Monoculture on the Potomac. My next column, which appears online tonight and in print next week, quotes from a speech given last year by now-former @Stake CTO Dan Geer. (I also referred to that speech last August in this weblog). Today my RSS feed is full of news about Geer, who was principal author of […]

Measuring poverty. There's an article in the New York Times today looking at the US Census Bureau's calculation of poverty rates. The article calls for an update of the figure to reflect changes in consumption patterns – which, it is envisaged would increase the number of people falling within the definition of poverty. Regular readers […]

This philosophy page from Critical Mass shows the …. This philosophy page from Critical Mass shows the power of a great graphic. They're using the industrial metaphor in the context of individualized marketing messages, but this visual could certainly be applied to the personalization of learning. There's no question that the current education system was […]

Karl Rove, Hell Bound. If there was a place like Hell, Karl Rove would have a special level all to himself. He's smug, arrogant, full of hatred for those “beneath” him, and he is putting the lives of people at risk everyday. No, i… [Eat Your Vegetables] —— i wish i could believe that the […]

A show of hands, please. Sheila, Dan and others are all over the black box voting situation. My vote: open it all. Voting tech needs to be transparent, and countable. If that means paper, or cardboard, or snaf, or whatever, we just have to deal with it. [The Doc Searls Weblog]

Redflag Linux: got a note from the Redflag Linux folks this AM – in Chinese. The Web site has English pages (thank you) and I was able to view their latest offerings which include a Cluster Server, Webmail Server, Database Server and Desktop. You can download a CD image free, natch… [www.gulker.com – words and […]

Game Documentaries. Hmm…. Jason Scott, Boingboing's current guest blogger, pointed me to two documentaries on games I hadn't known about. I just ordered both. Gamers: Clans Mods and a Cultural Revolution is about Counterstrike and its players. Avatars Offline is about MMG players. Jason also points to The Joystick Generation, about the early days of […]

GEORGE PLIMPTON, R.I.P.. Laurence Simon has the news. Michele is right–there have been a freakish number of major celebrity deaths this month…. [OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY]

Doctor Who?. Doctor Who is back [MetaFilter] —– one of the best shows EVER! I'm happy its back.

80's singer Robert Palmer has passed away. 80's singer Robert Palmer has passed away. CNN reports that the British rocker who is famous for his 80's hit “Addicted to Love” died of a heart attack in Paris at the age of 54. [MetaFilter