A little over a year ago, Facebook finally did away with its highly restrictive gender options . (It was male, female, or nothing.) But instead of being open-ended, the social network would still only let you choose from among a list of 56 options. Now, after catching some flak, Facebook is finally offering infinite options. You can type whatever you want into the gender field.
The Rhode Island School of Design’s (RISD) new president sees her administrative duties through the eyes of an artisan.
She should – Rosanne Somerson is a graduate of RISD who earned her degree in industrial design.
Double Bed with Curves, Rosanne Somerson
That was before RISD offered degrees in furniture design – which turned out to be a short-lived situation. When Somerson began to teach there, she was encouraged to create just such a department.
She did, establishing one for both undergraduate and graduate students, some of whom now work for Pottery Barn, Herman Miller and Steelcase, while others are in business for themselves, and still others are working in the medical field.
“They get an excellent foundation in problem-solving and theory, and become successful designers,” she says.
Table, Rosanne Somerson
Indeed. Her philosophy of “iterative thinking for new and innovative outcomes” is about distilling theory, social issues and mental effort down into an idea. It’s about bringing hands and minds and hearts together to create a dynamic result. It’s about understanding traditional processes and new technologies. But at its heart, it’s about problem-solving.
“They bring theory to life in a really strong way,” she says.
Chair, Rosanne Somerson
Somerson would later serve as RISD’s provost, then as its interim president. She was named president last week, which wasn’t really a surprise to anyone at the school, now home to 2,000 undergrads, 450 graduate students, a K-12 and lifelong learning program, and a museum.
That kind of agenda ought to be enough for any president. But this one comes with a special approach to it all.
Rosanne Somerson, President, RISD
“One of the strengths of an artist is that if you learn to deal with ideas and systems and structures, it all contributes to leadership,” she says.
But after all, hasn’t she already proven that?
J. Michael Welton writes about architecture, art and design for national and international publications, and edits and publishes a digital design magazine at www.architectsandartisans.com. He is also the author of “Drawing from Practice: Architects and the Meaning of Freehand,” due out from Routledge Architecture Press in the spring.
Whoever says blondes have more fun clearly didn’t get the memo that Chrissy Teigen dyed her hair.
The 29-year-old model showed her 1.8 million Instagram followers her hair transformation as her locks went from a dirty blond to a deep brown hue:
For contrast’s sake, here’s a look at Teigen and her mermaid-esque blond curls at the 2015 Oscars on Sunday:
We’re loving the new look, but let’s be real — homegirl could work a shaved head and still take a great picture.
We thought we’d seen the death of the McMansion with everyone flocking to live in a tiny home. Although small-space living does have its perks — it’s good for the environment, saves money, and offers the opportunity to get creative with your space — who wouldn’t want to live like a king or queen?
We can certainly understand the appeal of grand staircases, incredible architecture and the reaction you’ll get after you tell people you live in a chateau. If that’s your thing (because it is a thing, apparently), you’re in luck. Step inside five castles on the market right now:
1. Château de Vigny in Val d’Oise, France
Price tag: About $6 million
Credit: Photographer Sebastien Lory, Courtesy of realtor: Xavier Attal of Immo Best International
Located about 35 miles from Paris, Rihanna once shot a music video in this haunting estate from 1504. Although the castle, which has a chapel inside and comes with eight houses on the property, needs major renovations, the allure of secret staircases, beautiful gothic architecture and relative seclusion sound utterly charming.
2. This humble abode in Woodstock, Connecticut
Price tag: $39 million
Credit: Realtor: John Pizzi of Randall, Realtors Real Living
This Connecticut castle has all the trappings of a European estate. With a moat, handful of towers, nine incredibly-well decorated bedrooms and seven bathrooms, you’ll never want to leave this luxurious compound.
3. Château de Villersexel in Villersexel, France
Price tag: Around $14 million
Credit: Realtor: Xavier Attal of Immo Best International
Not far from Switzerland and Germany, Château de Villersexel is not only a “steal” at $14 million, but it’s also in mint condition. With 50 rooms, incredible tapestries and the original furnishings, this ancient, Louis XIII-style castle even comes with stables and a farm. Fun fact: It’s been rebuilt twice — once in the year 1000 (yes, really) and again in 1871.
4. Tiffany Castle in Kansas City, Missouri
Price tag: $599,900
Credit: Tiffany Castle Facebook
This home, built in 1909, is definitely the best deal in our roundup. For just shy of $600,000, the future owner will get to lord over five bedrooms, four baths, a grand staircase and a faux lookout tower.
5. A quaint castle in Mooresburg, Tennessee
Price tag: $349,900
Credit: Zillow
Although it may not look like much compared to larger castles, this little 2-bedroom Tennessee castle has a pretty neat story. The owners were huge fans of “Gone With The Wind,” and wanted to build their home to look like Tara from the move. Instead, they built a castle, but bought and installed the staircase from the movie theater where “Gone With The Wind” premiered to keep a piece of “Tara” with them.
