This is great. Hadn't seen most of it before they put it online. Lots of topical stuff but has some great writing and skits with Steve Carell (the guys who pay for things and then flee, germans who say nice things, EH tv, etc) and Stephen Colbert (waiters who are nauseated by food and some other good ones that escape me at the moment). Strangely the first skit of the first episode is probably the worst of the whole program. Apparently part of the reason the show was cancelled is that they really pissed off the advertisers (mostly pepsi companies) which is pretty understandable when you watch the skits about them.
1. The Taco Bell Dana Carvey Show
2. The Mug Root Beer Dana Carvey Show
3. The Mountain Dew Dana Carvey Show--w Phil Hartman
4. The Diet Mug Root Beer Dana Carvey Show
5. The Pepsi Stuff Dana Carvey Show
6. The Szechuan Dynasty Dana Carvey Show
7. The Dana Carvey Show
8. The Dana Carvey Show
His recent tonight show appearance is good too:
pt1 pt2
8/25/09
8/23/09
Living the Dream from Bitter Lawyer
Short comedy webisodes meant to feel like an insider perspective on being an entry-level lawyer at a good firm. More unsettling than funny.
Season One (08)
1. The Interview
2. Connotative/Denotative
3. Typo
4. Red Wine
5. Gayholm Syndrome
6. Yale
7. Rope
8. Halloween
9. Punching the Clown pt 1
10. Punching the Clown pt 2
Season One (08)
1. The Interview
2. Connotative/Denotative
3. Typo
4. Red Wine
5. Gayholm Syndrome
6. Yale
7. Rope
8. Halloween
9. Punching the Clown pt 1
10. Punching the Clown pt 2
8/22/09
Hollywood A Go Go--Mid 60s Music TV
Wow these are fun to watch. The audiences, dancers and performers are totally captivating. Say what you will about the quality/lip sync. A few selections:
1. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - Mickey's Monkey
2. Lovin' Spoonful - Do You Believe in Magic
3. Bobby Fuller Four - I Fought the Law
4. Chuck Berry - Maybellene
5. James Brown - I Got You
6. Chuck Berry- Johnny B Goode
7. We Five - You Were On My Mind
8. Four Tops - Baby I Need Your Lovin
1. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - Mickey's Monkey
2. Lovin' Spoonful - Do You Believe in Magic
3. Bobby Fuller Four - I Fought the Law
4. Chuck Berry - Maybellene
5. James Brown - I Got You
6. Chuck Berry- Johnny B Goode
7. We Five - You Were On My Mind
8. Four Tops - Baby I Need Your Lovin
8/20/09
Some Perspectives on Online Education
1. NYT article on recently released Dept of Ed report on online education vs the classroom, and best practices in online ed:
The analysis for the Department of Education found that, on average, students doing some or all of the course online would rank in the 59th percentile in tested performance, compared with the average classroom student scoring in the 50th percentile. That is a modest but statistically meaningful difference.
“The study’s major significance lies in demonstrating that online learning today is not just better than nothing — it actually tends to be better than conventional instruction,” said Barbara Means, the study’s lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International.
2. Open Yale Courses--free online ed. They're going for high quality and had planned for these courses to be online before the lectures were given, as opposed to say MIT open courseware (not that that site isn't also great, it just takes a different approach, more of a data dump). Can recommend these two so far:
ECON 252-Financial Markets, Prof Robert Shiller
PSYC 101-Into to Psychology, Prof Paul Bloom
3. Academic Earth has way more
The analysis for the Department of Education found that, on average, students doing some or all of the course online would rank in the 59th percentile in tested performance, compared with the average classroom student scoring in the 50th percentile. That is a modest but statistically meaningful difference.
“The study’s major significance lies in demonstrating that online learning today is not just better than nothing — it actually tends to be better than conventional instruction,” said Barbara Means, the study’s lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International.
