A definite theme

animation, books, reading View Comments
Mar 312008

I decided to combine this week’s link dump with this month’s book dump since April starts tomorrow. When I started gathering everything to enter it, I noticed an odd relationship between most of my links. Let’s see if you can find it.

We’ll start with the links…all two of them!

  • College students making the grade online, in class- It’s great that educational technology is improving students’ grades in courses. My concern is, are they demonstrating any actual learning? I work with kids day in, day out. A crazy number of the kids are supposed to have some sort of short-term memory issue because they never seem to know anything (makes you want to raise a kid up here, just in case it’s the water). What’s really happening is that they’re cramming for tests, and then doing nothing to actually shift that knowledge into their memory at all. So we end up teaching the exact same topic (I often use the exact same material, just to make my point) to the exact same kid, and they have absolutely no clue they’ve seen it before. Grades are one thing, retention is something completely different.
  • Cartoon Network has no plans for One Piece return- I’m sharing this one because I’m a jerk. 4Kids lost three properties in 2006- one it deserved to lose (don’t hate me), one that simply finished (4Kids does still control it), and one that was literally pirated away by another company that 4Kids has a distribution partnership with. Granted, One Piece often had fans yelling and screaming at 4Kids, but still. If you ever want to know how 4Kids lost this poor embattled property, google “Funimation One Piece”. It’s completely irrelevant now. After only six months of fans yelling and screaming about the new voice actors, Cartoon Network has decided to stay out of it. (You’d think after what happened with Pokemon, these companies would learn that moving away from 4Kids voice actors is never a popular idea.)

And now, after spending nearly every free moment in January and February reading, I kind of gave myself March off. The list, as a result, is short.

  • Mamotte Lollipop, Volume 1- My students are overly fascinated with my love of anime and manga, so they’re always asking me if I’ve ever heard of titles. One of them, easily an otaku, came in a couple of weeks ago and dropped two manga on my desk. I hadn’t ever heard of this one, and could easily see why. It was scary looking (at least from where I was sitting). It was brightly colored and looked very girly. I don’t trend to to do girly, but the student insisted I read it, so I did. The story wasn’t much better than the cover, sadly enough.
  • The Gentlemen’s Alliance +, Volume 1?- This one had been previewed in Shojo Beat not too long ago, and I wasn’t impressed with it then, either. It was far more readable than Mamotte! Lollipop, though. Because I didn’t outright reject it, the student intends to make me read the rest of the story. (Since she has the attention span of a ferret, I’m hoping she’ll forget.)
  • Vampire Knight, Volume 4- One of my favorite manga at the moment. This volume was particularly…interesting. There’s a school ball, and you get a definite Yuki-Kaname moment. But the last half of the the volume…whoa! (It really got to me when I read these chapters in Shojo Beat, too.) The bonus story made very little sense, though.
  • The Absolute Sandman, Volume 1- I’m not sure why, but I keep trying to read Neil Gaiman’s books. It’s like I’m terrified that my geek creds are in danger if I can’t find one I can actually get through. For the time being, though, I think I’ve decided that I’m just not in the right place in my life to appreciate his work, and I’m letting it go for now. If that makes me less of a geek…well…then it makes me less of a geek. There’s not much I can do about that.

All right, did you find the theme?

Posted by Rebecca at 9:43 am Tagged with: ,

Vampire Knight, Volume 4

books View Comments
Mar 292008

Vampire Knight, Volume 4
author: Matsuri Hino
name: Rebecca
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2008/03/29
date added: 2008/03/29
shelves: i-own, manga
review:

Posted by Rebecca at 6:20 pm

Treat your people well

anthropology View Comments
Mar 272008

In grad school, I did a bit of research on how hosting the Olympics impacted relations between host countries and indigenous cultures. Canada (who will host the next Winter Games in Vancouver) and Australia (who hosted the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney) both have a very interesting history in this respect.

Canada’s isn’t quite as interesting. They just built an exhibition out of sacred artifacts the Lubicon Cree may or may not have realized the Glenbow had, sparking quite the conversation between Canada and their indigenous culture, the First Nations.

Australia, on the other hand, should be very grateful the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wasn’t quite so interested in human rights in the 50s. When Sydney made their bid for the 1996 Summer Games, the Aborignes were legally classified as “flora and fauna”. As a result, the IOC awarded those Games to Atlanta (which had a minor cultural brouhaha of its own) becasue they felt this was a violation of the Aborigines’ human rights. The Australian government legally recognized the Aborigines as humans, started trying to teach them about their own history, and then Sydney submitted a bid for the 2000 Summer Games, which they won. Australia petitioned for, and won, the right to fly the Aboriginal Flag at Olympic venues (only recognized nations’ flags are allowed to fly at the Games). Winners’ bouqets were composed from Aboriginal flowers. Every venue was covered in Aboriginal art.

