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…
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…
Similar:Essay on how much a professor learned about teaching from his mentorI had a similar experience, with a mento…CultureYouTube distortion after the same clip is re-uploaded 1000 timesIn theory, technology lets people make a…AestheticsAmazing McDonald's "Maestro Burger" CommercialJaw-dropping. So creative and joyful. …AestheticsBlogging is NOT Analog Writing in Digital SpacesBlogging in education is about…
Similar:Karate, Wonton, Chow Fun: The end of 'chop suey' fonts Close your eyes and imagine the font y…AestheticsThe Anatomy of an Amazon 6-pagerIn the halls of power at Amazon, busy ex…Business1949 NBC Radio Adaptation of Orwell's 1984Long before the Apple ad, and Michael Ra…Culture7 Tips for Budding Mobile Journalists“Mobile journalism is … not something yo…CybercultureMeet…
If that’s not good enough for you, try Similar:Social Distancing: Because the Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the FewEmpathyAnother 10 sq cm of #steampunk control panel. #blender3d #blender3dart #design #aestheti…AestheticsBrothers (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 3) Awkward Android Family ReunionRewatching ST:TNG after taking a break f…MediaIn October 2001, I was blogging…
While reviewing proposals for a new games journalism assignment in my video game culture and theory course, I found myself thinking about Floyd the Robot, from Planetfall. Some students were commenting excitedly about the emotional impact of the airport scene in Modern Warfare 2 (you are infiltrating a terrorist cell, and the game requires you…
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:First Stanford code poetry slam reveals the literary side…
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:As if 2021 wasn't already bad enough, it managed to get Betty White. Beloved actress, comedian and American…Current_EventsHow exactly do bridges bridge? How do rivers…
Looks like the rumors of an Apple tablet are creating ripples… the HP tablet apparently has two hinged screens, which seems to put it into the smartbook category. On Wednesday, Mr. Ballmer, Microsoft‘s chief executive, will unveil a novel take on a slate-type computer during his evening keynote at the Consumer Electronics trade show in…
Americans’ print consumption has declined since 1960, but words delivered by computer have more than made up the difference. (Image courtesy of the University of California at San Diego’s Global Information Industry Center) Conventional wisdom holds that YouTube, videogames, cable TV and iPods have turned us away from the written word. Glowing streams of visual…
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…
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…
Thanks, John, for sending me this link. Smart phones are great. But I’m not going to blog on my Blackberry. Reading texts from my mom is easy, but I’d rather not read a New Yorker story she emails to me on a 1.5”-by-1.5” screen. The ability of smart phones to do pretty much everything doesn’t…
It’s a spoof, but it’s well-researched and contains plenty of insight. Similar:Journalists prefer in-person interviews. Emailing questions to strangers and expecting the…An interview means a real-time give-and …EducationWet Book Rescuehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9_fwmdC…BooksNews report from 1981 about the Internet.A human interest story about an early ex…BusinessApple Hill Playhouse is closing, leaving theater group seeking new homeConfiguring socially distanced…
The Jurupa Oak tree first sprouted into life when much of the world was still covered in glaciers. It has stood on its windswept hillside in southern California for at least 13,000 years, making it the oldest known living organism, according to a study published today. —Independent Reading this story reminded me of a story…
I canna give the furnace any more power! I hope the lithium crystals are still under warranty. Furnace.mp3 Similar:Colorful variations of an upholstered desk chair for my fantasy #steampunk #blender3d proj…AestheticsSibling Affection and Paternal Abstraction as Drawn By a Six-Year-Old; or, Aren't My Daugh…My six-year-old daughter is a very visua…AmusingFinal grades are due tomorrow. My…
I just played this Every Day the Same Dream. Simple, stark, and in places charming. I smiled and thought a little. Similar:Responding to Literature at the College LevelA new handout, based on the opening lect…AcademiaThe girl as Gimli, Legolas, Aragorn and Thorin. #proudofthegirl #notentirelysurewhy #still…AestheticsCan you tell the difference between factual and opinion statements?I got…
I’m gearing up to teach Video Game Culture and Theory for the third time. It’s a 200-level elective, with no prerequisites. Students will have taken a basic comp course, but some won’t have done any academic research yet. I’m conscious that some students may have difficulty switching from playing the games they want to play,…
The first part of a walkthrough of the classic (1993), a moody, contemplative point-and-click adventure that defies the stereotype of games as violent and chaotic. Popular with women and causual gamers, but also appreciated by expert gamers for its puzzles and graphics (photo-realistic CGI, with pre-rendered animations), it was the top-selling game for nearly a…
Do students who report enjoying a teaching style actually learn more from that style? This study suggests that there may be an optimal teaching method for a given task, and that whether students like it or not, that optimal method does a better job teaching them. (As usual, beware of any new article with “may”…