The best free cultural & educational media on the web
The best free cultural & educational media on the web
≡ Category: Books, e-books, Technology | ≅ 2 Comments
Lawrence Lessig calls Jonathan Zittrain’s book “Absolutely required reading.” Cass Sunstein says it’s “Absolutely essential reading.” And Lawrence Tribe declares that it is “The most compelling book ever written on why a transformative technology’s trajectory threatens to stifle that technology’s greatest promise for society.” The book is The Future of the Internet–And How to Stop [...]
≡ Category: Philosophy, Random | ≅ 1 Comment
What happens when Socrates tries to land a job at a university? It doesn’t go so well. Below, we have the comments returned by the interview committee, as imagined by THE (Times Higher Education). In this piece, you’ll also find Tolstoy, Kafka, Jane Austen and other geniuses coming up short with the search committees. Now to [...]
≡ Category: History | ≅ 3 Comments
I enjoy replaying this vintage gem every now and then – Malcolm X debating at Oxford University in 1964. In this classic video, you get a good feel for Malcolm X’s presence and message, not to mention the social issues that were alive during the day. You’ll hear X’s trademark claim that liberty can be [...]
≡ Category: Life, Music | ≅ Leave a Comment
For good measure, I’m adding Ted Kennedy’s eulogy for his brother, Robert Kennedy, back in 1968. Get the audio here. And, in turn, you can also watch President Obama’s eulogy of Senator Kennedy, plus Ted Kennedy Jr.’s remembrances, from earlier in the day. Some moving words and some ideas to live by…
≡ Category: Philosophy, Science | ≅ 16 Comments
Why did so many find Charles Darwin’s concept of natural selection so subversive and disconcerting straight from the beginning? American philosopher Daniel Dennett explains. To get to the meat of things, you might want to skip to 1:16.
≡ Category: Law, Literature | ≅ Leave a Comment
Crime writer Dominick Dunne passed yesterday today at 83, his death overshadowed by that of Ted Kennedy. Above, we feature Dunne remembering his rather unpleasant relationship with Frank Sinatra. It’s a perverse story, though told in a somewhat humorous way. Initially, I considered featuring another video, but it’s entirely too sad, especially for any parents [...]
≡ Category: Music | ≅ 1 Comment
Bob Dylan sings your favorite Christmas songs. “Here Comes Santa Claus,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Little Drummer Boy” and “Must Be Santa.” It sounds strange. But it’s very real. All money will go to charity. You can pre-order now. And although the album won’t be released until October, it’s already #4 on Amazon.com’s sales chart. If anyone comes [...]
≡ Category: e-books, Google | ≅ Leave a Comment
New from the Google Books Blog: Try doing a search for [Hamlet] on Google Books. The first few results you’ll get are “Full View” books — which means you can read the full text. And, because the book is in the public domain, you can also download a copy of Hamlet in PDF form. Starting today, [...]
≡ Category: Music | ≅ Leave a Comment
Flashback to 1966. The Beatles hold a press conference in LA, on the eve of their very last live concert. As you’ll see, the questions range from the frivolous (“What do you think of American women’s legs?”) to the more serious (“Do you really think you’re more popular than God?” Or, “What would happen if [...]
≡ Category: Amazon Kindle, e-books | ≅ 5 Comments
If you haven’t heard the news… Sony is releasing a new e-book reader, its answer to Amazon’s Kindle. Retailing at $399, the Sony reader will feature a touch screen (something the Kindle doesn’t have) and the ability to download books wirelessly (something the Kindle does have). It will also provide access to thousands of free [...]
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