Artblogs

Terry Teachout, in the Wall Street Journal, comments on the rise of blogs about the arts, aka artblogs. Written by practicing artists, critics, or motivated amateurs, these blogs are in serious competition with small market arts reporting.
The article is also a treasure trove of links to artblogs.

Technorati Tags: blogs, culture, arts

Top 20 geek novels: The results are in

The Guardian Unlimited has published the results of its Top 20 geek novels poll. Idoru didn't make the list (sigh). The winner was The HitchHiker's guide to the Galaxy It's a bit too lighthearted and whimsical for my taste.
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Technorati Tags: books

Dover Pennsylvania: intelligent voters

The voters of Dover Pennsylvania earlier this week elected a school board that did not include supporters of so-called "intelligent design". Here's the New York Times story. Pat Robertson was not happy.

Technorati Tags: commentary, culture

The Dilbert Blog

The Dilbert Blog: what can I say? This one's gonna be hugely popular.

Technorati Tags: blogs, culture

In Joy and Sorrow: Kurk Vonnegut and John Fowles

Today (November 11) is Kurt Vonnegut's birthday. Here is how one blog is celebrating it: Backwards City: Happy Birthday, Wanda Jane
How fitting that the author of Slaughterhouse Five, one of the classic antiwar novels, was born on the anniversary of the end of WWI.
Sadly, earlier this week we lost John Fowles. Here is the BBC story. The French Lieutenant's Woman is his masterpiece, but I've always had a soft spot for The Collector, and taught it several times in my former life.

Technorati Tags: books, culture

Is Paris Blogging?

Boing Boing has a brief article on the French government's silencing of blogs that appear to be sympathetic to rioters, along with several links to news coverage of it.
Always, always blame the messenger.

Technorati Tags: blogs, commentary, culture, internet

Career suicide or what?

The Guardian reports that Leondardo DiCaprio is set to star in the movie version of Malcolm Gladwell's Blink. I haven't read the book, but I understand it's a non-fiction book about the decision-making process, espeically snap decisions. Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't movies usually have plot, character development, conflict? What next: Critique of Pure Reason, the cartoon?

Technorati Tags: movies

Again, with the lists?

So much to read, so little time. Rely on the wisdom of crowds
and the software of Google. Most major newspapers and tv networks with an online presence publish lists of their most emailed articles.

Technorati Tags: commentary, internet, newspaper, news

Blogging: It's a good thing

Who’s afraid of the big, bad blog? : The question is posed by the Financial Times in an analytical piece that examines why business fears, yet needs to adapt to, the blogging phenomenon. Unlike the Forbes editorial, which I referred to in a recent post, the author of this article doesn't break out in mad dog foaming at the thought of all those uncontrollable blogs out there. But I think he's naive to believe companies have a shot at getting people to take their information from corporate blogs.
Word up guys: the phenomenon really is uncontrollable. Video killed the radio star; blogs will do the same for corporate marketing strategies.

Technorati Tags: blogs, internet

Wine attacks alzheimer's

One of the goals I'm tracking on 43things.com is to enjoy great wine. Now this article in Scientific American suggests that a compound found in red wine might counter the effects of alzheimer's.
I'm off to do some medical research with an Aussie shiraz!

Technorati Tags: wine

What are the top 20 "geek novels"?

The Guardian is asking What are the top 20 "geek novels"? Click on the link and vote. Alas, I don't see my personal choice, Idoru by William Gibson among the choices.

Technorati Tags: books

Google ads mismatches

As a part of my endless, and largely pointless, web surfing I recently came across a site dedicated to Trepanation: the practice of removing a small bit of bone from the skull and, in effect, making a hole in the head which is eventually covered over by skin. Neurosurgeons often perform the procedure as part of an operation. This particular web site, though, touts trepanation as an end in itself, as an "alternative" form of medical treatment.
Anyway, I noticed that the site had an "ads by Gooooogle" box in the right column and that one of the ads was "Drill holes in tile fast". I couldn't help but wonder, first why google would want to associate its advertisers with such a site, and second, would any true believer in trepanation follow up and buy a porcelain drill bit to relieve the pressure in his head?
There's a fad in here somewhere: find and record silly or tasteless google ad mismatches.

Technorati Tags: internet

Chain of Command

Defense AT&L: Everything we need to know about program management, we learned from punk rock. I first came across this article in excerpt form in Harper's. It seemed so absurd that I had to hunt down the original. Basically, the authors hold punk rockers up as role models for people who design weapons systems: they're rebels, they "stick it to the man", they are "loud and in your face".

Technorati Tags: culture, commentary

Whatever du jour

One of the more interesting mainstays of the web is the "Of the day" site. You know, "Quote of the Day", "SAT Question of the Day", that sort of thing. A google search for the phrase "of the day" returned 180 million hits. Even if that doesn't translate into 180 million sites, you can bet there are hundreds, if not thousands, of them dedicated to doling out a nugget trivia relating to some subject or phenomenon every twenty-four hours. Among the more unusual are the Cruel Site of the Day and the Positive quote of the Day.
For a time I seriously considered creating a blog called "'Of the Day' Of the Day". Every day it would present a different "Of the Day" site. But then I did a Google search for stupid site of the day and changed my mind. The web can be a cruel place.

Technorati Tags: culture, internet, puppy

Crazy, nutty, obsessive

Michelle Pauli, in the Guardian Unlimited: Culture Vulture blog has an interesting story about National Novel Writing Month (apparently November is it), as well as a link to the National Novel Writing Month web site, where you can enter your tome in a contest.
More fascinating yet is her account of the stir the whole thing is causing in the blogosphere.

Technorati Tags: culture, literature, novels

It's all about control

Everyone is commenting on the Forbes Magazine Editorial attacking blogs. It's a mildly hysterical attack characterizing blogs as electronic lynch mobs and warning about the dire effects a hostile blog article could have on a brand name company. I suppose the only rational response is a big "boo".
Recent attacks on the blogging phenomenon have characterized it as everything from elitist, to unprofessional, to thuggish. What it really is, is a phenomenon that large corporations cannot control or spin or silence.
Adapt or die.

Misleading Food Labels

Slashfood has this interesting article on the six most misleading food labels. The trick seems to be to get the names of as many fruits and vegetables in the big letters of the package and trust that nobody reads the small print.

Jane Urquhart reviewed

The Independent has a nice review of Jane Urquhart's latest novel A Map of Glass. I haven't read it myself yet, but I did enjoy her Away
a few years back. Canadian novelists are getting quite a bit of attention abroad; wish I could say the same for our poets.

Rumpole of the death bed

The Washington Post has a very well written review of Rumpole and the Primrose Path, the latest in John Mortimer's series on the cigar-smoking defender of petty thieves. It would appear that the old gaffer is now in a nursing home, awaiting the grim reaper. It's a daring ploy on the part of the author John Mortimer and a bit of a risk. Sure, we'll all cheer for Rumpole as he battles with yet another form of pompous bureaucracy, but won't some people be turned off at the thought of their own impending death? And will it mark Rumpole of the Bailey as old fart reading only? Perhaps it already is.
What next? Spenser and Hawk clocking villains with their canes? Updike has killed rabbit off. Will Mortimer do the same with Rumpole? Should he?

Technorati Tags: culture, literature, novels

Bring on the leeches

Have we hit the wall as far as innovations in technology are concerned? Entering a dark age of innovation

del.icio.us Tags: web ideas