Justine Marie Sherry

Too much demand for liberal arts didn't kill the job market. Too little aggregate demand did.
(Reuters)
Is our college students learning?
Rarely is the question not asked nowadays. Graduates now face a tough labor market and even tougher debt burdens, which has left many struggling to find work that pays enough to pay back what they owe. Today, as my colleague Jordan Weissmann points out, young alums aren't stuck in dead-end jobs much more than usual (despite the scare stories you may have heard). But that's a cold comfort for grads who borrowed a lot to cover the high cost of their degrees.

There are two, well, schools of thought about why freshly-minted grads have had such a tough time recently. You can blame the smarty-pants majors or blame the economy. In other words, students can't get good jobs either because they aren't learning (at least not the right things) in college, or because there aren't enough good jobs, period.
This is far from an academic debate. If recent grads can't find good work because they didn't learn any marketable skills, there's little the government can do to help, besides "nudging" current students to be more practical. And that's exactly what conservative governors in Florida and North Carolina are considering with proposals to charge humanities majors higher tuition than, say, science majors at state schools. 
But there's an obvious question. If liberal arts majors "didn't learn much in school," as Jane Shaw put it in the Wall Street Journal, why haven't they always had trouble finding work? Are there just more of them now, or is this lack of learning just a recent phenomenon? Well, as you can see in the chart below, there's no correlation the past decade between the share of grads in the most maligned majors and the unemployment rate for college grads (which has been inverted here). It's hard to see how the nonexistent rise of liberal arts explains the decline of job prospects.
(Note: I compiled data from the National Center for Education Statistics to come up with the percentage of students in "squishy" majors, which includes gender and cultural studies, English and foreign language literature, liberal arts, philosophy, and theater and visual arts. I multiplied the unemployment rate by -1, so employment falls when the line does).

Now, maybe liberal arts majors stopped learning things circa 2008 ... or maybe something else was happening then. Something like a global financial crisis. Indeed, there's no mystery when it comes to college grad unemployment; it moves in tandem with private non-residential fixed investment (that is, the state of the economy). 


In other words, too much demand for liberal arts didn't kill the job market. Too little aggregate demand did. Now, if our policymakers could just learn that....

There's the one big one we all know and love, but there are also minimoons that temporarily orbit our planet. Maybe, just maybe, we can snag one and bring it back to Earth.

The simulated path of a minimoon (NASA)

The moon, everybody knows, orbits around the Earth. But though the moon's the biggest and the most constant, it's not our lone natural satellite: Scientists believe that at any given time there are about a thousand larger-than-a-softball minimoons in our planet's gravitational pull, and about one or two of those are the size of dishwashers. They stay around Earth for between six and 18 months before heading off, back in thrall to the sun's gravitational pull. 

Larger minimoons arrive too, but less frequently. A minimoon about the size of a school bus probably comes and hangs out every half century or so; one the size of a football field may come about once every 100,000 years. "A hundred thousand years is about the time frame that human beings have been doing things like leaving their handprints on cave walls, so maybe in that time frame somebody once actually looked into the sky and saw a mini-moon moving across the sky," Robert Jedicke, who studies these minimoons, told National Geographic last year.

Their small size means that these minimoons -- despite their proximity, at least by space standards -- are difficult to spot. "So far, there's been just one confirmed sighting," writes Irene Klotz of Discovery News.

That may change soon. NASA was recently gifted two Hubble-quality space telescopes, and Jedicke and his colleagues are proposing we aim one of those badboys to search for these minimoons. His dream isn't just to watch these moons as they flit about the Earth, but to capture them.

"It's the Rosetta stone of the solar system. You bring back a chunk of material that's never been processed through the atmosphere, that's not been sitting on the ground. It's going to be a tremendous wealth of information about how the solar system formed -- even more so if you can bring back more than one and get different types of material," he told Klotz.

pleatedjeans:

Pretty Girls Making Ugly Faces (22 Pics)

deformutilation:

Snake being sedated before surgery to remove a tumor.

Awww this is kinda precious.

