Round and Square: January 2011

From Round to Square (and back)

For The Emperor's Teacher, scroll down (↓) to "Topics." It's the management book that will rock the world (and break the vase, as you will see). Click or paste the following link for a recent profile of the project: http://magazine.beloit.edu/?story_id=240813&issue_id=240610

A new post appears every day at 12:05* (CDT). There's more, though. Take a look at the right-hand side of the page for over four years of material (2,000 posts and growing) from Seinfeld and country music to every single day of the Chinese lunar calendar...translated. Look here ↓ and explore a little. It will take you all the way down the page...from round to square (and back again).
*Occasionally I will leave a long post up for thirty-six hours, and post a shorter entry at noon the next day.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Goofus and Gallant History and Ethnography—Resource Center

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Goofus and Gallant Teach History and Ethnography." As early as 1936, and almost every week since 1948, Goofus and Gallant have shown "how to act" in American society. I am not sure that the lessons conveyed are always those that Highlights Magazine for Children sought to convey. Moreover, the historically changing boys say a great deal about history (and change). That, of course, has everything to do with ethnography.

Goofus and Gallant Teach History and Ethnography—Introduction
This is where you start if you want an overview and explanation of the series.

Goofus and Gallant (1)—Dishes, Checkers, and Li'l Bros
Is Goofus really that "out there" in a society that rewards all sort of male jerks?

Goofus and Gallant (2)—xxx
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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Celebrity Commentary—Resource Center

[a] Commentary RF

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Celebrity Commentary." Basically, a "famous" figure speaks (fictional) lines that may or may not reflect the opinions of the Round and Square editorial board.

It's a "celebrity" a month (they have thirty day contracts, with no renewals.)

Celebrity Commentary—Introduction
This is where you begin if your reaction is WTF?...and you don't mean "World Tennis Federation."

Channeling Liam—January 2013 [first posted in April 2014]
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French Bulldog Puppy—February 2013 [first posted in May 2014]
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Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets—Resource Center

[a] Tweet-n-More RF

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets" About once a week I will write a little 140-character message about cultural and intellectual history. Just to make it a little different, I'll follow that with a haiku and a recipe. You have to see it to believe.

Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets—Introduction
This is where you start if you want an overview and explanation of the series.

Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets (1)—Asia-Pacific Mythology
A swirling water-world of thought (and practice).

Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets (2)—Book of Burial
Put 'em where they need to be.

Cultural and Intellectual History Tweets (3)—xxx
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Monday, January 17, 2011

Theory Cartoons—Resource Center

[a] To The Analytical Rescue RF

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Theory Cartoons." About once a week we will take a look at a cartoon that is particularly loaded with analytical potential. It should come as no surprise that sources will include The New Yorker, Doonsebury, Dilbert, and, of course, The Far Side.

Theory Cartoons—Introduction
This is where you start if you want an explanation of the series.

Theory Cartoons (1)—Culinary Contestation
Food, travel, and

Theory Cartoons (2)—Social Following
Hint: It's like glue...for people.

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Sunday, January 16, 2011

Wonder Wines—Resource Center

[a] Wonder Rows RF

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Wonder Wines." This is the place to go to find any post in the series, and you can always navigate back to this page if you get "lost" among the hundreds of posts on Round and Square.

Wonder Wines—Introduction
This is where you start if you want an overview of the series.

Wonder Wines (1)—Taking Haut-Médoc to School
We start with Bordeaux, as we must.

Wonder Wines (2)—Shoe Opener
Forget the corkscrew? Get the Hush Puppies.

Wonder Wines (3)—xxx
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Saturday, January 15, 2011

Kanji Mastery—Resource Center

Welcome to the Kanji Mastery Resource Center. Here, you will find links to all posts, including several other series that are relevant to the topic. The place to begin is with the introduction. After that, feel free to sample the various "radicals" of the written language. Over time, this series will include more than 200 "radicals," and the little studied "phonetics" that make the whole process of learning kanji easier.

Kanji Mastery—Introduction
Begin here. This post lays out a wide-range of challenges facing those who begin Japanese as a second language.

Kanji Steps to Mastery—Introduction
This linked series gives practical advice for the learning process.

Kanji Mastery—Radical 41 (寸 Inch)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 46 (山 Mountain)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 48 (工 Work)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 77 (止 Stop)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 93 (牛 Ox)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 94 (犬 Dog)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 99 (甘 Sweet)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 112 (石 Stone)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 116 (穴 Cave)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 128 (耳 Ear)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 134 (臼 Mortar)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 137 (舟 Boat)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 139 (色 Color)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 148 (角 Horn)

Kanji Mastery—Radical 198 (鹿 Deer)

Friday, January 14, 2011

Newsprint Nonpareil—Resource Center

[a] Newsprint Nonpareil RF

Welcome to the Newsprint Nonpareil (aka "Above the Fold") Resource Center. We will look at newspapers in this series, and we will get our hands dirty (at least in a virtual sense. This Resource Center will point you to all of the posts in the series. With the exception of the introduction, these are RSQ "short pieces."

