language

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 14-10, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

A few articles to get your mental corn popping.

Not that bad. Katy Kati Kate: momming your ass off

Jennifer Wright: women are afraid men will murder them. Harper’s Bazaar

Suzannah Weiss offers a psychological explanation for why compliments are so embarrassing. The Cut

Kaya Oaks shares what medieval women taught her about being 40. On Being

Judith Graham reveals the secret to keeping your brain sharp as you grow older. It may be simpler than you think. Business Insider

Anika Burgess: the secret paths that led Ireland’s Catholics to forbidden mass. Atlas Obscura

Nikhil Sonnad explains that it’s tea if by sea and cha if by land and why the world has two words for tea. Quartz

Paul Cooper expounds on the timeless allure of ruins. BBC

Jenn M. Jackson: Martin Luther King Jr. was more radical than we remember. Teen Vogue

The extraordinary life of Nikola Tesla. Richard Gunderman for The Smithsonian Magazine.

Is the interbrain a kind of human wifi? IFLS

Bored Panda features photographs from the world’s coldest village.

Monitoring the wildlife overpass on highway 69, March 20, 2017.

 

A close encounter between a fox and a snowy owl. CTV News

Be well until the weekend!

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Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Dec 31, 2017 – Jan 6, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

Your informal writerly learnings of the week may be found below 🙂

K.M. Weiland: four life-changing New Year’s lessons for writers. Helping Writers Become Authors

Julie Glover wonders, what word will guide your writing life in 2018? Writers in the Storm

Jenny Hansen offers some essential writing advice as you begin the new year. Writers in the Storm

Tamar Sloan offers three powerful techniques to harness reader curiosity. Writers Helping Writers

Greer Macallister explains how to use the feedback you don’t get. Writer Unboxed

Donald Maass gets legendary. Writer Unboxed

Anna Elliott offers some comfort about those stories that won’t let you go. Writer Unboxed

Jo Eberhardt: happy new goals! Writer Unboxed

Terri Frank lists the five g’s of getting libraries to buy your book. DIY MFA

K.T. Lynn: five ways to conquer deadline anxiety. DIY MFA

Kristen Lamb presents the success paradox: programmed to fail or fly?

Chris Winkle creates seven recipes for heroes winning desperate fights. Mythcreants

Oren Ashkenazi lists five behaviours fiction needs to stop demonizing. Mythcreants

Haley Mlotek is searching for the self-loathing woman author. Hazlitt

Tim Lott: why should we subsidise writers who have lost the plot? The Guardian

Stephen Marche co-authored a science fiction story with an algorithm and the CBC’s Anna Maria Tremonti interviewed him about it. Also featuring Sandra Kasturi of ChiZine publications and Daniel H. Wilson, author of Robopocalypse.

Mark Abadi shares 27 maps that show how English speakers differ across America. Business Insider

I sincerely hope you found something of use or entertainment in this curation.

Be well until Thursday!

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 17-23, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Last week’s technical difficulties meant fewer thoughty posts than usual.

Geoff Johnson reveals the threat of the great nutrient collapse. Politico

Sam Dylan Finch lists five ways to lovingly support someone who has C-PTSD. Let’s Queer Things Up

Numbers ‘were my mother tongue’: how autistic savant Daniel Tammet sees language. CBC’s “The Current” with Anna Maria Tremonti

This amazing tree shows how all languages are connected. Bored Panda

Brenda Knowles explains the trouble with over controlling our emotions. Space 2 Live

This artist draws her cat in 12 different styles. The Best Cat Page

I hope there was something in this small offering that got your mental corn popping.

Be well until the weekend.

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 3-9, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s a little bit of everything to get your mental corn popping 🙂

If you get goosebumps when you listen to music, like Greg Evans, your brain might be special. (Not church lady special …) A friend of mine calls them les frissons musicale 🙂 The Independent

David Nield: scientists may finally have discovered the trigger for autoimmune diseases. Science Alert

Katherine Schafler says the one thing no one ever says about grieving. Thrive Global

Patti Neighmond warns, get off the couch, baby boomers, or you might not be able to later. NPR

If you drink tap water, you’re consuming plastic pollutants—ick! Dan Morrison and Christopher Tyree for PRI.

