“The study of English is whatever people within the community of inquiry known as ‘the English department’ happen to count as the study of English. There is no objective referent, such as “the nature of literary language,” to use as an arbiter among approaches. The foundation has not shifted–it has vanished.” Louis Menand —Unidisciplined (Wilson…
“The National Science Foundation’s annual symposium concluded Monday, with the 1,500 scientists in attendance reaching the consensus that science is hard.” —National Science Foundation: Science Hard (The Onion) Similar:Updated a post about Sarah Rush — the "launch when ready" crew member from 1979 Battlesta…I recently noticed that a blog post I cr…AmusingDog and TP WallAmusingDonald…
“These critics and, unfortunately, most video game players have a basic misunderstanding about the nature of games. They believe that the purpose of a game is to imitate something in life. They think the more realism the game has, the closer it will come to imitating life, and the better the game will be. They…
“A group of girls tormented one poor soul by sending her flowers under the name of a boy she had a crush on, sending him a sexually explicit letter under her name and telling a teacher she was cheating on tests. These examples provide a darkly fascinating portrait of the incredible lengths to which girls…
“[B]y reading evidence of Communist influence into every film with a rich villain, a corrupt politician or a dispossessed hero, Radical Hollywood inadvertently makes McCarthy and HUAC seem more rational than they really were.” —Radical Hollywood (Salon) Similar:Google’s healthcare AI made up a body part — what happens when doctors don’t notice? Though not in…
“{A}fter September 11, a slew of new or refocused media junkie/political sites reshaped the entire Internet media landscape. Blog now refers to a Web journal that comments on the news–often by criticizing the media and usually in rudely clever tones–with links to stories that back up the commentary with evidence. —Online Uprising (American Journalism Review)…
Admit it. You didn’t read the f—ing manual. You didn’t read it because you’re a geek and you don’t need no stinkin’ manual. Or you didn’t because you’re not a geek, and the manual gave you brain cramps. —Read The F—ing Story, Then RTFM (Wired) Similar:Meet the 12-year-old boy who makes games instead of going…
AARDVARK a million miles to put 26 animal puns in alphabetical order. I’d BADGER you and I’d keep CARPING on the subject, until I have no i-DEERs left. I’d have no EGRETs, however, as I FERRET out more animal puns. Jim Ertner Similar:I asked my geekling whether she was ready for bed…I asked my #geekling…
“The typewriter is in the process of becoming a thing of the past, along with dial phones and vinyl records. ‘Things of the past’ are still present, of course — it’s their world that is absent…” Richard Polt —Typology: A Phenomenology of Early Typewriters (Classic Typewriter Page) Similar:10 journalism resources for PR prosFrom PR Daily.com:…
On a page that collected links to articles about online navigation, Allen Smith posted a short quote from Jakob Nielsen, and added links to pages that illustrated Nielsen’s points. What are the ethical implications of adding inline links to quoted text? —Website Navigationwww.allensmith.net) Similar:Networks cut away from Trump’s White House addressNEW YORK (AP) — ABC,…
Surgeons who stay out late drinking suffer a noticeable decline in surgical performance the next morning, new research shows.” According to Reuters, the researchers were “quite surprised.” Similar:Masked up, so I don't infect you, in case you are in a vulnerable group. Feeling healthy. …CultureA Career-Aligned Major Isn’t EnoughI’ve taken over teaching the English dep…AcademiaThe…
“Who was Carolyn Keene, the pen name of the series author? It would take 50 years before fans found out that Keene was Mildred Wirt Benson, a gutsy, hard-working, fiercely independent journalist from Toledo, Ohio, with a penchant for adventure, both real and imagined.” —Creator of Teen Sleuth Nancy Drew Dies at 96 (Philadelphia Inquirer)…
Alex Golub notes that some weblogs are full of personal chatter, which reveals the personality of the ‘blogger. Other weblogs (like this one) are mostly links to outside sources. “Any choice between alternatives is by definition information. The more alternatives there are, the more information is signaled in the choice.” —Filtering as PersonhoodGolublog) Similar:The Mere…
Today is the day the medieval church celebrated the Feast of Corpus Christi (“Body of Christ”); the festivities in the town of York, England, included a massive theatrical performance, involving 300 speaking roles, which lasted from 4:30am until well after dark. —York Corpus Christi Play Simulator Similar:Who Watches the Watchers (ST:TNG Season Three Episode 4)…
“Americans buy the most sophisticated computers, the coolest digital cameras, the most advanced automobiles, the most versatile cell phones and handheld organizers, and then . . . and then we forget, or decline, or flat out refuse, to read the directions.” Caroline E. Mayer —Why Won’t We Read the Manual? (WashPost) Similar:Editorial: Video Games and…
“The spectre of eugenics, which reached its culmination in Nazi Germany, haunts both politicians and public. The fear that the ability to monitor and select for desirable characteristics will lead to the subjugation of the undesirable—or the merely unfashionable—is well-founded.” —The Future of Mind Control (Economist) Similar:My Encounter with EpochTimes.comPeter and I spoke to a…
“The average [U.K.] reader spends 17 minutes a day reading a newspaper, compared to 11 minutes on a novel. They spend a further seven minutes online, six minutes on non-fiction, five minutes with a magazine, and two minutes looking up things they did not understand in a reference book.” —Novels Lose out to Newspapers (Guardian)…
“I photographed every door or drawer knob, handle, or latch I touched from the time I awoke on Thursday, June 3rd. until I went to bed on Friday, June 4th.” —Doors I Touched Today (Fluxus) Similar:Henry Bemis waited his whole life to finally read a book. Listen to Lynn Venable’s story,…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xc3DHCiz…BooksIdlewild's Story Book Forest Improves…
“No wonder so much poetry boils down to whining over the inadequacy and immorality of the poet’s little world. No wonder that poets, when they do move at all, head right for the handiest anodyne, whether it’s cheap whisky or pop-Buddhism.” Robert Bové —Do Poets Matter? (The Texas Mercury) Similar:About that Cough, Rough, Pony, Bologna…
“The Information Age was dealt a stunning blow Monday, when a factual error was discovered on the Internet. The error was found on TedsUltimateBradyBunch.com, a Brady Bunch fan site that incorrectly listed the show’s debut year as 1968, not 1969.” —Factual Error Found on Internet (The Onion) Similar:Emotional Intelligence Needs a RewriteI’ve recently processed and…