Nearly ten years later, Australia has finally apologized to the Aborigines for what they did.

(Metafilter recently had a post sharing some of the Aborigines’ dance culture. It’s pretty cool.)

Of course, Sydney wasn’t the only city turned down for human rights violations. The year Sydney was awarded the Games, Beijing was informed that China’s human rights violations would keep it from becoming a Host City. Clearly, Beijing cleaned up its act enough to convince the IOC to award them this year’s Summer Games. But you have to wonder if the IOC would willingly strip that honor after everything that has happened in regards to Tibet recently. (At least one country has threatened to boycott the Opening Ceremonies over it.)

It’s very interesting to watch Host City bids.

Posted by Rebecca at 7:39 pm

My snarkiness is not a defense mechanism

character development View Comments
Mar 252008

If you’ve never met me in person, you may not be aware that I’m a fairly sarcastic person. In fact, I’m so well-known for it that when I don’t zing somebody, everyone worries.

Depending on your point of view, I probably sound like an awful person, but nearly all of those people who worry when I’m not snarky will tell you that I very rarely have any malice behind my barbs (and when I do, even the person on the receiving end agrees it was warranted). It’s just how I communicate, even with my students (who often give that sarcasm right back to me).

Over the last year, though, more and more people have started suggesting that those who employ sarcasm suffer from a number of things: low self-esteem, elitism, cynicism, aggressive personalities. In short, it’s being seen more and more as a defense mechanism.

Well, I perpetually sell my myself short while at the same time understanding I have a great wealth of talents and knowledge at my fingertips. I am a bit jaded, but most people find me more assertive or passive than aggressive. And I’m sarcastic. I’m good at it, and I take a bit of pride in that (right up until I realize that my fiction writing is woefully dry next to how I normally talk)!

For me, sarcasm is subconscious. It comes out without any real thought on my part for the most part. I do sometimes use it to get someone to think about what they’ve just said if it clearly wasn’t what they meant to say. I’ve used it with “tough guy” students in an attempt to build rapport. (It works more often than you’d think. Teenagers like being able to have snarky banter.) It’s just my mode of conversation.

Posted by Rebecca at 7:36 pm

The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1

books View Comments
Mar 232008

The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Rebecca
average rating: 4.71
book published: 2006
rating: 2
read at: 2008/03/23
date added: 2008/03/23
shelves: borrowed, graphic-novels
review:

Posted by Rebecca at 1:55 pm

More geeky links

creativity, reading, storytelling View Comments
Mar 232008

Happy Easter! Happy Spring!

Spring is supposed to be a time for rebirth, new beginnings, cleaning up. Well, let’s see if I can be reborn as someone who actually pays attention to her blog. (You guys can always poke me if I start slipping. Contact info’s under the contact tab.)

As you can see, the website has a new look. I’m not quite done with it yet (and I am aware of the problem with MyTwitter), but I think it’s coming along nicely. I’m hearing rumors that IE isn’t displaying the site correctly, so if you’re on IE and the site looks funny, let me know (or send me a screencap). I’m experimenting with a little visual branding, so the pattern in the header and footer is now the same as the backgrounds on my MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube accounts. I have yet to run into another “kirylin” online, but if it happens, I have a look to distinguish myself from them! I’m actually a bit excited about this. (See- a new beginning!)

I’ve done a pretty good job of keeping Reader under control, so there’s not much to share this week. (Yes, this would be the clean-up.)

  • The 21 Steps- We Tell Stories is doing something interesting with Google Maps. Their authors are using it to help add a sense of place to their stories. As you follow the character around the map, the story slowly unfolds. It’s an interesting concept, one I’ll be keeping an eye on, but this particular story didn’t really work for me.
  • The Net Generation, 1974-1983- Just when I’d gotten used to the fact that I’m at the older end of the Video Game Generation, I now learn that I’m actually a Netter. While I do remember life before the internet, I’ll be the first to admit that I spend a lot of my life online. I created a FriendFeed just top help people who are trying to keep up with me online. I do wonder, though, if I’m allowed to be part of both generations, although one really doesn’t preclude the other.
  • Book Lovers have an emotional bond with paper- As an avid lifelong reader, I know the simple comforts of curling up with a real book and thumbing through the pages. As a Netter, a researcher, and someone who nearly always has a bag full of books, I admit I’d love to have some kind of e-reader to lighten my load. I’m the type who’s just as likely to check out an e-book as a real book from her local library. I love my paper, but there are times when the technology is a more rational decision.
  • Find a solution with problem-solving questions- I love solving problems- mine, other people’s, jigsaw. Back in January I was reading books on developing and encouraging a culture of innovation, and I was amazed at how many of them had a series of questions to help foster creativity and innovation. A part of being creative and innovative is being able to solve problems, so I think Curt’s got a great set of questions to get you started off on the right foot.

