Category Archives: Pop Culture

Louis CK – a new business model?

Posted on December 15, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Comedian and actor Louis CK made news recently by passing big corporate America and selling a recent stand-up performance video directly to fans – for $5 a download. His video was not encrypted and he relies on the fans to pay for the download rather than getting free pirated versions. It’s a strategy reminiscent of the approach used by the band Radio Head some years ago – they basically allowed a (technically) free download, but asked downloaders to pay what they felt was a fair price.

Both experiments seem to have gone well, but critics point out that such approaches may have limitations – for instance, both Louis CK and Radio Head are established acts and enjoyed the ability to market their product rather cheaply. Time will tell if these experiments have an impact on the entertainment industry. You can check out the Louis CK offering here. Caution: his material is decidedly R Rated.

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Posted in Jeff, Law, Pop Culture

Night of the living old men …

Posted on August 10, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Dun-dun-duhn! In the New York Times, professor Stephanie Coontz ponders over the implications of what is apparently an inevitable growth in the number of old men in this country. It appears that they’re living longer, eating healthier, exercising – and are much less like Mad Men’s Don Draper than they used to be.

It’s obviously good news for men that they are starting to catch up with women in longevity, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves in predicting the benefits of this convergence for the relationship prospects of older heterosexual women. The number of men 65 or older may be increasing faster than the number of their female counterparts, but there are still five million more women than men in that age group. And it remains true that older men have more opportunities than older women to repartner with someone of a younger age.

Still, I don’t see a downside to the narrowing gap in male and female life expectancy, although I suppose a woman trapped in an unhappy marriage might not find her husband’s extended lifespan very beneficial. Among unhappy couples, even a few extra minutes a day with one’s spouse raises blood pressure and lowers immune functioning. So imagine the toll that extra years can take.

This is a wrinkle (pun intended, sort of) of the boomer aging phenomenon that I hadn’t really considered. Check out the comments following her story – they’re a fun read.

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, Pop Culture

Growing up is hard to do…

Posted on July 5, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

No, not a new Neil Sedaka tune – here’s a story about a trend of young men not following traditional paths – excelling in school, workaholic, marriage, etc. From the article: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, Pop Culture

“I would watch the men preening in the Senate and I figured we should give them a little bit of a horse race.”

Posted on June 24, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

– Perhaps one of the most sensible policies to emerge from the US Senate – witness “Seersucker Thursday”. From the Senate’s webpage: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

“Bookstores … have begun selling tickets or requiring a book purchase of customers who attend author readings and signings…”

Posted on June 23, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

For some reason this strikes me as incredibly reasonable, although I imagine that I’m in the minority in my view. It certainly is against tradition, and I can empathize with people not liking a charge for something that was once free. Still, I wonder how avid fans of authors will respond. Would you rather spend $10 on a movie or to (briefly) meet one of your favorite authors?

Heather Gain, the marketing manager of the Harvard Book Store in Cambridge, Mass., said that in recent years the store had begun doing more events that required the customer to buy a book, constantly reminding them that “if they aren’t purchasing the books from the establishments that are running these events, the bookstores are going to go away.”

“We’re a business,” Ms. Gain said. “We’re not just an Amazon showroom.”

The New York Times has the rest of the story here.

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

“There must be a clear moment when the individual can recalibrate a behavior, make a choice, and act.”

Posted on June 22, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Check out my Prawfs post on feedback loop technology here.

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Posted in Academia, Data, Jeff, Law, Methods, Policy, Pop Culture

“I don’t want to talk to you; I want to talk at you.”

Posted on June 19, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

I’ve always enjoyed the wit and wisdom of Joel Stein’s writings. I especially enjoyed his column outlining some of his concerns on the rapidly developing ‘interactiveness’ of all writing, entertainment, and media. For what it’s worth Stein actually has a blog (although his last update was 5 years ago and he doesn’t allow for comments). Here’s a sample of the story: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

“This is not going to end well.”

Posted on May 11, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Darwin Award contenders?

Gawker tells us of a new bad idea – tourists can now dangle on the edge of the CNN tower.

The CN Tower, which stretches 116 stories above the Toronto skyline, its “main pod” hovering there like some sort of malevolent spacecraft, will now invite tourists to stroll around its perimeter.

