The Silver Lining

A fan-produced Kings Quest sequel is shut down. What a way to treat your brand’s most loyal followers. Recently, however, ownership of the Sierra IP changed hands and became the property of Activision. After talks and negotiations in the last few months between ourselves and Activision, they have reached the decision that they are not…

The Internet Bible: The Fall of Eve

Via Similar:Despite its impressive output, generative AI doesn’t have a coherent understanding of the …[A] popular type of generative AI model&…CybercultureHave 40 years of mobile phones given literature bad lines?The X Files did a good job of embracing …CybercultureCongo nun overcomes blackouts with homemade hydroelectric plantSister Alphonsine Ciza spends most of he…Current_EventsEarth With RingsSure, Saturn’s…

Doyle Redland Says Goodbye

I’m still mourning the loss of Herman T. Zwiebel.  And now this? Similar:Two Steps Down the Interactive Fiction RoadWonderfully detailed analysis of two gro…AestheticsI never have time to create materials like this during the academic year. Brand new handou… AP Style follows the standard Englis…AcademiaA certain potions instructor is done with everything after submitting midterm…

"By Their Sidewalks You Will Know Them"

There are no sidewalks where I live, but if there were, my sidewalk, and my conscience, would be clear. Here’s the first stanza of a five-stanza poem by TImons Esaias. Originally there were eleven CommandmentsMoses, perhaps confused by the unfamiliarsnow, ice, and sidewalk,botched one, and left it out. Similar:Nature walks 2012 and 2018.AestheticsMa Rainey's Black…

The ABCs of Adventuring

Thanks for this find, Mark Sample (via Twitter). The ABCs of Adventuringby Admiral Jota, Dylan O’Donnell, G. Kevin Wilson, and Dan Shiovitz.A is for Adventure, the first of them all;B is for Brass lantern, so you don’t take a fall.C is for Compass, an unseen one you keepD is for Drinking, eating and sleep.E is…

What Makes a Great Teacher?

Gripping story of an effort to use data to predict teaching excellence. As Teach for America began to identify exceptional teachers using this data, Farr began to watch them. He observed their classes, read their lesson plans, and talked to them about their teaching methods and beliefs. He and his colleagues surveyed Teach for America…

Why Google Has Become Microsoft's Evil Twin

Google Buzz combined the openness of Twitter with the “whoo-hoo look at me!” aspects of Facebook. The result? A total face plant. —PC World Similar:Adam Savage’s 10 Commandments Of MakingAdam Savage took a few minutes today at …AestheticsStandardized Test Scores Don't Really Measure LearningThere are ways to raise a child’s test s…AcademiaCommentary: The unbearable smugness…

Critical Code Studies Working Group — Colossal Cave Adventure Annotation

This week, I’ll be facilitating a week-long collaborative annotation project, as part of the Critical Code Studies Working Group online conference, on the source code to Crowther’s original Colossal Cave Adventure (a classic text-only computer game from the 1970s). According to Donald Knuth, designer of the “literate programming paradigm,” Colossal Cave Adventure is the “ur-game…

Happy V-Day: Valentines for Journalists

Valentines for Journalists. Similar:When is the phrase "when asked about…" part of good news writing? Rarely.A new graphic for an existing handout, w…AcademiaThe President Versus ‘Fake News,’ AgainBret Stephens of the NYTimes says by acc…CultureFanciful Fun in Theatre Factory’s “The Fantasticks”A great review from Pittsburgh in the Ro…CultureNTSB Blames Intern for Confirming Offensive Fake Names…

Frisbee inventor dies at 90

Walter Frederick Morrison, the man credited with inventing the Frisbee, has died at the age of 90. —Guardian Similar:Yes, Virginia, There Is a Journalist!My new hero is NPR’s Michael Oreskes. S…Current_EventsMurder Is Her Hobby: Frances Glessner Lee and The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained DeathSimulations are powerful tools for under…AestheticsYou’re Just Gonna Be Nice by A.…