The Steampunk Workshop

—The Steampunk Workshop Link via boingboing. Reminds me of Thomas Jefferson’s PAA (personal analog assistant). Similar:Schisms (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 6, Episode 5)Rewatching ST:TNG Riker is having troub…DesignLooking forward towards the wardroom (center) and the officers' pub, the Gear and Hea…AestheticsThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy – About the game30th anniversary refit of the cruel,…

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:When F. Scott Fitzgerald Judged Gatsby By Its Cover With a big Hollywood movie now in th…AestheticsComing up…

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:Déjà Q (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 13) Amusing, insightful study of hum…(Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break…AmusingThe Hubble spotted this smiley face in spaceReading each…

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:The Boat (Graphic Novel)My mother…

[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:A.I. 'Completes' Keith Haring's Intentionally Unfinished Painting After learning of his AIDS diagnosis…AestheticsURL Hacking (new graphic for an older page that’s surprisingly popular on my site)CybercultureI know that look.This was my 9yo today. She doesn’…AmusingRereading “Writing to Learn”Rereading “Writing to Learn,” William Zi…AcademiaSomewhere out there, somebody…

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:My meeting was cancelled, so I spent the morning assembling a cabinet for…

2014 EPIC, by Google

—Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson —2014 EPIC, by Google”Museum of Media History”) Via cac.aphony.org. A great companion piece to Web 2.0: The Machine is Us/ing Us. Similar:Turnitin.com UI Woes: One-click, No-confirmation Deletion of QuickMark SetsIn general, I find Turnitin.com’s GradeM…AcademiaDestroying trust in the media, science, and government has left America vulnerable to disa…From The Brookings…