Kate Shuttleworth counts the 606 pairs of shoes that represent New Zealand suicides this year alone. The Guardian

Mary Shepperson discovers ancient Iraq’s Sealand Kings. The Guardian

Brigit Katz reports on the lost languages discovered in one of the world’s oldest continuously run libraries. The Smithsonian Magazine

Tom Nichols: how we killed expertise. Politico

Maria Sacchetti reports on what will happen to the Dreamers if DACA is repealed. The Washington Post

Jessica Taylor says Congress can save DACA—but will they? NPR

Eric Roston shows you what’s really causing global warming. Bloomberg Businessweek

Now is exactly the time we should be talking about climate change. Phil Plait for Syfy.

Phil Plait documents our close encounter with asteroid Florence. SyFy

94 year old veteran Harry Leslie Smith has a warning for the world: don’t let my past be your future. The Independent

Ta-Nahisi Coates: the first white president. The Atlantic

The United Nations unveils stunning memorial in New York dedicated to the millions who were killed or sacrificed in the slave trade to create America’s riches. Nick Chiles for the Atlanta Black Star.

Chelene Knight says, constantly proving my blackness is exhausting. The Globe and Mail

This is simply brilliant: even racists got the blues. Read the whole post. Brill, I say! The Geeky Gaeilgeoir

Bored Panda presents the photos of a 17-year-old Stanley Kubrick.

Nothing but Thieves – Broken Machine

 

And, just for fun, the original, 1969 (year of my birth, incidentally) Manamana from Sesame Street. Muppet mania forever!

 

And that was your Thoughty Thursday for the week!

Be well until the weekend 🙂

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, April 23-29, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Lots for the visual learner this week 🙂

I’ll just leave this here … Andrea Wallace shares her struggle with the failed Phoenix pay system. Medium

SciShow marches for science.

 

Deborah Tannen examines the (sometimes unintentional) subtext of digital conversations. The Atlantic

Why can’t you use your phone on a plane? SciShow

 

Rachel Ginder: introverts don’t hate people, they hate shallow socializing. Introvert, Dear

Veritasium looks at the sun sneeze gene (don’t know what that is? I didn’t either!)

 

Sandrine Ceurstremont reports that female dragonflies will fake sudden death to avoid unwanted male advances. This made me lolz. Way to go, ladies 😉 New Scientist

Dogs are doggos: an internet language built around love for the puppers. Jessica Boddy for NPR.

And speaking of dogs … kind of … this seal just wants a belly rub 🙂

 

Shel – Enter Sandman. Eerie and beautiful.

 

Now that your mental corn is popping (I hope) I shall leave you to your own devices until the weekend.

Be well until next I blog.

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, March 12-18, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Just a little thoughty for you this week.

Grace Bains likes doing things alone and thinks people should stop worrying about it. ScoopWhoop

Ozymandias statue found in the mud. The Guardian

Phil Plait reports about astronomers who found a black hole “eating” a white dwarf. Blastr

Robert Lang, the origami master and physicist. Great Big Story

 

Is the future of AI chatbots that speak in their own language? Cade Metz for Wired.

Clive Thompson: how being bored out of your gourd makes you creative. Wired

Holly Riordan: Anxiety makes you look like an asshole. Thought Catalog

Jenna Birch reports on the German research that has found the cause of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Teen Vogue

Laurie Stras shares radical motets from a 16th century nunnery. The Guardian

March 17th is also St. Gertrude’s Day. She’s the patron saint of cats. Mel Campbell for Junkee.

How the Norse described their history. Oxford University Press

 

I hope that got your mental corn popping.

See you on the weekend for more WorldCon 2016 reportage.

Until then, stay well.

Hugs.

thoughtythursday2016

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, March 12-18, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

This week is filled with informal writerly learnings 🙂

K.M. Weiland shares five rules that will help you write a sequel. Helping Writers Become Authors

Becca Puglisi adds another entry to the character motivation thesaurus: pursuing justice for oneself or others. Writers Helping Writers

Jami Gold returns to the Writers Helping Writers coaches corner: what does it mean to raise the stakes?