We recently announced that the magnificent gospelbook commissioned by Tsar Ivan Alexander, British Library Additional MS 36927, is available in full on our Digitised Manuscripts site. Readers of this blog may also be interested to learn that a video describing this manuscript's history is also now available on YouTube. "Portrait of a Masterpiece" is narrated by manuscript expert Ekaterina Dimitrova, and includes footage shot at the British Library, including an interview with Dr Scot McKendrick, Head of History and Classics.

Royal portraits: f. 2v: Constantine, the son-in-law of Ivan Alexander, flanked by three daughters of the tsar: Kerathamar (Constantine's wife), Keratsa and Desislava; f. 3r: Ivan Alexander in imperial garb, accompanied by his wife Theodora, his son Ivan Shishnan in imperial garb, and another son Ivan Asen. Above, two hands emerge from a cloud, making gestures of blessing over the Tsar and his wife, from the Gospels of Ivan Alexander, Bulgaria, 1355-1356, Add MS 39627, ff. 2v-3r

The manuscript can also currently be viewed by visitors to the British Library, in The Sir John Ritblat Gallery: Treasures of the British Library. Meanwhile, we are grateful to Ekaterina Dimitrova for sharing this video with us. We hope that you too can join us in our mutual affection for this wonderful book.

It is an absolute disgrace that we haven’t watched this movie together yet. First, feel free to shun me until you’ve read until the end of this sentence. Second, I wanted to be Matilda — so much so, that I actually believed I could be if I read enough books and stared at things hard enough. We all did. Every single one. Nothing I just typed is not unique to me at all — and for that I am grateful.

I mean, it’s MATILDA, you guys. A national treasure. If you didn’t read the book, then you at least saw the movie, and that means you — also like me — were probably horrified when that poor boy was forced to eat an entire cake at a school assembly. (Or maybe not. Personally, I just hate indigestion.)

BUT FINALLY. Thanks to me finding it on Netflix, we get down to the movies/books that made us people. Now, I’m not going to lie, I personally really loved The BFG, but that is not a movie I made my Nana rent for me repeatedly, so here we are today. So let’s get to it!

In a second, that is. I feel like it’s important to state before we begin that Mara Wilson (who played Matilda) is a kick-ass writer in her own right, and reading her blog and following her on Twitter is a necessary thing to do. The opinions she has are good ones, I promise thee.

BUT MOVING ON: time for the show!

1) We have all known Wormwoods.

All of us. Every single one. Maybe you live near some Wormwoods right now. Maybe you grew up next to some Wormwoods (I did). Either way, you were very aware when the Wormwoods were home, and when they were not, and you likely rejoiced over the latter. My next door neighbours (on one side) were incredibly Wormwood-esque — especially when the Dad hit a deer with his car (for the second time) and had its head mounted in the basement for reasons no one can fully understand. And do you know how you know I’m not lying? No one could make something like that up, ever.

2) Growing up, there was a part of me who wished my parents left me alone like Rhea and Danny so I could be “independent”.

And that is terrible, because I was over-romanticizing literally one of the worst parenting situations in fictional history. But the thing is, personally, I just wanted to be able to go to the library by myself and cook by myself, and basically be an “adult.” Well, I am an adult now and I can do one of those things (and have no interest in the other, really). So here’s an open message to Little Anne: NO. BE HAPPY YOUR PARENTS CARE AND WON’T LET YOU WALK TO THE LIBRARY ALONE AT THREE YEARS OLD. (And cooking isn’t your thing and that’s fine, so stop worrying about it.)

3) But who doesn’t love the library?

RIGHT? Matilda’s love of books and reading is something I hope we can all relate to. Wasn’t it magical when you checked out a book for the first time? And even more magical when you saw shelves of books you’d never seen? Oh my goodness. This is going to sound super out of control, but I STILL kind of feel that way when I go to a bookstore. AM I RIGHT, FELLOW READERS? READING IS THE BEST. I remember some kids in elementary school being all, “Pfff you WOULD read at recess” and it was like, “Yes. That is a correct statement to make. I absolutely would.” (So if you’re reading this, kids that stood in the cubby and kept staring at me reading on the portable steps: congratulations, you got it.)

4) “You’re not alone”.

