“When Kauffman steps down [following next summer’s festival], he will have finished his 20th year in a post held by only two other ‘full-time, professional’ leaders, according to the festival: Edward Gordon (1974-1989) and Zarin Mehta (1990-2000).” – Chicago Tribune
Tag: 10.19.19
Robert Provine, America’s Great Scholar Of Laughter And Hiccups, Dead At 76
“[A neuroscientist,] Dr. Provine embodied the spirit of the popular scientist, one who takes his or her pursuits out of the laboratory and into the public square, from university libraries to public libraries, and from lecture halls to radio and television. He was the author of two books for popular audiences, Laughter: A Scientific Investigation (2000) and Curious Behavior: Yawning, Laughing, Hiccupping, and Beyond (2012).” – The Washington Post
Can Computers Really Learn How To Understand What They Read?
Maybe. They’re doing a lot better at reading comprehension exams, for instance. On a new “benchmark designed to measure machines’ real understanding of natural language — or to expose their lack thereof — the machines had jumped from a D-plus to a B-minus in just six months. ‘That was definitely the ‘oh, crap’ moment,’ Bowman recalled.” – Quanta
The Artistically Fruitful Friendship Of Mary Cassatt And Edgar Degas
The elegant young American artist and the surly older French Impressionist inspired each other – and, because both destroyed or left little information about their friendship, a lot of art about them. A new play claims that “they were kindred spirits lucky enough to find each other in Paris.” – The New York Times
In Europe, TV Producers Debate How To Handle Streaming
Group up? Spend more money on new, fresh content? Somehow find, and fund, top talent? Everything is up in the air with all kinds of streaming services debuting and European producers wondering what, exactly, to do. – Variety
Horror Writers See Climate Change As The Ultimate Fear
The thing about horror is that it has always been about amplifying regular fear. The genre “works against false comfort, complacency and euphemism, against attempts to repress or sanitize that which disturbs us. Inevitably, the climate crisis has given rise to a burgeoning horror subgenre: eco-horror.” – The New York Times
Activists Crashed The MoMA Party To Demand Prison Divestment
Just days before MoMA was set to reopen after its big renovation and expansion, activists crashed both the outside and inside of a preview cocktail party for VIP guests. “The protesters gathered outside the museum to call on MoMA and its board member Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, to divest themselves from private prison companies.” – Hyperallergic
Abstract Expressionist Painter Ed Clark Has Died At 93
Clark was “an African-American expressionist painter who used a broom and bold colors to capture the natural world and to convey emotions about the racial injustice of the 1960s, earning him international acclaim.” Clark, who lived in Detroit, was known for his experimentation with shaped canvases, bold colors, and a seven-decade career. – The New York Times
On The Return Of Olive Kitteridge
Why did Elizabeth Strout return to her dour, challenging protagonist – and how the heck did Olive Kitteridge become such a cultural force to begin with, a bestselling book that turned into a fantastic HBO series? Strout: “She just showed up and I saw her nosing her car into the marina; and I thought: Oh man, she’s back.” – The Guardian (UK)
Teens Are Getting Famous Off Of TikTok, And High School Arts Teachers Learn To Adapt
Vine and Instagram did it first (and, let’s be honest, Vine was great, RIP Vine), and now TikTok is the new way for kids to become social media-famous. How the heck is a school supposed to deal with 20 or 30 famous 14-year-olds? Make “drama clubs for the digital age, but with the potential to reach huge audiences.” – The New York Times