Kevin Drum posted an anti-rant about the TSA, which argues that the new scanners and pat-downs aren’t an outrage because they really mean well: I’m not trying to defend everything TSA has put in place. Some of the stuff they do, like the penknife and nail clipper bans, really is stupid. And maybe backscatter scanners… Continue reading Invasive Searches and Underage Drinking
Author: Chad Orzel
Links for 2010-11-23
Confessions of a Community College Dean: The Sick Kid Shuffle “This weekend The Girl got hit by a nasty stomach bug, so nobody got much sleep and our Sunday plans were discombobulated. It brought back memories of those times when TW still worked outside the house, and we had to do the Sick Kid Shuffle.… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-23
Poll: Greetings
I don’t think this one requires any explanation: Hello:customer surveys Staying up watching the Giants game last night was not conducive to getting anything useful done this morning.
Academic Poll: Proctoring
I’m giving the final exam in my introductory E&M class this morning, which means spending a couple of hours sitting in a room full of students taking a test and doing my best not to fall asleep. As far as I’m concerned, getting rid of exam proctoring is the best argument for an honor code… Continue reading Academic Poll: Proctoring
Links for 2010-11-22
Are you a highly skilled worker? (Blog) – physicsworld.com “But what’s this? Kostya’s only got 75 “attribute points” (not counting the 10 each for speaking English and having £800), and he needs 80 to qualify as a highly skilled worker. Bad luck, Kostya! Better go do your Nobel-prize-winning research somewhere else! Yes, as it turns… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-22
Links for 2010-11-21
Friday Night Videos!: The Hits of 1990 | Popdose “Aerosmith – Janie’s Got A Gun: With this video and Madonna’s “Oh Father,” director David Fincher was cornering the market on music videos about child abusers. Also note the prominent use of dudes in hats before backlighting, presaging Det. Somerset in Seven. Also note Steven Tyler’s… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-21
Short Story Club: “Throwing Stones” by Mishell Baker
The final Short Story Club story is “Throwing Stones” by Mishell Baker. Once again, I find myself without a whole lot to say about it. This is a gender-reversed Asian-flavored fantasy story. The nameless narrator lives in a city with canals and teahouses in an Empire with rigid class and gender roles, a writing system… Continue reading Short Story Club: “Throwing Stones” by Mishell Baker
Goodnight Moon, Good Morning California
Here’s the clip from my live-via-Skype appearance on tv in Sacramento this morning. Unfortunately, the Chateau Steelypips Internet connection slowed way down for some reason, and Skype froze up then dropped the call. But we did get a few minutes of me talking about Goodnight Moon and SteelyKid. The field of view is oddly cropped,… Continue reading Goodnight Moon, Good Morning California
Links for 2010-11-20
A presumption of guilt makes people angry : Thoughts from Kansas “The virtual strip searches and actual pat-downs now performed by TSA are not selective. Everyone is treated like a terrorist. The pat-down is the same one given to a suspect being arrested, and the strip search is even more invasive. Every air passenger is… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-20
Hello, California
I keep forgetting to mention this here, but a while back I was contacted by a tv host in California about the Goodnight Moon post. Anyway, I will be appearing via Skype tomorrow morning at 9:20 my time on the Good Day Sacramento program, to talk about bedtime stories, dog physics, and such things. Internet… Continue reading Hello, California