Reminder: Thesis Statements Due Today (9/30)

To all those students in AP-honors, Aesthetics, and NHN who have chosen not to blog: today's the deadline for me to receive, in hard copy or on First Class, your one declarative sentence thesis statements.

From the handout on writing "multi-stage, persuasive research essays":

1. One (declarative) sentence thesis statement: due: 9/30/09. I will not accept for any credit essays composed on unapproved topics. Students missing this deadline will have one letter grade subtracted from their final grade for the project.

An "Authentic" guitarist: Jan Akkerman

(AE) Authenticity and Forgery

Dennis Dutton (author of the Art Instinct and our Ch. 7) nicely summarizes the many uses of the term "authenticity" (while suggesting that forgery and plagiarism are two kinds of inauthenticity):

http://www.interdisciplines.org/artcognition/papers/4

Addicted to War

Tom Engelhardt:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/09/17-12

Update: 9/26/09:

Not so for Costa Rica:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/09/25-6

(AE) Rock Candy, of Course

"Like letters through a stick of rock" (candy, that is; a British treat with letters -- the name of a town, for example -- embedded in the stick.):

http://everything2.com/title/stick+of+rock

(AE) Food as Representation

Not what Telfer has in mind, but interesting nonetheless:

http://www.toxel.com/inspiration/2008/05/16/amazing-food-art/

(Picture: Chinese watermelon art)

(NHN) The Critical Thinker

Here's one of my favorite quotes from philosopher Harvey Seigel, offering his take on the truly critical thinker (emphasis mine; notice, too, that there are contexts in which critical thinking may not be "appropriate"):

"Such a person habitually seeks evidence and reasons, and is predisposed so to seek -- and to base belief and action on t he results of such seeking. She applies the skills and abilities of reason assessment in all appropriate contexts, including those contexts in which her own beliefs and actions are challenged."

-- Harvey Siegel, Educating Reason

Youtube Cameo

Almost looks like I've joined the band: