rebecca's pocket

» Q: Question: How do I start researching? Answer: Treat research as a lifestyle not an assignment. A great approach from what appears to be an academic librarian, including a new (to me) term: The Invisible College. [Wikipedia article] Bloggers will immediately see themselves in this role, so it's worth pointing out that anyone who limits themselves to blogs will miss many other communities of interest, online and off. / (1) Comments / [ 06.01.07 ]

» The Shyness Reading List.  [ 06.04.07 ]

» New Media Part II: How Ponds Shaped "The Starter Wife".

"We wanted to make sure [Debra Messing's character] would go through an evolution that would make her a Pond's woman," says Doug Scott, executive director of branded content and entertainment for Ogilvy North America. According to Scott, Pond's money bought it 1) a hand in shaping the story and character arcs; 2) some standard product placement; and 3) a few key "signature moments" in which an on-screen interaction with the Pond's brand triggers a thought or motivation in a character.

/ (1) Comments / [ 06.04.07 ]

» New Media I: Plunge in CD Sales Shakes Up Big Labels details the record industry's decline and is notable for two things:

1. Paul McCartney is releasing his next CD on the Starbucks Label, and released the first video for the album on YouTube. Sir Paul's explanation: "It's a new world."
2. This piece: "[Music executives] ... add that the labels squandered years on failed attempts to restrict digital music instead of converting more fans into paying consumers. "They were so slow to react, and let things get totally out of hand," said Russ Crupnick, a senior entertainment industry analyst at NPD, the research company. "They just missed the boat."

I (and many others) have been making that exact point for the last 8 years. Add to their shortsightedness, the music industry's well-earned reputation for completely reaming anyone (particularly artists) who doesn't have the clout to withstand them. As I said to my husband the other night, it's hard to have sympathy for anyone who's both stupid and evil.  [ 06.04.07 ]

» The summer reading lists are coming fast and furious now. Here's a roundup of the most recent lists I could find:

• Long Beach California Press Telegram:A bagful of books for your reading pleasure
• David Crum's Spiritual Summer Reading List
• The UC Berkeley 2007 Summer Reading List is called Survival! [background]
• NPR: Savor the Season with a Picnic of Good Books (not cookbooks)
• NPR: Summer Reads for Former Recess Rebels
• NPR: A Fresh Breeze of Summer Cookbooks
• NY Times Sunday Book Review: Summer Reading Recommendations from authors including Stephen King, Nora Ephron, and Ursula LeGuin
• NY Times Sunday Book Review: Summer Reading Recommendations for Travel, Comics (reviewed by John Hodgman), Visuals, and Cooking (registration required)
• Legal History Blog has a recommendation for summer reading
• Semicolon's Summer Reading List for her daughter's gap year

 [ 06.05.07 ]

» Nominees for the 2007 Richest People in America List—and they're not who you'd expect:

Shane Claiborne, Founder of the Simple Way. Shane lives among the poor in a Philadelphia suburb which has long since had its heyday. His group helps renovate homes for the poor, works with former homeless kids on after school arts and literacy programs, provides food and clothing for the area homeless, and he shares his faith with street people. All of this is done out of the home he shares with other Simple Way residents. The Simple Way has no paid staff or administrative costs. Each of the community members contribute part of the money that they raise through part time jobs. The group believes in relational tithing, with each contributing ten percent of their income to a common account to fund their work.

via (ramit) / (1) Comments / [ 06.05.07 ]

» For those of you who may have missed it, I've posted instructions for John Desmond's Whole Wheat, Rye, and Pumpernickel No-Knead Bread over on the other blog.  [ 06.06.07 ]

» The Armaggedon Flowchart. Be prepared! (via br) / (1) Comments / [ 06.06.07 ]

» Gardening On The Cheap. Tips on getting free plants for your yard, wherever you live.  [ 06.07.07 ]

» "The reading list below was composed several years ago by a professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey for the use of his own students. It was then passed along by Rutgers undergraduates to friends at other schools, and has subsequently been circulated among students at a number of colleges and universities as 'the Rutgers reading list."  [ 06.07.07 ]

» A little weekend reading: I haven't read it yet, but this looks like the kind thing Pocket readers go for: An Aesthetics of Everyday Life – Modernism and a Japanese popular aesthetic ideal, “Iki” by YAMAMOTO Yuji. (Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, Master of Arts Program in the Humanities, University of Chicago).  [ 06.08.07 ]

» "Defiant Gardens are gardens created during times of extreme crisis, built behind the trenches of World War I, on both sides of the Western Front; in Jewish ghettos and Nazi concentration camps during World War II; in POW and civilian internment camps of both wars, tended to by prisoners and their captors; in internment camps for Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II; in garrisons, depots and battalion headquarters; in refugee camps; on the hollowed out concavities left behind by the Blitz. They are 'short-lived, their marks on the land quickly obliterated.'"

