About a boy

Born with a rare syndrome that left him profoundly autistic, seven-year-old Luke was trapped in his own body. But then his dad took him surfing. —Paul Solotaroff —About a boy (Guardian) I’m sick with a virus, and I can’t do much but read. Oh, and try to find out why my division chair can’t log into…

Getting It All Wrong: Bioculture critiques Cultural Critique

Until literature departments take into account that humans are not just cultural or textual phenomena but something more complex, English and related disciplines will continue to be the laughingstock of the academic world that they have been for years because of their obscurantist dogmatism and their coddled and preening pseudo-radicalism. Until they listen to searching…

Virtual Reality for Five Dollars a Day

Humans communicate with each other through voice inflection, timing, and gesture. “Those capabilities are hard-wired into humans,” Pausch explains. “You wouldn’t put up with a person who makes you learn how to type commands to him; why should you have to talk to computers that way? Ultimately, we’d like to be able to read facial…

Dear Soldier

I love you very much. You’re so cute. I like the way you talk. You’re very very nice to me sometimes. And sometimes you don’t talk to me at all. You’re my best guy in the whole world. You are loving all the time, and you are so sweet. I think you are in the…

One School Frog Writing on His Blog

It’s one school frog,   writing on his blog,Two school bees,   writing on their blog,Three purple snakes,   writing on their blog,Four bunnies that are green,   writing on their blog,Five pink monkeys,   writing on their blog. —Carolyn Jerz, age 4 One School Frog Writing on His Blog (Jerz’s Literacy Weblog) Similar:John Speed’s 1611 map of #medievalyork features a “scale of paces.” My #unity3d…

Comments are Back Up

Comments are Back Up …. just in case anyone was wondering. Similar:Classroom Vignette: MLA StyleStudent (shouldering backpack and headin…AcademiaNext up for the girl: Amy, the youngest sister, in Little Women: The Broadway Musical. Nov…PersonalTrump communications director Murtaugh rallies supporters by tweeting fake Washington Time…Here’s more evidence of just how crucial…CultureIf you want to work with…

Vintage Mobile Phones

—Vintage Mobile Phones I’d love to see one with a rotary dial… how cool would that be? Similar:Working Towards a ResolutionLooks like all the content has been remo…BusinessOpen Source College Math BookOne day last year, David Lippman got an …AcademiaAfter decades lost, Star Trek’s original Enterprise model may have been foundLong before sci-fi shows created…

Hammer Dream

Hammer Dream (Jerz’s Literacy Weblog) This morning, I heard my daughter stirring in the next room, and I fell back asleep, knowing I only had a few minutes before I had to start getting her ready for preschool. In those few minutes, I had a dream. I was showing my daughter a hammer. It had a…

Living Room Physics

I’ve blogged before about my eight-year-old son’s interest in science. His knowledge at this point is mostly made up of isolated facts, which he strings together in a stream of consciousness that often does not require much input. A few weeks ago, when he told his four-year-old sister that a feather and a rock would…

Approaching Brand New Markets

In the established magazine category, it’s a buyer’s market. That is, the publishers control it. In the new magazine category, it’s still a buyer’s market, but it’s as close to a seller’s market as magazines will ever get. And you’re the seller. Whether you’re new or well-published, you’ve got more power when dealing with new…

The Child

—Antoine Bardou-Jacquet —The Child Now there’s an interesting idea for a text-based mod of Half-Life 2. Hmm…. Similar:Fair use prevails as Supreme Court rejects Google Books copyright caseFair use is a concept baked into US copy…BooksState officials: Bushy Run staff must consult with Native groups before staging reenactmen…When my kids were younger, trips to Busy…CultureWinnie…