“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:Privacy and reporting on personal livesInteresting guidelines, phrased as sugge…CybercultureThat's what's been bothering me since yesterday's #AirPod reveal. #manamanaNumber of…
“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:Florida Woman Bites CamelIdentifying her as…
“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:Pac-Man”The kids who grew up steering Pac-Man a…DesignDuke…
More evidence of the collapse of civilization as we know it: a website offering instructions for making a pink-fur-trimmed “Hello Kitty” laptop. Similar:A Box With A Hidden Video Camera Documents Journey Through The MailAs a big fan of Richard Scary, I really …AmusingPage Weight MattersUnexpected consequences, when a develope…CybercultureReleasing a Tiny Game and Trying to…
“Last week’s column about the death of my son Chase from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome set off something of a chain reaction across the Net… by the time I awoke on Thursday, words of support were already in from readers in Japan, Australia, India, and Kuwait.” Robert X. Cringely —Is That a Supercomputer in Your…
“Whereas poetry uses highly-charged combinations of words, equations are the most succinct descriptions of the aspect of reality they describe. Dirac’s most famous poem enabled him successfully to predict the existence of antimatter…” Graham Farmelo —Physics + Dirac = poetry (Guardian) Similar:From The 'London Times' of 1904A Mark Twain short story, written in 189…CybercultureAffect (v.…
Have you ever been watching a movie, with sumptuous re-creations of period costumes, hair, and furniture — only to be annoyed by the anachronistic appearance of a modern typeface? No? Me neither, but Mark Simonson has. —Typecasting Similar:Context for Hayles, My Mother was a Computer (Ch 3 & 4)My undergraduates are working their way …AcademiaVintage…
“I can’t change the laws of physics!” [44k wav] says a distraught Scotty in a classic Star Trek episode. But researchers have found evidence that suggests that the value of a fundamental “constant” has changed since the universe was young. —Laws of Physics “May Change” (BBC) Similar:My laptop hard drive is full & my comfort-food…
(Guardian): Treating earache: 2000BC: Here, eat this root. 1000AD: That root is heathen. Here, say this prayer. 1850AD: Prayer is superstition. Here, drink this potion. 1940AD: That potion is snake oil. Here, swallow this pill. 1985AD: That pill is ineffective. Here, take this antibiotic. 2000AD: That antibiotic is artificial. Here, eat this root. —Alternative Medicine…
With a popcorn plot engineered to appeal to sci-fi fans, Portal is an “interactive novel” published in 1986, and now available online as freeware. Rob Swiggart —Portal: A Dataspace Retrieval Similar:For Two Months, I Got My News From Print Newspapers. Here’s What I Learned.Farhad Manjoo says he’s a better, more-i…CultureThesis Critique Activity: Another Use of…
A confusing name for an amusing medieval personality test. What kind of vocation would have suited you back in ye olde days? —KingdomalityCareer Management International) Similar:Why the Weather Channel's Hype Has Lost Me for GoodAfter the break, we’ll tell you how impo…BusinessHow The Ballpoint Pen Killed CursiveIn Death of a Salesman, Biff impulsively…BusinessBig Calculator: How…
Why choose Renoir’s “Luncheon of the Boating Party” as a subject for poetry? Stewart Conn says “The painting chose me.” —Luncheon of the Boating Party Similar:Theory Trading CardsThis set of 21 Theory Trading Cards, pub…AcademiaEnglish teaching: Johnson: Talking past each otherWhen I got to college, I had already lea…Academia'Jane Austen, Game Theorist' by Michael Suk-Young…
“Some weblogs wither once the first flush of enthusiasm passes, while others go from strength to strength, attracting contributions and feedback from experts and interested Internet surfers.” Laurel A. Clyde —Weblogs and Blogging (FreePint) One of her examples looks very familiar… Similar:Florida Woman Bites CamelIdentifying her as a “Florida woman,” as…AestheticsIn August, 2000 I was…
Do you remember learning that black moths gained an evolutionary advantage in soot-covered woods? “Once it had been cited enough times, it became an irrefutable article of faith. Hooper’s meticulous research provides a fascinating insight into the fallibility of scientists – after all, as she points out, they are only human.” —Darwinism in a FlutterGuardian)…
(NY Times): “At its best, the Internet can educate more people faster than any media tool we’ve ever had. At its worst, it can make people dumber faster than any media tool we’ve ever had.” Thomas L. Friedman —Global Village Idiocy Similar:When T.S. Eliot Invented the Hipster Prufrock cannot bring himself to…CultureOk, never mind Dusgcxms2……
“Instead of a link… put a search box on your home page.” (UseIT.com) I e-mailed web guru Jakob Nielsen on 13 March 2000, telling him that 6 out of 6 college freshman couldn’t find the “search” feature on his website. I wrote: “I think it might help if, instead of a link, you actually put…
(UseIT.com) : “A company’s homepage is its face to the world and the starting point for most user visits. Improving your homepage multiplies the entire website’s business value, so following key guidelines for homepage usability is well worth the investment.” Jakob Nielsen —Home Page Usability Guidelines Similar:On Death and iPods: A RequiemI never owned a…
“All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.” — Abraham Lincoln —Tribute to Mothers Similar:Text Games in a New Era of StoriesClever NYT writer cleverly notices a gen…CultureBritish Politician begins reciting colonial-era Kipling poem in in Myanmar templeAfter the UK ambassador cut off his reci…CultureAnother visit to downtown…
“FACT: A 1987 survey found that Canadians have the worst handwriting in the whole world. They also frequently misspell the word ‘sauce.’” —The Truth about Canada Similar:The 22 rules of storytelling, according to PixarMy favorite: “Once upon a time there was…ArtStem subject snobbery: a student’s view on why arts subjects matterWhile everyone complains about…