This week’s quote is a great one…something I think we all lose sight of:

    “People are meant to be loved and things are meant to be used. But unfortunately, people are being used and things are being loved”- Unknown Found via Life Beyond Code
Posted by Rebecca at 9:57 am

Mamotte! Lollipop 1

books View Comments
Mar 222008

Mamotte! Lollipop 1
author: Michiyo Kikuta
name: Rebecca
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2007
rating: 2
read at: 2008/03/22
date added: 2008/03/22
shelves: borrowed, manga
review:
I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have even liked this title when I was the appropriate age for it. It was amusing in a couple of places, but by and large it wasn’t interesting.

Posted by Rebecca at 5:23 pm

The Gentlemen's Alliance †, Vol. 1

books View Comments
Mar 192008

The Gentlemen's Alliance †, Vol. 1
author: Arina Tanemura
name: Rebecca
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 2008/03/19
date added: 2008/03/19
shelves: borrowed, manga
review:
A student forced this on me. I’d already read part of the first chapter in the Shojo Beat magazine and wasn’t impressed.

I’d read more if it was handed to me, but this isn’t one I’ll be seeking out on my own.

Posted by Rebecca at 2:08 pm

Fruits Basket, Volume 19

books View Comments
Mar 182008

Fruits Basket, Volume 19
author: Natsuki Takaya
name: Rebecca
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2008/03/18
date added: 2008/03/18
shelves: i-own, manga
review:

Posted by Rebecca at 1:12 pm

Would you look at that?

creativity, designs I like View Comments
Mar 092008

Okay…February is behind us. Physically, I’m feeling a lot better. Mentally…lock up your silly string. *grin*

I thought I’d try to get this week off on the right foot by actually sharing some links with you. (This is funny because I consider Sunday the beginning of my blogging week, but the end of my work week.)

You guys hear me talk about RSS and nifty things I do technologically. Well, this post will give you several ways to make RSS bend to your evil whims. (Of special note is the fact you can force RSS feeds to be emailed to you if the website doesn’t offer it. I know some of you don’t go for feed readers.)

I have a link to the latest version of Pidgin, the IM program I use, but I am going to need a smarter geek to figure out what the latest version is that Feisty can handle and then to get it set up correctly. Then, maybe, MSN will start working properly again. (Plus I can apparently add MySpace Messenger. We’ll have to see how this goes.)

Then I have a reminder that next month is Math Awareness Month (I need to start planning something or other for Dead Bunny), and the back page of Cerise Magazine. Hopefully this time I’ll remember to actually do the caption contest, and this month’s picture is awesome!

Oh, and I’ve been saving this one for you guys! It’s a tutorial on how Creative Commons works. I tend to release most of my artistic work under one of the Creative Commons licenses because I find myself inspired by people around me, and I want people who find inspiration in my work to be able to riff on it (within my parameters, of course).

I’ve also been saving this comic for you. I died laughing the first time I saw it. As my roommates can tell you, I’ve become something of a Rock Band enthusiast, so any well-done Rock Band joke goes over pretty well with me. I imagine this version would kick my butt, though. I’d want to play the cello, and it wouldn’t turn out pretty.

This last one really struck a chord with me. Several, actually. These are some etiquette signs from Japan. (Don’t worry, they come translated.) One of them reminds me of the afternoon I was walking through a nearby open-air mall. This man lowered his cigarette as he approached me, which I appreciated…right up until I noticed where he’s put his cigarette. His daughter, probably not much more than three, was walking with him, and when he dropped his arm, the cigarette landed just centimeters from her face. He didn’t seem concerned, and she didn’t seem to notice. I, on the other hand, was mortified. Even though I’m allergic to smoke, I’d rather suffer swollen sinuses and a closed throat than have a cigarette shoved in a child’s face. I was really upset.

All right…deep breath…calmer now. I did save y’all a link that sounds like how I live my life.

  • I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it.- Pablo Picasso (Source)
Posted by Rebecca at 9:55 am Tagged with:
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