Monthly Archives: December 2005

Make my screen shorter? Not on your life.

Posted on 12/12/2005 by dave

Here’s a rumor I definitely hope doesn’t come true: A 13.3-inch iBook with a resolution of 1280 × 720. Let me get this straight: the new iBook is going to have a shorter screen than my current iBook? I already … Continue reading →

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Some people apparently think this “internet” thing is serious

Posted on 12/12/2005 by dave

Impressive: admitting that you were the person who slandered a former newspaper publisher on Wikipedia. Not so impressive: not realizing that people actually use Wikipedia as a serious reference source. I mean, after all, wouldn’t people just vandalize the whole … Continue reading →

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My reflections on the eve of war with Iraq

Posted on 12/9/2005 by dave

Here’s an article I wrote as the U.S. was preparing for war with Iraq. I had intended to build it into a much larger thing, a whole web site with lots of contributions, but I never got around to it. … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 1 Comment

Kottke on David Foster Wallace

Posted on 12/9/2005 by dave

Jason Kottke’s got a review up of DFW’s latest book, Consider the Lobster. I wouldn’t complain at all if this one showed up under my Christmas tree.

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Three economists…

Posted on 12/9/2005 by dave

Three economists get into a cab. They’re each getting off at different places along the route. How should they split the bill? A better question is, where do these economists live where a cab ride costs $1? 1950?

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A holiday concert the way it should be done

Posted on 12/9/2005 by dave

Attending Christmas concerts and the like is supposed to be the bain of a parent’s existence. The sitting through song after simple song, the crying babies, the other parents frantically running into your line of sight so they can get … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 3 Comments

Special North Carolina-only post*

Posted on 12/8/2005 by dave

Attention North Carolina residents: Now is your chance to influence how votes are recorded in this state. Visit Verified Voting and fill out the form letter to let your local officials know why paper ballots are better than electronic ones. … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology | 1 Comment

Word Munger’s Christmas wish list

Posted on 12/7/2005 by dave

Word Munger doesn’t ask for much. A few readers for his blog, a few incisive comments. In return, he gives you fabulous prose such as this very post. But sometimes, Word Munger needs a little more appreciation. Lately, he’s begun … Continue reading →

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Pinker, research, and race

Posted on 12/6/2005 by dave

Steven Pinker has changed. In The Language Instinct he wrote brilliantly about the evolution of language and the means by which humans came to be the only thinking animals. He wrote about how the similarities that bind the different races … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Psychology | 2 Comments

Isn’t it ironic?

Posted on 12/6/2005 by dave

Dubai builds an indoor ski park (with actual frozen snow) in the desert. Generating the power for refrigerating this little slope presumably contributes to global warming, thus accelerating the decline of real ski areas. (yes, via Kottke, again….)

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Yet another moment of self promotion

Posted on 12/5/2005 by dave

I usually don’t have this much self to promote, but today is an embarrassment of riches. I’ve written an article on psychology and usability over at Tree House Magazine. Read it while it’s hot! $3, cheap!

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A moment for self-promotion

Posted on 12/5/2005 by dave

The new issue of The Quarterly Conversation is up, and it includes a review of Between Two Worlds by someone whose intellect I have unparalleled respect for.

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Try this out

Posted on 12/5/2005 by dave

It’s a funky animated typing tool. You can waste countless hours trying to type something of significance before it disappears. Update: inspired by this post, I should probably give credit to Kottke for this link.

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Deanna Lynn’s blog

Posted on 12/5/2005 by dave

A good friend of mine (and talented vocalist) Deanna Lynn has started a blog. In just a few days, she’s put up some great thoughts and neat photos, so I encourage you to give it a look.

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Pinker on Jews and intelligence

Posted on 12/3/2005 by dave

Good summary here of a Steven Pinker lecture on whether Ashkenazi Jews have a hereditary advantage in intelligence. I know Pinker is very careful to always preface all his comments about race and IQ heredity with “racism is wrong but…”, … Continue reading →

Posted in InstaMunger | 1 Comment

Rhetoric and Composition wikibook nearly complete

Posted on 12/2/2005 by dave

Here you go! It’s a little dry for my tastes, and it could use some more examples, but it’s nonetheless an impressive accomplishment. Maybe this wiki thing will catch on one of these days…

Posted in InstaMunger | 2 Comments

Sometimes living in North Carolina is depressing

Posted on 12/2/2005 by dave

At least he was white, though.

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How can we end racism today?

Posted on 12/1/2005 by dave

One of the major plotlines in Commander in Chief is when President Mackenzie Allen (played by Geena Davis) is given an old film of her archrival, Speaker of the House Nathan Templeton (played by Donald Sutherland), who, as a young … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 2 Comments

John Shirley on computerized phone systems and McMansions

Posted on 12/1/2005 by dave

John Shirley gets it right again (no way to permalink, but it’s front-center as of this posting). Why do we build giant homes so big we never see our family, and why do we tolerate robotic “customer service”? Shirley doesn’t … Continue reading →

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