AH. Now, being a kid watching this, I think that message may have gone over our heads. (Or at least mine.) But as an adult? WHAT AN AWESOME MESSAGE TO SEND. Seriously! Especially before the internet era where it’s now far easier to realize you are not alone. But heck no, Matilda, you are NOT alone! And let’s be honest: she probably grew up to cure the common cold AND write about 13 novels.

5) Also, shout-out to Matilda’s wardrobe, which I obviously had.

Didn’t we all? DIDN’T WE ALL? But especially the printed dresses from Northern Getaway. Why? Because it was 1994, and this was the way we lived our lives.

6) It is out of control that Matilda’s mom bingos so much.

OUT OF CONTROL. This coming from someone who has been to bingo several times. One time, I even won $150 — but other than that? Nothing. You have to pay at LEAST $20 to play the minimum amount of bingo, so if she does it all day and NEVER WINS until this one part — after years and years — she has probably spend thousands and thousands of dollars. That is NUTS. Madness. One giant question mark symbolizing “HUH.” At the very, very least.

7) There is nothing more depressing than the scene where the family is watching TV in the dark and eating as well.

And this is coming from someone who LOVES the TV. But I will say, that as soon as the lights are turned off, it becomes some sort of TV commitment. Like, THAT is the activity — you’re not on your computer, you’re not reading, you’re not even really eating that well because you’re using the light of the TV. It’s a whole new way of watching that I actually personally hate and only do RIGHT before bed, on my computer, when I’m almost asleep and still feel like watching Mad Men anyway. But in the evening? While eating dinner? I hate this part. I hate it also because Mr. Wormwood, WHY ARE YOU THE WORST DAD?

8) I hate the Wormwoods.

THEY ARE ABUSIVE AND AWFUL. I know we’re supposed to hate the Wormwoods, but oh my goodness, do Rhea and Danny ever do a good job of making you seriously want to call children’s services right away. And then he rips up Moby Dick! WHO EVEN ARE YOU. YOU ARE A MONSTER. Cherish your daughter, who is brilliant! At least I can write about it now — can you imagine my horror when I was little and had no outlet? CAN YOU?

9) But why would Mrs. Trunchbull be a teacher if she hated children?

She literally had the choice of any other career in the entire world. ANY. OTHER. ONE. Why would she CHOOSE to be around kids all day? So many questions. Never enough answers.

10) Miss Honey, though, LOVE.

My parents are nothing like the Wormwoods and I love them to death, but that did not stop me from adoring Miss Honey and wanting to be adopted by her. Am I right? (Yes.) Temporarily, at least. Also, as a grown-up, I’d still be totally down with Embeth Davidtz being my best friend and/or mentor — at the very least, someone to go shopping for apartment stuff with, since her house in Matilda is the literal best. Thus, TEAM MISS HONEY FOREVER. ALSO, HI EMBETH DAVIDTZ, I LIKE YOUR WORK.

11) Also, I saw this post on Tumblr about how amazing it is that Matilda CHOOSES to leave her family for someone that actually loves her.

And it’s so true! I forget the source specifically, but the writer went on about how the movie isn’t about Matilda being weird or a bad person, she’s simply choosing to do what’s best for her. Which is amazing and great. Obviously, someone else has written it better, but I am paraphrasing just so we can all nod together. Are you nodding? I am. (And I can’t stop. Send help.)

12) UGH, THE CAKE SCENE FOR REAL.

This is like children’s Se7en. Have you guys seen Se7en? I still can’t really “watch” Se7en. But I do know that Kevin Spacey kills someone by forcing him to eat until he dies. Basically, Trunchbull is Kevin Spacey, and Brucey is the guy who dies. Only no death. But seriously, how much post traumatic stress do you think was going on in this school after ALL THESE KIDS were forced to watch a woman torture a boy and countless other children? I’m not joking, even though I am phrasing it in a joking way.

13) Then it gets DARK.

The murder-mystery plot of Miss Honey and her dad and Mrs. Trunchbull is d-a-r-k, let’s not kid ourselves. But real talk: it’s one of my favourite parts of the story? I read Matilda at the same time I got into ghost stories, so all I basically wanted to read about was other people reading and true crime. Needless to say, I WAS SUPER COOL, YOU GUYS. And still am because I still enjoy the same topics. (#LOL) (*watches Unsolved Mysteries*)

14) I WANTED POWERS SO BAD.

