Commonly Misused Words: ITS and IT’S

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Correlation is not Causation

According to a somewhat dry AFP article (posted on a URL that will probably expire soon), “The researchers estimated that in 2008 Australian adults aged 25 and older spent 9.8 billion hours in front of the small screen, and that this time was associated with 286,000 years of life that ended prematurely. | Every single hour…

In 10 Years Our iPads Will Be Here

Our iPads will one day be stacked on a pallet, like these old PCs. They’ll be retro curiosities, having done their jobs — empowering us to build even better tools. Similar:Coined by Shakespeare? Think againFor years, Shakespeare has been thought …AcademiaNYT newsroom integration memoBy integrating the newsrooms we plan to …Business8 Questions for 'Star Trek'…

Ian Bogost – Gamification is Bullshit

This rhetorical power derives from the “-ification” rather than from the “game”. -ification involves simple, repeatable, proven techniques or devices: you can purify, beautify, falsify, terrify, and so forth. -ification is always easy and repeatable, and it’s usually bullshit. Just add points. Game developers and players have critiqued gamification on the grounds that it gets…

Apple, publishers conspired against $9.99 Amazon e-books, says lawsuit

I was doing a lot of impulse buying during the $9.99 days, but since then, on occasions when I’ve seen the ebook offered at a higher price than a paperback, I have just turned to interlibrary load instead. “Terrified” by Amazon’s Kindle e-reader and discounted e-book pricing, five major publishers allegedly acted together to increase…

Students aim for Broadway in musical with true-life focus

David Mahokey of Dunbar, a senior at Point Park University, and Greg Kerestan of Greensburg, a senior at Seton Hill University, wrote the 20-song score and script, respectively, for ″In Control,″ a musical that focuses in part on Mahokey’s real-life battle with bone cancer. Two free performances of ″In Control,″ directed by Anthony Marino, artistic…

Books Without Borders

The heartbreaking thing is that this fall, over 10,000 bookstore employees across America will be out of work. The way the publishing industry is going, many of those people won’t be able to find jobs that are even tangentially related to books anymore; they’ll go on to work in movie theaters and grocery stores and…

Karel Capek Slighted

The layout of this display at the Carnegie Science Center almost makes it look like the Maria duplicate in Metropolis came before Karel Capek’s play RUR (which was written in 1920, first performed in 1921). Similar:Summer Theater Camp Photos: "Patrice" in "13" My 11yo performed the part of “Patrice…Current_EventsWhat to Do With a B.A. in…

Carnegie Science Center Model Train

The control panel. Similar:Took the whole day off and spent part of it making #greebles with #Blender3D because reaso…AestheticsIncredible archer shows his speed-shooting skillsI know next to nothing about archery. Ac…AestheticsToday's annoying adventures of adulting: fixing the bathroom ceiling fan.Not fun, but done. ModdingDesert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller are involved…

USS Requin

Images from an extended tour of a cold war submarine. (We liked the tour we took last year so much, my son and I came back.) [portfolio_slideshow size=medium trans=scrollHorz ] Similar:This Is Your Brain on WritingWhen I teach creative writing, I notice …HealthPompeii artifacts at the Carnegie Science Center The lighting was very low, so…

Stage Right Greensburg Wizard of Oz

My daughter, as the wizard, with her talented castmates, in our local theater school’s preteen summer camp musical. Similar:On the spiral staircase that leads from the top deck down to the officers' pub and wa…AestheticsAnd again I ush.PersonalT-Shirts for student journalists who recently leveled up to “staff writer”(with bear signe…PersonalHow exactly do bridges bridge? How…

Bluejay Catching a Bug

My friend and colleague, Balázs Tarnai, shared these pictures of a bluejay catching a bug on his garage roof. Similar:Candyland is a masterpiece of game design (John Brieger unpacks the specific cultural cont… AestheticsFrom this station on the bridge, the exposition officer can relay whatever random bit of i…https://youtu.be/_E-3E7Q3LSs Get a lo…AestheticsChoose Your Own Buzz…