See more here.

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, Pop Culture

Do you like gladiator movies? Oh yeah, here’s a good book on Roman political thought

Posted on May 6, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Daniel J. Kapust (University of Wisconsin – Political Science) has recently published “Republicanism, Rhetoric, and Roman Political Thought” (Cambridge University Press). Here’s some copy for the book: Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, politics, Pop Culture

State peacefulness measured

Posted on April 13, 2011 by jly | 1 Comment

Blue is most peaceful; red is least peaceful.

The minds behind the Global Peace Index have now put an index together for the US states. I really thought that Oklahoma would have scored better – what with the farmer and the cowman being friends and all …. See the index in table form below the fold (h/t buzzfeed). Continue reading →

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Posted in Data, Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

Supply and demand … and corporate culture

Posted on March 30, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

h/t reddit

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Posted in Policy, politics, Pop Culture, Presidency

Of Black Swans and the 2008 Financial Crises

Posted on March 13, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

The author of “The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable,” Nassim Nicholas Taleb, has posted “Why Did the Crises of 2008 Happen?” on SSRN. The paper “while a standalone invited essay written for a special crisis issue of New Political Economy – synthesizes the various technical documents by the author as related to the financial crisis. It can also be used as a technical companion to The Black Swan (2007-2010). “

I’ll summarize his causes of the crises here, but it is certainly worth reading for yourself (just 5 pages): Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Data, Jeff, Law, Methods, Policy, Pop Culture

We are becoming increasingly polarized …

Posted on February 23, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

… in the movies we watch. It’s been documented by Moki TV – they explain: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Presidential Opera – “Nixon in China”

Posted on February 13, 2011 by jly | 1 Comment

Personally, I think I’ll wait for the Broadway musical, but for lovers of opera there is “Nixon in China”. Here’s some wikipedia background for those not familiar with this thrilling musical endeavor:

Nixon in China (1987) is an opera with music by the American composer John Adams and a libretto by Alice Goodman. It is about the visit of United States President Richard M. Nixon to China in 1972, where he met with China’s Chairman Mao Zedong and other Chinese officials.

The work was commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Houston Grand Opera and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It premiered at the Houston Grand Opera, October 22, 1987 in a production by Peter Sellars with choreography by Mark Morris.

The opera focuses on six key personalities: Nixon and his wife Pat; Jiang Qing (spelled “Chiang Ch’ing” in the libretto) and Chairman Mao (“Mao Tse-tung”); and the two close advisors to the two parties, Henry Kissinger and Zhou Enlai (“Chou En-lai”). It is composed of three acts. The first details the anticipation and arrival of the Nixon cortege and the first meeting and evening in China. The second act shifts focus to Pat Nixon, as she makes tours of rural China, including an encounter at a pig farm. The second scene includes a performance of a Communist propaganda play, in which first Pat Nixon, then her husband and then Jiang Qing, intercede in the performance. The last act chronicles the last night in China, in which the characters dance a foxtrot, their thoughts wandering to their own pasts.

Musically, the opera owes more influence to minimalism than any Asian styles. (John Adams adapted the foxtrot theme from the last act into a concert piece entitled “The Chairman Dances“, published before the opera in 1985. In the intervening period, Adams switched publishers, hence the Foxtrot for Orchestra being published by G. Schirmer and the opera by Boosey & Hawkes.) The libretto, by contrast, was written completely in rhymed, metered couplets, reminiscent of poetic and theatrical styles native to China.

Here’s a clip from a “Nixon in China” production (Airforce One never looked so good) — Enjoy!

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture, Presidency

Presidential pants

Posted on January 18, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

This is, quite simply, an audio clip (with accompanying animated video) of President Johnson ordering pants from Haggar Clothing. Caution: LBJ (and the accompanying animation) gets a bit bawdy in places. H/T Buzzfeed

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture, Presidency

What can baboons teach us about stress?

