My big finish as Alquist in a Zoom-based production of R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots). Similar:I'm not really a royal watcher but I'm fascinated that the UK has de-royalized the king's … Prince Andrew has lost all of hi…CultureProfessor Sees Parallels Between Things, Other Things”By drawing parallels between things and…AcademiaI may or may not make a…
Rewatching ST:TNG. The plot, such as it is, quickly gets Picard and Wesley separated from the Enterprise and in the company of a mining shuttle pilot who challenges Picard’s authority. After a few on-location scenes in a bleak desert, the story shifts to the standard generic cave set, where some falling chunks of foam and…
I wish I had the time or energy to get out the telescope and camera, but I did go out for a walk in the neighborhood and got an eyeful of this in the sky. Similar:I had to act like I knew something about golf. There I am on the right at about :15.PersonalWhat’s My…
In October 2000, I was blogging about The F. Scott Fitzgerald Short story “Bernice Bobs Her Hair” (background; full text) A biography of Virginia Woolf The precarious status of English as a global language A call for papers for a special issue of Text Technology devoted to interactive fiction (I have a copy on my shelf…
There are some sound pedagogical reasons for turning cameras on. Thus, I suggest sharing those reasons with the students before giving them the choice of what to do about their cameras. Explain why you are making your request. For example, being able to see students’ faces gives instructors a quick and easy way to discern whether students are finding the material engaging, at least in smaller classes. One instructor told me that “I asked students to turn their cameras on to say hi to their classmates at the beginning and end of class, and those were the best moments of the class.”
Similar:You may move your tassels from right to left. #classof2017 PersonalOn the upside, no fake news is currently being shared on Facebook. Can't think of a do…PersonalDaily 10sq cm of control panel eye candy. #blender3d #blender3dart #steampunkAestheticsGreensburg Holiday ParadePersonalWe're enjoying the intensity and also the (surprisingly appropriate) humor.PersonalI'm marking them faster than they come in, which…
Similar:Enjoying a visit to the Carnegie Science Center with my son. Mars exhibit is immersive an…PersonalA little board-gaming for Labor Day.PersonalOn the way to closing night of "Orphans."PersonalFall 2023 Grades: Submitted! AcademiaLook at the adorable little tape casette. Adventure International / Scott Adams Inc. spoke…GamesJerz and Daughter Teach Scratch (Digital Storytelling Tutorial)In the past…
Obviously I would have preferred to see it live, but the pandemic-era video presentation — with clever graphics that indicate stage actions and pop-up text that augment the recorded performances — was subtle and touching. Similar:What have my students learned about creative nonfiction writing? During class they are col…What have my students learned about crea…AcademiaStar…
Similar:I just bought Diamond City.GamesReception after faculty workshop. #partylikeaprofessorPersonalTeaching myself the #Unity3D game engine. Each step requires a lot of focused attention. I… Teaching myself the #Unity3D game engi…AestheticsOne of my undergrad lit papers. Dot-matrix printed, with hand-written instructor annotatio…AcademiaPreparing for some serious nerd time with the family this summerSet phasers to “nerd”! This summer…
The daughter plays Laertes in Seton Hill’s free, live Zoom production of Hamlet (with a film noir theme) which opens tonight at 8. (The first half will be performed tonight and next Friday; the next half will be performed Saturday and next Saturday.) Free tickets to Seton Hill’s livestreaming video production of Hamlet Through the…
From The Brookings Institution (non-profit, deeply sourced factual writing; has been accused of both conservative and liberal bias; is cited in Congress about equally by conservative and liberal politicians; leans a bit left in terms of loaded language): American institutions are not perfect, of course. We all should want to improve scientific practices, remove bias…
Sinclair Lewis’s 1935 anti-fascist novel adapted for radio by Berkeley Rep. Similar:Prosecutor praises newspaper that exposed doctor's abuseIsn’t the news pointless and boring? Hav…CultureSynchronous Online Classes: 10 Tips for Engaging StudentsEvery time I have taught an online class…AcademiaMuseum of Endangered SoundsImagine a world where we never again hea…Aesthetics‘This is no longer a debate’: Florida sheriff…
It was a reporter’s bodyguard, not an anti-fascist activist, who shot and killed a right-wing demonstrator who had assaulted him. The viral spread of those false claims apparently alarmed the Denver Police Department, which had taken Dolloff into custody along with the journalist he was guarding and quickly determined that they were not left-wing…
Similar:Transfigurations (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 25) Injured Humanoid Charm…Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break….MediaErmahgerddon: The Untold Story of the Ermahgerd GirlDeciding against the coonskin cap, Golde…AmusingPhotos inspired by Wuthering HeightsA photographer blogged about taking phot…AestheticsSamaritan Snare (ST:TNG Rewatch, Season 2, Episode 17)(Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generati…DramaTrump and JFK: Masters of New MediaI…
For my birthday I treated myself to Episode 2 of RUR (Rossum’s Universal Robots) — the play that introduced the word “Robot” to the world 100 years ago. Similar:They called it a "flashlight" because early handheld lights weren't designed to shine stea…A student’s short story featuring a trea…CultureI am not really sure why I have kept…
Similar:Set design for Acts II and III of R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots) #blender3dDesignThe girl asked me to read R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) to her. #quarantine #partylik…BooksScrooge Is My BrotherMy daughter delivered the opening “Marle…CultureMinneapolis protest cleanup: Did you share this meme without fact-checking it? (Don’t spre… A Facebook meme with 52k reactions a…CultureFeeding a Neighbor's…
Rewatching ST:TNG after 30 years. After playing the trombone at his birthday party and passing out on a gassy planet, a gray-flecked Riker awakens in sickbay, where he learns 16 years have passed and he is now the captain of the Enterprise. After the requisite medical technobabble (virus, amnesia, blah blah), Dr. Crusher tries to…
Similar:Today I didn't save the world, but I did help a student while power-walking at the mall.I’m far from perfect, and injustice and …AcademiaMy Father's Day adventure included replacing the family gaming computer (a 2011 Mac Mini…..One of the benefits of working at Seton …AcademiaI baked about 12 million vertices of steampunk control panel geometry…
Deadline seems to have briefly published, then taken down, a breaking news story including the sentence “Pence announced late Wednesday that he is among those who have tested positive in the ongoing White House coronavirus outbreak.” 1. Google search for “tom tapp coronavirus pence” shows a hit for a Deadline story with a headline prefaced…
I recall just sort of telling the editors that I would be taking this story, thank you very much. I started looking for this clipping when I reviewed The Measure of a Man for my ST:TNG Rewatch. Sadly The University Journal is no more. When I was at U.Va. it was one of two competing…