A Photo By Any Other Name

Ever since reading the comment thread for Ginny’s Lie to Me piece, I have been searching myself for the truth behind the convenient story that I am vehemently opposed to, and vigilantly on guard against, any kind of untruth in journalism. Festivities have begun in honour of the 100th anniversary of the Shackleton/Scott expeditions to [...]

tl;dr — a manifesto

Spend enough time on the internet and you’ll spot one. They tend to sprout in the comments beneath articles like little text cabbages: tl;dr tl;dr tl;dr Unpack them and you’ll find an accusation: “too long; didn’t read.” This isn’t some hot new trend I’m cluing you into: tl;dr hasn’t been de rigeur since it became [...]

Is That an Apostrophe in Your Pocket?

Last week, the members of the American Copy Editors Society gathered in New Orleans to discuss — among other topics — headline writing, the hazards of redesign, the use of “they” as a singular pronoun, and style standards for pornography. Wait, what? Since the Last Word on Nothing credo encourages us to indulge our curiosity, [...]

The Last Word

April 9 – April 13 Oh, are you having a bad day? JUST BE GLAD YOU’RE NOT A BIRD. Because if you were a bird, as Ann points out, you would go through puberty every single year of your life. Nature, Ann correctly summarises, is one mean mother. Maybe you’re just irritable because people keep [...]

An Instrument in the Shape of a Woman

There are poems about science. There are poems about scientists. But I know of only two poems about women scientists — about women doing science, that is — and both were written by the same person: the brilliant, defiant, influential poet Adrienne Rich, who died last week at the age of 82. From “Power“: Today [...]

The Last Word

March 26 – 30 Mr. Cosmology once again takes questions.  I think he makes them up himself. Christie (and her commenters) find a brand-new widespread phenomenon: compulsive counting. Ann’s annoyed about nonfiction that’s fictional; she thinks it’s just lying. Ginny’s also annoyed about liars, so she learns to see them coming. Our boy Abstruse Goose tangles [...]

Ask Mr. Cosmology

Time again to reach into the “Ask Mr. Cosmology” mailbag and see what readers want to know about…The Wonders of the Universe! Q: Can neutrinos travel faster than light? Mr. Cosmology: Depends what you mean by “light.” Light, as in light rail? Yes. Light, as in electromagnetic radiation? Almost certainly not. Light, as in light beer? Definitely not; that stuff [...]

The Last Word

March 19 – 23     This week: Sally has profound doubts about technology, choice, freedom, and those things on her lawn. Heather grieves her lost stories and admires a young writer who reclaims one of them. Erika says that nonfiction writers who lie hurt the causes for which they lie. Virginia argues with her charming [...]