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:Lego faces are getting angrier, study findsThe headline is hype. How about “Lego fa…AestheticsThe Truth About Test ScoresIt’s not…
"Whilst it is obviously the case that the main reason subscription now represents 30% of Salon’s revenue is because overall revenue has fallen so dramatically, that doesn’t stop [CEO] Michael [O’Donnel] portraying it as a triumph. That is talent." (22 Jan) Dictionary of the Future [Review]: "’Words are artifacts of culture,’ says Hanft, and in…
Think twice before sending a tartly worded e-mail or prepare for a battle of near-biblical proportions like the one being waged on Chicago computer consultant Bernard Shifman. —Resume Vaults [Chicago] Techie into Spam Battlefield (Chicago Trib) Similar:little drops — Why Dove's "Real Beauty Sketches" Video Makes Me Uncomfortable… and Kind …Very insightful…. A reminder that…
Yes, that’s 1889. —History of Video Games since 1889b> (GameSpot) Similar:Standardized-test robo-graders flunk“According to professor of theory of kno…AcademiaJustine Sacco Is Good at Her Job, and How I Came To Peace With HerJustine Sacco is the PR exec whose tweet…CultureSad that NASA is taking a back seat to a private company, but still nerding over…
"What venerated ‘alpha geeks’ and lowly ‘smurfs’ share is a tendency to talk about people as if they were machines. To be ‘uninstalled’ means being fired or dismissed, whereas a ‘plug-and-play’ refers to a new employee who fits in without any additional training." (Rebuttal: Don’t Tweak the Geeks) —When the Geeks get Snide (NY Times;…
"They may love capitalism. They may have no interest whatsoever in political theory. But they believe that Marx was always right and always good." English professors? Hardly. —Marx, Money, and Mysticism after Mao (Partisan Review) Similar:Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh sentenced to 3 years for ‘Healthy Holly’ children’s …Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, w…BooksPast Tense,…
“This bridge will be a massive undertaking: the Rhine is a wide, deep, and fast-moving river. My engineers and I have devised a way to build the bridge in such a way that the stronger the current, the more secure the bridge will be.” —Bloggus Caesari (Julius Caesar’s Weblog) Similar:You, Too, Can Have a Viral…
; trendy young dot-com refugees come begging. (WashPost) —Boring, grey-haired government contractors are hot Similar:WordPress duplicate images driving me crazy I’m using the Atahualpa Theme with WPT…HomeMost Americans have a high opinion of the humanities, and 81% use at least one humanities-…While some survey respondents were unfam…AcademiaYou're Doing It for the Exposure!! The Oatmeal on…
“i was a 20-something dethroned dotcom ceo that went to work the counter at mcdonald’s” [scott heiferman didn’t cut it as a dot-com CEO, and apparently doesn’t know how to use the shift key, either.] Similar:Missouri governor vows criminal prosecution of reporter who found flaw in state website • …I’m shocked… shocked that a reporter…
"Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same colour as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated…" wrote Hemingway in his 1952 novel, The Old Man and the Sea. Gregorio Fuentes was Hemingway’s friend, and probably the inspiration for the story. —Hemingway’s "Old Man"Dies at 104 (BBC) Similar:Opinion: Time for…
“Once ejected into space, wouldn’t the flattened, living-room-sized, and extremely solid panes of trash that result from such a primitive, unidirectional trash compactor pose serious hazards for Empire starships in the vicinity?” —On the Implausibility of the Death Star’s Trash Compactor (McSweeney’s) Similar:Principal fires security guards to hire art teachers — and transforms elementary schoolThe…
A teenager has attracted international attention for developing a glove that can translate sign language into printed text. —Glove Lends the Deaf a Hand (USA Today) The article suggests that a glove that reads finger positions will free deaf teenagers from needing the services of adult interpreters. Yet sign language is a rich and complex…
"The practice of using the secret Word format for interchange impedes the growth of our community and the spread of freedom. While we notice the occasional annoyance of receiving a Word document, this steady and persistent harm to our community usually doesn’t come to our attention." Richard Stallman —We Can Put an End to Word…
This is the time of year that college departments hiring new faculty members whittle down to two or three promising candidates, from the dozens or even hundreds of applicants. (A candidate for a UWEC English department job is interviewed towards the end of the article.) —The Tightening [Adacemic] Job Marketb> (Chronicle) Similar:The Great Gatsby Character…
: "Nowadays, art that prompts ‘controversy’ usually has one thing in common: it’s bad. Bad in conception or bad in execution, and frequently bad in both." Lileks —Does the Pope S– In the Woods? Similar:Post-publication review as an efficient alternative to pre-publication peer reviewAndrew Gelman of “Statistical Modeling, …AcademiaTwelfth Night Cast Photo (Prime Stage, May…
"If Einstein had died as a child, someone else would have discovered General Relativity; if Beethoven had died as a child, the Opus 111 Sonata would never have been written." Dennis Dutton —What is Genius? (Philosophy & Literature) Similar:Jimmy Maher's Appreciation of Infocom's Classic Sherlock Text AdventureI learned a lot while reading this enjoy…BusinessScaring People…
"With the rise of search tools that unerringly bring you to the page you want, the need for a highly specific domain name — one that a casual Web user would be able to guess — has practically disappeared." Dan Gillmor —"’Google Effect’ Reduces Need for Many Domains"b> (SiliconValley.com) Similar:Facebook Removes Human Curators From Trending…
(Abstracts due Feb 7) "We’re looking for essays that shed light on the history of interactive fiction, especially if they discuss how IF has evolved technologically and in its conventions; essays that teach and illuminate the craft of IF, including but not limited to puzzle design, world building, characters, prose style, and atmosphere; and essays…
A student project on why Microsoft is evil includes this parody of the Alcoholics Anonymous "12 step" program. Sammy Carranza —12 Steps to Stop Using Microsoft Similar:Wondermark: In Which There Is a TauntingWondermark AmusingHexagons Are the Bestagonshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thOifuHs…AmusingA Pedestal, A Table, A Love Letter: Archaeologies of Gender in Videogame HistoryA thoughtful, informative article on the…BusinessParallels (#StarTrek…
A clueless fellow looking for a job in information technology sends out his resume in a mass mailing. Bernard Shifman, an unrepentant spammer, then threatens to sue practically anyone who even mentions the incident. Pete Moss documents what is most likely the end of Mr. Shifman’s career. —Bernard Shifman is a Moron Spammer Similar:The A.V.…