The book is Defiant Gardens: Making Gardens in Wartime, by Kenneth Helphand (via br)  [ 06.11.07 ]

» This week's summer reading roundup:

• Louisville Courier-Journal: A little summer reading
• Worcester Telegram & Gazette: Head outdoors for some fine summer reading is a list of recreation-themed reading
• Lancaster Intelligencer Journal: A list of recommended speculative fiction
• LA Times: Summer reading—52 books worth looking at, organized by month of publication
• Salon's Summer Reads: Killer Thrillers and Chic Lit
• NPR: Booksellers' Picks for the Beach — or the Backyard
• Seattle Public Library Summer Reading Lists—also note this service they are offering: "Too many books, too little time? Try NextReads, which automatically notifies you about new books in your favorite subject areas. We will e-mail you a short annotated list of titles every few weeks, with links to our catalog so you can place items on hold. Sign up for as many subjects as you like." Smart.
• The Pikes Peak Library District reading list for their exhibit Extraordinary Women of the Rocky Mountain West
• Bookslut: "When I was growing up I absolutely lived for the summers.[...] I could get all nostalgic here if I’m not careful, but there was something very cool about being able to read as many books as I wanted for three blissful months. I read on the patio, the sand, and the couch. This was what summer should be: go to the movies every weekend (matinees of course), rarely put on any shoe other than flip flops, and read until your mother thinks your eyes will bleed. [...] In the spirit of those memories from long ago, I have put together a girls, get your beach blanket reading here list."
• The Catholic Restorationists Essential Reading List
• Big Thinkr's Summer Reading List for Entrepreneurs
• Summer Reading Suggestions from Karl Kapp, Assistant Director of Bloomsburg University’s Institute for Interactive Technologies
• American evangelical Albert Mohler's Recommended Summer Reading is mostly historical
• A Summer Reading list primarily centered around health heresies and food issues
• 3 Lists from The Rap Sheet, a crime-fiction-oriented blog associated with the literary Web site January Magazine: Summery Judgement, Summery Judgement II (including The Yiddish Policemen’s Union, Michael Chabon's new alternative reality novel set in the Jewish Homeland—the remote panhandle of Alaska), and Summery Judgement III

For kids and young adults

• Recommended Reading for K - 12
• Florida Department of Education Just Read
• More Reading Lists for K - 12
• Summer Homeschool Reading Lists

 [ 06.12.07 ]

» Electronic eavesdropping:

• Overheard on XBox live this weekend: "Sean, get out of the glitch and start fighting."
• Search term leading to Eating Organic on a Food Stamp Budget: "trying to live on 1 income with a money waster"

 [ 06.12.07 ]

» Here's a find: Reviews of books on baking by amateur bakers. That's terrific summer reading for some of us.  [ 06.13.07 ]

» Things You Don't Know About Organics

Twenty years ago, the typical consumer in the organic market was generally labeled some sort of health nut or possibly an aging hippy. Ten years ago, the stereotype claimed the young, affluent upper-middle class.[...]

According to Barbara Haumann, press secretary for the Organic Trade Association, Hispanics and Asian-Americans are buying more organics than the typical white population. Meanwhile, the report, "Organic 2006: Consumer Attitudes & Behavior, Five Years Later & Into the Future" by the Hartman Group, reveals that African-Americans are 24 percent more likely to be core organic consumers than members of the general population. The Hartman Group also has found that many pregnant women are lured to the organic market as they begin to become more concerned with what they're eating.

(via OOB)  [ 06.13.07 ]

» The History of Science Society Reading the History of Western Science  [ 06.13.07 ]

» 6 Savings Secrets from 'Frugal Fanny' / (1) Comments / [ 06.14.07 ]

» Two days ago, I opened my chat client and discovered some new buddies: Prof Gilzot, Spleak, Sharethisdotcom, and WSJ. A little investigation showed that they had been inserted into numerous buddy lists—though not my husband's, for some reason.

I'm just assuming that AIM has devised a great new revenue scheme that involves putting selected chatbots into users buddy lists. It's intrusive, and ill-conceived—I believe will put people off to discover that AOL is willing to insert strange new "buddies" into contact lists that users consider to be both "private" and "theirs".

But whatever. I deleted the strangers from my list and thought no more about it. Imagine my surprise to discover Prof Gilzot, Spleak, and Sharethisdotcom in my buddy list again this morning! To insert them once was annoying (and thus, from a business point of view, stupid). To re-insert them after I deleted them is unforgivable.

