Back in 2003, shortly after I moved with my wife and two young children to take my current job, I was eager to make new friends and rebuild my social network. One evening, my wife agreed to watch the kids so I could drop by the local branch of a national service organization in which…
In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. @thepublicpgh Similar:Liberal arts college professor assaults alt-right group memberCarefully choosing language that fits yo…AcademiaThe Truth About Test ScoresIt’s not hard to design a test that has …BusinessEthics (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 5, Episode 16) Leaky cargo barrel-1, Worf-0.Rewatching ST:TNG Worf is paralyzed i…CultureWhy Do People…
[A] popular type of generative AI model can provide turn-by-turn driving directions in New York City with near-perfect accuracy — without having formed an accurate internal map of the city. Despite the model’s uncanny ability to navigate effectively, when the researchers closed some streets and added detours, its performance plummeted. When they dug deeper, the researchers…
I was perhaps a bit more conversational and chipper than usual during class today. A grinning student asked what I was drinking. (It really is just iced tea.) Similar:Watching a National Guard helicopter lift off after an EMS displayJust spending an August evening with the…PersonalYes Virginia the Musical coming to ConnellsvilleCarolyn Jerz may be only…
I create five color variations of each #blender3d building I #design, and each of those has closeup, high, mid, and low resolution variations. It’s tedious but enjoyable. Kinda like knitting. #medievalyork #mysteryplay #aesthetics Similar:Surprise: Humanities Degrees Provide Great Return On InvestmentThe conventional wisdom is that humaniti…AcademiaDress rehearsal for Mamma Mia. This weekend only.PersonalAdam Savage’s 10…
Journalism is not a crime. It’s not a crime if it offends the powerful. It’s not a crime if it doesn’t offend them enough to suit you. Yes, journalists make mistakes. Yes, you should take a break from doomscrolling for your mental health. But the First Amendment freedom of the press is crucial to democracy.…
I just caught myself thinking, “This doesn’t suck.” #medievalyork #mysteryplay #blender3d #design #aesthetics Similar:I really enjoyed powering through Wilson’s Century Cycle during winter term.AwesomeSuch pictures fill my weekday world at fiveYour pictures fill my weekday world at f…AestheticsI think I smelled a hint of my mint toothpaste just now. Wishful thinking, or another sign…For the…
As part of an ongoing bid to get his hands on Vantablack, the super dark, light-absorbing material to which Anish Kapoor controversially has the exclusive license, artist Stuart Semple has legally changed his name to… Anish Kapoor. “It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a long time,” Semple told me. “I like the idea of being able to try a name…
Predatory publications are not concerned with writing quality (or even coherence), and thus also do not care about writing tools (although we could, perhaps, include generative AI as a tool that replaces those used by human authors). The rules change pretty radically as the predatory version does away with nearly all of the rules in…
Our family has seen David Whalen in the persona of Sherlock in five or six different shows. So happy Carolyn will be on stage with him this time. Similar:My mother-in-law invited me to try out the 60- year-old tape machine that belonged to my f…My mother-in-law invited me to try out t…AwesomeChillax, Wikipedia, and bridezilla…
“While my dad has always spoken lovingly and fondly of his old Camaro he sold for my ‘diaper money’ he was never sour about it,” Jared confesses. “There wasn’t negativity about it. He wasn’t sad. He wasn’t angry. He talks about the selling of the car like it was a duty.” This diaper money Camaro…
“While my dad has always spoken lovingly and fondly of his old Camaro he sold for my ‘diaper money’ he was never sour about it,” Jared confesses. “There wasn’t negativity about it. He wasn’t sad. He wasn’t angry. He talks about the selling of the car like it was a duty.” This diaper money Camaro…
I may have mentioned that I have a daughter who does things. @frontporchtheatricals Similar:Yesterday we took advantage of a rare free day.At the Carnegie Museum of Art. AestheticsAmazon Staff Meetings: “No Powerpoint”I am not a big fan of traditional slide-…BusinessApparently I’m using boolean modifiers to carve out negative-space greebles for a texture …AestheticsGreebles make me…
If you like bloody, singing, punning demons you will love this show. Similar:Lotteries: America's $70 Billion ShameCan this be true? People spend more mone…BooksMy Parents (aged 72 and 78) Demonstrate a Ballroom Dance PoseThis is how my parents finish their Arge…AestheticsAnother #steampunk #neovictorian control panel module. #blender3d #blender3dart #design #…AestheticsIn Defense of Liking ThingsIt used…
I am not in the splash zone but still definitely out of my comfort zone. Support the arts in your community. Similar:Violations (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 5, Episode 12) Telepathic Memory Assaults Beset…Rewatching ST:TNG A small group o…CultureBlank template details and a wider view of a 30cm x 30cm grid of brass and glass #neovicto…PersonalSpring…
I have a daughter who does things. If demon curses and buckets of stage blood are your thing, join the fun this weekend in Greensburg. (I will not be seated in the splash zone.) Similar:Relics (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 6, Episode 4) When a huge hollow sphere traps a Sco…Rewatching ST:TNG The Enterprise-D tr…AmusingShare a…
Yes, Duolingo is free and I’ve learned a lot. No, I don’t like the psychological manipulation. I’m still using it but I changed my user name. Similar:I am happy with how this turned out. My mother told me about this story when I was little,…PersonalA college tells faculty it's illegal to speak to student journalistsCongratulations,…
“Murdering meteorologists won’t stop hurricanes. I can’t believe I just had to type that.” — Michigan-based meteorologist Katie Nickolaou. A wide range of misinformation has been spread as Helene and then Milton gathered pace in the Gulf of Mexico, such as claims spread by Trump that Fema had run out of cash for hurricane survivors…
It’s so heartbreaking seeing the amount of disinformation being spread by elected officials and partisan agitators with lots of followers. FEMA is not out of money, it’s not confiscating damaged property, and it’s not biased for against any ethnic groups or political affiliations. Similar:Taking the Lid Off the McDonald’s Coffee CaseHave you heard the story…
My mother-in-law invited me to try out the 60- year-old tape machine that belonged to my father-in-law. When I worked in radio news in the late 1980s, we were still loading reels and splicing tape, so it all came back to me pretty quickly. Similar:100 Word ChallengeIt is a weekly creative writing challeng…CultureUshering for…