Posted on January 17, 2011 by jly | Comments Off

Robert Sapolsky and an olive baboon share a quiet moment on the Talek River, July 2007 (Credit: John Heminway)

A lot, apparently. National Geographic has a fascinating look at stress via the research of Stanford neurobiologist Robert Sapolsky. Here’s a bit of it: Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Data, Jeff, Policy, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

Intriguing graphic of the week – moving back in with your parents

Posted on December 13, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

I was reading the Huffington Post (did I just say that?) and came across this curious graphic (above). It’s a stunning depiction of the times in which we live, but I’m still wondering – does moving back in with your parents have the same stigma that it did, say, twenty years ago? I’m guessing that it doesn’t but I can’t really come up with a good reason why – it’s just a feeling. You can find the rest of the post here.

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

Overkill

Posted on November 16, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Lyrics – Colin Hay

I can’t get to sleep
I think about the implications
Of diving in too deep
And possibly the complications

Especially at night
I worry over situations
I know I’ll be alright
Perhaps it’s just imagination

Day after day it reappears
Night after night my heartbeat shows the fear
Ghosts appear and fade away

Alone between the sheets
Only brings exasperation
It’s time to walk the streets
Smell the desperation

At least there’s pretty lights
And though there’s little variation
It nullifies the night from overkill

Day after day it reappears
Night after night my heartbeat shows the fear
Ghosts appear and fade away
Come back another day

I can’t get to sleep
I think about the implications
Of diving in too deep
And possibly the complications

Especially at night
I worry over situations
I know I’ll be alright
It’s just overkill

Day after day it reappears
Night after night my heartbeat shows the fear
Ghosts appear and fade away
Ghosts appear and fade away
Ghosts appear and fade away

Live version

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Posted in Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

What TV shows do Democrats love? How about Republicans?

Posted on November 11, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

This graphic from Buzzfeed gives you the favorite TV shows by political party. Everyone has something to be ashamed of here.

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Posted in Jeff, politics, Pop Culture

On enforcement and international relations

Posted on November 1, 2010 by jly | 1 Comment

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Posted in Jeff, Law, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

Top twenty lessons learned from international travel

Posted on November 1, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Having not done much international traveling, I found this post on Tim Ferriss’ blog very interesting – you may or may not agree with all aspects of the points made by the guest poster – Gary Arndt (of Everything Everywhere), but they are certainly worth a look — here’s a taste of the first three: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Other, politics, Pop Culture

The United States of movies

Posted on October 28, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

I suppose that this graphic from Buzzfeed is pretty self-explanatory. I don’t necessarily agree with all of the choices, but then again I haven’t take the time to put together a competing map

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

A new take on ‘it gets better’

Posted on October 26, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Comedian Patton Oswalt has his own take on the recent ‘it gets better’ theme. It’s a pretty interesting reflection on a regrettable past. Here’s a sample: Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Gary Vanerchuk on social media, career, and more

Posted on October 20, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Pretty interesting discussion from the Wine Library guy.

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Posted in Andy, Jeff, Pop Culture

Predicting movie success

Posted on October 19, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Academics show Hollywood how it’s done with empirical analysis. Check it out on NPR here.

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, Pop Culture

Bacon of the ‘future’?

Posted on October 18, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Boing Boing presents a post on a series of photos put together in 1962 (by Don Draper perhaps?) predicting what life will be like in 1975. Well, they missed disco, pet rocks, and the approaching bicentennial hoopla, but they got a few things right such as pacemakers and certain aspects of personal computing. But the one thing that they suggested that really caught my eye was pre-fried bacon – you just warm it up by popping the pack in the toaster (see above picture). While I’m sure that this has been offered, I don’t think it has ever really caught on – but it seems like a great marketing idea for a major food company. The rest of the photos can be found here.

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Are presidential video games next?

Posted on September 28, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Apparently, sitting presidents are free game for video game cameos due, in part, to their reluctance to sue. See the story here. In the video below (depicting Madden NFL 11), you can see President Obama make his appearance at about the 2 minute mark. [h/t Gawker.com]

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Posted in Jeff, Law, Pop Culture, Presidency

Remembering the Gipper, tax policy, and Judas Priest

Posted on September 10, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

A recent article in Yahoo news recalls the tax policies of Ronald Reagan in relative space. Perhaps surprisingly, tax policy and Ronald Reagan weren’t high on my list of relevant topics during this time period. Here’s a random eighties music video to provide the flavor of the times …

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Posted in Jeff, Law, Policy, politics, Pop Culture, Presidency

No baggage

Posted on August 23, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

No, I’m not referring to the emotional kind – we’re talking real baggage here. Travel writer Rolf Potts has recently undertaken a challenge to travel around the world with no baggage. How will he do it? Check out the post on Tim Ferriss’s blog detailing the endeavor. You can keep up with this travels at his No Baggage Challenge website. Here are his ground rules:

Continue reading →

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Committing ‘The Perfect Crime’ – a.k.a. Anyone up for a picnic at Yellowstone national park?

