Poems About Fathers

—Poems About Fathers (Poetry Foundation) Having a father and being a father, I found this page interesting. When my own daughter is a teenager, I might not like “Fifteen” as much as I do now. Similar:The Great Gatsby Character Map SomethingSoSam.AestheticsBeowimp (spoof I wrote for my high school lit magazine c. 1985)I got an email this…

Tools for Teaching Basic Programming Concepts

Tools for Teaching Basic Programming Concepts Alice and Scratch. Filing for future reference. Similar:Understanding Shakespeare: "Pick a play. Click a line…"Pick a play. Click a line. Instantly see…CultureMy View: What will you do with an English degree? PlentyI just found my first reading assignment…AcademiaIn journalism, the speech is more important than any speaker. (Put newsworthy…

Will you, won't you… Blackwell's Quadrille

Will you, won’t you… Blackwell’s Quadrille (Jerz’s Literacy Weblog) “Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, will you join the dance?” — Lewis Carroll’s “Lobster Quadrille” I just tried to order an examination copy of a book from Blackwell Publishing, and when I got what looked like an error message on the final screen (or…

Shakespeare hates your emo poems

—Shakespeare hates your emo poems (Threadless) Interesting cultural phenomenon… sell a T-shirt, then create a website that lets customers upload photos of themselves wearing the T-shirt. The result turns the rebellious and snarky T-shirt designs into the uniforms of conformist consumer zombies. Similar:Letter of Recommendation: Fanny PacksWhat other accessory ensures the safety …CultureMinimalist Graphic Interpretations of…

The civil war in four minutes

—The civil war in four minutes (YouTube) Similar:Peter vs. the PenguinsFor the past hour, Peter (who is not yet…AmusingCursor*10Great free Flash game, emulated at the I…AestheticsThe grudging emergence of American journalism's classic editorial: New details about ''Is …”Is There A Santa Claus?” was published …HistoryAdaobi Tricia Nwaubani: My Great-Grandfather, the Nigerian Slave-TraderThis fascinating essay, by the…

PLAY-PEN: Games Due for a Lit Course

Modern interactive fiction, much more than its technically limited earlier counterparts, displays an incredible range of literary influences, tributes and styles. For Sherwin’s part, science fiction is an inspiration, but the greater part of his text adventures’ efficacy comes from the unique and anarchic style of his characters’ dialogue. “I have been greatly influenced by…

Deleted Scenes

—Deleted Scenes (StarTrekHistory.com) An awesome collection of painstakingly-restored still shots and script excerpts, from scenes that were filmed but never aired. Similar:Making a journalism game to teach myself ChoiceScriptMe: (Making a journalism game to teach m…AcademiaFaceTime Fun: iPod Touch Rides in Jedi FighterThrough the magic of FaceTime and the ve…AmusingIt's been a Dwarf Fortress afternoon. AwesomeOn…

A Fair(y) Use Tale

—A Fair(y) Use Tale (YouTube) Amazing demonstration of creative repurposing of Disney’s copyrighted material. Similar:Because words matter, old sport.AcademiaApple threatens to remove Parler social networking service from App Store Apple Inc has threatened to remove the…BusinessLighting makes a difference. The officers' pub from the interplanetary cruiser #steampunk …  AestheticsAmazing McDonald's "Maestro Burger" CommercialJaw-dropping. So creative and…

Mastering podcasts with Audacity

Open source software makes podcasting easy — too easy. Listening to a playlist of first-timer podcasts can leave your ears ringing from sudden changes in playback volume. The problem is audio mastering. Recording sound is simple, but mastering that sound — compressing volume differences, maintaining a decibel ceiling, and similar operations — is anything but.…

Why We're Doing This

We know that pro-am journalism can work only if people are persuaded to give their time, lend their knowledge, pool their intelligence. Those are donations, but not of money. Often they are more critical than money. To succeed in this, we have to persuade several hundred people to donate good work to one big story…

Objections to Turnitin

We should be jumping for joy every time a student plagiarizes, because that means our existence as teachers of composition is validated, as we have something to teach them – citation, research, the need for critical thinking. We should get down on our knees and thank the Internet for making it easier to plagiarize, because…

Who Isn't Afraid of Google?

In this strange, strange tale the Davids are the size of companies like Microsoft and Yahoo, rumoured to be discussing an alliance to take on the search leader. The list of detractors is longer than other search providers, though; privacy experts, advertisers, startups, and Hollywood executives are all frustrated with the company for one reason…

Mixed Reception

This activity is set in a research group that is developing an antivenom for spider bites. In the opening scene, Nelson Pogline, a talented graduate student, dies unexpectedly at a university reception. As a detective, you must use chemistry concepts to determine if this was murder and if so, solve the case. You can interview…