I’m stunned by the writing. Here’s just a sample: Outside the Clark County Election Center in Las Vegas, a news conference was interrupted by a hysterical man in a sleeveless tank that read “BEER BBQ FREEDOM.” “The Biden crime family is stealing this election!” he screamed over and over again, as if repetition would make…
Similar:The Most Disastrous Typos In Western History The Most Disastrous Typos In Western H…BooksMy colleague @crissycp offers warm soda bread and tea every year, as part of her authentic…AcademiaSubtle Stylesheet Tweaks for Mobile SiteOn the mobile version of my WordPress we…AestheticsNature walks 2012 and 2018.AestheticsBeautiful News Writing: "Rampaging rooster attacks girl."I don’t want to make…
Here’s more evidence of just how crucial it is to the Trumpiverse to sustain the narrative that “the media” are the enemy. Earlier today, Trump’s Director of Communications Tim Murtaugh tweeted a picture of a Washington Times banner headline announcing the victory of “PRESIDENT GORE,” as “a reminder that the media doesn’t select the Present.”…
Earlier today Trump tweeted that his campaign would hold a “Lawyers Press Conference at Four Seasons, Philadelphia.” He later specified that he didn’t mean the prestigious Four Seasons hotel, but rather an unrelated business “Four Seasons Landscaping,” which happens to be located next to an adult bookstore and near a cremation company. One imagines that…
Similar:The spoils.PersonalTWEEN GIRL: "What's a tribble?"TWEEN GIRL: “What’s a tribble?” MY GE…PersonalA picture of puffy white clouds floating in a blue skyAestheticsT-Shirts for student journalists who recently leveled up to “staff writer”(with bear signe…PersonalMy laptop hard drive is full & my comfort-food shelf is emptyMy laptop drive is full & my comfort…CultureThe girl was cast…
That moment during McCain’s concession speech in 2008, when he mentions Obama, and a ripple of boos begin. McCain, his face showing disapproval, holds up his hands palms down — a controlling gesture, but a calming one. He says the simple word, “Please,” and patiently waits until his audience settles down. He says he just…
NEW YORK (AP) — ABC, CBS and NBC all cut away from President Donald Trump on Thursday as he spoke from the White House to make an unfounded accusation that the presidential election was being stolen from him. Trump had tried to commandeer the nation’s airwaves at a time when the evening newscasts are shown…
I was thrilled as a middle-schooler to stay up late watching PBS coverage of science types poring over printouts of the images arriving from Voyager 1 and 2’s visits to Jupiter and Saturn in 79-81, and visits to Uranus and Neptune in the late 80s. The Star Wars and Star Trek movie franchises were in…
For more than 150 years, scientists have considered bird song to be an exclusively male trait, but female scientists have changed that. Americans often idealize scientists as unbiased, objective observers. But scientists are affected by conscious and unconscious biases, just as people in other fields are. Studies of birds’ vocal behavior clearly show how research approaches…
All 3 acts and the epilogue to R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots) are now available on YouTube. I’ve loved this quirky play for almost 30 years. I’m thrilled that I got the chance to play Alquist, a humble builder who witnesses the Robot rebellion and its surprising aftermath. (I also designed the set backdrops in Blender…
Similar:Email (finding the right tone as a writer) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXlgO…CybercultureNature walks 2012 and 2018.AestheticsAcademic study concludes that teaching kids to touch-type can make them better writersImproving students’ handwriting skill di…EducationNASA's Perseverance lander brought some Easter eggs with it to MarsIt’s a bit of a stretch to call this Ted…AwesomeRIP Flash: Why HTML5 Will Finally Take Over…
A new graphic for an existing handout, which I touched up a bit. When is the phrase “when asked about…” part of good news writing? Rarely. A journalist who uses the phrase “when asked about” (or a similar phrase) is carefully telling the reader, “I’m bending over backwards to make sure you don’t think I’m…
Similar:Stuffed planet Venus, made for me by my dear mother, around 1974.AestheticsIPads in the classroom: The right way to use them, demonstrated by a Swiss school.The devices are not really valued as por…CybercultureDeus Ex MemoriesI’ve just finished my final training run…Cyberculture"I don't view Shakespeare's work as intimidating anymore." — midterm reflection from coll… “It has…
Early in my teaching career, I noticed some students silently body-shaming another. I’m sure the target, who had a minor wardrobe malfunction, didn’t even notice. Later that day I asked a more experienced mentor for advice, awkwardly mentioning that the target of the body-shaming was not slim. My mentor interrupted me. “Ignore your students from…
I first met my wife in person, but we were in a long-distance online relationship for a year, and some weeks are so busy we text each other more than we speak in person. Starting a relationship during a pandemic would be tricky. Similar:Who Watches the Watchers (ST:TNG Season Three Episode 4) Rationalist, talky mythbustingRewatching…
It’s striking to hear her audience erupt in laughter at the comedy bits in the opening scenes. I assume they didn’t know what they were in for! Similar:Media Companies Are Getting Sick of FacebookAll of us with Facebook accounts do work…BusinessBlaze of Glory #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 5, Episode 23) Sisko needs imprisoned traito…Rewatching…
In the wake of the pandemic, the entertainment industry created a new position on set to help keep outbreaks at bay. […] The demands of the job are big: sanitization, testing, safety equipment and distancing. Cast and crew are split into different zones, based on the frequency of testing and ability to wear masks. The…
I’m proud of the daughter for her involvement in this Equity audio production. (Some of the screams mentioned by the reviewer are hers.) One would be hard-pressed to find a more perfect production for the pandemic, as the radio drama comes with no visuals and forces one to shut out the outside world for the…
https://youtu.be/CWcEABVWbfA Similar:Facebook Should Pay All of UsThe trick is that most people think they…BusinessDatalore (TNG Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 12) Data's bro wants to be with a big crystal tr…In “Datalore,” an encounter with Data’s …CultureAnd so it begins: the unmarked assignments counterThis little icon will control my life fo…AcademiaFacebook’s push of “related articles” to…
Bits and pieces from a news article that summarizes recent scholarly studies. Some moderately good news, and a reminder that increased testing means finding more cases, and finding them earlier, which means people get medical treatment sooner. (More testing means less suffering and fewer deaths. For those of us who care about such things.) Over…