Posted on August 4, 2010 by jly | 2 Comments

Just when you thought is was safe to go back into Idaho ….

In “The Perfect Crime,” author Brian C. Kalt (Michigan State College of Law) argues that it may be possible to commit crimes and get off scott free in certain areas of Idaho where – for a complex set of reasons – it is darn near impossible to prosecute. The article can be found on SSRN here and also in the Georgetown Law Journal. The article is dated 2005, but an email exchange with the author suggests that this potential crime loophole has not been fixed. Here’s the abstract: Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Courts, Jeff, Law, Policy, politics, Pop Culture

Creating your own degree?

Posted on July 1, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Tim Ferriss

Tim “4 Hour Workweek” Ferris considers the tuition costs versus tangible benefits – can a degree be replicated on your own by using your planned tuition money for other learning endeavors? Check it out here.

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, Pop Culture

Old Commercials – Flintstones edition

Posted on June 20, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Something tells me that this one wouldn’t go over too well today … I’m just saying…

[h//t CG via FB]

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Say It Ain’t So…Dio!

Posted on June 14, 2010 by rfording | Comments Off

RIP
July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010

Back in 1980, I forgot to return my Columbia House Record Club notice and ended up receiving Black Sabbath’s “The Mob Rules” in the mail as the monthly featured selection. It ended up being a great decision. This was my first introduction to Black Sabbath and the experience changed my musical taste forever. While the appeal of Black Sabbath has always been Tony Iommi’s riveting guitar riff’s, the vocals were unlike anything I had listened to prior to that time. Of course, many of you must assume I am talking about Ozzy Osbourne. Nope. In 1980 Ozzy was a solo act, having been fired by Iommi a year before. The lead singer of my Black Sabbath was Ronnie James Dio. Continue reading →

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Posted in Pop Culture, Richard Fording, Uncategorized

Book deals …

Posted on June 14, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Not for us, mind you, but for these other blogs. Uggh, why can’t we be more popular

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture

Why American Idol Producers Should Take a Political Science Course

Posted on June 10, 2010 by rfording | 2 Comments

Even if you don’t watch American Idol (I admit I do), you can’t help but be aware that it is the most popular show on television. For contestants, winning the contest can transform an otherwise unknown amateur into an international celebrity. The rules are simple. Contestants perform and viewers vote for their favorite performer by texting their vote after the show. Each week the contestant with the lowest vote total is booted off the show. The process continues until there is winner – the new American Idol.

The legitimacy of the new “American Idol” seems justified. After all, the winner is America’s choice, right? Perhaps not, according to some research on this question. Continue reading →

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Posted in Pop Culture, Richard Fording

Judith Warner on generation “why worry?”

Posted on May 30, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Honestly, I don’t really quite know what to make of this – it’s either good news or very, very bad news. Here’s an excerpt

But at a time when so many of their elders are struggling emotionally to keep their heads above water — dealing with layoffs or the fear of layoffs, feeling the walls closing in around them as whole professions contract in new and unanticipated ways — the children, you have to consider, might be on to something. I interviewed nine students recommended to me by college professors and officials, yielding a picture of emerging adults with a striking ability to keep self-doubt — and deep discouragement — at bay. Many were jobless, others were dissatisfied with their work or graduate-school choices, yet they didn’t blame themselves if life failed to meet their expectations. They didn’t call into question their choices or competencies. It was as if all the cries of “Good job!” they heard as children armed them against the repeated blows of frustration and rejection now coming their way.

Here’s the rest.

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, Pop Culture

Science Fiction lunch boxes

Posted on May 27, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Can you name the gorilla in this picture?

