Data is inherently plural, even as I use “is” as the verb. This short post is about the most radioactive place in NY state. I find these explorations of the edges and outliers interesting. It reminds me that even when we look at a big dataset, it’s still composed of individual observations – people, places,…
Read MoreWhat is dirt? From this article on kitty litter, we learn that: it’s strip-mined dirt that is transported overland via combustion engines and ends up in landfill where it never biodegrades. But isn’t “dirt” pretty much the definition of biodegraded, past tense? I mean, what does compost, bodies, dead trees, and wet paper turn into?…
Read MoreThe NYT has described the case in this article with this blurb: The case presents an important question that several judges have urged the Supreme Court to decide: When may students be punished for things they say outside of school? In my world, we call that a rhetorical question. The answer surely ought to be…
Read MoreThe article “What ISIS Really Wants” was good; it was also long, which makes me wonder whether enough people will read it. I’m not sure that ISIS will choose any path that doesn’t force us to kill them all. And I’m not comfortable with a course of action that turns us into isolationists. What would…
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