Parallel Structure vs. Faulty Parallelism

I just touched up a handout on Parallel Structure vs Faulty Parallelism. Similar:What is Technical Writing?I noticed an uptick in traffic to an old…AestheticsDon’t Want to Fall for Fake News? Don’t Be LazyFake news is not a problem caused by tho…CultureStudents Are Using ChatGPT to Write Their Personal Essays Now: AI can replicate the shape…

Parallel structure in writing: Use it!

These comic panels cover the issue well. (Pennington Publishing)   Similar:We'll Always Have Paris (TNG Rewatch: Season 1, Episode 24)Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generatio…MediaMisleading Publisher Email Promises Paid Stipend, Delivers LotteryAn email from a reputable higher educati…AcademiaRules for Civility: 14-Year-Old George Washington's 110 Commandments for Cultivating Chara… Every Action done in Company, ought…CultureThe Real…

In Space as on Earth

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…

Ben Franklin Sings about Your Rights as a Photographer

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…

Jury Duty Update

I’m a happy, responsible, and no-longer-obligated-for-jury-duty citizen. Similar:Checkmate. Crushed again.GamesChess tournament in Monroeville. Two losses, two wins.The boy’s personal best in terms of win-…CultureShe feels pretty at the dress rehearsal (opens Thursday)On the ride home, in the middle of a spi…AmusingIn April, 2001 I was blogging about interactive fiction, Roget's Thesaurus, John Lennon, H… A…

No space for over-30s as relaunched MySpace erases its past

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…

Judge: Apple conspired to fix eBook prices.

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:Vanessa Otero's…

RT @spj_tweets: How TV could suffer the fate of newspapers

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:Maybe I'll just delete these QUARTER OF A MILLION spam comments.Not kidding — 254,460 spam comments in …CybercultureClassroom collaboration marketplaceWhile I am uncomfortable with the whole …BusinessShe doesn't have keys or a phone or…

RT @DepressedDarth: Dear J.J. Abrams, If the new Star Wars is bad…

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:Short-range #neovictorian excursion craft, now with glowing power orbs! Over the past year…https://youtu.be/-cJp-kelrL8  AestheticsAn Excerpt from Mechanisms [2]: 'Professor RAMAC'Among the attractions at the 1958 World’…BooksMake America Meme Again! Create…

Juror’s Creed

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.

Spent a productive work day doing nothing but optimizing my blog. Added a very nice plugin for displaying thumbnails of related posts. Similar:NASA reconnects with Voyager 1 (after months of confusion)  NASA says it is once again abl…AwesomeWe Need to Talk about the Burgeoning Robot Middle ClassMaybe it’s not the super-robots we need …BusinessAn alternate…

RT @mykidcancode: Managing Your Preschooler’s Fasc…

RT @mykidcancode: Managing Your Preschooler’s Fascination with Apps – bit.ly/lv1ZyR #parenting #technology Similar:Connecting the Dots…Madeline Cash reflects on her boomer mot…CultureNew Facebook Notifications Alert Users When They Not Currently Looking At Facebook “We hope these helpful new alerts will …AmusingWriting Computer Games with InklewriterIf brass lanterns or slathering-fanged g…CybercultureToday I didn't save the world, but…

Maybe I’ll just delete these QUARTER OF A MILLION spam comments.

Not kidding — 254,460 spam comments in my trash folder! Similar:Awesome 1935 Soviet Movie Deploys Saxophone-Controlled Robots to Crush Tophat- and Bowler-…I wish I understood Russian, so that I c…AestheticsSeattle Times ‘Outraged’ FBI Created Fake Web Page, News Story To Catch SuspectThe FBI fabricated a story to look like …CybercultureDigital Storytelling: an Efficient and Engaging…

“Bach is not for the weak of mind.”

“Bach is not for the weak of mind.” — Miss Renee, my kids’ piano teacher. “I’m in trouble.” — Peter, my son. Similar:This class has been everything that I expect it would be and I cannot believe that we are …Some days are slogs.  Some weeks are slo…AcademiaI have more to do than mark 99…

Classroom collaboration marketplace

While I am uncomfortable with the whole “classroom as marketplace” metaphor, since it’s pretty much gamifying without the fun, I am nonetheless interested in this strategy for encouraging students to collaborate by having them attach a value to the artifacts they present to the class for sharing.. We shop for everything from apps to ideas.…