Jami follows up on her own blog with three steps that raise your story’s stakes. And later in the week, she posts about balancing rules and voice.

Lisa Cron offers some ways pantsers can use the Story Genius method. Writers in the Storm

David Corbett: emotion vs. feeling. Writer Unboxed

Annie Neugebauer suggests changing up your reading patterns to gain more. Writer Unboxed

Dan Blank shares some great social media tips for writers on The Creative Penn.

Sara Letourneau continues her developing themes in your stories with part 9: the midpoint. DIY MFA

Stacy Woodson looks at mysteries, thrillers, and suspense: does the label matter? DIY MFA

Gabriela Pereira interviews Ben Blatt for DIY MFA radio.

Rachael Stephens shares her new favourite plotting method: Dan Harmon’s Plot Embryo.

 

Dimitra Fimi: inventing a whole language. The Times Literary Supplement

Chris Winkle lists five worldbuilding mistakes to avoid. Mythcreants

Jenna Ireland: racism in a fantasy landscape.

Kobo interviews Margaret Atwood on woman-crushes, feminism, and advice for her younger self. Medium

In the wake of his passing, Richard Wagamese: what it means to be Ojibway. Anishnabek News

Michael Moorcock: what is the new weird and why is weird fiction so relevant to our times? The New Statesman

What “White Rabbit” really meant (with an awesome, vocal-only track). Dangerous Minds

Wil Jones thinks this literary map of the world is simply brilliant. The Indy 100

Cracked lists 21 movie lines nobody actually says. Several commenters have refuted this, but they say these things because they’re said in movies …

Elodie shares one-sentence summations of every literary genre. Sparklife

Angela Watercutter presents the “Jane Test,” a new way to tell if your scripts are sexist. Wired

Patricia Cornwell unmasks “Jack the Ripper.” Tom Bryant for The Mirror.

Beth Elderkin shares the new Wonder Woman trailer: how the girl became the legend. i09

Katharine Trendacosta shows us the latest American Gods trailer. i09

And, phew. We’re done.

Come back on Thursday for some thoughty.

And, in the meantime, be well.

tipsday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Feb 19-25, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to pop that mental corn, people.

In the war between Baby Boomers and Millennials, we’ve forgotten the hard-working, hard-playing Generation X. Um, no. We haven’t. Interesting article nonetheless. David Barnett for The Independent.

Jon Brooks: Girl? Boy? Both? Neither? A new generation overthrows gender. KQED Science

How slavery changed the DNA of African Americans. Michael White for the Pacific Standard.

Sarah Dziedzic discusses African-Canadian history with Cheryl Foggo. Canadian Living

Tristan Hopper recounts how smallpox decimated BC. The National Post

Bruce Kasanoff: intuition is the highest form of intelligence. Forbes

Anna Lovind: what if you’re on the wrong train?

I love language, and so, when I saw this article on Queens, the linguistic hub of the world, I had to share. Thanks, Lori. You always post teh awesome. Gus Lubin for The Business Insider.

This makes me sad, though. Kat Eschner: four things that happen when a language dies. The Smithsonian Magazine

Elizabeth Kolbert writes about why facts don’t change our minds. The New Yorker

Phil Plait: SpaceX nails the landing after an historic launch. Blastr

Umir Abrar is slightly embarrassed. A giant, dark galaxy is orbiting ours, but astronomers just noticed it. Physics Astronomy

Seven Earth-sized planets found orbiting around a nearby (relatively speaking) star. Phil Plait for Blastr.

NASA presents a celebration of clouds.

Brian Cox explains how the Large Hadron Collider disproves the existence of ghosts. BBC

Healthy Holistic Living shows you how to make a bee waterer to help support pollinating insects 🙂

Lauren Cassani Davis: horses can read human facial expressions (more than dogs or chimpanzees). The Atlantic

Moby just released four hours of free music composed for yoga and meditation. Educate Inspire Change

Imogen Heap – Run-time.

 

I hope you’ve got some good ideas to fuel you through the week.