Who am I kidding I WANT THEM NOW. I want to move Cheerios across the table and slam the door in people’s faces! But NOooooOOOOOooOOO, I have to be a real-life person who is not six and a half, and not a “fictional character.” Well, SOME OF US don’t GET montages in which we discover our abilities as wizards. Well I hope you’re happy, Matilda, because at 27 years old I’m still living vicariously through you. CAN YOU HEAR ME, LITERARY HEROINE? (Are you there, Roald Dahl? It’s me, Anne.)

15) But why would Matilda defend her dad from the cops?

That’d be the first thing I’d want him to do: go to jail. Go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect the collection of Roald Dahl books I accumulated between ages 8 and 11. However, as this scene plays out, I can see that these cops (played by one Pee Wee Herman) are actually the worst, and said they’d send Matilda to an orphanage . . . ? Huh? What does that even mean? Do you mean “into the system”? Clearly they’ve never seen Law and Order.

16) “No more miss nice girl”.

Is a phrase I have yet to say but have wanted to since I watched this movie. I’m not even sure if it was said in the book, but nonetheless — my time will come.

17) But seriously WHY IS TRUNCHBULL IN THE EDUCATION SYSTEM?

Does she also not answer to anyone? Who are her bosses? How is she allowed to live her life this way? And what kind of parents aren’t believing these claims of abuse? ONE VISIT from a parent to that school would lead to the discovery of the choky (sp?) and the whole school and system would be alerted. WHAT DISTRICT IS THIS? NEVER GO TO SCHOOL IN THIS DISTRICT, ANYONE.

18) “Matilda’s Revenge” would be another great title.

And THAT is a promise. Because this is the perfect revenge movie if you’re talking about revenge movies meant for children. Which I am. Otherwise I would be talking about Practical Magic or The Craft or even Heathers, which I vow to you I will see this year.

“Matilda’s Revenge.” Just remember who coined that term, HOLLYWOOD EXECS WHO I AM SURE ARE READING THIS. (hashtag call me)

19) Is there a bigger sense of relief than the one we get when Matilda gets adopted?

No. There is not. And also, can we talk about how Matilda’s parents LET HER GO? The one act in which they do the right thing? I won’t lie: the first time I read the book, I read through this part so fast because I was paranoid Matilda would have to go away, but NOPE. Thanks, Dahl-face! YOU SUCCEEDED IN WRAPPING IT ALL UP BEAUTIFULLY.

20) Okay but actually Matilda is the perfect book and story and also movie.

And here’s why:

a) Matilda’s differences are celebrated. She’s not seen as a weirdo (aside from by her terrible parents) — she’s seen as amazing because she is unique. WHICH IS HOW IT SHOULD BE, ALL OF US.

b) Matilda is smart! Smarts are the champion here! Also, GIRL POWER. FULL ON. Working together for a greater goal! Let’s hear it for the “you can achieve anything” message, please and thank you.

c) Miss Honey and Matilda BOTH win! As does ALL THE OTHER KIDS. And hell, even the Wormwoods, who manage to avoid prison. Sure!

And because it is not mid-90s nostalgia without a hat tip to the book/movie that all of us lived vicariously through, on behalf of anyone who was old enough to rent this movie from the library (BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT I DID BEING THE COOL PERSON I AM), thank you for all your hard work, everybody involved in this — even the pages on which the book was written on. Now let’s all go the book store and try to get magical powers. I BELIEVE IN US.

Also, DANNY DEVITO I LOVE YOUR WORK.

The post Old Lady Movie Night: “Matilda” appeared first on HelloGiggles.

This vintage inspired hair-do known as the Gibson, Gibson Roll or Gibson Tuck was all too appropriate to demo for you all in this authentic and historic Victorian house (where they shot Charmed!). Watch the video above for the full step by step; I think this hairstyle would be perfect for a variety of occasions: a wedding, event, prom, casual day hair, bad hair day do, etc!

