"In 1044, a Chinese manual on producing gunpowder-based weapons included cannons, bombs for lobbing at invaders, two-stage rockets, and land mines." Chinese researchers stumbled across the formula for gunpowder while researching what they called the "immortality pill". What forces control the way inventions end up being used? Mark Robinson —Accidental Geniusb> (Wired) Similar:The Battle (TNG…
The genius of Web sites for accommodating multiple points of view is nowhere better illustrated than in the recent on-line craze for public diaries, or “blogs.” The term is a shortening of Weblog – and also the name of the easy-to-use technology available at www.blogger.com: “Push-Button Publishing for the People.” Jeff Warren —Point and Think…
September 11, 2001.It’s been six months since Similar:APNews.com Photo Still Says Sam Smith "declared his pronouns 'they/them'" a Week LaterThe Associated Press was widely criticiz…CultureThe Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (workshop premiere of a new musical by Greg Kerestan) I really enjoyed seeing the first work…CultureDear daughter, let Miley Cyrus be a lesson to youI am…
If they throw this renegade hacker hero in jail, it’ll be the first time he’s had a steady place to stay in five years. —He Hacks by Day, Squats by Night (Wired) Similar:Today's Computer Displays Distort Pixel Art Designed for 1980s CRTsAs a kid, I remember studying my CRT dis…AestheticsIn February 2000, I was blogging…
: "No more blog blog blog!" — line not quite spoken by Captain Kirk ("Miri," Star Trek). —William Shatner’s Weblog Similar:The Rhetoric of Anthems and the Drama of KneelingI don’t follow sports, so I don’t feel f…CultureWilliam Shakespeare’s Star WarsBecause apparently I am not already nerd…AestheticsSports Meant So Much to Me. Why Wouldn’t My Son…
"Not telling someone where you got your information from is a kind of power stroke, effectively sealing your book off from any possible scrutiny, debate or challenge." Kathryn Hughes —The re-vision thing: Why are contemporary biographers and historians so afraid of footnotes? (Guardian) Similar:The Emma Watson nude pictures hoax shames our ‘news’ cultureDid you hear…
In 1085, William the Conqueror commissioned the Domesday Book. In 1986, the BBC spent £2.5 million to create an electronic version. While William’s original is still in fine shape, there are no computers capable of reading the laser discs on which the BBC version was published. —Ancient Domesday Book Outlives Electronic Versionb> (Ananova) Similar:80 Days…
(ZDNet) "The only way to explain Microsoft’s decisions over the past couple of years is to say that they know their packaged software business is doomed," says open-source advocate Eric Raymond. —Cheap PCs will doom Microsoft Similar:Parable of the Polygons – a playable post on the shape of societyA very clever interactive essay that use…CultureFacebook’s…
: Plants are psychic. The Russians are interfering with the weather. An early USENET conspiracy theorist from UWEC was once responsible for generating nearly 90% of Internet news traffic. —Robert E. McElwaine from the UWEC is an "Internet Legend" Similar:My meeting was cancelled, so I spent the morning assembling a cabinet for a Little Free…
"…in the past three months, the pent-up thirst for knowledge and modern skills has transformed the capital. Dozens of storefront language and computer skills centers have sprung up, and last week several thousand young people showed up to take entrance exams at the newly revived university." —With War Over, Afghans Battle Ignorance (WashPost) Similar:Sherlock Holmes…
My student Matt Hoy sent me this link. Thanks, Matt! —Scholarly Electronic Publishing Weblog Similar:Opinion | Fake News Comes to AcademiaThe three academics call themselves “lef…AcademiaI never have time to create materials like this during the academic year. Brand new handou… AP Style follows the standard Englis…AcademiaR.I.P. Blogging, Killed By Screenshorts Are screenshorts slowly killing…
(New Yorker) Manhattan treasure hunt: "Across the street, a writer for ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’ and a crossword virtuoso named Ellen Ripstein are scrutinizing graffiti in a phone booth. Catercornered to them, the editor of the Wall Street Journal crossword is standing beside a professional palindromist who is riffling through a bin of…
"The history of teaching teems with machines that have jammed and stained. Who can forget that buried next to the ditto are the old-fashioned 8and 16-millimeter film projectors?" —Jamming Together: Remembering the Dittob> (Chronicle) Similar:Jitney ( #AugustWilson #CenturyCycle, 8 of 10)August Wilson’s Century Cycle > Spoi…BooksTop deck of a #neovictorian #steampunk cruiser needs an airlock…
No, he was not squashed by a falling safe or run over by an Acme Indestructo Steel Ball. Jones created the Road Runner and Coyote cartons. Rules from that series: “No dialogue ever, except ‘beep beep.” “No outside force can harm the Coyote — only his own ineptitude or the failure of the Acme products.”…
A palindrome is a word or phrase that reads the same backwards and forwards: "Madam, I’m Adam." Nick Montfort & William Gillsepie have written a whole palindrome story. —2002: A Palindrome Story Similar:Final week of Pict Classic Theatre's Oliver Twist (NEXTpittsburgh)Today is Carolyn’s day off from Oliver T…BooksThe Rivals at Seton Hill UniversityAcademiaA Career-Aligned Major…
“The day I came home for Christmas vacation my parents and I were sitting in the kitchen, I looked at them and said, ‘I’m pregnant. Just kidding, I want to change my major.’” Jeanine Savageau —Changing Majors: Junior Realizes Journalism Isn’t for Her (UWEC Spectator; registration required) Similar:AmLit Rescue — Scratch GameA student in my “American…
“The year 2002. The 20th day of the 2nd month, 2002. And, on the 24-hour clock, at two minutes after 8 p.m., harmony. 2002.” —2002 2002 2002 (Toronto Star) Similar:Bag a Bot DayAt midnight tonight, participants in the…Current_EventsWhat kids do when Dad won't hand over the iPod So I’m not being selfish… this is …EducationSTEM Education…
"Traditional publishers… couldn’t understand his willingness to surrender his ‘authority’ over his own work by letting others participate. Nor could they understand his desire to ‘devalue’ his copyright by posting a whole book online." —A Footnote to E-book History (Wired) Similar:Pew finds embattled newspaper industry still pulls in more than half of all news revenueRevenue…
“Alongside the boom, however, there have recently been a few faint signs of backlash. As increasing hordes take on the task of trying to keep new sites looking nice, sounding original and free from banalities, more hordes just seem to fail.” —Blah, Blah, Blah and Blog (Wired) Similar:Blog ten-beat lines of verse, like Shakespeare wrote.…
“…I think the wonder of our aesthetic or religious sense, or musicality, is increased by the fact that it depends on three pounds of jelly in our head.” —Interview with Oliver Sacks (neurologist and novelist) Similar:Books vs. Kindles: The Choice No One Made Ever”I bought a Kindle. I didn’t immediately…BooksWhat's a namber? (archived)Update, December 2024:…