The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, and “an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture,” has announced the five recipients of Ruth Lilly Fellowships for 2011. My son, Theodore Zachary Cotler, was one of the winners. Quoting from the Poetry Foundations’s website: The editors of Poetry magazine selected [...]
Category Archives: Language
Grandparent Nicknames
May 13, 2011 – 7:28 am
A couple of days ago there was an article in the New York Times about the many new and different nicknames for grandparents. Looking to stay and act younger, my generation is no longer just Grandma, Grandpa, Nana, and Papa. In my first Cheesie Mack book, almost-11-year-old Cheesie talks about the unusual nicknames for his [...]
A Siyuntist’s Perspective
February 25, 2011 – 5:42 pm
Little Johnny can read well long before he can spell well. Should you be worried? Should you send him to a tutor? Problem-solving technique can be deductive/analytical or inductive/synthetic. Stated another way, an approach can be convergent or divergent. For every youngster striving for literacy, learning to read and spell requires both convergent and divergent
Curious Readers
August 27, 2010 – 10:55 am
During the past school year, I tutored math and language arts in a local fifth-grade class, so when Public School Success Team (PSST), the homegrown non-profit that ran the tutoring program, decided to encourage a continuing flow of student enthusiasm over the summer, I volunteered to lead a course. Conducted al fresco in my backyard, [...]
Anthropocene: What’s in a Name?
May 24, 2010 – 3:10 pm
Geological epochs are defined by the major events that separate them, as when green algae in primeval seas put oxygen into the atmosphere and made animal life on earth possible. Has human technology become one of these epoch-defining events? Elizabeth Kolbert, a New Yorker staff writer who is aware and knowledgeable about the discussions and [...]
Being Positive Anymore
May 7, 2010 – 8:51 pm
Try this experiment? Write a declarative sentence using the word “anymore” that does not include a negative. You are not allowed to split the word into “any more” as in: “If there are any more interruptions, I shall clear the courtroom.” I’ll wait while you cogitate… The vast majority of you will not be able [...]
One More Guggle-Muggle for the Road
February 25, 2010 – 10:15 pm
Like most families, the nostrums necessary to palliate childhood ills were administered by my mother and grandmother. One, however, came from my father, and until last night, I thought it was his invention. Winter in Southern California is barely winter. But colds, coughs, and bad dreams can besiege a child in any clime. I was [...]
Blue Moon Bloops
January 2, 2010 – 5:22 pm
According to almost every online source that commented on it, the round disk in the sky on the last day of 2009 was a “blue moon,” a term commonly used for the second full moon in any calendar month. Commonly—and erroneously. The internet offers near-instant access to information. It is ironic that in some cases [...]
What About Dessert?
October 14, 2009 – 7:10 am
Pork Included In a recent blog post, Dan Jurafsky, a San Franciscan who writes The Language of Food, speaks eloquently and intelligently of sweetness, pork products, and cultural differences. It is worth a read taste. Here are a few bites: …the nearby hipster donut shop, Dynamo, whose most popular item is the Maple Glazed Bacon [...]
Palms Up Gesture
August 29, 2009 – 11:40 pm
photo: New York Times Most gestures are inherently ambiguous. A wink, for example, can be an invitation or a warning. A wave can mean hello or go away. Today I was trying to complete this phrase: palms up in a gesture of _____? I was stymied because that gesture seems to have an unusually wide [...]
