We Only Think We Know the Truth About Salt

WHY have we been told that salt is so deadly? Well, the advice has always sounded reasonable. It has what nutritionists like to call “biological plausibility.” Eat more salt and your body retains water to maintain a stable concentration of sodium in your blood. This is why eating salty food tends to make us thirsty:…

LinkedIn: now officially the most annoying of all social media

I’m generally ambivalent about the whole “LinkedIn experience,” but if it wants to inspire confidence, the company should devote the same amount of attention it currently places on badgering its members on tightening its security. —LinkedIn: now officially the most annoying of all social media | Loren Steffy | a Chron.com blog. Similar:Fox lawyers Convince…

It Evolved Into Birds: Ten Science-Fictional Thinkers On the Past and Future of Cyberpunk

Interesting collection of reflections on the status of cyberpunk, that branch of science fiction devoted to the exploration of dystopian networks and augmentations and hacking and  information, rather than galactic empires, huge space objects, aliens among us, etc. It Evolved Into Birds: Ten Science-Fictional Thinkers On the Past and Future of Cyberpunk Similar:In January 2001,…

MLA Journals Adopt New Open-Access-Friendly Author Agreements

And there was much rejoicing. The journals of the Modern Language Association, including PMLA, Profession, and the ADE and ADFL bulletins, have adopted new open-access-friendly author agreements, which will go into use with their next full issues. The revised agreements leave copyright with the authors and explicitly permit authors to deposit in open-access repositories and…

Maker Faire and Science Education: American kids should be building rockets and robots, not taking standardized tests.

I was at a “serious games” conference several years ago. During a crowded seminar, where I found myself seated on the floor because there were no open seats, one of the industry types was frowning because an educator kept speaking critically of testing. “If you don’t test,” asked the pragmatic businessperson, “how can you assess?”…

We’re Creating a Culture of Distraction

I’d argue that what’s happening is that we’re becoming like the mal-formed weight lifter who trains only their upper body and has tiny little legs. We’re radically over-developing the parts of quick thinking, distractable brain and letting the long-form-thinking, creative, contemplative, solitude-seeking, thought-consolidating pieces of our brain atrophy by not using them. And, to me,…

My Parents (ages 72 and 78) Learn a Polka Step from my iPad

  Similar:Fascinating, and very sad, story behind an iconic National Geographic photo.Fascinating, and very sad, story behind …AestheticsSeeing the premiere of a play based on the life of a Holocaust survivor who ended up as a …PersonalShowcase of 60 Free Horror Fonts For Graphic Designers I think that should be “typefaces,” …AestheticsThornton Wilder’s Optimistic Catastrophe:…

Stage Right’s Alice in Wonderland

My daughter shared the role of Alice this weekend (she played “Small Alice”). On one night, she also doubled as the mouse, for a different Alice. Similar:A Liberal-Arts Education for Business MajorsThe world needs well-rounded leaders. A …AcademiaEditorial: Video Games and The Great Train Robbery Through the development of crosscuttin…AestheticsBackstage opening night.PersonalReading in the MorningTo…

Is Bilderberg a conference on world affairs or a powerful global cabal? Depends on who you ask. – The Washington Post

I love the obscure Prufrock reference win this Washington Post story: So as the motorcades come and go, are they talking of Marco Rubio? via Is Bilderberg a conference on world affairs or a powerful global cabal? Similar:IN-ZOOM (A world-premiere 10-minute play)A very current short play by Bill Irwin….CulturePeak Performance (ST:TNG Rewatch, Season Two, Episode…

Redshirt (fan video for Jonathan Coulton song)

Similar:I came of age playing too many CD-ROM point-and-click adventure games to ignore these stee…I came of age playing too many CD-ROM po…AestheticsFeeding a Neighbor's LambsA neighbor invited us over to help feed …AmusingI did not bother to click on the llama story or the dress story, and now you don't have to… Now I’m…