The phrase “debate begins” in the headlines of multiple stories on coronavirus does not mean sneaky journalists copy-pasted a press release

If you encounter the same story on different news sites, that does not mean you caught sneaky America-hating fake news “journalists” in the act. A meme I recently encountered shows three slightly different coronavirus headlines, all of which use the phrase “debate begins.” Text shared along with the meme suggests the repetition means the story…

Twitter, Fix Your Cropping Algorithm

When given the chance to crop four different arrangements of photos of two different men, each time the Twitter algorithm chose to center on the white man and crop the black man out of the picture. Source: https://twitter.com/sina_rawayama/status/1307506452786016257 Update, 22 Sep: See also https://twitter.com/TLopesVictorM/status/1307846503885672449     Similar:Waiting for a talk on preserving artifacts from NASA’s…

Fact check: Biden ad misleadingly suggests Trump called Covid-19 a ‘hoax’

CNN fact-checks a misleading Biden ad, which edited a Trump speech to make it look like he called coronavirus a Democratic hoax. To be clear, Trump’s informal and freewheeling style of speaking at rallies often leaves his exact meaning hard to pin down. But I agree with CNN that this ad misrepresents Trump’s intentions. Here’s…

The Anatomy of a Shakespeare Play: King Lear (Free video lecture from Pict, 2pm Friday)

Similar:Headphones, Croutons and RhetoricME (with crouton tongs in one hand and s…CultureAs I was preparing to take this screenshot, two more papers came in.I still have odd jobs to tie up, but I’m…AcademiaTreasure peaceful moments in a turbulent world.AestheticsMasked, vaxxed, and settling in to watch live theaterBarebones is a little black box theater,…BooksPrime Stage Theatre…

Scientists should be goggled and in the lab, where they belong. Shut up and make me a vaccine, beaker-nerd!

Am I doing the tribal rage thing right? Laura Helmuth of Scientific American says the decision to break tradition was both unanimous and quick: “We took this decision very seriously. You don’t give up 175 years of tradition for nothing.” —‘Scientific American’ Breaks 175 Years Of Tradition, Endorses A Presidential Nominee –NPR Similar:Couples in successful…

Something to Ponder — Let Me Fix That Meme For You

Similar:1,000-pound rosary sends heavy message: PrayThe rosary that retired quarry worker Be…AestheticsRadio News Delivery: How to Sound Like a Radio BroadcasterListen to a short news broadcast, such a…Aesthetics'Our worst nightmare': New legal filings detail reporting of Rolling Stone's U-Va. gang ra…The court documents, submitted as eviden…AcademiaI had a grand time recording this little story about…

Boy, this sort of thing sure makes some racist people very angry.

We stand together against racism. #ItTakesAllOfUs pic.twitter.com/xfeUACPu8Z — Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) September 14, 2020   Similar:Huge Collection of Free CC-Licensed Textbooks (2012)2012 Book Archive. Business, humaniti…AcademiaMaking a case for a singular ‘they’  I am definitely on team revise…Current_EventsSondra's Garden: Butterfly Release Honors Dr. Lettrich (Seton Hill University)”Every good lesson plan has a culminatin…AcademiaMultimodal Composition: Every…

Stunning picture of my daughter

Similar:Making a case for a singular ‘they’  I am definitely on team revise…Current_Events1776. Binge-watching Liberty's Kids. New this year: Carolyn singing songs from Hamilt…PersonalThe Classic Typewriter Page Frequently Asked QuestionsHow can I get rid of That Old Typewriter…AestheticsClicking, collaborating, and talking in the libraryOur local paper did a story on how libra…AcademiaThe Formation of LoveRelationships…

Remember Me (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 5) Dr. Crusher vs The Universe

Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break. When people start disappearing from the Enterprise without a trace, only Dr. Crusher remembers them. Some cringeworthy lines (e.g. “If there’s nothing wrong with me, maybe there’s something wrong with the universe”) still earn a facepalm, but I really enjoyed Gates McFadden as she Shatners her way through increasingly…

Drumming Kid Is Epic. That Is All.

Similar:Marching in a parade and watching a patriotic musicalHappy Independence Day, fellow Americans…CultureWe don’t need more STEM majors. We need more STEM majors with liberal arts training.A chemist celebrates the liberal arts. …AcademiaGawker Media Files for Chapter 11 BankruptcyThis is fallout from losing an invasion …BusinessIt's unfair to treat every gaffe as evidence of malice…

IN-ZOOM (A world-premiere 10-minute play)

A very current short play by Bill Irwin. Very creative use of Zoom as a performance space.  I didn’t expect it also to cover so much else. Very touching. Similar:Imaginary vs Real Office SpaceHere’s a fantasy workspace, that I built…AcademiaWatching ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ with 18,000 teenagers was one of the most profound theate…The arts…

Suddenly Human (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Four, Episode 4) Picard Bonds with Human Teen Raised by Aliens

Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break The Federation faces war with the Talarians over a culture-shocked teenager who sees Picard as a father figure. The Enterprise detects faint life signs on a damaged Talarian ship. Of course they can’t just beam the injured directly to sickbay; they must first send an away team to wave…

Being a deaf lipreader during a pandemic means increased social anxiety

Even social events are a minefield. The more people there are, the more spread out everyone is. My excellent lipreading skills can’t surmount distance. I also find myself avoiding things I used to enjoy, like going to stores by myself. I don’t want to worry about one-way conversations.

“Adfl etgjw ilserj mjikas!” That’s what everyone will sound like, if I can hear them at all.

What’s a deaf person to do, at least until face shields become de rigueur?