I wonder if I should switch to another chat service? / (14) Comments / [ 06.14.07 ]

» Geekiest Earrings Ever. (via amorphism, who also has an awesome riddle for you to solve)  [ 06.15.07 ]

» British Women's Novels: A Reading List, 1775-1818  [ 06.18.07 ]

» The Food Timeline: food history reference & research service. From the FAQ:

What is the history of your favorite food? That depends upon the food and how deep you want to dig. Take tiramasu. This dish was "created" in the late 20th century. You could find a few magazines articles confirming period popularity/origination and stop there. Or? You could go the next level and research the recipe based on composition. You would soon discover this dish was based on Victorian-era moulded creams which were based on Colonial-era tipsy cakes which were inspired by Renaissance-era trifles.

EVOLUTION VS. INVENTION
Very few (if any) foods are invented. Most are contemporary twists on traditional themes. Louis Diat's famous Vichysoisse was a childhood favorite. Today's grilled cheese sandwich is connected to ancient cooks who melted cheese on bread. 1950s meatloaf is connected to ground cooked meat products promoted at the turn of the 20th century, which are, in turn related to ancient Roman minces. Need more? Corn dogs and weiner schnitzel. French fries and Medieval fritters. New York gyros and Middle Eastern doner kebabs. Hershey's Kisses and ancient Incan cocoa.

So awesome.

At Hampton Court, we spent some time with the Experimental Food Historians in the Tudor Kitchens, perhaps the highlight of my visit. Since learning there is such a thing, I am tempted to become an Experimental Food Historian myself when I get home, working from my own kitchen, and subjecting my poor husband to experimental concoctions. (via br)  [ 06.18.07 ]

» Summer reading for this week:

• CBC Radio: Cross Country Checkup's Annual Summer Reading List
• A Church Musician's Reading List
• Psychology Today Bookshelf
• Richard and Judy's 2007 Summer Reading List
• NPR: Three Picks for Your Vacation Packing List
• Salon's Summer Reads: Part 3 is Great escapes
• A Summer Reading List for Food Lovers
• A summer reading list of Books for Entrepreneurs and Businessmen from Robert Bruner, Dean, University of Virginia Darden School of Business
• Summer Reading List of books on the laws of attraction and abundant living
• The Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence Core Reading List
• A Summer Reading List from James Emery White (Ph.D.) is president and professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
• Summer Reading from Ted Striphas, Assistant Professor of Media & Cultural Studies and Director of Film & Media in the Department of Communication & Culture, Indiana University, USA
• Summer Reading, WorldChanging Style
• A Middle School Summer Reading List

 [ 06.19.07 ]

» NYT Magazine Photo Essay: Absolutely fascinating: People and their gaming avatars. There's no pattern here at all, that I can discern. It's obvious why some people have chosen their avatars; others.... (thanks, jjg!)  [ 06.19.07 ]

» A Little Weekend Reading: The Hermitary: Resources and reflections on hermits and silence.  [ 06.22.07 ]

» This week's roundup of 2007 summer reading.

• Relevant Reading List from the Stanford Singularity Summit.
• Salon: Thrills and chills. These mysteries and science fiction novels will transport you to a higher plane.
• Stock Photography Summer Reading List
• Slideshow: 15 Must-Reads for Tech Pros
• Speed Reading: The Best Car Books of Summer '07
• Summer Reading - Graphic Novel Suggestions From Benn Ray
• A University of Pennsylvania Press World Refugee Day Reading List
• NPR: Summer Reading List from Carol Stoudt, the first female brewmaster in the U.S.
• Jordon Cooper's Summer Reading List
• IslandEmpireGirl's Summer Reading List
• Matt Mosley's Summer Reading List

College Students:

• College Board: 101 Great Books Recommended for College-Bound Readers
• College Board: Poetry and Cultural and Historical Texts Recommended for College-Bound Readers
• Summer Reading Selections from Selected College Programs

Young people:

• Diving into a book one way to beat summer heat - a librarian's suggested summer reading for fifth- through ninth-grade levels
• NPR: Great Opening Lines to Hook Young Readers
• A Home Schooler's Reading List with A Book for Every State
• Summer Reading Suggestions for K - 12 from the Caroline County Public Schools [pdf]

/ (1) Comments / [ 06.25.07 ]

» Here's a wonderful new-to-me blog for you: Strange Maps. (via br) / (1) Comments / [ 06.26.07 ]

» Well, doesn't this sound fun: His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik. And according to the fine folks at the Williamsburg Regional Library, film director Peter Jackson has bought the rights to it.

I thought about ordering it from the library, but then it occurred to me that I have yet to read the book the upcoming Harry Potter film is based on—I try to stay just one ahead. Upon looking at the cover, though, now I think I did read it. So, now that I'm caught up, I need to decide whether to keep on as I have been, or to quickly read The Half-Blood Prince so that I can read the final book of the series when it comes out. That moment won't happen ever again.

By the way, if you're looking for a steady source of book recommendations, the Williamsburg Regional Library blog Blogging for a Good Book offers about one a day. / (1) Comments / [ 06.27.07 ]