Prep It:

• Bobby pins
• A comb

DO IT! (to classical music in a vintage costume optional):

1. Using your comb, part your hair on the side.
2. Start twisting your hair at the hairline and gather hair as you go, following the hairline..
3. Stop at the back of the opposite ear.
4. Repeat step 1, twisting the other side of your hair to meet.
5. Twist the length of your hair and fold it back across the nape of your neck, tucking into the roll (to hide the excess hair) and securing with pins.
6. You look like a magical princess, now have a magical day!

The post DIY Gibson Hair Tutorial appeared first on HelloGiggles.

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You don’t know the power of the dark side! STRONG REJECT.

This is the slice of the larger King's Cross property that will eventually become part of Google's 2.4 acres and 1 million square feet of office space. King's Cross

LONDON, ENGLAND—In recent decades, the King’s Cross neighborhood in central London was known as one of the city’s sketchiest areas: full of prostitutes, drug dealers, and other seedy elements. These days, the former railyard site—just steps from one of London’s major local, national, and international transit hubs—is rapidly being transformed into a major mixed-use commercial, residential, and academic zone.

At the moment, King’s Cross is part arts university, part construction site, part modern flats, and a handful of street food vendors—gourmet ham sandwiches and high-end coffee—lining the single exposed footpath. But just a few weeks ago, Google dropped over $1 billion to purchase 2.4 acres of land and develop a million square feet at office space at King’s Cross Central.

"[10 years ago], you would not leave a dog tied to a lamppost [in King’s Cross],” said Richard Howard, the senior director at DTZ, whose firm worked on brokering a deal with Google. (Last year, Condé Nast Traveller proclaimed it as London’s “hottest neighbourhood.”)

Read 17 remaining paragraphs | Comments

“Teachers are often unaware of the gender distribution of talk in their classrooms. They usually consider that they give equal amounts of attention to girls and boys, and it is only when they make a tape recording that they realize that boys are dominating the interactions.

Dale Spender, an Australian feminist who has been a strong advocate of female rights in this area, noted that teachers who tried to restore the balance by deliberately ‘favouring’ the girls were astounded to find that despite their efforts they continued to devote more time to the boys in their classrooms. Another study reported that a male science teacher who managed to create an atmosphere in which girls and boys contributed more equally to discussion felt that he was devoting 90 per cent of his attention to the girls. And so did his male pupils. They complained vociferously that the girls were getting too much talking time.

In other public contexts, too, such as seminars and debates, when women and men are deliberately given an equal amount of the highly valued talking time, there is often a perception that they are getting more than their fair share. Dale Spender explains this as follows:

The talkativeness of women has been gauged in comparison not with men but with silence. Women have not been judged on the grounds of whether they talk more than men, but of whether they talk more than silent women.

In other words, if women talk at all, this may be perceived as ‘too much’ by men who expect them to provide a silent, decorative background in many social contexts. This may sound outrageous, but think about how you react when precocious children dominate the talk at an adult party. As women begin to make inroads into formerly ‘male’ domains such as business and professional contexts, we should not be surprised to find that their contributions are not always perceived positively or even accurately.”

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[x] (via neighborly)

relevant to friggin’ everything lately. 

neil-gaiman:

espritfollet:

fitforafemme:

via stfusexists + ourmobileworld: The Times of India is running 1/4 page ads on why men should respect women. This is huge. There are no words for how happy I am to post this vs everything I usually reblog.

(Waiting for the NY Times to do something similar. Of course, they’d have to take time off from justifying the actions of gang rapists.)

They have it in other languages, or only English?

This is brilliant.

