April 2011
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Apple takes on Instapaper, ReadItLater with... →
This would be sweet if it were synchronized to the cloud with MobileMe.
Apple is working on a feature called “Reading List” for its Safari web browser that will let users save stories to read later — pretty much the same thing that Instapaper and ReadItLaterare doing now — reports MacRumors.
At the moment, Reading List only appears to be something that’s in early builds of Mac OS X Lion,...
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Robert Reich: The Republican Plan with Lipstick →
robertreich:
Republicans figure that if they can’t sell the pig, they’ll just put lipstick on it and find some suckers who will think it’s something else.
That’s the proposal emerging in the Senate from Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee and also Democrat Claire McCaskill of Missouri. It would get the…
Apr. 30, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Saturday’s Poem: “The Last Day” by Patricia Fargnoli, from Duties of the Spirit. Saturday’s Literary Notes: Today is the birthday of the woman who wrote, “If civilization had been left in female…
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Watch for Venus and moon east before sunrise May 1 →
Given an unobstructed eastern horizon and clear skies, many people around the world should be able to see the waning crescent moon with the planet Venus at morning dawn tomorrow (Sunday,…
Apr. 29, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Friday’s Poem: “Long Winter” by Timothy J. Nolan. Friday’s Literary Notes: IIt was on this day in 1826 that Samuel Morey received a patent for his compressionless “Gas or Vapor Engine,” known now as…
Five planets before sunrise April 30. Only Venus... →
We show the moon and planets for about 30 minutes before sunrise tomorrow (Saturday, April 30) as seen from North American mid-northern latitudes. At mid-northern latitudes all around…
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Andover Youth Services Concert to Benefit the...
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iPhone 4 in white is here
It looks as if the rumors were true. A white iPhone to maintain interest until an autumn launch of iPhone 5. Shop Online | Find a Store | 1-800-MY-APPLEBuy Online Order from the Apple Online Store, and we’ll ship it free, directly to your door.Buy at the Apple Retail Store Visit your favorite Apple Retail Store, and we’ll set it up just the way you like.TM and...
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FAIR Blog » Blog Archive » Public Unsure Trump Was... →
Maybe Donald Trump can do something to put these rumors to rest.
04/26/2011 by Peter Hart
Today the Drudge Report (4/26/11) screams:
SHOCK POLL: ONLY 38% SAY OBAMA ‘DEFINITELY’ BORN IN USA
The all-caps headline links to a USA Today story that quotes that 38 percent figure, courtesy of a new Gallup poll.
For the record, the poll also asked respondents the same question about...
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Apr. 27, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Wednesday’s Poem: “End of Days” by Marge Piercy, from The Hunger Moon: New and Selected Poems, 1980 - 2010. Wednesday’s Literary Notes: On this day in 1926, the phrase “grace under pressure” was used…
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"The Blacks"...
The dog whistle is so high-pitched that even Trump can’t hear it.
leftish:
Stephen Colbert: Trump is the only GOP candidate who can cut into Obama’s base. As Trump told the Talk Radio:
[plays video of Trump saying: I have a great relationship with “The Blacks” — I’ve always had a great relationship with “The Blacks”.]
Stephen Colbert: See? He has a great relationship with “The...
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Evacuation Zones for Nuclear Reactors | PSR →
This interactive map from the Physicians for Social Responsibility may give one pause, but it is incredibly useful.
Do you live within 50 miles of a nuclear reactor? One third of Americans do. Property contaminated by nuclear materials is not covered by insurance, so if your house is affected, you could be displaced permanently and lose everything. Use the tool below to find out if you are...
Leo loses his tail. We gain a constellation. →
Tonight’s chart again shows the evening sky high to the south. To the upper left of the constellation Leo the Lion are dozens of very faint stars. They make up the constellation Coma…
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“What we found was that in G-rated movies, for every one female character, there...”
– Geena Davis (via reelaroundthefountain)
I will forever love her for “The Long Kiss Goodnight”. Rock on, Geena.
(via squee-gee)
Tell me again who thinks women and men are equal in America?
(via stfuconservatives)
Orion descends in the west each evening →
The famous constellation Orion will soon disappear for another season.
At this time of year, Orion is descending in the southwest to west in the hours after sunset. This constellation is…
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Inventory
I was talking to some students after class at the University today, when a stranger came into my room with some scanning device. Some IT functionary, he was inventorying PCs, and he tried to inventory mine. “Nope, this is personal; I’m an adjunct.” He did ask if it belonged to the University, expressing that it’s difficult to inventory laptops, since they’re always...
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“Where will wants not, a way opens.”
– J.R.R. Tolkein (spoken by Éowyn in The Lord of the RIngs) TolkienWiki: TolkienQuotes
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Storify public beta is NOW OPEN: Everyone can...
We’re thrilled to announce that Storify is now in public beta — meaning anyone can go to and create an account to tell stories with social media. (You can read about it in The New York Times) Stories by Storify users so far have inspired, enlightened and entertained audiences around the world. All of us on the Storify team deeply appreciate our private beta users for their time and...
