Book recounts 100 years of county courthouse – Tribune-Review

Jennifer Reeger of the Tribune-Review (Pittsgurgh) reports on my colleague’s local (Westmoreland County) history book. “Thank God we do have this beautiful building,” said Mike Cary, professor of history and political science at Seton Hill University and an editor of a book on the courthouse’s history. “People remember Greensburg — they remember that dome when…

When Musicians Play Interactive Fiction

Nick Montfort, Grand Text Auto: Leonard Cohen Manhattan: Taken. Berlin: Taken. Similar:Unity Normal Problems (Importing an object from Blender 2.8b)I had a complex model that I created in …AestheticsOn Immigration, Poetry Isn’t Policy, but Poetry Matters, by David French, National ReviewThe conservative National Review offers …ArtZork: The Great Underground EmpireA blogger has started chronicling a…

John Henry was a steel-drivin' bastard

Via MetaFilter: You’ve got just over two weeks to make it to the John Henry celebration in Leeds, Alabama, where some folks believe the legendary steel driving contest actually took place. Maybe you already made it to John Henry Days in Talcott, West Virginia (or read a fictionalized account), where some more folks claim the…

The Tale of the Mechanical Virus

Sean McBride: The problem I discovered was that one of the thin walls between the holes had broken and bent down, forming a ramp. When I plugged the DVI adapter into my computer, two of the pins went into the same hole, and the projector could no longer understand the output from my computer. However,…

Full Moon Rising

This evening, I was out in the yard playing with the kids, when they noticed the full moon rising above a house a little ways down the street. Similar:Twitter Cheat Sheet to Help Increase Engagement-Brands see 17 percent more engagement d…BusinessOn the way to closing night of "Orphans."PersonalMy outward-bound editor's graduation cap.PersonalSouthwest Airlines CEO Gary…

YouTube – Short Letterpress Documentary (Wonderful)

  Similar:Your first #blender3d retractable #steampunk landing wheels will be your worst. But you ha…Your first #blender3d retractable #steam…AestheticsThe Mystery of Charles Dickens by Joyce Carol OatesDickens is so brilliant a stylist, his v…AestheticsSkin of Evil (TNG Rewatch, Season 1 Episode 23)My rewatch reflection on the Star Trek:T…DesignIf Wishes Were Horses (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch, Season…

Colossal Cave Adventure — History

Couldn’t sleep. Thought I’d do some more work on the Wikipedia entry for Colossal Cave Adventure. Similar:There's nothing like a fair-minded, good-faith analysis of the factsThere’s nothing like a fair-minded, good…Current_EventsAfter some long-delayed recabling, these are the bits I culled from my work setup.PersonalDetails for a modular mid-range scoutship, from the #steampunk #neovictorian bedtime stori…Details…

YouTube – The Wilhelm Scream Compilation

The Wilhelm Scream is a sound effect that appears in many action films, as an in-joke among sound designers. Similar:Actors Fail to Distract Audience from Prop Newspaper HeadlinesMy daughter and I were talking about pro…AmusingInfluencers overtaking journalists as news source: reportTikTok influencers and celebrities are i…CybercultureReunion (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 7) Picard Arbitrates…

Going South

It’s funny, because it’s true…. David Galef satirizes the humiliation humanities professors have to go through when requesting research funds: To Professor Michael Wall, Chair, English Department: This has to do with the travel budget for the coming academic year. As we discussed last spring, I need something on the order of $700 for the…

Is There Anything Good About Men?

Roy F. Baumeister One can imagine an ancient battle in which the enemy was driven off and the city saved, and the returning soldiers are showered with gold coins. An early feminist might protest that hey, all those men are getting gold coins, half of those coins should go to women. In principle, I agree.…

One in four read no books last year

One in four adults say they read no books at all in the past year, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Tuesday. Of those who did read, women and seniors were most avid, and religious works and popular fiction were the top choices. The survey reveals a nation whose book readers, on the whole,…