I’m of mixed mind on this whole business of table-top directing.
On the one hand, it clearly requires technical skill and a certain sensitivity to presentation aesthetics.
On the other hand, anyone who can dismiss food as “banal” has clearly been inappropriately de-sensitized to certain very important things.
John Ralston Saul on political rhetoric, the nature of populism, why there are no great public speakers these days and what makes for real, effective political leadership.
Political Rhetoric, Present and Future : Global Brief
Many political leaders think that it is dangerous to speak well. In fact, they are looking to bore people – and we feel that. As a result, when we stand up and say real things, people are quite shocked.
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The core of a great political leader is not cleverness; it is ethics!
Just a guess … it probably involves a polar bear and a snowstorm.
http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/4358/aussie-student-find-missing-mass
“We don’t know where it went. Now we do know where it went because that’s what Amelia found.”
Yet another entry in the seemingly endless “where was this wisdom 10 years ago when I needed it?” category:
Rands in Repose: Lost In Translation
The Tribune’s Blair Kamin writes of the new University of Chicago library, a marvel of both design and technology:
[...]
The subconscious is a shadowy beast. We sense it’s there somewhere, but know little more about how it actually works than when Dr. Sigmund first made public his (somewhat fanciful in hindsight) speculations on the psyche in the 19th century. But we do know that it is ignored at one’s own peril. A good friend of mine, a clinical psychologist in practice, likes to characterize it as the part of you yelling “THE ROOF IS ON FIRE!”…except the screaming is in Yiddish and uses Yoda-esque subject:verb order inversion, to boot, with the occasional random word thrown in as well. There’s something there you ought to know going on in there, but figuring out what can be more problematic than actually dealing with the root problem.
I’m open, then, to friendly reader suggestions as to what is motivating my subconscious to inflict the righteous wrath of Roger Waters upon the hapless (or not so hapless, depending on individual) ranks of BP representatives gamely navigating their employer through the disaster currently mushrooming in the gulf.
Frederick Brooks has a new book out: The Design of Design. Hat-tip to Joel Spolsky’s blog for this most pleasant Monday morning surprise.
If that means nothing to you or if you’re asking “WTF”, no worries, just move along. It’s a business-somewhat techno-geeky thing.
(On second thought, don’t just move along. Instead, get a copy of this and read the namesake essay. If you are at all involved with project management, re-read it. And if you happen to be managing software development projects, re-read it a second time still. Then think about exactly what he’s saying before you put your next project timeline together…because there still is no silver bullet. And don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.)
If that does mean something to you…was your first thought “Jeez, I didn’t think he was alive anymore, let alone still writing”, just like me?
Now, if Knuth would finally finish chapters 7 and 8…
Just back from our spring break trip to CT and NYC. Great visit, wonderful to see our friends the O’Brien family again. And beautiful sights to see as well…the photo goodness you’ve come to expect from me can be found here. Enjoy!