Normally, this sort of thing would fall within my twitter posts, but I couldn’t pass up providing the above pic of a “Planet of the Apes” lunch box. Note that it depicts the television show as opposed to the series of movies. I want this lunch box

You can find the rest here. [h/t Boing Boing]

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

Don’t Forget Taxes When Weighing Job Options

Posted on May 25, 2010 by rfording | Comments Off

When Jeff asked me to guest blog for Voir Dire, I decided that my first post would be the recent article by Jalbert, et al, which ranks university salary packages after adjusting for the local cost of living. Of course, Andy beat me to the punch on that, but after reading the article more closely I realized that perhaps there is more to think about here. The article provides a great service to those of us who occasionally consider relocating to another university. I was particularly interested in the cost of living adjustment, having dealt with this issue in my own research over the years. And as with most COL measures, the details are important. The authors report that their local COL measue is taken from the Yahoo.com real estate site, and Yahoo reports that their data come from Sperling’s Best Places website. While the measure seems reasonable, like nearly every other local COL index it does not consider state and local taxes. Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Pop Culture

Travel well

Posted on May 15, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Here’s some interesting advice on traveling and living on a budget – I should probably read it twice

(Check out the resource links at the end)

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

Sex, marriage, and divorce – red/blue style

Posted on May 2, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

In the National Journal Magazine, Jonathan Rauch discusses a new book on such socioeconomic trends in the states – Red Families v. Blue Families: Legal Polarization and the Creation of Culture, by Naomi Cahn and June Carbon (Oxford University Press). Here’s an excerpt:

The country’s lowest divorce rate belongs to none other than Massachusetts, the original home of same-sex marriage. Palinites might wish that Massachusetts’s enviable marital stability were an anomaly, but it is not. The pattern is robust. States that voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in both 2004 and 2008 boast lower average rates of divorce and teenage childbirth than do states that voted for the Republican in both elections. (That is using family data for 2006 and 2007, the latest available. Continue reading →

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Posted in Courts, Data, Jeff, Policy, politics, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

Althouse on airlines’ carry on baggage fees

Posted on April 19, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Somehow this matter has taken on an ideological dimension. The rather interesting post comments suggest that it probably has little to do with ideology notwithstanding legislative activity by Democrat members of congress to curtail such fees. Check it out here. For me it’s a fairly straightforward matter, but I’m not revealing what side I’m taking on this one — it’s just too divisive of an issue.

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, politics, Pop Culture, Uncategorized

Justin Wolfers on citing economists

Posted on April 17, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

On the Freakonomics blog, Justin Wolfers complains about the fact that economists do not get their work cited by other academics very much and then posits potential explanations. But first, the intro:

There’s no doubt in my mind that economics is currently the queen of the social sciences. Economists have invaded intellectual territory that was previously the exclusive domain of our friends in sociology, political science, criminology, geography and, to a degree, history. While the President regularly consults his Council of Economic Advisers, I’m not aware of him seeking the counsel of parallel councils of sociological, historical, or psychological advisers. (I will concede that he consults political advisers, although I suspect that they are only tenuously connected to scholarship in modern political science.) Popular discussion of economics trumps that of the other social sciences. Newsweek even declared economics “the sexiest trade alive.” Continue reading →

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Posted in Academia, Jeff, Pop Culture

Bush/Blair – Endless Love

Posted on April 6, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Just because you might need something like this on a Monday…

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Posted in Jeff, politics, Pop Culture, Presidency

Facebook’s new ‘place’ feature

Posted on March 29, 2010 by jly | Comments Off

Somehow I don’t see any good coming from this:

(CNN) — Facebook on Friday proposed creating a way for people to add their locations to Facebook pages but released almost no details about how the feature will work.

The location-based feature, hinted at in a post on Facebook’s blog, would give the social network’s 400 million-plus members a function that has been popularized on newer “location-based” Web sites like Foursquare and Gowalla.

Those two sites feature mobile apps that are set up like games, encouraging smartphone- or laptop-wielding users to “check in” at restaurants, businesses and public locations. When a person checks in to a certain spot, his or her friends are alerted about their whereabouts.

Posting locations in addition to status messages and Web links has become a major theme of online social networking this year.

In a blog post on Friday, Michael Richter, Facebook’s deputy general counsel, provided few details about how the places feature would work but did confirm that Facebook is working on features that use people’s locations.

He writes that the addition is “more exciting” than a location feature the company had been planning.

More here.

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Posted in Jeff, Pop Culture