First-Person Tetris

An interesting spin on Tetris. Similar:My Latest Classic Tales Online PurchaseJust finished listening to B. J. Harris …Books100 Word ChallengeIt is a weekly creative writing challeng…CulturePope Leo XIV names AI one of the reasons for his papal name…I chose to take the name Leo XIV. There…Current_EventsDefend the Open Web: Keep DRM Out of W3C StandardsThe…

What Type are You?

Why did Brian Wilson use Cooper Black on the cover of Pet Sounds? Why did Obama use Gotham for his election propaganda? It has long been apparent that typefaces reflect the character of the person using them, and that type choice, as well as the words that are typed, is a powerful conveyor of meaning. At…

Nil by mouth

Afer extensive treatments for cancer, including the removal of part of his jaw, film critic Roger Ebert is still critiquing movies and writing, but he is unable to speak; he also can’t eat or drink. His recent column reflects on life without a mouth. One day in the hospital my brother-in-law Johnny Hammel and his…

The Turtlenecked Hairshirt

Ian Bogost has stirred up some discussion with his post on how digital humanities has challenged the humanities at large.  I’ve been very happy with the level of support I’ve received from my English colleagues, my humanities colleagues, and the dean, but all interdisciplinary, hybrid, and emerging fields rub against the sharp edges of the…

Colossal Cave Adventure Playthrough (with my 11-year-old son)

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My 11yo Son and I Play Adam Cadre's 9:05 (Interactive Fiction Playthrough)

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A playable game of Tabletop Pong

If that’s not good enough for you, try Similar:Reading Literature on Screen: A Price for Convenience?Because all of my Seton Hill students ge…AcademiaRichard Scarry unfinished manuscript to be publishedSome of my happiest memories of fatherho…Aesthetics#setonhill remembers 9/11/2001.AcademiaLooking for Par'Mach in All the Wrong Places #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 5, Episode 3) …Rewatching ST:DS9 Outside the…

What art thou, Pez?

What are thou, Pez, that must needs be dispensed? T’ be merely wrapped would leave thee so incensed? T’were better still to leave the fingers sticky, Than be vomited up by the likes of Mickey. — Mark Janello Curtis Allina, 87, Put Heads on Pez Dispensers Similar:Pagers, Pay Phones, and Dialup: How We Communicated on…

crazy…creative…it's a fine line

What would be more awesome than a colorful display of iconic images from 100 beloved games? How about a colorful display of iconic images from 100 beloved games on cupcakes? Similar:Why fake news worksFake news works on our emotions, usually…CybercultureSam Shepard Giggles, Doesn't GoogleI wrote my undergraduate honors thesis o…CybercultureRediscovering Infocom Games With My Kids …

Deus Ex Memories

I’ve just finished my final training run as a nanotech-augmented super-agent. Nasty terrorists holed up in the ruins of the State of Liberty have captured one of my fellow agents, and it’s my job to get him out. In real life, it’s 2002, and I’m just a guy in Wisconsin. My four-year-old son is asleep…

Video Game Culture and Theory

My online three-week course will start tomorrow morning. It will lean heavily on blogging, so chances are I’ll be a bit more productive than usual in that area. Video Game Culture and TheoryThis course isn’t about learning how to “win” a game, nor is it about programming or design. In fact, according to a recent…

Ms. Pac-Man: Feminist Hero

It’s a spoof, but it’s well-researched and contains plenty of insight. Similar:British Politician begins reciting colonial-era Kipling poem in in Myanmar templeAfter the UK ambassador cut off his reci…CultureStudents Speak Up: Trust Us With DevicesThe students who are, in the first few w…CybercultureAI researchers find AI models learning their safety techniques, actively resisting trainin…Researchers had…