There’s something wrong with the question in the title of this piece, isn’t there? I had asked some students “What language do Canadians speak?” Some of them said English, a few said French, some said both English and French. One said… Read More ›
Month: July 2016
Another joyful visit to Ashmont Grill
Still too hot to cook last night, so we had to return to our old standby for dinner, the Ashmont Grill. (Normally we go there twice a month. This was probably our third time, but who’s counting?) We decided on… Read More ›
Making a Point: The Persnickety Story of English Punctuation
If you use commas and periods, this book is for you. If you use semicolons and dashes; this book is still for you. And even if you use colons, hyphens, parentheses, and the dreaded apostrophes, this book is still for you. So, I… Read More ›
Dorset Hall
Much too hot to cook dinner last night, so we decided to try Dorset Hall, a fairly new addition to our neighborhood. Overall verdict: meh. First the good news: My salad was crisp, fresh, and huge. Barbara’s steak tips were… Read More ›
What!? We’re making fun of Comic Sans yet again???
Would be even better with Bart Simpson…
Do teachers’ unions protect bad teachers?
Some significant fraction of the general public despises teachers. Everything that’s wrong with schools is our fault. And many of those who despise teachers place particular blame on teachers’ unions, which in their view serve to protect bad teachers (and… Read More ›
A multi-calendar from a century ago
Wow! Look closely at this amazing image. What is it? Clearly [???] it’s an Ottoman calendar from a century ago. Fortunately, it has been annotated for our viewing pleasure. It shows the then current date — apparently April 20, 1911 —… Read More ›
The Art of Language Invention
OK, let’s get a couple of things out of the way before we discuss this book: First of all, it is not a book for the general public. Despite its title, The Art of Language Invention is not a popularization. Yes, it looks like an ordinary trade… Read More ›
88 Wharf (once again)
It was time for dinner yesterday, and what were we going to do? Clearly it was too hot to cook — at least with a kitchen and dining room that aren’t air-conditioned — so it must be time to try… Read More ›
SMAPFY
“What,” you ask, “is SMAPFY?” I’m sure that is what you’re asking, isn’t it? SMAPFY stands for “Supreme Musical Artists of the Past Fifty Years”; it’s a voting simulation that we have been conducting at the Crimson Summer Academy for the past ten… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 