Newsprint Nonpareil—Introduction
This is where you start.

Newsprint Nonpareil—Eisbärbabys
Baby mammals and spring. A perfect combination.

Newsprint Nonpareil—How Far Does Russia Go?
What will Russia Do?

Newsprint Nonpareil—Springtime Reading
Warm weather and reading go together.

Newsprint Nonpareil—The Price of Love
How much does love cost?

Newsprint Nonpareil—Today's Man
A frog like no other.

Newsprint Nonpareil—My Company Loves Me...Not
Affection is not corporate, people (discuss). Well, actually, it sort of is (in a fashion).

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Ponder College—Resource Center

[a] Ponder Trails...to you RF

Welcome to the Resource Center for the Round and Square series "Ponder College." The series explains itself in the form of fictional posts about this beacon of higher education (and a peculiarly American form of it). The introduction is absolutely the place to start...unless you want to dive right in and just "listen to" what happened at Ponder College each week (everything after the introduction—which is nonfiction—is fictional.

The posts with numbers (those that don't have numbers attached to them) are fictional. I am saying it clearly here. It is not meant to be that way in the actual (fictional) posts. They are meant to be a world that makes sense (like Lake Wobegon, Yoknapatawpha County, or Narnia). Any resemblance to these places (or living persons) is unintended.

[b] Pondering RF

Ponder College—Introduction
This is where you start if you want a nonfiction explanation of the series.

Ponder College (1)—Pre-Midterm Lull
Students are nearing the midpoint of the semester, and some are wondering whether there should even be "semesters" at all.

Ponder College (2)—Study Abroad
The books hit the fan.

Ponder College (3)—Midterm Exams
It's time for midterm exams. Some students are asking why we even need midterms.

Ponder College (4)—Spring Break
Everyone is off...to study.

Ponder College (5)—Back to the Ol' Grind
It's baaack. Work. We'll discuss this.

Ponder College (6)—Senior Thesis
Every senior writes one at Ponder College. This has been transforming lives (and frustrating the young) for sixty years now. Seniors are ambivalent; graduates swear by it.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Hurtin', Leavin, and Longin'—Resource Center

The Round and Square series "Hurtin', Leavin', and Longin' (in Comparative Perspective: Country Music and East Asian Poetry) is a labor of academic love. It investigates pockets of country music and East Asian poetic convention in ways that go beyond, say, country radio or academic sinology.

The place to begin is with the introduction to the series. This lays out not only the major themes of the series, but also a story about how this particular grouping of studies came to be. Click below for the introduction:

Introduction to Hurtin', Leavin, and Longin'

From there, we have several dozen individual posts that span very well-known songs to quite obscure ones. Feel free to explore. If you ever have a hard time "navigating" the posts, just come back to this "Resource Center" page and you'll be back on-track.

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[40] Culture and Memory (Whitney Houston and Dolly Parton)

[41] Rose Garden
[42] Fightin' Words (You Ain't Woman Enough...)
[43] Don't Cheat in Our Hometown
[44] Tell Me My Lying Eyes Are Wrong
[45] Kentucky Bluebird
[46] Good Ole Boys
[47] Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down
[48] Harper Valley PTA
[49] It Would Be You
[50] 12-12-84

[51] The Show Hank Never Gave
[52] The Possum (and old Hank)
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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

China's Lunar Calendar—Resource Center

For the 2014 Calendar, click here (updated through today's date). To find any date after February 4, 2013 (your birthday, graduation day, or the like), first click on the year, and then find the date on that year's calendar.

Please note that the it is not currently possible to post dates in advance of the present (this is both a matter of software and intellectual labor). In the future, my goal is to have "glimpses" of the calendar available for at least a year in advance. This feature will not be available until at least late-2014.

2014 Dates (up to today's date)

2013 Dates

January 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

31 01 02 03 04 05 06

07 08 09 10 11 12 13

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28 29 30 31 01 02 03

February 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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March 2013

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April 2013

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May 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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27 28 29 30 31 01 02

June 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

27 28 29 30 31 01 02

03 04 05 06 07 08 09

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17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30

July 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

01 02 03 04 05 06 07

08 09 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 01 02 03 04

August 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

29 30 31 01 02 03 04
05 06 07 08 09 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

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September 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

26 27 28 29 30 31 01
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09 10 11 12 13 14 15

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October 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

30 01 02 03 04 05 06

07 08 09 10 11 12 13

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28 29 30 31 01 02 03

November 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

28 29 30 31 01 02 03

04 05 06 07 08 09 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 01

December 2013

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

25 26 27 28 29 30 01
02 03 04 05 06 07 08

09 10 11 12 13 14 15

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23 24 25 26 27 28 29
30 31 01 02 03 04 05

January 2014

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

30 31 01 02 03 04 05

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February 2014

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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March 2014

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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April 2014

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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May 2014

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

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June 2014

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