87,000 Missing Deaths: Tracking the True Toll of the Coronavirus Outbreak

Sobering report from the New York Times, providing evidence that COVID-19 deaths have been over-reported. Mortality data in the middle of a pandemic is not perfect. In most places, the disparities between the official death counts and the total rise in deaths reflect limited testing for the virus rather than intentional undercounting. Officially, about 355,000 people had…

Very interesting adaptation of Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice. #pptlaytime @thepublicpgh

Similar:Full Bloom opens tonight.Personal'Arrival' Is Smart, Stylish Sci-Fi About Language, Not Laser BeamsThe premise sounds quite interesting. Re…CultureGreat Twitter thread on Aaron Burr, from the Internet ArchiveFunny what you find in books. When digit…AwesomeJust reminding myself that these moments do and will exist. I’ve evaluated every student s…AcademiaThe Wire (#StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch, Season 2, Episode…

Write instructions for busy grouches.

Updating the graphic for a writing handout on how to write instructions, which I created in 2000. Similar:Starship Down #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 4, Episode 7) During a battle with the Jem'Ha…Rewatching ST:DS9 An enjoyable “crisi…EmpathyHamlet!PersonalAnother #steampunk #neovictorian control panel module. #blender3d #blender3dart #design #…AestheticsThe Media Pyramid: “Any content where ideology leads to falsehood is…

In a literature class, the author’s words matter more than the author’s life and times, or our own feelings and values.

Updating the graphic for a resource I created in 2012. Similar:PAC-MAN: The Untold Story of How We Really Played the GameA fascinating study of the thinginess of…AestheticsParadise Blue (so glad to be seeing more live theater lately)PersonalBloopers from my monologue for @pictclassictheatre 's Shakespeare Webinar this Friday at 2…   View t…AmusingVirtual debates about homelessness…

Trump, Obama seem equally disinterested in portrait unveiling — but journalism takes hits from both sides

On social media recently I saw people mocking Trump for “refusing” to unveil the traditional presidential portrait of Obama, and I saw people attacking “the fake news media” for pushing a narrative designed to make Trump look bad. The original NBC story that broke this item accurately states that neither Trump nor Obama is interested…

Déjà Q (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season Three, Episode 13) Amusing, insightful study of human nature

(Rewatching ST:TNG after a 20-year break) The meddlesome entity Q, stripped of his powers, throws himself at the mercy of Captain Picard: “in all the universe you’re the closest thing I have to a friend, Jean-Luc.” Lots of well-done banter and self-absorbed patter from actor John De Lancie. While Worf and Crusher have memorable reactions to…

I just found an abandoned blog draft, dated 2011, on economics in early computer games. Published!

I just found a post on economics in early computer games, tucked away as a “Draft” in my WordPress database, dated Jan 2011. I’m not sure why I never published it. The web page I was responding to has disappeared from the Internet, so I’ve linked to the Wayback Archive instead. Similar:Poetry Stimulates the Brain's…

Slow flyby of a scout shop. Starfield backdrop; particle-based engine exhaust; hull uses a Boolean modifier to cut out portholes; cockpit frame and text labels use shrinkwrap. #Blender3D

More progress as I continue to level up my #blender3d skills. Similar:Through the Looking Glass #StarTrek #DS9 Rewatch (Season 3, Episode 19) Sisko Must Rescue … Rewatching ST:DS9 The teaser give…DramaOpening night of Sive.PersonalInverted Pyramid: A news story starts with what's most important, not with whoever spoke f…Jerz > Writing >&nb…JournalismPicking a rubric in Canvas should not be…

Synchronous Online Classes: 10 Tips for Engaging Students

Every time I have taught an online class, I have made it asynchronous. I’m blogging these synchronous teaching tips so I can find them again when I’m prepping my fall classes (which will likely be HyFlex). The tips offered here won’t miraculously eliminate the initial awkwardness of virtual class sessions, but they’ll help. And over…

Carolyn Gombell Is Not a Real Person: #JusticeforCarolyn Is a Campaign Against Twitter Refusing to Delete Trump’s Tweets Accusing Joe Scarborough of Murdering Lori Klausutis

Fascinating use of social media. To be clear, this story about “Carolyn Gombell” is a fabrication, intended to spark Twitter to take action against people (such as Donald Trump) who use Twitter to publicize unfounded accusations. Will that matter to people who share it? It’s parody accounts, not journalists, who are retweeting this story as…

New York Times runs just 1000 names of the nearly 100,000 Americans who have already died from COVID-19

Similar:Trump Is Making Journalism Great AgainLong gone are the days when the media wo…CultureJoe Biden gives the media a desperately needed lesson about Donald TrumpPerhaps I should have been shocked at th…EssaysShakespeare's Globe Theatre, Minecraft Stylehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?time_conti…AestheticsA 40sq cm section of a #steampunk control panel. #blender3d #blender3dartAestheticsStephen Greenblatt's The Swerve racked up prizes — and completely…

Looking forward to Part 2 of #PPTPlaytime’s production “The Rivals” (live… now!)

Similar:Comment: Why women taking their husband's name could be about biologyI’m somewhat interested in the topic, bu…CultureAnother lovely variation of a #steampunk control panel. #blender3dart #neovictorian #desig…AestheticsI just picked up both Aslan's How and Cair Paravel. #narnia #monopolyPersonal‘A slow-motion disaster’: Journalism museum in talks about possible building saleLast year, SHU did not sponsor a bus…

Dogmeat and I may yet win this game.

Yes, this was the decisive moment. I ended up cleaning my son out when he landed here later in the game. Similar:Perchance to Dream: LARPing Hamlet at Castle ElsinoreThis is the concept of Inside Hamlet, an…CultureOne strategic twist-tie, and my bedside cable-tangles are a distant memory.PersonalSchool ditches rules and loses bulliesSwanson School signed up to…

Leveling up my skills in #blender3D.

Using invisible shapes to cut holes in the hull, and a shrinkwrap modifier to align the cockpit frame and the glass. Similar:I just caught myself thinking, “This doesn’t suck.” #medievalyork #mysteryplay #blender3d …I just caught myself thinking, “This doe…AestheticsMy copy of Plotkin's Hadean Lands arrived today. Current_EventsThink Like A Journalist | Kelsey Samuels | TEDxPlano  CultureYahoo,…

I just bought Diamond City.

Similar:The boy approved of the WWII historical fiction Dunkirk. CultureOn the way to closing night of "Orphans."PersonalHide and Q (TNG Rewatch, Season 1, Episode 9) Riker, buffed up by Q, grants desires of the…Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generatio…AmusingNot doing well. As usual.PersonalDaily 10sq cm of control panel eye candy. #blender3d #blender3dart #steampunkAestheticsSecret Mouthwash Dance Exposed…

The Rivals #PPTPlaytime

A great production of a delightful play. Similar:The dress we ordered for the “girl next door” role in The Fantasticks… vs the dress that…AestheticsIf I don’t stock the officers’ pub on my #steampunk #fantasy #CGI flagship, who will? (All…PersonalI just finished "Beyond Eyes" and I think there's something in my eye.My 20yo son, who plays…