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As language evolves, the powers that regulate language tend to shift. Just look at the Oxford English Dictionary, who added terms like “duck face,” “lolcat,” and “hawt” to their prestigious lexicon this past December. For the English-speaking world, these additions are anywhere from ridiculous to annoying but at the end of the day, the terms are accepted and agreed upon.
If you’ve seen someone carrying around $18,000 worth of nickels, police in North Naples, Florida, want to talk with you.
Investigators said 183 boxes filled with bankrolls of nickels were stolen February 15 during a house party held in a gated community.
The five cent coins were stored in blue and white boxes that were the size of large bricks, Fox4Now reports.
About 360,000 nickels were stolen, weighing about 200 pounds.
Police are asking local banks and businesses with coin-counting machines to report anyone who attempts to change an exceptionally large amount of nickels into larger bills, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
Thieves also made off with a .12-gauge shotgun, a .45-caliber firearm and miscellaneous ammunition in addition to the nickels, CBS Miami reports.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Collier County Sheriff’s Office at (239) 252-9300, or Crime Stoppers at (800) 780-8477.
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Watch out, Kate and Cara. Your (adorable) competition has arrived.
Twelve-year-old Maya Koski-Wood and 10-year-old Harley Chapman are giving models Kate Moss and Cara Delevingne a run for their money by recreating some of their most popular photos.
Mini Kate Moss and Cara Delevingne doppelgangers cast to launch @WithingsUK Activité Pop watch http://t.co/i3EuVWmcLB pic.twitter.com/CgRufPH6Uu
— Andrew Bloch (@AndrewBloch) February 24, 2015
Withings, a company that makes smart products, decided to use the little lookalikes to promote its Activité Pop watches. According to The Telegraph, the watch is known as the “little sister” to the Withings Activité watch, which explains why the ad campaign features junior models.
Harley is a spitting image of Delevingne, and Maya is a darling Moss in their individual replica photos. But when the girls team up to recreate the models’ joint Burberry campaign, it’s obvious this won’t be their last modeling gig.
. #ICYMI these adorable little models recreated iconic British fashion moments: http://t.co/hxHxtNAikm pic.twitter.com/WrYVxzpSQt
— HELLO! Fashion (@hellofashion_uk) February 26, 2015
Work it, girls.
H/T Elite Daily
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The number of countries where Jewish people are mistreated is at a seven-year high.
According to the Pew Research Center, about a quarter of the world’s countries are still struggling to respect the religious minorities living with their borders. Jews have had it especially hard.
Harassment of Jewish people was reported in 77 countries in 2013, the latest year for which data is available. That’s up from 71 countries in 2012.
The Pew Center’s annual study looked 198 countries and self-administering territories for evidence of two types of religious restrictions. Governmental restrictions happen when a country tries to control specific religious groups or enacts discriminatory laws. The second type of restriction involves social hostilities, which are committed by individuals or groups and range from vandalism to violent assaults.
Christians are more likely to experience harassment by some level of the government. Jews, who make up 0.2 percent of the world’s population, were more likely to be harassed by individuals or groups.
The anti-Semitic sentiment was particularly widespread in Europe. Out of the region’s 45 countries, Jews faced harassment in 34.
The threats were both verbal and physical. In the city of Pinto in Spain, vandals painted a large swastika on a bullring and scrawled in the words, “Hitler was right.” In Norway, a popular newspaper sparked outrage by printing a cartoon that poked fun at the practice of ritual circumcision.
France is home to Europe’s largest Jewish population and its citizens are increasingly worried about anti-Semitism. About 7,000 resettled in Israel in 2014, the AP reports. Recently, vandals caused damage to hundreds of graves at a Jewish cemetery in eastern France.
Overall, Pew found that 39% of countries had a high or very high overall level of restrictions in 2013. Since some of the countries have booming populations, like China and India, the result is that 77% of the world’s population (or 5.5 billion people) were living in countries with high or very high religious restrictions.
Forget soccer games and violin lessons, teach your kids something really cool — bridge. Sure the average age of bridge players is closer to 70 than 7, but there are some really awesome reasons to teach your child this amazing game. Here are seven!
1. It Improves Test Scores
A researcher by the name of Dr. Christopher Shaw taught 5th graders to play bridge then compared their 6th grade standardized test scores. What he found was very interesting.
What Shaw discovered was that students who learned to play bridge had a significant increase in their ITSB scores compared with their non-playing classmates.
While everyone’s scores increased because they were older, the most significant gains were from those who had learned bridge!
2. It Boosts the Immune System
Who doesn’t want healthier kids? You might think that playing cards all day has no health benefits, but according to a study by biologist Marian Diamond, you would be wrong.
“In a presentation at last week’s meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, biologist Marian Diamond described an experiment showing that contract bridge players have increased numbers of immune cells after a game of bridge.
Based on her previous work, and that of others, Diamond interprets the findings as “strong evidence that an area of the brain involved in playing bridge stimulates the immune system, in particular the thymus gland that produces white blood cells called T cells, or T lymphocytes.”
