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:Comments on: A vane Osama bin Laden shown in new videos – CBS News Comments on: A vane Osama bin Laden …AmusingEmpathy in a Downtown Sub ShopSitting in a…
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:What kids do when Dad won't hand over the iPod So I’m not being selfish… this is …EducationTweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled on…Came around the corner and saw my kids…
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:The Complete Deaths: all of the Bard's 74 scripted deaths in one new play.Over the past four centuries, the brutal…AmusingStudents tend to zone out during my…
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:Understanding the difference between credible information and propagandaIn the context of my role as a teacher i…CultureResearch Poetry (communicating research results and expressing their significance through …For an article on communicating research…AcademiaA Robotic…
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:Skin of Evil (TNG Rewatch, Season 1 Episode 23)My rewatch reflection on the Star Trek:T…DesignCarolyn, Easter 2017 PersonalNext up for the girl: Cherry in "The Outsiders" (March 6-15)BooksAs Twinkle Twinkle is to Suzuki musicians, so is a wooden shipping crate to CGI modelers. …https://youtu.be/diQF9buONqY I ha…AestheticsShatoetry…
Next up: Stage Right summer musical theater camp starts Monday! Similar:Do Cultural Critics Have Any Value Left?[T]he Internet has dramatically changed …AestheticsPrepare to lower the personnel deployment gondola from the forward eployment bay, two deck… AestheticsBeing a deaf lipreader during a pandemic means increased social anxietyEven social events are a minefield. The …AcademiaOregon Trail: How…
Testing a tool to automate connections between iOS apps. Similar:The Dadliest DecadeThe eighties, at least, were drenched in…HomeHacking the WordPress Social Plugin to Include Pages in Addition to PostsI love the WordPress Social plugin, whic…HomeClassroom Project: Students Get 1 Hour to Propose, Shoot, Edit, Publish DocumentaryStudents created this in 60 minutes. …HomeI can probably remove…
Similar:At Computers and Writing #cwcon for the weekend.Am I wise now? At an event for encouragi…AcademiaFound: Brass Candle SnifterThis was by the teacher’s station in Adm…AestheticsTeachers finding games give a leg up on learningThanks for the link, Dana. Experts sa…CultureWhy I Was Wrong About Liberal-Arts MajorsIt’s a little bit shallow and solipsisti…AcademiaThe Maquis, Part 1…
Submitted revisions of 6 video tutorial scripts & drafted 5 more. Also, scored 3 boxes of leftover reception cupcakes and 1 of brownies. Similar:Charming solar system scale installation on Baltimore St. in Kansas City.PersonalMy Dad Is a Right-Wing Asshole (Village Voice)A closed-minded liberal writing a letter…CultureI am not really sure why I have kept it…
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:Parallel Structure vs. Faulty ParallelismI just touched up a handout on Parallel …HumanitiesDesert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller are involved with this s…BooksJuror's CreedWhile researching my obligations for #ju…CultureIt's been nice…