How did "academic" become synonymous with "irrelevant?" Wouldn't it be a good idea if our smartest, best-informed people played a more active role in society? And yet, as New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof writes in a recent piece, "Ph.D. programs have fostered a culture that glorifies arcane unintelligibility while disdaining impact and audience."Kristof quotes Harvard … [Read more...] about Be a Better Writer in 1 Step: Forget Everything You Learned in College
Episodes
What’s not to LIKE about it?
Over the weekend, I happened upon the Frontline documentary "Generation Like," originally airing the week of February 17th. (View it on the PBS website here.) This detailed explanation of social media and its effect on teenagers and young adults was sometimes chilling in its demonstration of the lengths people will go to gain attention, to garner 'likes' on Facebook. But more … [Read more...] about What’s not to LIKE about it?
This Future-Oriented High School Is Devoted to Digital Media
A high school curriculum based on "Creativity, Self-awareness, Empathy, and Critical Thinking" -- and it's focused on digital media arts.This sounds like someone set out to train the next generation of Boots Roadies!And who knows, I wouldn't be surprised if we end up hiring graduates of the Millennium Charter High School, which opened just a few months ago in Salinas, … [Read more...] about This Future-Oriented High School Is Devoted to Digital Media
How You Think About Stress Will Kill You (Literally)
Dr. Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University, recently presented a TED Talk in Scotland that may change the way we view stress.Watch this video -- it may just save your life! … [Read more...] about How You Think About Stress Will Kill You (Literally)
Kerning? Is that an Olympic Sport?
If you were unaware, kerning is the process of adjusting the spacing between two letterforms (oops! not an olympic sport!), whether they are in print, on the web, or any other place. (Tracking, on the other hand, adjusts the space uniformly over a range of letters.) Graphic designers kern text to position it gracefully into the allotted space, making a better design - but just … [Read more...] about Kerning? Is that an Olympic Sport?