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:Habits for happiness: tips for looking on the bright side of lifeHabits for happiness: tips for looking o…PersonalWhat kids do when Dad won't hand over the iPod So I’m not being selfish… this is …EducationTweet:…
I just touched up a handout on Parallel Structure vs Faulty Parallelism. Similar:What Causes the Smell of New & Old Books?Generally, it is the chemical breakdown …AestheticsHarvard University says it can't afford journal publishers' pricesRobert Darnton, director of Harvard Libr…AcademiaWhy the British Tell Better Children’s StoriesIf Harry Potter and Huckleberry Finn wer…BooksIffy "Cloak of Darkness"…
These comic panels cover the issue well. (Pennington Publishing) Similar:I sometimes snark at the @Turnitin interface, but…I sometimes snark at the @Turnitin inter…CybercultureHow The Ballpoint Pen Killed CursiveIn Death of a Salesman, Biff impulsively…BusinessDo Cultural Critics Have Any Value Left?[T]he Internet has dramatically changed …AestheticsOkay yes, this affirmation does matter to me and it…
A thoughtful reflection on religion in Star Trek. While Humans aren’t depicted as participating in any form of organized religion (there is a reference to a Christmas party here, a nod to monotheism there), the series also includes a distrust of science and technology, regularly depicting mad scientists, societies over-dependent on technology, etc.) that insists…
If you’re legally present on a public street or sidewalk, you can legally photograph anything in plain view. (This includes children and crime victims… but just because it’s legal doesn’t mean it’s always a good idea.) If law enforcement engages you, ask whether you are free to go; if so, then move out of the…
Standardized testing rewards standardized thinking, while excluding creativity, resilience & other “soft” skills. I have started gong out of my way to remind students in my classes that I am not comparing their papers to a “correct answer” in the back of my book — I want them to learn a habit of mind that…
It’s a good day when one’s nerdiness is an asset to a colleague. Similar:Dozens of Plagiarism Incidents Are Reported in Coursera's Free Online Courses”If we really are trying to teach the wo…AcademiaBWW Review: TWELFTH NIGHT Is Farcical Fun at Prime StageIn his review, Greg Kerestan, who must h…CultureBetween static hand-coded HTML pages and modern content-management…
I’m a happy, responsible, and no-longer-obligated-for-jury-duty citizen. Similar:My 11yo, of the opening chapters of a YA novel with an orphan heroineMy 11yo, of the opening chapters of a YA…BooksAs I was preparing to take this screenshot, two more papers came in.I still have odd jobs to tie up, but I’m…AcademiaSupport the arts in your community!…
Keep a local backup of anything important you’ve entrusted to online services. There’s no guarantee that, years from now, those services will honor the terms you agreed to. Backed by new investors, including singer Justin Timberlake, Myspace (after dropping the capital ‘S’) has been rebranded as a music-streaming service, with a new sleek interface, and…
Penn and Teller are involved with this story. Worth a read. The only record of the game’s existence was a handful of review copies that had been sent out to journalists in the weeks before the publisher went bust, in 1995. The game remained a curious rumor until September, 2005, when Frank Cifaldi, a freelance…
Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices. #ethics #books The Federal lawsuit claimed that Apple, led by then-CEO Steve Jobs and senior vice president of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue, conspired with HarperCollins, Hatchett, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster to drive e-book prices up from the $9.99 price point Amazon had established. –readwrite.com Similar:Lego signs…
RT @spj_tweets: How TV could suffer the fate of newspapers: @alanmutter shares the second installment of his two-part blog – http://t.co/l… Similar:And the girl has succeeded in getting me to wear t…And the girl has succeeded in getting me…TweetsHabits for happiness: tips for looking on the bright side of lifeHabits for happiness: tips for looking…
RT @DepressedDarth: Dear J.J. Abrams, If the new Star Wars is bad, you will forever be known as Jar Jar Abrams. Sincerely, Star Wars fans Similar:Can AI write good novels?I expect that this is probably the year …AcademiaVisiting my parents. Admiring their original Hallmark Enterprise Christmas ornament. I ask…AmusingThe Fantasticks (Oct 18-27, Theatre Factory) https://youtu.be/SYp1jQaSwjo…
I really like MailChimp’s “Social” plugin, which not only publishes a WordPress blog entry to Twitter and Facebook, but also collects responses from Twitter and Facebook users and collects them as WordPress comments. Today I installed a different plugin, Twitter Tools, which is really just a single tool — it lets you create a WordPress…
Habits for happiness: tips for looking on the bright side of life. At bedtime, in order to avoid a nightly litany of complaints, I ask my glass-is-half-empty-and-I-hate-the-pirate-glass-and-there’s-a-bug-in-it tween to list three good things, two neutral things, and one sad thing about her day. Sometimes if she needs to share more than one sad thing, I…
While researching my obligations for #juryduty Thursday, I came across this “Juror’s Creed.” The gender-specific reference to men, the instruction to reflect upon the virtues of democracy, and the instruction to respect the judge’s education all hint at a historical context for the creed. Institutions never put their creeds into writing unless they feel those…
Spent a productive work day doing nothing but optimizing my blog. Added a very nice plugin for displaying thumbnails of related posts. Similar:What My Classroom Looks Like During Today's Video Journalism Workshop Within one minute of being placed in…AcademiaLetter of Recommendation: Fanny PacksWhat other accessory ensures the safety …CultureNever trust a corporation to do a…
RT @mykidcancode: Managing Your Preschooler’s Fascination with Apps – bit.ly/lv1ZyR #parenting #technology Similar:The Trouble With Online EducationI’ve taught an online “Video Game Cultur…AcademiaThe Dog and the Oyster (Aesop Fable)I always enjoy my visits to the studio. …SpeechScratch StatsScratch is a kid-friendly programming sa…CybercultureHow Artists on Twitter Tricked Spammy T-Shirt Stores Into Admitting Their Automated Art…
Not kidding — 254,460 spam comments in my trash folder! Similar:In April 2000, I was blogging about HTML frames, the future of reading, grammar, Kairos, a…In April 2000, I was blogging about… …BooksInterface changes make it a little harder to work with Google's image searchWhen I’m looking for a picture I’m going…BusinessA Mind Forever Voyaging…