The death of audio pioneer Amar Bose brings back the memory of something that was a passion of mine during the 1970's--audio equipment. (The legacy of that passion may be seen in my digitisation technique for some of the albums on my music pages). It may seem strange now but the quest for analogue perfection …
The Government Agent Who Promoted Cohabitation
We're up on another 4 July, and frankly this one looks to be depressing. Many of us find ourselves in a country that doesn't want us any more; we've even gotten to the point where we find a person like Edward Snowden a hero for exposing the NSA, even when he fled to places our …
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"Open" Cubicle-free or Office-less Workplaces New? Hardly!
Not only is the "cool office" a myth, it isn't a novelty either. Consider "the Open Office Space Panopticon" like this: Trading in a cubicle for a shared desk not only encourages conformity — no more quirky puppy posters! — but also lets your boss see what you're doing at all times. Or at least …
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Living on the Cheap at Starbucks is a Little More Expensive
The place that defined coffee bumps up the price, for some of us at least: The Seattle-based coffee company says it's hiking prices on average by 1 percent nationally starting on Tuesday. But it says the price for many drinks, such as medium and large brewed coffees and Frappuccinos, won't change in most its 11,000 …
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At Last, the Mystery of "A City Set Upon a Hill Cannot Be Hid" is Revealed
Back in 2011 I posted (or more accurately reposted) the unique "Jesus Music" album A City Set Upon a Hill Cannot Be Hid. At the time I characterised it as "the mystery album of 1970′s Christian music". That mystery is now at an end, thanks to Paul Griffo, who was a member of the group. …
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Response to Tom Engelhardt and the Class of '66: Just Retire, Please
Tom Engelhardt has obviously been reading this blog, as he too is composing graduation speeches he won't deliver in person. In his case, it isn't just popularity lack: he addressed his own Class of 1966: The answer, class of 1966, is: just begin. Just believe that for every measure, there is still a potential countermeasure. …
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The Victorians Were Really Smarter After All
I was pleasantly surprised to read in phys.org that some researchers are coming to the conclusion that Victorian era people were more intelligent than those of us who have come after. With all the self-congratulating blather about the Flynn curve and just reflexive over-confidence, a corrective is in order. (It's probably too much to ask …
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Advice to Graduates: Every Wing has a Leading Edge and a Trailing Edge
One of the diciest spectacles we have in education these days is the rush to apply technology to the process. Our school systems are spending enormous amounts of money to equip students with the latest gadget (these days, it's a tablet) and make sure they know how to run these things. Textbook publishers are rushing …
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Advice to Graduates: The Importance of an Objective
It's that time of the year again, when some students turn into wage-earners, others just move on to another curriculum, and still others just tank. Once the mediaeval outfits return to the closet while some who just came out of the closet try to push others they don't like into the closet, college faculty are …
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When the Fence Went Away, So Did the American Dream
I recently noted an article about how the American Dream has downsized. The decline of our society as "aspirational" is one of the biggest shifts in attitude that has taken place in my lifetime, and is one I have noted on many occasions. But in the middle of the article, a survey was taken with …
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Positive Infinity 