Author Archives: Timothy Burke

Squirrel in the Hole!

Posted on March 14, 2007 by Timothy Burke

So. I am seeing considerable debate out there about whether or not building catapult traps for squirrels is ethically appropriate. I’m all for them. I used to keep a bird feeder at a previous house and worked hard to try … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellany | 6 Comments

Search as Alchemy

Posted on March 12, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I’m still digesting the one-day meeting I participated in last week on The Future of Bibliographic Control. I’ve got a couple of follow-up thoughts coming from my presentation there. It was a very interesting meeting to be at as an … Continue reading →

If Presidential Perjury Worried You, If You Followed Investigations Into Whitewater Intently…

Posted on March 7, 2007 by Timothy Burke

Then I assume you’re far more concerned about the far more systematic and dangerous abuse of executive power by the current administration. Whether Lewis Libby is a fall guy or not, whether there’s a grey area in terms of his … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | 7 Comments

Site Note

Posted on March 7, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I’m going on a short business trip shortly, so I’ve once again locked down new user accounts as in the last 24 hours, I’ve had a bunch of spam accounts join up. It’s interesting that this is happening more often … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

A Tapeworm on the Body Academic

Posted on March 1, 2007 by Timothy Burke

If you want an example of the dangers of proposing seemingly mild or modest forms of government oversight over the everyday practices of scholars, Institutional Review Boards provide it. I’ve been a part of discussions in a number of contexts … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia | 23 Comments

Civil War #7 Sucked

Posted on February 28, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I really can’t add much more to four really great critiques I read of it: 1) Jim Roeg, “Civil War #7: RIP Marvel” 2) Brian Cronin at Comics Should Be Good 3) Dave Campbell, “Civil Waaaah” 4) Chris Sims, “Civil … Continue reading →

Posted in Popular Culture | 6 Comments

Why Centralization Isn’t the Answer

Posted on February 27, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I continue to be frustrated by the folks criticizing American universities and academic culture who imply (or outright say) that tight central control over public and maybe even private institutions is the solution. My mind especially reels when this comes … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia, Africa, Politics | 8 Comments

Bathtub Debates

Posted on February 26, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I participated in a very non-serious, amusing debate between the divisions last week at Swarthmore. A couple of people off-campus who have somehow heard about this quirkily local event have asked me for a transcript or recording. You can watch … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia, Miscellany | 4 Comments

Bad Daddy

Posted on February 26, 2007 by Timothy Burke

When I was 6, watching George Pal’s The Time Machine on TV provided the fuel for a nightmare or two, populated by Morlocks. When my daughter was 6, watching Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy led her to remark that a hideous … Continue reading →

Posted in Domestic Life, Popular Culture | 1 Comment

The Bait the Fish Refuses

Posted on February 22, 2007 by Timothy Burke

I mostly buy books from Amazon, but I was looking at the SF and fantasy section today in the local Borders. I confess I find some new SF and fantasy by its packaging. Is the title interesting? The spine design … Continue reading →

Posted in Books | 22 Comments