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:MLA In-text citations: Writing that got you through high school won’t do in college. MLA In-text cita…AcademiaHow Russia’s Disinformation Apparatus Ran Aground in UkraineSkillful propagandists always leverage p…CultureEmily Dickinson…
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 …Education10 Rules of Internet – Anil DashA very useful, concise summary of web-en…BusinessJury Duty UpdateI’m a happy, responsible,…
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:Video Game about Cancer and GriefOn my list for the next time I teach “Vi…AestheticsSarek (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 23) Aging with Dignity and…
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:Dax (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 7) Jadzia Dax faces the legal consequences …Rewatching ST:DS9 Dax is apprehended …CultureInfrared photo confirms Munch wrote "madman" inscription first noticed in 1904“Kan kun være malet af…
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:Trimsheets baked with greebly texture goodness add eye-pleasing woodgrain & tech detai…AestheticsThe Bremen Town Musicians (WAOB Audio Theatre) My daughter plays the narrator, my…HumanitiesStage Right Theatre Company's 'Fiddler' all about family, on, off stageI am thrilled to be part of this great c…Current_EventsMusician Daryl Davis…
Next up: Stage Right summer musical theater camp starts Monday! Similar:The Hidden Subversive Messages of [MGM's Screen Adaptation of] The Wizard of OzWhen I tried teaching The Wizard of Oz i…BooksA little board-gaming for Labor Day.PersonalSpring 2025 Final Grades Submitted!AcademiaI Set A Trap To Catch Students Cheating With AI. The Result Was DeflatingMy classes are…
Testing a tool to automate connections between iOS apps. Similar:WordPress duplicate images driving me crazy I’m using the Atahualpa Theme with WPT…HomeSchadendrücke: Click-shameHomeHacking the WordPress Social Plugin to Include Pages in Addition to PostsI love the WordPress Social plugin, whic…HomeVerizon Forced Me to Remove Parentheses, Quotation Marks, and Apostrophes from a Customer …When I finally…
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Submitted revisions of 6 video tutorial scripts & drafted 5 more. Also, scored 3 boxes of leftover reception cupcakes and 1 of brownies. Similar:Harper Lee to publish new novel, 55 years after To Kill a MockingbirdLee said in an announcement from her pub…BooksCopspeak, "the past exonerative" tense, and punching NazisIn the Constitution, any suspect is…
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:Juror's CreedWhile researching my obligations for #ju…CultureIt's been nice knowing you, iPad3 It’s been nice knowing you, iPad3, but…TweetsFormer student: "I remember sometimes being annoyed with all of our blogging assignments, …A third alum in the last…