I Like Papers, PleaseAt a certain point, the transit papers w…AestheticsArsenic and Old…

Yes, I do feel rather awesome right now.

Lost brand-new earbuds. Reached in pocket of freshly-washed pants & found old earbuds. (They work!) Looked down & spotted new earbuds. #win Similar:Each building in my #medievalyork simulation has four levels of detail (so that distant ob…AestheticsTimes photo staffer's invention: the streaming backpack “From a photographer’s perspective it…AestheticsThere’s Something Off About LED BulbsWhen I’m stressed,…

Fun With Charts: Scale Matters

At first glance, this chart makes it look like food stamp usage has gone from almost nothing at some unspecified time in the past, to some huge amount over a span of who-knows-how-long. Only a fraction of the visitors to the site will click on the chart to see the scale, which reveals that the…

Zork: The Great Underground Empire

A blogger has started chronicling a journey through the classic 1980s computer game, Zork. Before King’s Quest and its successors took the realm of adventure gaming into colorful graphics, adventure titles were solely text. Infocom specialized in these during the 80s, including the Zork series, Planetfall, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. But Zork,…

Stop Clubbing, Baby Seals

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Tolkien v. Orwell: Who understood modern surveillance best?

Interesting set of observations exploring the limits of omniscience and the sheer scale involved in watching an entire population. Failures in empathy lead to misinterpretation of anonymous rebellion in plain sight. Tolkien’s most potent and intimidating image of centralized surveillance, the Eye of Sauron atop a tower, taking in the whole world, has resonated with…