Author Archives: Robert Basil

On collaboration

Richard Rogers upon meeting Lorenz Hart for the first time:  “I left Hart’s house having acquired in one afternoon a career, a partner, a best friend and a source of permanent irritation.” Their song “My Funny Valentine” is something of a … Continue reading →

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The root of beauty …

… is boldness, wrote Pasternak. “That is what’s brought us to one another.” Apropos: After Wolfgang Pauli had given a colloquium on some ideas related to particle physics, Pauli said to Neils Bohr: “You will probably think that what I … Continue reading →

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“Business Writing for Everyone”

My summer 2020 first-year students will be getting their textbook for free – Business Writing for Everyone, put together by my colleague Arley Cruther’s. It’s a wonderful resource that will make my teaching better without a doubt. Arley’s “Adaptation Statement” … Continue reading →

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Journalism needs a better metaphor

NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen writes that “exposure” is a “metaphor that increasingly misleads. I refer to the image of ‘exposure’ as a description of what the press does, should do, or isn’t doing well enough. To expose wrongdoing, incompetence, … Continue reading →

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A tonic

This is from a marvellous interview with Fran Lebowitz that’s in the New Yorker: I want to switch topics and ask you a bit about Toni Morrison. Everyone felt the loss of her, but largely as a literary icon or … Continue reading →

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Time for some PD

It has been awhile since I taught a digital marketing course at my university. It was such a fun class! My third-year students all helped one another (and me) keep abreast of new apps and innovations – literally on a … Continue reading →

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Learning hungry

Earlier posts here have discussed how many university students come to class hungry. My university’s student newspaper, The Runner, notes today that almost two out of five “post-secondary students experienced some degree of food insecurity in the past year.” I … Continue reading →

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Brand-new URLs seem expensive …

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More on Open Learning

These short and very well-written videos given by Rajiv Jhangiani, Kwantlen Polytechnic University‘s Associate Vice Provost of Open Education, and produced by Cobb House Studio vividly describe new ways to create a class. What are Open Educational Resources? What are Open Textbooks? … Continue reading →

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“Intimate supervision”: Surveillance on campus

This Washington Post report – holy crap: Short-range phone sensors and campuswide WiFi networks are empowering colleges across the United States to track hundreds of thousands of students more precisely than ever before. Dozens of schools now use such technology … Continue reading →

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