What’s it like interviewing college students at job fairs? "What a snooze. By the sixth interview of the day I vow that I’ll hire anyone who can make me remember their name, and I’ll sign over my 401(k) to any candidate who can make me laugh." Erin Cronin —Honesty, Shining Throughb> (WashPost) Similar:It's Friday night…
(Word Circuits): Hypertext poetry by Stephanie Strickland —The Ballad of Sand and Harry Soot Similar:Kairos: Open Since 1996As a plucky new faculty member I wrote a…AcademiaA Pedestal, A Table, A Love Letter: Archaeologies of Gender in Videogame HistoryA thoughtful, informative article on the…BusinessWhy the British Tell Better Children’s StoriesIf Harry Potter and Huckleberry Finn wer…BooksOn…
"Calling the theological giant’s stranglehold on the religion industry ‘blatantly anti-competitive,’ a U.S. district judge ruled Monday that God is in violation of anti-monopoly laws and ordered Him to be broken up into several less powerful deities." —Judge Orders God to Break Up into Smaller Deitiesb> (TheOnion) Similar:Rossum's Universal Robots (Act 2)https://youtu.be/XfOONrGsf2I For my b…CultureShe…
"Write simply. Keep headings, summaries, sentences, paragraphs and documents short. Get to the point. Then stop." Gerry McGovern —The Need for Simple English on the Web Similar:“We hate math,” says 4 in 10 – a majority of AmericansIf 30% love math, and 30% are neutral ab…AmusingA lost generation of news consumers? Survey shows how teenagers…
"Poor sad Mac, born in a plastic age. / A time when the world still thought in beige. / Crafted and molded just like a piece of art. / An orphan, abandoned. It’s enough to break your heart." [Which column would you put this one in? Sometimes I wonder why I continue to split my…
Kaycee Nicole, an attractive student dying from leukemia, shared her ordeal via on online diary. Her mother started a companion diary. Web surfers became close friends with this family through email, chatroom, and even phone conversations. The New York Times even quoted Kaycee about college life. When she finally died, her online friends grieved like…
Yahoo recently ran a story about a man suffocated by a stripper’s breasts… but it was a hoax first published in a tabloid. You may have heard recent reports about the airliner passenger stuck to a toilet seat. (MSNBC, BBC, CNN) Note that no names or dates are given. It’s a hoax. (Unless it’s a…
What is life like for a person who has trouble recognizing human faces? —Face-blindness Similar:Fanciful Fun in Theatre Factory’s “The Fantasticks”A great review from Pittsburgh in the Ro…CultureEncyclopedia Smithsonian: Star-Spangled Banner and the War of 1812 When he saw “by the dawn’s early light…AestheticsReading in the MorningTo qualify for a day at the local…
"[T]he search and directory firms have put their futures in question by flouting time-tested business practices that require an absolutely clear separation between editorial content and advertising." Hal Plotkin —Doom Ahead for Search Engines That Charge (SF Gate) Similar:Schisms (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 6, Episode 5)Rewatching ST:TNG Riker is having troub…DesignWhat have my students learned…
When congressional Web sites are good, they’re really good. But most aren’t, says a nonprofit group that rated more than 600 of them. —Congressional Web Sites: Not So GoodCNN) Similar:Student: “Just wanted to let you know that your class has benefited me outside of just lit…In my online class on literary dystopia,…AcademiaBeautiful, meditative video shows…
found after 165 years. The watercolors were prototypes for engravings that the impoverished poet hoped would pay his bills. (Daily Telegraph) —Watercolors by William Blake Similar:Shakespeare did not leave his wife Anne in Stratford, letter fragment suggests It has long been assumed that William …CultureMeasuring Humanities Degrees Misses Much of Their Value“I don’t see why…
, creator of Pippi Longstocking, dies at 94. (Guardian) —Astrid Lindgren Similar:About that Cough, Rough, Pony, Bologna MemeDo the spellings of cough & rough, p…BooksIN-ZOOM (A world-premiere 10-minute play)A very current short play by Bill Irwin….CultureWhen is Donald Trump kidding? When is he being sarcastic? When is he being serious? Who ge…Earlier today a reporter,…
“The Web has decentralized the control of ideas, as A&LD proves. A few years ago the exchange of opinions and theories had to be managed by people living in great metropolitan centres, the intellectual world’s version of imperialism. But with the Web it can be done anywhere.” Robert Fulford —I Want my Arts & Letters…
"Don’t let anyone tell you that as a programmer you don’t have to make moral or ethical decisions. Every time you decide that making users feel stupid is better than fixing your code, you’re making an ethical decision." —Programmers Make Ethical DecisionsJoel on Software) Similar:Facebook’s News Feed: Often Changed, Never GreatI’ve never liked Instant Articles…
(CLA) is a fellowship of individuals who share experience, strength, and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem with clutter and help others recover. The only requirement for membership is a desire to eliminate clutter and bring order into our lives. (via Remarked Bookmarks) —Clutterers Anonymous Ironic: when I was an…
The Space Shuttle’s Solid Rocket Booster problem began with the faulty design of its joint and increased as both NASA and contractor management first failed to recognize it as a problem, then failed to fix it and finally treated it as an acceptable flight risk.” —An Accident Rooted in HistoryNASA) 28 January, 1986. My senior…
The link above goes to the web version of a powerpoint presentation. Dennis G. Jerz —I Found it On the Internet: Teaching Students to Locate, Evaluate and Cite Online Sources Similar:Imaginary vs Real Office SpaceHere’s a fantasy workspace, that I built…AcademiaRiding on Square WheelsStan Wagon, a mathematician at Macaleste…DesignFigured out how to configure my iPad…
"Most weblogs are drivel, banal sh*t written by angst-ridden teenagers and adults sharing feelings, thoughts, and mind-numbing details about their daily lives that provide little insight into anything or anyone. But the gems can be found amongst the long-since abandoned or forgotten sites." John M. Grohol —Psychology of Weblogs Similar:The Trouble With Online EducationI’ve taught…
A prayer before surfing: “Almighty and eternal God, we beseech thee that, through the example of Saint Isidore, bishop and doctor, during our journeys through the Internet we will direct our hands and eyes only to that which is pleasing to thee and treat with charity and patience all those souls whom we encounter. Amen.”…
While Westerners may be surprised by the notion that poetry is an effective way to convey a political message, Bassam Frangieh says it is an integral part of Arab culture. —Of Poets, Prophets and Politics (Humanities) Similar:My Parents (aged 72 and 78) Demonstrate a Ballroom Dance PoseThis is how my parents finish their Arge…AestheticsLego faces…