Another Eyewitness Account

10:19 a.m. To: Dad Call Kozue [my wife] and tell her I’m fine. We evacuated my office and I’m walking somewhere. War zone.  Jonathan Segal —Another Eyewitness Account Similar:Kristin and Haley's Discussion on Poe's "The Raven"I gave my literature students 30 minutes…AcademiaLanguage Log » 25 Questions for Teaching with "Word Crimes"A little perspective is good.…

www.derrickito.com

Large collection of links to the World Trace Center tributes that have sprung up after the towers came down. —www.derrickito.com Similar:Addis, LA: Little Orphan Annie stopped for speeding  Addis, LA: Little Orphan Annie…Amusing‘Snow White’ gets a new musical There’s a buzz of excitement this week…CultureFact check: DeVos never said 'only' 0.02% of children will die…

The Americans

“Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don’t think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake. Our neighbours have faced it alone and I am one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them kicked around.” Gordon Sinclair, 1973 —The Americans Similar:Harvard…

"I was in the building when it all happened."

Harrowing first-person account from a survivor. —“I was in the building when it all happened.” Similar:NTSB Blames Intern for Confirming Offensive Fake Names of Asiana Flight 214 PilotsBlogging this so I can find it when I te…Current_EventsSouthwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly, who testified unmasked at a Senate hearing on Wednesday…Kelly testified at the hearing that…

Semiotics for Beginners

“One of the broadest definitions is that of Umberto Eco, who states that ‘semiotics is concerned with everything that can be taken as a sign’ (Eco 1976, 7). Semiotics involves the study not only of what we refer to as ‘signs’ in everyday speech, but of anything which ‘stands for’ something else.” Daniel Chandler —Semiotics…

World Trade Center: Reflections on the Disaster

“Skyscrapers in general, and the twin towers of the World Trade Center in particular, symbolize, for many writers, either prideful arrogance, or a new technological beauty.” Dennis G. Jerz —World Trade Center: Reflections on the Disaster Similar:The Bremen Town Musicians (WAOB Audio Theatre) My daughter plays the narrator, my…HumanitiesThe Penance of Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester,…

Online Health Websites Frequently Inaccurate

“[T]here were big holes in the information offered. Across all four health conditions, nearly a quarter of the key questions were completely ignored, and less than half were given both more than minimal coverage and complete accuracy.” Rae Fry —Online Health Websites Frequently Inaccurate Similar:Reading Game/Text: EverQuest, Alienation, and Digital Communitiesthough Limbaugh is wrong to…

Apocalypse Soon: Is the Web-Development Fairy Tale Over?

Good web designers are a dime a dozen — just like the former armies of professional typists and word-processor operators, whose specialized tasks were eventually absorbed by the average office worker. Frank Yu, Gorilla Asia —Apocalypse Soon: Is the Web-Development Fairy Tale Over? Similar:xkcd: Headlines It: nailed. xkcd: Headlines.AmusingHumans Aren’t Mentally Ready for an AI-Saturated…

Children 'Slow' at Learning English

“Children learning to read and write in English are slower to master it than other European youngsters learning their own language, new research suggests.” BBC —Children ‘Slow’ at Learning English Similar:Reading Game/Text: EverQuest, Alienation, and Digital Communitiesthough Limbaugh is wrong to decide that …CybercultureI love my students enough to teach them the difference between passive…

Superstitions and carelessness

cause many boating deaths. “[I]f you believe an accident occurs because of the hand of God or because George opened the can of beans with the label upside-down, then that gives you every reason to not read safety literature or continue learning about fishing.” National Post —Superstitions and carelessness Similar:Write instructions for busy grouches.Updating the…

10 Myths about Copyright Explained

“An attempt to answer common myths about copyright seen on the net and cover issues related to copyright and USENET/Internet publication.” Brad Templeton —10 Myths about Copyright Explained Similar:Out of the Zuckersphere, (back) into the BlogosphereThis is why I still blog. While commerci…AcademiaDetails like headlines matter. Journalists should work hard to avoid being misread.If you…

Scott Adams: Storytelling in Computer Games

The author of the first commercial computer game (“Adventureland,” 1978) leads a lively discussion on narrative, copyright, and violence. He also describes his first night playing EverQuest.  UWEC English Festival.  —Scott Adams: Storytelling in Computer Games Similar:What if Generative AI turned out to be a Dud?I’m sad thinking of all the students who…BusinessIn journalism, the…

Helvetica Bold Oblique Sweeps Fontys

Helvetica Bold Oblique was the big winner at Tuesday’s 73rd Annual Fonty Awards, taking home 11 statues, including those for Best Sans Serif and the highly coveted 2001 Best Font prize. Satire from The Onion —Helvetica Bold Oblique Sweeps Fontys Similar:Spring 2023 Grades: Submitted! (I only had 3 last-minute submissions to mark today.)AcademiaFDR in AnnieI’ve…

Confusion Over Free Speech and Copyright

Dimitri Sklyarov is an unlikely poster boy for American freedom. The Russian programmer was arrested after he spoke at the “Def-Con” hacker convention in Las Vegas about a program, offered for sale by his employer Elcomsoft, which cracks the encryption in Adobe’s e-book software. The Irish Times —Confusion Over Free Speech and Copyright Similar:Public, Private,…

Forecasts of an E-Book Era Were, It Seems, Premature

“While the lack of interest in buying electronic books may baffle some big publishers, the tepid demand comes as no surprise to some bibliophiles.” NY Times (requires free registration) —Forecasts of an E-Book Era Were, It Seems, Premature Similar:Can AI write good novels?I expect that this is probably the year …AcademiaRemember That Class Assignment I…