Differences in Media
I've been thinking lately about the differences between media types. This thinking was inspired by the new movie Disgrace based on J. M. Coetzee's novel of the same name. I…
Making Sense of All Things Digital
For the last few years, I have been volunteering my time at a local senior center, teaching computing skills. One of the struggles is to explain the subtle cues that…
Corpus Libris
Interesting "ongoing photo essay on books and the bodies that love them" at Corpus Libris. I like this photo a lot.
The Ambassador of Semiotics
I heard Madeleine Albright this morning on Morning Edition, the fifth or sixth interview I've heard with her since Sunday morning. Albright just released a new book and the ensuing…
Human Pain
I've been watching Battlestar Galatica on DVD. One of the roles of science fiction, I think, is to raise controversial issues, to help us understand what it means to be…
The Decision Engine
I've seen a couple of commercials on TV for Microsoft's newest product, Bing. Microsoft claims that Bing is a "decision engine." What exactly is a "decision engine"? According to a press release from…
NeMLA 2010
There have been quite a few stories that have captured my attention in the nearly six month break that I've taken from writing entries in this blog. I will be…
Failed Predictions
Predicting the future is a notoriously difficult endeavor and yet there is never a shortage of people willing to play the game, especially at the end of a year. Many…
We ARE Telling Stories
As I suggested in a previous post I don't understand why FaceBook calls each status update a story. I said that if we were to consider each update a plot…
FaceBook Revisited
In honor of the recent release of the remake of Brideshead Revisited, I thought it might be interesting to revisit FaceBook. I've been using FaceBook for nearly a month now…
We’re Not Telling Stories
One of the aspects of game analysis that my students struggle with has to do with the dramatic elements of a game. According to the text that I use in…
A Lipshitz by Any Other Name
Here is one of the most amazing stories about an unthinking reliance on technology that I've heard in a long time. Verizon does not allow the setting up of accounts that…
Philosophy of Jokes
On Word of Mouth today on NHPR, I heard an interview with Jim Holt, the author of Stop Me if You've Heard This: A History and Philosophy of Jokes. His…
Adventures in Time or Why I’m Freaked Out by FaceBook
Because so many of my friends are completely addicted to FaceBook (and threatening not to be friends with me anymore), I decided to join two days ago (less than 36…
Game or Sport?
While we were in Barcelona, I picked up the European (Summer Journey Double Issue) edition of Time magazine because it's about the games that people play around the world. A…
Wii Weaknesses
A recent positive experience I had with the Wii exposes a couple of weaknesses in Wii Tennis. Because they enjoyed playing with our Wii so much, Ann and Greg have…
Wii Fitness Age
The Wii has a lot of features that you can use with the basic set up. One of the most popular seems to be the fitness test that comes with…
Desktop Layouts
My friend Ann (who, despite being one of the most astute critics of the technological life that I know (or maybe because of that fact--don't you love the parenthetical to…
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