2. Open Yale Courses--free online ed. They're going for high quality and had planned for these courses to be online before the lectures were given, as opposed to say MIT open courseware (not that that site isn't also great, it just takes a different approach, more of a data dump). Can recommend these two so far:
ECON 252-Financial Markets, Prof Robert Shiller
PSYC 101-Into to Psychology, Prof Paul Bloom
3. Academic Earth has way more
8/18/09
Beatles Unannounced Rooftop Concert Central London Luchtime Jan 30 1969
The group's last live performance.
pt1 pt2 pt3
Post inspired by the amazing singalongs of beatlefest chicago. (Although in this video I don't think the surprised professionals going about their day and stumbling upon this music did that much singing--though I guess the songs hadn't been heard much or at all at this point.) Note: from the film Let It Be
pt1 pt2 pt3
Post inspired by the amazing singalongs of beatlefest chicago. (Although in this video I don't think the surprised professionals going about their day and stumbling upon this music did that much singing--though I guess the songs hadn't been heard much or at all at this point.) Note: from the film Let It Be
8/6/09
The Blues Accordin' to Lightnin' Hopkins
8/4/09
Missouri Farmer's Anti-Pollan Rant
Requires some pretty specific knowledge to know if everything he says is right, but this guy has a point. Just as an example he says that un-caged pigs sometimes fatally sit on and/or eat their young, and turkeys allowed to roam free in the field can drown in a rainstorm because they look up. So the farmer builds a cage or builds a roof and pen because otherwise he takes a loss. I'm sure there are ways to prevent these deaths that Pollan would support, but they may be too expensive. The author's point though is that the "Industrial" farmer is not just an ignorant pawn of big business, but an expert with accumulated knowledge, problem solving skills, and a selfish interest in sustainability. And a bottom line.
Industrial farming practices may reduce quality/taste, and incur some moral cost (debatable--as organic practices do too, in terms of animals and in terms of human working conditions), but that doesn't really matter if you can't afford the alternative. Quantity is more of a concern for society as a whole.
This makes me think of the Anthony Bourdain quip: vegetarianism is a first-world luxury. The point being that (cheap) meat is fundamental to many cultures and unawareness/dismissal of that is more of an attack than some vegetarians realize.
This isn't meant to be a fair statement, and I don't totally agree because there are obvious exceptions, but there's some truth to it. To give you an idea of his views he also says that he doesn't care where the food comes from as long as it tastes good, and that the role of the chef is to maximize the pleasure of the meal. He also often describes himself as unapologetically self-serving, so you could say he's just trying to drum up interest in his show (which I don't watch by the way, but I'm a fan of Les Halles and think he's an interesting writer. I also think his newfound celebrity status is at odds with his ethos.) (See Bourdain's google talk and salon interview.)
These guys are coming from totally different places--professor/writer/moralist, farmer, chef--and each has something to contribute to the debate (not to mention an agenda).
Industrial farming practices may reduce quality/taste, and incur some moral cost (debatable--as organic practices do too, in terms of animals and in terms of human working conditions), but that doesn't really matter if you can't afford the alternative. Quantity is more of a concern for society as a whole.
This makes me think of the Anthony Bourdain quip: vegetarianism is a first-world luxury. The point being that (cheap) meat is fundamental to many cultures and unawareness/dismissal of that is more of an attack than some vegetarians realize.
This isn't meant to be a fair statement, and I don't totally agree because there are obvious exceptions, but there's some truth to it. To give you an idea of his views he also says that he doesn't care where the food comes from as long as it tastes good, and that the role of the chef is to maximize the pleasure of the meal. He also often describes himself as unapologetically self-serving, so you could say he's just trying to drum up interest in his show (which I don't watch by the way, but I'm a fan of Les Halles and think he's an interesting writer. I also think his newfound celebrity status is at odds with his ethos.) (See Bourdain's google talk and salon interview.)
These guys are coming from totally different places--professor/writer/moralist, farmer, chef--and each has something to contribute to the debate (not to mention an agenda).
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