It happens. An story idea I thought was important and I did the work on is blocked by a Force Divine that is yelping at me at a high rate of speed, “You gotta do this, not that.” And I say “I can’t, looky I really worked on this…” and the Force Divine says, “Save it for next week, kid. We got business here.” And I say “Yeah, but…” and I am lost before I pronounced the “t” in but.  So this is free form and we’ll see where it takes us.

Forget Dancing with the Stars--there's a new phenomenon for the geeky set: Dance Your Ph.D.. I first learned of the contest thanks to Sara Lipka at the Chronicle of Higher Education. As explained on the contest's home page, "the human body is an excellent medium for communicating science--perhaps not as data-rich as a peer-reviewed article, but far more exciting."

A long time ago I was a Deputy County Clerk for the County of Los Angeles. Part of my job was to issue marriage licenses. I think that was the best part of the job. There were specific tasks I had to perform, questions to ask and I watched as the couple swore or affirmed what they said was the truth. Sometimes I looked at a couple and thought “For the love of humanity dude, run, do not marry this chick!” or maybe “Hell, they don’t need a license, they are already married in their hearts.”

“What do you do about the boys’ education?” I get asked that question all the time. Granted, given the fact that John and I are long-time teachers most people assume we know what the boys need to learn and know how to teach it. But the reality is we mostly allow Mother Nature to be their teacher.--Family on BikesYou can't help but wonder about education when those lucky - and resourceful - families - pack up the kids and hit the road.

Should we skip right over those pesky adolescent years? Apparently Newt Gingrich has been advocating this move for years, and the former U.S. House representative reiterated it last week. Says Gingrich in Business Week,

You'd think if you're youngish, female, and have a Ph.D., you're at the top of your game: school is behind you because (thank god) you finally have the terminal degree, your shiny new life is ahead of you, yada yada. But if you're young, female, have a Ph.D., and you aren't a professor, things get a bit more complicated.

It is important to know that there are two sets of votes today. The popular vote for a candidate and, in reality, the electoral vote.  I hope this post is a waste of time and there is a clear winner in the election. If it is a tight race however then understanding how this electoral process works will be very important. Fancy isn’t quiet sure on the details of the process so let’s clear it up for those that have questions. A Brief History Lesson:

No, this isn't another "where are the women in technology?" post. After all, we all know the answer to that question: here on BlogHer. :) Rather, this is a round-up of what some of my favorite women ed tech bloggers are thinking about these days. Some trends: reflections on their place in the profession and the technosphere, thoughts on the challenges faced by e-learners, and considerations of gaming. Reflections

For those of us who will peddle push our way to the polls it is an exciting time. Many people want to take their daughters, sons and grandchildren to witness the most dramatic and unpredictable election in recent American history. Before I begin, I need to give an ancestral shout out to Mrs. Ida B. Wells-Barnett. Ida's career included being an homemaker, teacher, writer, pamphleteer (pre-Internet print based blogger) and journalist.

I've been collecting pumpkin links that don't quite fit into any specific pumpkin topic and trying to figure out what, exactly, to do with those. Today, I got a brand new crazy and brilliant pumpkin link and my first thought was "this is madness!" ... and it is, really. Next year, when you plant that garden, maybe you should consider not only growing pumpkins but molding your pumpkins. If you're in the market for a new home, maybe a pumpkin house is your thing?

I admit it: I'm overwhelmed. Have been for more than a year, since the museum blogosphere exploded. I've turned increasingly to Twitter to keep up with people who work in museums, and now, to my great delight, many museums are joining Twitter. Now I can get my fix museum-y goodness in 140 characters instead of 140 lines. (Right. Who are we fooling? I'm still reading the blogs.) So, which museums are diving into Twitter, and why--and why should you follow their tweets?

Quick: Do you feel Title IX has increased opportunities for women in academic science as much as it has led to greater equity between men's and women's athletics programs? If not, how can you ensure its more even application in academics?