The latest climate change name: Hurriquake. It happened yesterday in Southern California. Hurricane Hilary coincided with a 5.1 earthquake. Note: earthquakes aren’t caused by climate change. But I imagine people in California might have good reason to wonder if they are. In any case, the term counts as a linguistic blend. Credit where credit is […]
Let’s consider the upside of Generative AI. But first, let’s acknowledge that technology is not the problem. It’s what people do with technology that can be problematic. And second, new forms of media do not eradicate old forms. Movies didn’t replace theater. TV didn’t replace radio. So, come on down, AI, and join the party! […]
The downside of Generative AI involves the danger of copyright infringement. And the threat to the livelihoods of many, if not all, working visual artists and writers. If you need to refresh your memory about Generative AI and/or copyrights, see: A Few Things To Know About AI We distinguish first between copyrighted images and copyrighted […]
A few things to know about AI. Since the topic is everywhere these days, I want to understand it. Writing about a topic helps me think through it. I hope that reading about the topic will help you think through it along with me. The July 14 issue of Science magazine inspired this blog. The […]
Medellín, Colombia’s favorite son is the painter/sculptor Fernando Botero Angulo (b. 1932). How do I know? When I visited the city last week, his prominence was obvious. The name of the central square is Plaza Botero. And it’s chock full of his statues. I’m tempted to say “chunk full.” The plaza was also full of […]
Today I discovered that I suffer from a condition I didn’t even know existed: crossword clue envy. Would I like to see my name on the NY Times bestseller list? Sure. Would I be happy if Netflix knocked on my door? Of course. But when I came to 50 Down on a crossword I was […]
I’m re-reposting a 2017 repost of my Goodreads blog from 2014: On the term Bodice Ripper. It is my response to Ross Douthat’s op-ed in the New York Times today. He uses the term to describe a wildly popular Netflix series based on a series of novels understood by their readers to be romances. And […]
The pandemic is not over. And we haven’t yet come to the year-mark on quarantine. (I count mine beginning on March 15, 2020.) Nevertheless, I’m feeling something ‘yearly’ this week. It could be that we’re still close enough to the start of a New Year. Or, gosh, maybe something else new and refreshing started this […]
Beliefs have consequences. Actions have consequences. Like beliefs and actions, words have consequences. Words do things. What things? J.L. Austen maps them out in How To Do Things with Words (1962). Austen was an ordinary language philosopher who taught at Oxford. He was one of several language philosophers and linguists who opened the way for […]
If I’m going to be counting blessings, I’ll start with the fact that I’m safe and sound. And I have nice views. Title image: my windows onto the world. Looking north and west over Durham, NC. Even though I’ve become a hermit, these vistas may be helping to keep my spirits aloft. I offer my […]