Apr. 25, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Monday’s Poem: “Where Dreams Come From” by Marge Piercy, from The Hunger Moon: New and Selected Poems, 1980-2010. Monday’s Literary Notes: It is the birthday of the man who inspired the word…
Apr. 24, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Sunday’s Poem: “Little Things” by Julia A. F. Carney. Sunday’s Literary Notes: Today is the birthday of playwright, novelist, and actor Eric Bogosian, born to Edwina, a hairdresser, and Henry, an…
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Kochab and Pherkad in the Little Dipper →
If you draw an imaginary line between the two outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper – and extend that line northward on the sky’s dome – you’ll come to Polaris, the North Star. Polaris…
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Towards a Talking Newspaper →
Watch print media merge with TV. We’re a step closer to the interactive digital paper (like animated giftwrap) depicted in Neal Stephenson’s The Diamond Age, Or A Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer (1996), which attempts to project the world of a hundred years hence.
icancstructures:
Is the QR code soon to be a thing of the past?
There is also a provision for user-created...
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Apr. 23, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Saturday’s Poem: Excerpt from “The Tempest” Act 4, Scene 1 by William Shakespeare. Saturday’s Literary Notes: Today is the birthday of Roy Orbison (1936), born in Vernon, Texas, to Orbie Lee, a…
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Two stars lead to constellation Hercules →
The constellation Hercules the Kneeling Giant can be seen ascending in the east-northeast on these spring evenings. Our chart today shows the sky for late night, when all of these objects are…
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Apr. 22, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Friday’s Poem: “Lamium” by Louise Glück, from The Wild Iris. Friday’s Literary Notes: Today is Earth Day. It was first observed in 1970, but its roots go back to the 1962 publication of Rachel…
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Peak of 2011 Lyrid meteor shower and Lyra the Harp →
Tonight is the expected peak of the 2011 Lyrid meteor shower, from late night Friday (April 22) until dawn Saturday (April 23). Usually, the hour before dawn is best, except that a bright …
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WatchOh, Brooklyn…
utnereader:
Guerilla gardeners and chairbombers around the world are taking to the street under the banner of “tactical urbanism” (here’s a round-up on the trend). Would you go rogue for urbanism?
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“JoAnne Kloppenburg did the right thing by demanding a statewide recount by hand...”
– Matthew Rothschild, “Praise for Kloppenburg for Demanding a Recount” | The Progressive 4/21/11
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They risked everything to ride
April 21, 2011
Original Freedom Riders Stop By WGBH
Callie Crossley talks with three of the original Freedom Riders, in advance of Freedom Riders, an American Experience film about a courageous band of civil rights activists who in 1961 challenged segregation in the South. The film premieres May 16 at 9pm on WGBH 2. The Callie Crossley Show airs weekdays at 1pm on 89.7 WGBH.
Learn more...
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Apr. 21, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Thursday’s Poem: “Poem” by William Carlos Williams, from Selected Poems. Thursday’s Literary Notes: Today is the birthday of screenwriter, director, comedian, and actor Elaine May, born Elaine Berlin…
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Roommate Charged With Hate Crime In Suicide Case :... →
Whoa. We followed this case in my death and dying class this past fall. I can’t say any of my students would disagree these charges were warranted.
A former Rutgers University freshman who prosecutors said used a webcam to spy on his roommate’s same-sex encounter was charged Wednesday with a hate crime and accused of deleting tweets and texts to cover up his tracks.
Dharun Ravi,...
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Lyrid meteors fly in moonlight, as Venus shines... →
Photo credit from Computer Science Geek’s photostream
The 2011 Lyrid meteor shower will pepper the night tonight between late night and dawn (April 21/22). However, the more likely peak…
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The Women Founders
Tomorrow in Modern Social Thought, we will be considering an excerpt from The Women Founders: Sociology and Theory 1830-1930 (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) by Patricia Madoo Lengermann and Jill Niebrugge Brantley. It tells the story of how women sociologists were “written out” of the history of the discipline. It isn’t just that they were “invisible;” on the contrary,...
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New England Spring
A sure sign of spring in New England is when the heat comes up on a rainy afternoon. I am amply defended, in that I am cooking Tuscan White Bean and Kale Soup from the February 2011 issue of Yoga Journal, and listening to Desi pop recommended to me by iTunes.
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Apr. 20, 2011: The Writer's Almanac →
Wednesday’s Poem: “End of Days” by Marge Piercy, from The Hunger Moon: New and Selected Poems, 1980 - 2010. Wednesday’s Literary Notes: On this day in 1926, the phrase “grace under pressure” was used…
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Daily Kos: WaPo/ABC Poll: 84 percent oppose GOP... →
I have one number for you: 2012.
The top lines of the WaPo/ABC Poll show a big problem for Republicans and their plan to gut Medicare. It’s hugely unpopular. The vast majority want Medicare preserved as is, along with Medicaid, with (once again) tax increases on the wealthy the heavily preferred choice for addressing debt. Asked the basic question of what should be cut, 78% oppose cutting...
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Republicans Sharpening Online Tools for 2012 →
They may be well-versed in social media, but do they have a robust blogosphere, or one riddled with conspiracism? I would never counsel complacency, nor would I argue that the sky is falling.
gregleding:
From The New York Times:
During last year’s midterm elections, Republicans caught up with Democrats in using technology and social networks, and now many Republicans elected to the House and...
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