Category: Links Dump

An Open Letter to MFA Writing Programs (and Their Students) « Whatever “So, MFA writing programs, allow me to make a suggestion. Sometime before you hand over that sheepskin with the words “Master of Fine Arts” on it, for which your students may have just paid tens of thousands of dollars (or more), offer them… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-16

The Shadow Scholar – The Chronicle Review – The Chronicle of Higher Education “I’ve written toward a master’s degree in cognitive psychology, a Ph.D. in sociology, and a handful of postgraduate credits in international diplomacy. I’ve worked on bachelor’s degrees in hospitality, business administration, and accounting. I’ve written for courses in history, cinema, labor relations,… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-15

Baubles vs. Hard Truths | Mother Jones “Here’s the problem: most plans to reduce the long-term deficit consist of three things: shiny baubles, smoke and mirrors, and actual deficit reduction measures. You want to minimize the former and emphasize the latter, and on that score I don’t think Simpson-Bowles does very well.” (tags: economics politics… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-14

slacktivist: Fix the deficit: Cure diabetes “My grand scheme for long-term debt-reduction would improve the lives of tens of millions of people while saving everyone else a ton of money. It’s an attempt to solve problems, rather than to luxuriate in enduring them and savoring the suffering they produce. And that goes against everything the… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-13

Why Making Dinner Is A Good Idea | Wired Science | Wired.com “Why does the microwave and frozen dinner inexorably lead to obesity? According to the economists, the cheapness of calories (both in terms of price and time) has led us to dramatically boost consumption. Food stops being something we make and create — it doesn’t… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-12

slacktivist: TF: Chairface Carpathia “The villain Nicolae Carpathia probably reminds of more than any other is Chairface Chippendale, from one of my favorite episodes of The Tick — a warped parody of superhero comics. Chairface, a supervillain, constructs a giant heat ray he plans to use to carve his name on the moon. Our heroes,… Continue reading Links for 11-11-10

Twinkie diet helps nutrition professor lose 27 pounds – CNN.com “Twinkies. Nutty bars. Powdered donuts. For 10 weeks, Mark Haub, a professor of human nutrition at Kansas State University, ate one of these sugary cakelets every three hours, instead of meals. To add variety in his steady stream of Hostess and Little Debbie snacks, Haub… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-10

Moving Toward Quantum Computing – Science in 2011 – NYTimes.com “In 1981 the physicist Richard Feynman speculated about the possibility of “tiny computers obeying quantum mechanical laws.” He suggested that such a quantum computer might be the best way to simulate real-world quantum systems, a challenge that today is largely beyond the calculating power of… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-09

Sunday Function : Built on Facts “[T]he idea of function as a machine is such a powerful and intuitive one that it tends to be used pretty universally until you have a good reason to abandon it. Non-mathematicians rarely encounter such reasons, even in the more mathematically demanding disciplines like physics, computer science, and engineering.… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-08

Democrats didn’t lose the battle of 2010. They won it. – By William Saletan – Slate Magazine “Politicians have tried and failed for decades to enact universal health care. This time, they succeeded. In 2008, Democrats won the presidency and both houses of Congress, and by the thinnest of margins, they rammed a bill through.… Continue reading Links for 2010-11-07