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…
This project looks promising. I’ve donated the money I was going to spend on a haircut. We’re keeping our UI super simple. The experience is entirely sound and story: Writing + Voiceover + SFX + Music. With either a spoken word or a simple tap on the screen you can listen to the drama unfold…
A recent Pew study (Smartphone Ownership 2013) found that blacks were about 10% more likely than whites to own smartphones, and that young urban people regardless of income are very likely to own smartphones. (With older people, a smartphone is more of a luxury.) It’s little wonder, then, that phone-friendly Twitter has been such a…
These are shoe-holding racks at a local indoor play area, where I took my daughter and a friend for a few hours. Why buy six different rainbow-colored shoe-holding racks, if you’re not going to arrange them in the proper order? I really wanted to pick up the purple one and at least put it in…
Sample, improved lyrics: “An old man turned 98 /He won the lottery, and died the next day (from a severe paper cut from his lottery ticket).” Similar:The First Duty (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 5, Episode 19) Cadet Wesley's Academy Crisi…Rewatching ST:TNG The Enterprise is…EmpathyThe reluctant wisdom of a science major in my freshman writing class.”There’s…
Rewatching the classic Trek episode “The Conscience of the King,” which features a Shakespearean acting troupe. In one scene, McCoy writes a report on a wedge proto-iPad… …but in the very next scene Kirk scrawls on a piece of paper. This episode also features characters doing computer searches, using an exposition-friendly voice interface to call…
At least three journalists left NBC, after the network aired a tape of George Zimmerman, edited in a manner that substantially altered its content. Filed in Seminole County, the suit adds that “NBC News saw the death of Trayvon Martin not as a tragedy but as an opportunity to increase ratings, and so set about…
Jon Negroni creates a meta-narrative to connect every Pixar movie, using Boo as the still point in the turning universe. Every Pixar movie is connected. I explain how, and possibly why. Several months ago, I watched a fun-filled video on Cracked.com that introduced the idea (at least to me) that all of the Pixar movies…
The contrast between KTVU’s treatment of its triumphs vs errors reminds us of the difference between journalism vs public relations. Similar:Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices.Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook pric…BooksWhat kids do when Dad won't hand over the iPod So I’m not being selfish… this is …EducationI'm no longer surprised, but still…
Last week, the Fox-afiliated KTVU fell for a prank, repeating offensive fake names for the pilots involved in the crash of Asiana Flight 214 last week. [S]even-year veteran KTVU producer Brad Belstock closed his @producerBB Twitter account after his last Friday tweet just moments after the names were read aloud on the air by Tori Campbell.…
Francesca Borri writes of being a freelancer and a woman covering the war in Syria. (When my life gets hectic, a story like this helps me keep some perspective.) Similar:Astaire Unwound (Ceiling Dance from "Royal Wedding")My high school physics teacher, Admiral …AestheticsThat's not an argument. (Yes it is.)I spent some time this afternoon sifting…AcademiaThe Struggle…
Is your Sunday feeling incomplete because you haven’t read anything about punctuation today? This explanation of the semicolon should help. You’re welcome. Similar:Overwhelmed? Start a new to-do list with "1) Breathe; 2) Make 'to-do' list" Felt momentarily overwhelmed by the da…CultureKatie Couric Gun Documentary Undermined By Manipulative Editing : NPRInterviewer Katie Couric asks a group…
My wife is something of a hoarder. Now, as it happens, I have saved my half of the slip of paper that I tore so that we could write down each other’s phone numbers back when we were about 22, but she saves old catalogs and phone books (phone books!) from years ago. Sometimes, when…
So I’m not being selfish… this is a parenting strategy. Similar:My outward-bound editor's graduation cap.PersonalWe are in a golden age for journalismMost handwringing about the state of jou…BusinessThe Most Unexpected Workplace Trend Coming in 2020: the Return of the Liberal Arts Major On LinkedIn each year author Dan Sch…BusinessYes I do own a copy of the…
Next up: Stage Right summer musical theater camp starts Monday! Similar:A selfie with a Chekov action figure after learning of Anton Yelchin's deathCurrent_EventsJoyful white guys finish ahead of struggling woman and black man in this university’s cata…Looks like the quality control process a…AcademiaIf You Ever Find a Link to ThoughtCatalog, I'm Begging You Not to…
Testing a tool to automate connections between iOS apps. Similar:Annie Sullivan on teaching: Helen Keller, rendered blind and dea…CultureTake that, grass! Eat rotary analog steel.HomeClassroom Project: Students Get 1 Hour to Propose, Shoot, Edit, Publish DocumentaryStudents created this in 60 minutes. …HomeI can probably remove that link to LycosOn a web page that I posted…
Similar:I've spent 8 hours with 24 different Verizon agents who keep transferring me back and fort…It’s not a Verizon Wireless issue. It’s …BusinessWhy Photojournalism Matters World Series: Chicago Tribune & th…AestheticsIt will be harder to leave Facebook than it was to leave Twitter It was not that hard to leave Twitter….CybercultureOmaha schoolgirl dresses as a…
Submitted revisions of 6 video tutorial scripts & drafted 5 more. Also, scored 3 boxes of leftover reception cupcakes and 1 of brownies. Similar:Preteen Acting Scene Version 2 – YouTubeI had a free evening and a copy of Blend…DramaPict Free Summer Webinar: Shakespeare’s HeroesCultureWeird History offers a good debunking of this persistent myth.PersonalFact check: Trump…
Blogging this so I can find it when I teach my “News Writing” class this fall. People do like to prank journalists with fake names. In this case, the reporter did what you’re supposed to do — get confirmation — but sheesh. KTVU reports fake racist names of Asiana Airlines 214 pilots from NTSB intern…
I recently bought a new phone. since then, I have answered an incoming call in my car. It felt awesome. Similar:What kids do when Dad won't hand over the iPod So I’m not being selfish… this is …Education10 Rules of Internet – Anil DashA very useful, concise summary of web-en…BusinessI'm no longer surprised, but still…