Forget the cough medicine, deal the cards!
3. It’s Inexpensive
My daughter attended a week of bridge camp, took several lessons at a local club, and played three times at the Junior Nationals in Atlanta for a grand total of zero dollars. The ACBL (American Contract Bridge League) and Atlanta Junior Bridge do a great job supporting juniors and raising funds throughout the year, so the cost to parents is next to nothing. The only thing I’ve paid for is a $15.00 Junior ACBL membership – no league fees, uniforms or equipment! Even when you do pay, it’s not much. Juniors can play at most clubs for around $6.00 to $10.00 a session.
4. You can play bridge FOREVER and continue to improve as you age
You can’t say the same for football, baseball, tennis, hockey, volleyball, skateboarding or gymnastics. You may be able to do all those things when you’re 80, but I bet your 18 year old self was way better. In bridge, your glory days are always ahead of you. How awesome to fall in love with something and not have to stop when you graduate high school!
5. It’s MindFULL entertainment
My favorite thing about watching kids play bridge is seeing them do something besides playing computer games or watching TV. They use their brains, interact face-to-face with other kids, meet some folks from our greatest generation, and have fun! And despite Bridge’s “nerdy” reputation, the kids are all cute, normal and I’ve never seen one sporting a pocket protector.
6. It’s A Career Path
While I was showing my daughter around the bridge venue in Atlanta, a gentlemen mentioned how great it was to see kids playing, then he told us about a 16 year old who makes $3500 a week playing bridge! Clients have been known to pay $500 – $1500 to a pro for ONE session. Making it as a bridge professional is tough, but if your child dedicated themselves, there is a chance that they could make a living from playing cards. Let’s put it this way, the chance of a high-school football player making it in the NFL is 0.2%. The chances are better with cards and there’s no need for the frequent CT scans.
7. It’s good clean fun
One of the great things about my daughter playing bridge, is that I don’t have to worry about the usual boy/girl shenanigans. Yes, she could sit on a boy’s lap at the bridge club, but I’m pretty sure the club director (think of it as a referee) would end that nonsense quickly. And there would be no coming to the club, then sneaking out to meet a boy. During the Nationals, one of the kids started complaining of a headache. The director told him if he needed to quit he could, but there would be no leaving the room until his parent came to get him. I had no qualms about leaving my daughter in the room to play while I went to my own bridge game.
Oh yeah, I guess that’s ANOTHER reason bridge for kids is so great – you can continue to play and not feel guilty for leaving them at home!
If you’re interested, check out Bridge is Cool or Atlanta Junior Bridge for more!
Today I am rehearsing for a lecture to the Stanford students in their d health course tomorrow. This study is one of the most popular on campus. Its content is fascinating and fertile. It seeks to improve the human condition by conceiving ways to abet our function mechanically. Its background derives from the famous School of Engineering whose parent was Fred Terman, the acknowledged, Fortune cover, father of Silicon Valley.
I was his doctor in his declining years. Fred was important in his initiation of the innovative strategy of combining the intellectual firepower of a great university with the emerging needs of the tech industry. Hewlett and Packard were his famous early students.
But Fred was far from the first who sought to establish a physical basis in biology. In the Middle Ages increasing numbers of the Enlightenment turned to describing the human body in scientific terms, courting a fever of angst from the ruling clergy. Prime among these pioneers was Julien Offray de la Metrie (1709-1751) from Brittany. His book L’Homme Machine was viewed as heresy conceiving of mankind in purely mechanical terms. Such a depiction thereby supposedly debased mankind’s higher values of spirituality and creativity and altruism.
Can a neuron generate love? Sam Harris’s current career consists of trying to justify the reality that all of mankind’s high values can be reliably explained by physics and chemistry. This disruptive thinking has cosmic implications. It requires a massive upgrade in classical chemistry and physics. It ranges to an amalgam between analog and digital pathways in the interpretation of how the brain works. Such brave new efforts to understanding have been characterized as a voyage into the “catastrophe of complexity.”
The simplicity of yesterday’s premises has been eclipsed by the recognition of the awesome complexity of nature, notably mankind. For example, the gear wheel of our metabolism, the tricarboxylic acid cycle which provides much of our energy turns, over at the mind-boggling rate of 2.66×10 to the 23rd times per minute.
The emerging field of nanotechnology lends much emphasis to the effort to grasp the physical basis of life. Machine principles apply even down to the molecule level. This is critical in learning how nano-molecular machines operate.
The biggest challenge in embedding a firm base for physicochemical biology is in tackling the difference between program driven processes and component driven processes. Much of nature operates at the component level a la Newton. But life is constantly being directed by its program via feedback loops. The surrounding environment is in perpetual intimate reaction with the organism. This rules that all parts of the body are reacting with all other parts in discreet and measurable ways. This hints at a Zen-like proposition.
As a geriatrician this whole domain fascinates me because time is such a critical component to life. Time must be integrated into any scheme that attempts to understand life.
This is what I will explore in my lecture to the students in d health at Stanford.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.