Happy V-Day: Valentines for Journalists

Valentines for Journalists. Similar:NINE officials have COVID-19 after 'superspreader' SCOTUS eventSo negative! Why does the lying America-…Current_EventsThe girl around the house casually dressed "as a Jacobite."AmusingVintage Freebies for DesignersI wish I had time for cool stuff like th…AestheticsGirl Moved To Tears By Of Mice And Men Cliffs NotesIn what she described as “the most emoti…AcademiaLego…

Peter West, Trying the Dark: Mammoth Cave and the Racial Imagination, 1839-1869

Interesting examination of role-playing, illusion, identity, and power in Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave, one small branch of which was the inspiration for the 1976/7 computer game Colossal Cave Adventure. In the middle decades of the nineteenth century, Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave was a popular tourist destination for travelers from around the United States and beyond. The cave…

Typography and Textuality

Zach Whalen is turning his dissertation into a blog-web-thing, in the hopes of developing a book-thing. In whatever form it takes, it’s an interesting approach to a textual study of video games. This study asks how the design and configuration of text in videogames contributes to their textuality. I argue that videogames are texts in…

The Superbowl, Technology, and the Police State (1984-2010)

There’s a dissertation in here. All I have the energy to do today is imply a connection. Using a police state to market technology in 1984: Using a police state to market technology in 2010: Similar:Pope calls Argentine kiosk owner to cancel paper deliveryThis is a very cute story, further illus…Amusingfrom “The Poet” by Ralph…

Google’s Super Bowl Ad: A Romance in Search

I didn’t watch the game, but I did catch the buzz about this ad. Yes, I did tear up. (Wired has details.) Similar:In September, 2003, I was blogging about the emerging fad of internet plagiarism, ethnical…In September, 2003, I was blogging about…CultureThe girl as the Spanish Soloist in @laurelballettheater & @westmorelandsymphony The Nutcra…AestheticsGeometry and color…

The great global warming collapse

It is dangerous to use local weather events (such as a heavy or light winter) to make judgments about global climate. With that caveat, I’m blogging the following because I’ve noted a shift in the online discussion about “global warming,” or the more general “climate change”. This essay does a good job exploring the events…

Obligatory Snowpocalypse Photo

Here’s hoping I left gas in the snow-thrower. Similar:Another section of #steampunk control panel, because reasons. #blender3d #blender3dartOne of many steampunk control panels I’v…AestheticsWhat Each Side of the COVID-19 Debate Should Understand About the OtherI’m very conscious that my lockdown expe…CultureTalked too much during a meeting today.Talked too much during a meeting today. …AcademiaUnmarked assignments.…

Doom Iphone code review.

Fascinating software study of the Doom iPhone port.http://fabiensanglard.net/doomIphone/index.php Similar:Fascinating, and very sad, story behind an iconic National Geographic photo.Fascinating, and very sad, story behind …AestheticsLegacy (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 6) Visiting Yar's Lawless ColonyRewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break….MediaThe Myth of North America, in One PaintingFascinating art history — a thoughtful …AestheticsMedia Bias…

ENG 111: Pop Up Scholarship

Our first few readings in my freshman writing course were personal essays, with a clear narrative.  We read an academic paper today, and there’s another assigned for Friday.  A few students are already reporting feeling a little lost in the detail. I gather this is because they are used to reading textbooks, where all the…

Pee-wee Gets an iPad

Pee-wee Gets An iPad! from Pee-wee Herman Similar:Should the AP Really Have Fired This Pulitzer-Prize War Photographer?The original shot caught a Syrian rebel …AestheticsSummer Theater Camp Photos: "Patrice" in "13" My 11yo performed the part of “Patrice…Current_EventsGrumpy Gamer – Happy Birthday Monkey IslandI guess Monkey Island turns 25 this mont…CybercultureLiterature Is Not Data: Against Digital…

"Can We Tape?"

I usually carry a digital voice recorder with me.  In most states it’s legal to record a conversation if all parties consent, although Pennsylvania law requires that all parties to a conversation be notified that a conversation is being recorded. “It is always legal to tape or film a face-to-face interview when your recorder or…