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:Games Without Frontiers: Victory in VomitWired reviews Mirror’s Edge When you ru…AestheticsSelf-Regulation: American Schools Are Failing Nonconformist KidsFor a while, we were part of a homeschoo…CultureWhat's a namber? (archived)Update, December 2024: Sadly, the…

RT @mykidcancode: Managing Your Preschooler’s Fasc…

RT @mykidcancode: Managing Your Preschooler’s Fascination with Apps – bit.ly/lv1ZyR #parenting #technology Similar:Replaying Childhood: On Gifting my Video Games to the Library of CongressTevor Owens writes: Giving up my games…CultureControversial Content in YA Literature: A College Professor and Homeschooling Parent Answe…I received this comment on my blog: [F]…Books2001: A Space Odyssey – Discerning Themes through…

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

Not kidding — 254,460 spam comments in my trash folder! Similar:Don't Give Apple Too Much Credit for Bowing to Taylor SwiftApple is skilled at attracting praise. O…BusinessSeton Hill University advertises for “Social & Digital Content Manager”The Social & Digital Content Manager…AcademiaWhy Study Humanities? What I Tell Engineering FreshmenScience writer Jon Horgan writes: We li…AcademiaAnti-globalism Is Common…

“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:The secret history of “Y’all”: The murky origins of a legendary Southern slang wordThe Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is u…CultureI may have mentioned that I have a daughter who does things. Her next…

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.…

Study: Singing together synchronizes your heartbeat

The researchers found that each singer’s heartbeat was linked to the song’s melody – i.e. the speed and structure of the music. They also found that when the choir sang together, their heart rates tended to increase and decrease at similar times. “As soon as the singing begins, (the hearts) start following each other,” Vickhoff…

In Defense Of Metaphors In Science Writing

We live in an elegant universe. The cosmos is like a string symphony. Genes are selfish. There is an endless battle between thermodynamics and gravity. Do you love these statements, or hate them? The reading world gets pretty divided over whether or not it’s okay to apply metaphors and similes to descriptive science writing. It…

The Reading Project

Literature majors and students otherwise drawn to literature courses can be an introverted bunch. Students overall can at times resist course projects that fall outside the expected parameters of a given discipline. Yet my class proved my assumptions wrong. Many of the students were nervous, to be sure, but overall they seemed to enjoy the…

Tweet: Feeling productive. Hammered out eight scripts fo…

Feeling productive. Hammered out eight scripts for training vids (3-5min each). It helps that I had an outline & know the content well. Similar:Loved seeing A Comedy of Errors @setonhillLoved seeing A Comedy of Errors @setonhi…TweetsMy Minecraft-obsessed tween made this blocky foam pig at art camp. Next up: Stage Right summer musical th…AestheticsCarolyn Gombell Is…

Tweet: So, the correct quote from “Miri” is actually “No…

So, the correct quote from “Miri” is actually “No ‘blah blah blah’” not “No more ‘blah blah blah.’” Classic Trek trivia I did not know. Similar:I'm no longer surprised, but still want to document.This is really noteworthy. Today the Pre…Current_EventsParallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesProto iPads and Paper Coexist…

The Library Adjacent to My Ethership Control Room Needed Books

For me, summer vacation means spending hours modeling shelves full of antique books in Blender-3D, so that the library adjacent to the bridge in my steampunk ship-of-the-line looks more lived-in. Similar:The Offspring (StarTrek:TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 16) Data Experiences FatherhoodRewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break….Cyberculture1,000-pound rosary sends heavy message: PrayThe rosary that retired quarry…

Tweet: Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled on…

Came around the corner and saw my kids huddled on the couch, reading an Iron Man comic. http://t.co/S3xPQoZh1o Similar:Parallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesMaybe 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…

The Humanities: What Went Right?

The search for what went right might take a hard look at the job market for our graduates. One recent survey, by the Web site payscale.com, paints a somewhat depressing picture of salaries, with humanities majors typically earning from $5,000 to $15,000 less than those with undergraduate professional degrees. Fifteen years after graduation, however, the…

Handshakes Really Do Matter

Monday night handshake/eye contact practice. [W]hen was the last time you analyzed your handshake? Consider these questions: If you are a male and you meet a female, who should extend their hand first? If you are a male and you are meeting another male, who should extend his hand first? If you are a female…

My daughter found where all the missing pens and pencils end up

Similar:Classroom Vignette: MLA StyleStudent (shouldering backpack and headin…AcademiaSo happy to work with @crissycp and benefit from her kindness and baking talents.PersonalThe Fantasticks (Oct 18-27)Personal‘It’s destroyed me completely’: Kenyan moderators decry toll of training of AI modelsOpenAI has already taken a toll on human…BusinessPrepping for the “Celebration of Scholarship and Service” #york2025 #medievaldrama #mediev…PersonalCombined, base color,…

‘LOL, JK’: Texas teen faces 8 years in prison for making ‘terroristic threat’ online

An Austin, Texas, teenager faces eight years in prison for making a “terroristic threat” after he made a sarcastic comment online about shooting up a school. —Washington Times. Similar:How "Hail Mary" Became Inextricably Linked to American FootballI am revamping an existing “News Writing…CultureVenus Flytraps Are Even Creepier Than We ThoughtI clicked for the topic, but…

Tweet: RT @EKSwitaj: Higher Ed drinking game: every time…

RT @EKSwitaj: Higher Ed drinking game: every time someone says MOOC, buy 1000 bottles of liquor, drink three shots, and say you drank all 1… Similar:Carolyn Gombell Is Not a Real Person: #JusticeforCarolyn Is a Campaign Against Twitter Ref…Fascinating use of social media. To be c…Current_EventsDesert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller…