Ah the games of my youth...

Saw this over at 8bitlibrary.com and was deeply impressed! Cho sugeii!

spelling bees and indie lit--together? Yes.

Small Press Distribution is putting on the 2010 BEE-IN on May 17! What is it, you ask. Why it's A Spelling Bee to Benefit Small Press Distribution!



Bee well, and spell better.

for those interested in martial arts and librarianship...

...just discovered that bojutsu has its own classification in the Dewey Decimal System: 796.86.

Specifically:

.86 : Fencing

Including bojutsu, kendo

Class here sword fighting.

Awesome (though I am a little sad to see it under 796, which is "Athletic and outdoor sports and games").

Art of Mike Mignola

Saw today that Mike Mignola--one of my all time favorites--now has his own site on the interwebs (thanks for the info, Mark)! It's a lovely, creepy site and well worth taking a look at: Art of Mike Mignola, or just click on the lovely pic below!

Also this week is Library Week, so why not check ol' Hellboy out from a local library?

Cute Cat Theory

Was reading about China and Google today over at CNET and came across this:

Contrary to the perception in the U.S. that Chinese citizens are clamoring for subversive information, Internet users there tend to be more interested in general information and entertainment--much like Web surfers in the U.S., according to Roberts.

Citing what he called the "cute cat theory," Roberts said Internet users in China are more interested in videos of cats flushing toilets than they are in reading political diatribes. "At the end of the day, the social uses of the Internet are bigger drivers than political and controversial news content," he said.

So I ran a search on CCT and came up with less that people are more interested in cute cats than in politics (which is true), but rather that the same tools to say O Hai to your pals will also be used for subversive/activist/political communications. Seems that a fella named Ethan Zuckerman came up with this theory waaaay back in '08, and you can read it here: http://www.ethanzuckerman.com/blog/2008/03/08/the-cute-cat-theory-talk-at-etech/.

A couple of quotes I liked:

It’s fine to build tools for activists, but even better to build tools for folks who don’t know they’re activists yet.

and

With web 2.0, we’ve embraced the idea that people are going to share pictures of their cats, and now we build sophisticated tools to make that easier to do. As a result, we’re creating a wealth of tech that’s extremely helpful for activists.

Anyways, apologies for those already down with the CCT, and two years on the internet is like a million years, I know, but hey.

Reanimation Library

Wow--this independent library in Brooklyn is soooooo cool. Check out the interview:



Poor Stephen Hayes's Mystic Arts of the Ninja--relegated to obsolescence...I loved that book as a kid! (I might even still have it around somewhere.) And OH MY GOD can someone with skillz please make me a pair of those "Master Librarian" knuckle dusters--I'll find a way to make it worth your while. Really.

Books, Content, Form and Formlessness -- Craig Mod Explores the Book as Object and Metaphor

Thanks to a tip from Saudade about a NYT article, I just read a great article on the nature and future of books, printing, and reading. Check out book designer, writer, and publisher Craig Mod's thoughts here: http://craigmod.com/journal/ipad_and_books/. And as a book lover, a book seller, and a librarian, I must admit I agree with his points, especially that "disposable books" should be swept out from print and into solely digital formats.

My only concern here is that he seems to ignore the digital divide. What of those who cannot afford one of Steve Jobs very expensive-but-beautiful products--do they not deserve to take a bit of summer reading to the beach? I don't think many public libraries will be loaning out iPads anytime soon, so perhaps the disposable mass market should be left around, despite its inherent negative effects until everyone can have some sort of e-reader. Any thoughts?