Scrooge Is My Brother

My daughter delivered the opening “Marley was as dead as a doornail” speech as the narrator in the Stage Right! homeschool production of A Lyrical Christmas Carol. My son played Scrooge. The show was great. During the bows, I was already pretty misty-eyed when my daughter threw her arms around Scrooge and proudly announced, “He’s…

“What irrational person would argue against your claim that hoe is a Gothic punk?”

Dictating student feedback, I said “Would a rational person argue against your claim that Poe is a Gothic poet?” My Mac typed: “What irrational person would argue against your claim that hoe is a Gothic punk?” Similar:Infinite Scrolling: XKCD's Creative Insight on a Common Interface IndignityAmusingLife in Code and Software (Open Humanities Press)This book explores…

Senior Tech #1: How To Master Texting

It’s funny because it’s true. Senior Tech #1: How To Master Texting Similar:14% of Americans [say that they] have changed their mind about an issue because of somethi…Young men are more than twice as likely …CultureMars Curiosity rover sings 'Happy Birthday,' dares Earth to collect royalties  One year ago today, NASA’s Curio…AmusingArchitecture in Video Games:…

What kinds of local stories drive engagement? The results of an NPR Facebook experiment

  We looked at every story we geotargeted during the months of July, August, and September 2012, focusing on the ones that the localized NPR Facebook following liked, shared, and commented on at a high rate. From this group of successful stories, we identified similarities which allowed us to create nine distinct content categories. We…

What Could Have Been Entering the Public Domain on January 1, 2012?

Current US law extends copyright protection for 70 years after the date of the author’s death. (Corporate “works-for-hire” are copyrighted for 95 years after publication.) But prior to the 1976 Copyright Act (which became effective in 1978), the maximum copyright term was 56 years (an initial term of 28 years, renewable for another 28 years). Under those…

The Search for IT Relevence — Featuring Seton Hill IT Guru Phil Komarny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGh6MasSUVc The Search for IT Relevence – YouTube. Similar:This morning I awoke to YouTube’s live footage of crowds circling a mosque in Mecca. For m… CultureAs Twinkle Twinkle is to Suzuki musicians, so is a wooden shipping crate to CGI modelers. …https://youtu.be/diQF9buONqY I ha…AestheticsThe Six Things That Make Stories Go Viral Will Amaze, and Maybe…

I’d Pay to See This

Fan Video Win Similar:Pop song lyrics use more negative words ("hate", "sorrow") than 50 years agoThe use of words related to negative emo…Empathy‘Hunger Games’ to digitally recreate Hoffman filmmakers behind the “Hunger Games” mo…CybercultureWhat if thinking is underrated?What if the most underrated skill in sch…AcademiaOur family has seen David Whalen in the persona of Sherlock…

Distributing Candy at Holiday Parade

Similar:Very interesting adaptation of Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice. #pptlaytime @thepublicpghCultureMan of the People (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 6, Episode 3) When a tranquil envoy make…Rewatching ST:TNG Called to the aid o…EmpathyFie upon your multi-page, ad-stuffed crapfest of shame. (Don't click!)What I wrote is not actually a list, jus…DesignThine Own Self (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 7,…

Results of the 18th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition

 The 18th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition has ended. Congratulations to Marco Innocenti, whose “Andromeda Apocalypse” took first place! The top three games were: Andromeda Apocalypse, by Marco Innocenti Eurydice, by Anonymous Guilded Youth, by Jim Munroe The winners of the Miss Congeniality contest were: Guilded Youth, by Jim Munroe Escape From Summerland, by Joey Jones…

At Age 11, I Named the Curiosity Rover

Wonderful story! I still remember that chilly December day, sitting in science class. I’d finished a worksheet early and decided to get a TIME for Kids magazine off of Mrs. Estevez’s bookshelf. It was the 2008 Invention Issue, but that wasn’t the only thing that caught my eye. In the magazine, there was an article…

What a 21st-Century English Major Can Do: Screencast Demo of an Inform 7 Text-Adventure Journalism Game

Have I mentioned lately that I have some really awesome students? Here’s a narrated screencast, presenting a progress report on a term project that involves programming in Inform 7 to create a text-adventure game designed to teach student journalists how to cover a campus event. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKxPi3L6aDs This is what a 21st-century English major can do,…

Popcorn Maker

I’ll have to look into this. Popcorn Maker. https://popcorn.webmaker.org Similar:If watching this clip of Punjabi dancers in Ireland doesn't make you happy, I don't know w…https://twitter.com/rtenews/status/13721…AestheticsOverwhelmed? Start a new to-do list with "1) Breathe; 2) Make 'to-do' list" Felt momentarily overwhelmed by the da…CultureDebunking the newspapers are dying ideaDon’t count on viral social media posts…

One Man, One Computer, 10 Million Students: How Khan Academy Is Reinventing Education

  It’s a prototypical Silicon Valley ethos, with one exception: The Khan Academy, which features 3,400 short instructional videos along with interactive quizzes and tools for teachers to chart student progress, is a nonprofit, boasting a mission of “a free world-class education for anyone anywhere.” There is no employee equity; there will be no IPO;…