Now Reading
Planned books:
None
Current books:
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Mathematics for the Digital Age and Programming in Python by Maria Litvin and Gary Litvin
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Statistics In Plain English by Timothy C. Urdan
Recent books:
- Practical Machine Learning in R by Fred Nwanganga, Mike Chapple
- Statistical Inference via Data Science: A ModernDive into R and the Tidyverse by Chester Ismay and Albert Y. Kim
- The Nature of Code by Daniel Shiffman
- Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee
- The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature by Matt Ridley
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Category Archives: Writing
Information Is Not Knowledge
Technology is drowning us in information but this information is often of little use to us. It might be worthwhile to ponder the fundamental nature of information. Although I work in Information Technology as a knowledge worker, I have given … Continue reading
Posted in General, Programming, Travel, Writing
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The Gaspipe One-Act Play Festival
Last evening I attended the Gaspipe One-Act Play Festival at the Greenspace Center in Lewisburg. This play festival was offered by the RiverStage Community Theatre. Lewisburg is south of Williamsport on Route 15. It takes around 40 minutes to drive … Continue reading
How Amazon’s Recommendation Engine May Shape Your Destiny
I have recently discovered that Amazon’s recommendation engine is powered by an open source artificial intelligence framework called Deep Scalable Sparse Tensor Network Engine (DSSTNE), pronounced “destiny”. I have tried to figure out how the Deep Scalable Sparse Tensor Network … Continue reading
Brooklyn Heights – Mapping The Territory
Yesterday I made my first bus trip for 2017 to New York City. My goal was to explore more neighborhoods in Brooklyn. Although I only intended to explore Brooklyn Heights, I had time to wander around Dumbo too. Exploring new … Continue reading
Posted in General, Travel, Writing
Tagged Brooklyn Borough Hall, Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn Heights Promenade, Brooklyn Historical Society, DUMBO, Heights Cafe, Henry Ward Beecher Monument, Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, Merilu Pizza Al Metro, MetroTech Center, New York Transit Museum, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Port Authority Bus Terminal, Sentinel Apartment, St. Ann's Warehouse, The Heights Players
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CAST’s The Boatwright by Bo Wilson
On Saturday afternoon I saw the play The Boatwright by Bo Wilson. I haven’t been writing reviews of the local productions I’ve seen, but there are a few aspects of this event that I should preserve for future reference. For … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Writing
Tagged CAST, Community Theatre League, RiverStage Community Theatre, The Boatwright
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Production As Validation
Recently I made the observation that playwrights should not be using a production as validation because that is too discouraging. I would like to elaborate on this point. The reason production should not be considered validation is that it sets … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Writing
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Cultural Consumers Vs Creators
There are two types of people in a culture, creators and consumers. Consuming cultural products is a passive activity. Creating cultural products is an active activity. The reader is a consumer and the writer is a creator. I have made … Continue reading
The Playwright As Shaman
I’ve been sharing a lot of my thoughts on the Internet lately but none of it has made it to my blog. So I think it is time to share some of my insights on my own platform instead of … Continue reading
Posted in Theater, Writing
Tagged Archetype Of Initiation, James Hillman, Jungian psychology, Mythology, playwriting, Shakespeare, shamanism, The Bacchae
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On The Nature Of Reality
I’m going to post some thoughts here because I can’t think of anywhere else to write this. I’m not really interested in getting a response. My blog is perfect for writing things that won’t get any response! I’ve been reading … Continue reading
Posted in General, Writing
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The Crucible: Dark Play Of The Occult
Yesterday I saw The Crucible at the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway. I was really shocked by what I saw for apparently Broadway has turned to the dark arts in its quest for box office success. I’ve never thought of … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Writing
Tagged Broadway, occult, The Crucible, Walter Kerr Theatre
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How To Legitimately Piss And Moan About The Theater
I like to read articles on the Howl Round web site for its lively discussion of the theater and playwriting. I’ve noticed there are a lot of articles about gender politics and other social justice warrior concerns. I’m not going … Continue reading
Posted in Theater, Writing
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Daphne’s Dive NYC Theater Trip
On Saturday I made yet another trip to New York City as part of my extensive exploration of the New York City theater community. However, the play I selected to see was partly based on the ticket price, a bargain … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Travel, Writing
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Talent Discovery
I just finished reading the book Respect For Acting by Uta Hagen and watched a documentary on actress Charlotte Rampling, The Look. The book and the documentary remind me that actors can be serious artists and not just attention whores … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Writing
Tagged Charlotte Rampling, Respect For Acting, Robert Edmond Jones, theater, Uta Hagen
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Belles, A Theater Review
Last night I saw the play Belles by Mark Dunn at the Community Theatre League. Mark Dunn is the Playwright-in-Residence at the Community Theatre League. This is a bit of a mystery to me since he does not appear to … Continue reading
Posted in General, Theater, Writing
Tagged Belles, Community Theatre League, Mark Dunn
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Long Day’s Journey Into Night – A Laugh Riot
Yesterday I went to New York City to see my favorite play “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” by Eugene O’Neill. This was my first bus trip to New York City with my new camera, a SONY CyberShot DSC-RX100, which takes … Continue reading
Philadelphia Bus Trip
Today I went on a bus trip to Philadelphia with Sherry Ault Tours. Ordinarily I have to drive myself to Philadelphia since it is not a popular destination, but the Philadelphia Flower Show is one of the few exceptions for … Continue reading
Shawnee Playhouse Produced My One Act Play “Errant Souls”
I have finally achieved a major goal, an actual production of one of my plays! I wasn’t actually expecting my play to be performed. I was expecting a staged reading. But I guess the staged reading was part of the … Continue reading
Posted in Theater, Travel, Writing
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The Best Minds of My Generation Are Writing Code
Allen Ginsberg’s famous poem Howl begins: I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking for an angry fix, Angel-headed hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly … Continue reading
Posted in General, Programming, Writing
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Philadelphia Theater Trip – Disgraced
Philadelphia is the cultural capital of Pennsylvania. I had an extended weekend so I decided to make a long overdue trip to Philadelphia to experience some world class theater. It has been three years since I last visited Philadelphia and … Continue reading
H. Beam Piper
H. Beam Piper was perhaps the most famous writer ever associated with Williamsport but the city has done little to celebrate his work. I’ve just finished reading a biography of H. Beam Piper by John F. Carr. I was curious … Continue reading