I’m tired of the weasel-worded politicians who trot out “I am not a scientist” when asked a rational question that has the potential to challenge a deeply held, irrational, ignorant ideology. When the threat of a shred of reality, logic, facts, knowledge, evidence, truth, common sense, intelligence or science looms they trot out that lame and deeply ignorant deflection. What…
It’s the 30th anniversary of the Commodore Amiga computer. This is apparently the machine that introduced a whole new world of computer gaming for a generation of users. This is a cause of great celebration in the retro computing crowd. Back in 1985 personal computers were primarily either game machines or beige boxes from IBM used for business. Then the…
This post inspired by the #blimage* invitational series. Take a look at this picture and what do you see? That wall – at least on the right – has a serious case of efflorescence – the salty, crystalline eruption that commonly disfigures porous brickwork exposed to damp. On the left the wall seems composed of old bricks of diverse origins…
I haven’t read Go Set a Watchman and I’m not sure I will. I did read the first chapter in The Guardian and was not particularly impressed. If Harper Lee did not want it published then she didn’t want it read. But read it or not, it’s hard to miss all the controversy over the publication and the revelation of…
Finally – at long last – the old desks were taken to the basement for storage. There they sat for two decades -surplus to requirements, replaced by moulded plastic, steel and aluminum – gathering dust and shedding memories. The lidded oak desks from the third form room across from the hallway pressed against the ones with the inkwells on the…
If we want to drive our children into a complete frenzy and soul-destroying meltdown then consider this from The Washington Post: Genius Girl, a Harvard-Stanford admissions hoax and elite college mania It’s the story of a hoax borne of desperation. It’s the story of a student who manufactured success and then had to face the inevitable comedown. The whole story…
For those of you who concerned about our children’s future – and I would think that includes all of us – there was an interesting article in Fast Company magazine: These are the Top Jobs for College Graduates in 2015. Apparently job prospects for new college graduates are looking up according to the most recent report from Michigan State University’s Collegiate Employment…
Noted New York-based artist, writer and lecturer, Swati Khurana ’93, a PDS alumna will be the featured speaker at Poughkeepsie Day School’s Class of 2015 Commencement on Wednesday, June 10. Head of school Josie Holford and Amanda Thornton, president of the school’s board of trustees, will award diplomas to 38 seniors, who hail from Dutchess, Ulster and Orange counties and…
Tech director Davis Held sent us all a great directory of free online resources for making stuff. So how could I resist? Danger! Education down the Drain is my first effort. Turn up your volume and watch this brief video. Please let me know what you think.
Starting with the Welcome Week in September, and right on through to Nicky the Navigator in June, PDS relies on the time and talents of its parent volunteers. The wonderful Parents Association has done so much this year and we are so grateful to Dierdre Sepp for stepping up to the leadership role. Thanks for the fun meetings. I always…
We’ve had a wonderful spring season in Athletics this year with all three sports going into post-season. All the teams and coaches have played their hearts out and it’s been wonderful to see their efforts and teamwork pay off with such success. Congratulations to all. The ball field – now it its second season – really feels like a home…
Some days are like that – busy. Last Friday for example which – in addition to all the usual activity – also included a middle school science symposium, a high school Art Show, a Poetry Reading and a play. In fact – the whole week was like that – delightfully packed with events, performances, games, productions, performances, presentations, field trips,…
Great student made video. Thanks Ava!
I learned a great deal about eels from Graham Swift’s remarkable 1983 novel Waterland set in the watery fens of eastern England. The history of the scientific understanding of the eel – Aristotle posited that they sprang from the mud – and the mystery of their epic migration to spawn in the Sargasso sea feature in the story of a…