Blender Griffin, Part 3

Okay, that’s enough work for one evening. I added a skeleton I had already created for another project, and I added new rigging for his wings and tail. I still need to add the fancy stuff, like having the eyes follow a target, having the limbs move automatically to follow the placement of the feet…

Blender Griffin, Part 2

After another couple of hours of work, I’ve added the Griffin logo and a tail (trust me — it’s there). I’ve improved the lighting, and added some very subtle ambient occlusion (the inside of his beak and the inside of his eyes are shaded more realistically). I could probably do a better job differentiating such…

Correlation or Causation? – Businessweek

Correlation or Causation? – Businessweek. Similar:Humanities and STEM Can and Should Get Along BetterIn my lit and writing classes, I regular…AcademiaI studied philosophy and engineering at university: Here's my verdict on 'job relevant' ed…She double-majored in engineering and ph…AcademiaWhat You Read Matters More Than You Might ThinkSeton Hill is revamping its freshman wri…AcademiaShould your grieving…

Blender 3D Update

Holy ray-tracing, Batman, it’s a Blender 3D update! I have not had the chance to try out Blender 2.61, which features an ocean simulator, motion-tracking, and real-time ray-tracing. blender.org – Blender 2.61. Similar:Oh dear, George Lucas! Why the Star Wars universe is going from bad to worseThough I always preferred a different fr…EmpathyAnother 10sq cm…

Blender Griffin

To celebrate yesterday’s on-time submission of final grades, I spent part of last night and much of today working on this Blender 3D model of our school mascot, the Griffin.   Similar:Yellow Journalism Did Not Cause the Spanish-American War (Role of Sensationalized Headlin… When a correspondent sent to Cuba to c…AestheticsBogus hit-and-run story about Vice…

Narnia Lesson Plans: Activities Related to the Musical (based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) — Jerz’s Literacy Weblog

I just posted the latest musical theater education packet, written by my wife, as she aims to make the most of our home-schooled children’s participation in Stage Right Greensburg’s student theater production. 1.10) Narnia, once a utopia or paradise, has become a sad, cold dystopia under the Witch’s rule. Read & discuss other examples of…

Pittsburgh Parent Magazine: Future-oriented College Majors

Pittsburgh Parent Magazine’s December issue features Seton Hill’s New Media Journalism major in a cover story by Kelli Robinson. Similar:New York fails Common Core testsJust 23 percent of charter students scor…BusinessInterface changes make it a little harder to work with Google's image searchWhen I’m looking for a picture I’m going…BusinessChristmas Day Truce 1914: Volunteers re-enact…

Losing Face

This story features my Seton Hill colleague, Lee McClain. “It’s kind of like if you are looking at a bunch of leaves on a tree, you could study them, but you’d have to work really hard to tell them apart,” said McClain. That is how she sees faces. “That part of my brain that most…

On the Spot: Campus Diversity

One of my journalism students posted this insightful and well-edited documentary. (She also posted a brief introduction.) HTML5 HTML5 480p FLV360p FLV360p MP4240p FLVFlash Similar:College is not a commodity. Stop treating it like one.If we are going to treat college as a co…AcademiaHeard any good stories lately?My daughter has a terrible time settling…BooksMultiple Choice =…

National study: Youth ‘sexting’ is downplayed

A national study released Monday suggests there is a smaller percentage of young people involved in “sexting” — sending or receiving explicit or sexually suggestive images via cell phone or Internet — than previous studies found. via National study: Youth ‘sexting’ is downplayed – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Wait a minute… who or what is doing the…

And With Your Spirit

My daughter was amused that, even with a cheat sheet in my hand, I automatically responded to “Peace be with you” with the traditional “And also with you,” every time this Sunday, instead of the new translation “And with your spirit.” Not once did I get it right. Similar:Just a handful more of these elegant…

Lego Rudolph

Before settling down to finish reading Mr. Popper’s Penguins, my daughter made this Lego reindeer. Similar:Up the Long Ladder (ST:TNG Rewatch, Season Two, Episode 18) — The Enterprise Visits the Pl…(Rewatching Star Trek: TNG after a 20-ye…EthicsResults of the 18th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition The 18th Annual Interactive Fiction Com…Current_EventsJimmy Maher's Appreciation of Infocom's Classic Sherlock…