See you Saturday for my February 2017 update 🙂

Be well until then!

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 22-28, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Lookie, lookie, there’s a lot here to get your mental corn popping.

Chris Lonsdale reports on how Silicon Valley is teaching language to machines. Venture Beat

Jackson Landers: Harry Houdini was an ingenious inventor but didn’t want anyone to know about it. The Smithsonian Magazine

Alice Park discovers that a sedentary lifestyle can age you as many as eight years. Time

Chris Buckley and Adam Wu report on the disappearing Datang fishers. The New York Times

Medievalists.net reports on Rheged, the early medieval kingdom recently discovered in Galloway.

Hedges are the life-giving arteries of the land. Fionnuala Fallon for The Irish Times.

Liz Langley reports on how hummingbirds survive the winter. National Geographic

Carolanne Wright reports on the Harvard psychologist who says ADHD is largely a fraud. Wake Up World

Chitra Ramaswamy shares the secrets of people who never get sick. The Guardian

Alexandra Shimo learns first-hand about the high cost of food on First Nations Reserves. TVO

Gloria Galloway: a private donor funds Wapekeka’s suicide-prevention program. The Globe and Mail

Waking Times points out that 20 million Muslims marched in protest against ISIS, and mainstream media ignored it.

Matt Novak shares Carl Sagan’s eerie prediction. Paleofuture

You need to watch Aziz Ansari’s wonderful SNL monologue. Mother Jones

And here’s Ashley Judd’s epic rap:

 

For a little balance, Kid President explains how to disagree with someone 🙂

 

ASAP Thought: why you should never stop protesting.

 

More social consciousness raising. Prince EA: I am not black.

 

Now for some kawaii. Zoos get into epic #cuteanimaltweetoff. Bored Panda

Be well, be kind, and keep protesting!

thoughtythursday2016

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Nov 27-Dec 3, 2016

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

And it’s the triumphant return of Tipsday!

K.M. Weiland continues her how to outline for NaNoWriMo series with this instalment: how to write a scene outline you can use. Not to worry, links to all previous posts in this series are included. Helping Writers Become Authors

A.E. Siraki guest posts on Jami Gold’s blog. NaNoWriMo: good or bad, let’s move forward.

Jane Friedman asks, do you know what you’re capable of? Writer Unboxed

Julia Munroe Martin shares one of her takeaways from the Writer Unboxed Unconference: how do you want your novel to change the world?

Anne Greenwood Brown examines the pinch point in this post for Writer Unboxed.

Cathy Yardley helps us write when life sucks. Writer Unboxed

Juliet Marillier shares her struggle following the review of her latest series proposal at the Writer Unboxed Unconference: when bad news is good news.

Jo Eberhardt explores intertextuality: stories within stories (within stories). Writer Unboxed

Roz Morris offers three ways to get maximum impact from a story. Nail Your Novel

Oren Ashkenazi examines five characters with too much spinach, and offers advice on how you can avoid the same pitfalls. Mythcreants

Chris Saylor explains the proper use of ellipses and dashes on Marcy Kennedy’s blog.

Heidi Ulrichsen reports on Greater Sudbury Poet Laureate, Kim Fahner’s project to bring poetic grafiti to storefronts downtown. The Northern Life/Sudbury.com

Amanda Michalopoulou looks at how literature teaches us to understand “the other” in these divided times. The Guardian

Ian Failes explains how designers created the stunning alien language in Arrival. Thrill List

Aimee Bender shares her thoughts on why fairy tales still inspire modern female writers. Wired

Bryan Washington wonders why there aren’t more famous black science fiction authors. The Awl

Beth Elderkin (and the whole i09 crew) is hooked on the latest Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 trailer. Baby Groot is ADORBS!

Referring back to Jo Eberhardt’s piece on intertextuality, Tom Blunt parses Westworld’s literary references. Signature

That’s it for your informal writerly learnings this week. Come back next week for moar. MOAR, I tell you!

By the way, what do you think of my new graphic (keep in mind that I’m not a professional graphic artist)?

Be well until Thursday, when I’ll have a little thoughty for you 😉

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