Federal Court Reaffirms Immunity of Bloggers from Suits Brought Against Commenters

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides that “[no] provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider,” and that “[n]o cause of action may be brought and no liability may be imposed under any State or local…

Pictaps

—Pictaps (Roxik.com) Thanks to the Flash power of Roxik’s Pictaps, I can draw an effigy of the great Captain Kirk, and make him dance! Dance, captain dance! Your puny phasers are no match for my superior intellect! Bwahahaha! Man, it’s been a long day. Similar:Ready to teach another set of students what research is (and what…

We Are Seven

[…] ‘So in the church-yard she was laid; And, when the grass was dry, Together round her grave we played, My brother John and I ‘And when the ground was white with snow, And I could run and slide, My brother John was forced to go, And he lies by her side.’ ‘How many are…

Britain for Americans

The British people have a different type of English language. In some ways it’s the same as yours, but in other ways it’s quite strange. Learn here how to communicate with British people. You may have heard some British people talking in movies. The men are the posh baddies who often drink to much; the…

Your retro, old-skool little song enshrines

Your retro, old-skool little song enshrinesThe unrelenting jackboot five-stress beat Of heel-toe thumping heel-toe bumping feetIn fourteen rigid rhyming goose-step lines.What talent’s there? I’ll never march; I swarm!I curse your foolish rules, your chains that bind,That dare to organize my off-beat mind;For truly I don’t need no steenkin’ form.Why pack and prune, revise, rework, rephraseMy…

The Steampunk Workshop

—The Steampunk Workshop Link via boingboing. Reminds me of Thomas Jefferson’s PAA (personal analog assistant). Similar:Incredible archer shows his speed-shooting skillsI know next to nothing about archery. Ac…AestheticsI did not know how much I would appreciate this detailed exploration of Star Trek: TOS pro…I’m amazed at the level of detail that w…AwesomeModular components to mix…

EXTERMINATE!

Still, what could be better than a crocheted stuffed Dalek, the greatest nemesis of Doctor Who? —EXTERMINATE! (Shigella) Via boingboing — though it’s described there as a “cozy” (that is, a decorative insulator that keeps a teapot warm). Similar:Battlestar Galactica 'Launch When Ready' Bridge Girl Fan Page (updated with links to archi… –Battlestar Galactica ‘Launch When…

At Your Service

My tenure story is the all-too-familiar tale of the assistant professor hired to start a new program. That program becomes wildly successful, beyond anyone’s predictions. Someone has to administer the needs of the program, so the new assistant professor (aka me) handles it. As the program grows, she handles more of its administration. She and…

An Estimate of the Number of Shakespeare's Atoms

About one in seven of the Shakespearean atoms in your body originated from his excrement. —An Estimate of the Number of Shakespeare’s Atoms (Jupiter Scientific) Deep thought of the day. Similar:BuzzFeed plagiarism, deleted posts: Jonah Peretti explains.In 2012 my former Slate colleague Farhad…BusinessKids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class. Twelfth-grade reading scores are…

Sleep and the Sabbatical

I had not expected students to care only about their high grades (A or A- are the only acceptable “good” grades) and about getting work done so they can get on with their partying or video games (“relaxing”) or even sleeping. I had not expected that students would dash off a first draft and think…

Armed and dangerous

[W]e all know that many actual rappers and hip-hop identities are in fact middle class computer geeks from nice suburbs (or indeed public school educated sons of bishops). Is the converse true? —Rich —Armed and dangerous (ObservatioNZ) An interesting reflection on nerdcore hip-hop. (I prefer geeksta rap, but that’s just me.) Similar:Sarek (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season…

[White]-o-Glyphics:Introduction

— Matthew White —[White]-o-Glyphics:Introduction (White-o-glyphics) These glyphs translate as “It was a dark and stormy night.” Fascinating stuff. It reminds me of a long bus ride that I spent sitting next to a hearing-impaired woman. I had learned the American Sign Language alphabet in third grade, but after spending several hours with this woman I figured…

Another SCD103 victim

My barely-used, barely-2-year old SCD103 is giving me the black screen in Camera mode but appears operational in Playback mode. I have called Samsung twice and was fed much the same story as I’ve read on this post. Please add us to the lawsuit too! —Another SCD103 victim (Camcorderinfo.com) My camcorder recently went out while I…

Step Afrika Performs at Seton Hill

Step Afrika, the first professional company in the world dedicated to the tradition of stepping, performed at Seton Hill on Thursday, February 8. Step Afrika is critically acclaimed for its efforts to promote an appreciation for stepping, an art form born in African American fraternities and based in African traditions. Step Afrika serves as a…

Mags' Circ Sags: Top Titles Down

Magazines – like television and other Old-Guard media – are seeing readers and advertising dollars follow consumers online. —Paul Tharp —Mags’ Circ Sags: Top Titles Down (NY Post) While “Mags’ Circ Sags” is a very efficient headline that lets the typesetter print it out in huge, eye-catching letters, a more informative title doesn’t take up any…

Introducing the book

—Introducing the book (YouTube) New media anxieties are nothing new. Similar:William Shatner: My Problem With Twitter's Verified AccountsAt age 84, William Shatner (most famous …CyberculturePOV: You are coding the automatic doors on your fantasy neovictorian cruiser personal proj…  POV: You are coding th…AestheticsHeard any good stories lately?My daughter has a terrible time settling…BooksMystery Science Theater 3000:…

Evolution, Alienation and Gossip: The role of mobile telecommunications in the 21st century

The space-age technology of mobile phones has allowed us to return to the more natural and humane communication patterns of pre-industrial society, when we lived in small, stable communities, and enjoyed frequent ‘grooming talk’ with a tightly integrated social network. In the fast-paced modern world, we had become severely restricted in both the quantity and…

Teaching Carnival #20

With the ides of February comes lots of snow and Teaching Carnival #20. —Teaching Carnival #20 (Revisionspiral) I just noticed that Revisionspiral included my to do list in Teaching Carnival #20. I’m still not finished with that list, but I’ve made good progress. Similar:MAGA World Is Splintering: Following the riot at the Capitol, Trump supporters are having…