“At the most benign level of the junk industry are papers, published in journals with no effective screening process, that are obvious nonsense—about Martians being supermanagers on Mars, chocolate being a “superfood,” or even just the sentence “get me off your fucking mailing list” repeated 863 times. But beyond these papers, in journals with varying standards and reputations, are far more dangerous, flawed studies, including misleading reports about safe drinking water, fake “proof” that humans aren’t responsible for climate change, or bogus research that vaccines cause autism.” – The Walrus
Tag: 06.10.19
The Dilemma Of Creative Placemaking
The question of just how to execute creative placemaking without inviting gentrification sits at the forefront of creative placemaking circles. Jamie Hand, a researcher for ArtPlace America, says the friction between placemaking’s benefits and the onrush of gentrifying forces has happened frequently enough to spark vigorous discussion and dialogue on the efforts to walk a tightrope between uplift and displacement of the community. – NextCity
America’s Museums Have Become A Political Battleground
Once ivory towers of culture, far removed from politics and controversy, museums have increasingly come into the spotlight as sites of protest and places where equity, diversity, and inclusion have become imperatives. – ARTnews
Bill Wittliff, Screenwriter And ‘Primary Texas Cultural Lightning Rod’, Dead At 79
He’s known to the wider world primarily as the writer of the TV series Lonesome Dove and the films Raggedy Man and The Perfect Storm, and he was a book author and photographer himself, but in his home state he’s revered for the artistic ecosystem he made possible for writers, photographers, and filmmakers. – Austin American-Statesman
Should Orchestras Play The “Best” Music? So Who Decides?
“A common argument is that art should be a strict meritocracy, i.e., that the best music should be programmed regardless of who the composer is. But then, who determines what is of artistic quality, really? So goes one of the more philosophically heated debates in the classical music world at the moment.” – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Narrative-Sharing and Narrative-Shifting With Digital Technology
Members of the Detroit-based collective Complex Movements discuss the connection between technology, performance, and social justice community organizing. – HowlRound
Study: Overuse Of Computers In Classrooms Lowers Student Performance
“When students report having access to classroom computers and using these devices on an infrequent basis, they show better performance. But when students report using these devices every day, and for several hours during the school day, performance lowers dramatically.” – Pacific Standard
Study Suggests That Human Brains Are Wired For Musical Pitch
“We found that a certain region of our brains has a stronger preference for sounds with pitch than macaque monkey brains. The results raise the possibility that these sounds, which are embedded in speech and music, may have shaped the basic organization of the human brain.” – EurekArt
MacArthur ‘Genius’ Rhiannon Giddens To Compose Opera Based On Slave Narrative
Giddens, a conservatory-trained operatic singer as well as a banjo player (she co-founded the string band Carolina Chocolate Drops) and composer, will prepare the libretto and compose the music for a new work about Omar Ibn Said, the only African-American slave known to have written an account of his captivity in Arabic. The as-yet-untitled opera was commissioned by the Spoleto Festival USA, where it will premiere in 2020, in honor of Charleston’s 350th anniversary that year. – The Post and Courier (Charleston)
Next Challenge For Virtual Reality: How Do You Register Emotion?
“Emotions are more complex and socially determined than the simple positive-negative, strong-weak arousal model suggests. Even distinguishing fear, anxiety and disgust on physiological grounds turns out to be extremely problematic.” – The Daily Beast