Polyandry occurs when, for whatever reason, a society emerges where women are permitted to marry more than one man at the same time. For decades, anthropologists believed that it was extremely rare. But new evidence suggests it's quite common in human history, occurring in many different cultures, though it never became as popular as polygamy (one man with multiple wives) or monogamy (two people in an exclusive relationship). Over at The Atlantic, Alice Dreger calls our attention to a paper published last year which chronicles the history of polyandry, exploring the social circumstances where tends to happen. More »

On her birthday, an adorable little girl named Madeline gleefully anticipates taking her first train ride.

video via Daniel Dubois

via Daily Picks and Flicks

Tall drink of Time Lord Matt Smith has been cast in Ryan Gosling's How to Catch a Monster movie. Which means that at some point these two men will touch hands, thus forming a squee supernova that will be felt throughout the internet for decades. More »

Today's picture shows an Oasis in the Sinai. The picture was taken in the 1920's. I like the old car, and can imagine how refreshing it was to come upon an oasis after traveling in an un-air-conditioned car.

by Lois Beckett

For years, state Democratic parties have been gathering information about individual voters' political leanings. They have noted down the opinions voters shared with canvassers — which candidates they said they supported or their positions on policy issues.

Now, the record of what people told Democratic volunteers may go up for sale — and not just to political groups. Democrats are looking into whether credit card companies, retailers like Target or other commercial interests may want to buy the information.

State Democratic party leaders formed the National Voter File Co-op in 2011 to sell their voter data to approved groups like the NAACP. The goal was to recoup some of the money local Democratic parties spent collecting and updating their local voter lists, which include voters of all parties.

Much of the data the co-op sells comes from the government and is already part of the public record — information such as voters' names, addresses and party affiliation.

But local Democratic parties also have information about voters' views and preferences collected over many campaign cycles. (We wrote about Minnesota's data-collecting "Grandma Brigade" last month.) Some state Democratic parties have used this raw data to create sophisticated estimates of how likely any voter is to vote for a Democrat, support Barack Obama or have certain opinions, say, on abortion or gun control.

As the co-op moves into its second year of selling data in an already crowded marketplace, it's looking for new potential clients — and companies who may use the data for commercial purposes, as opposed to political ones, are on the list.

"That's one of our growth areas," said Drew Brighton of TargetSmart Communications, which helps administer and market the Co-op's data. "Over the next six months, we are going to go ahead and make the rounds with some corporate prospects."

Brighton said retailers, for example, might be interested in figuring out if their customers are primarily Democrats or Republicans. "People want to know who shops in their stores," he said.

Democrats involved with the co-op do not know what companies might be most interested in buying their voter data.

"What the co-op is doing is saying, 'Look, there's a wealth of information here, that could potentially benefit your corporation or your business interests,'" said Ken Martin, a member of the co-op's board, and the chairman of Minnesota's Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

"Everything is on the table, nothing's off the table. It's up to us to figure out what [data] there's a market for, and whether there's a comfort level among state parties for selling that information," he said.

Each state Democratic Party will have the final say over whether to sell their voter information for commercial purposes. If state party leaders aren't comfortable with selling proprietary data to a certain client, they can opt out.

Individual states have different laws about how their public voting records can be used. Many states mandate that public voter rolls can only be used for "political purposes," and some states explicitly ban using voting records for "commercial purposes." The co-op and its clients must abide by these rules.

But state political data laws do not apply to the information about voters that the party itself has gathered.

"Generally, information freely provided to the party by the voter, or data about who participated in a primary [that the party collects] is not subject to any prohibition on it being sold," said Karl Sandstrom, a former vice-chairman of the Federal Elections Commission and an attorney for the co-op.

This means Democrats are free to sell the opinions voters give to campaign canvassers to credit card companies or marketing firms.

Whether they will choose to do this isn't certain. Martin, the Minnesota Democratic chairman, said that party leaders will have to weigh the risks of any potential deal.

"Obviously, we know we could make money off our file, but it always comes back to the question of, at what cost?" Martin said.

He said he would evaluate commercial deals on a case-by-case basis.

"I'm not opposed to selling the data if it's a corporation who shares our values and is going to do some good work with that data."

Wal-Mart, for instance, would not make the cut, he said.

Whether corporations are interested in buying the co-op's data remains to be seen. Wal-Mart did not respond to a request for comment about whether it would be interested in buying information about its customers' political beliefs.

Consumer data companies like Experian already peddle information about individuals' political beliefs and donation histories — and also link this information to their consumer habits. This November, Experian Simmons released a study breaking down the political leanings of shoppers at J. Crew, Lady Foot Locker, and more than 100 other major retailers.

But the fact that selling voters' opinions to companies is even an option for Democrats is another example of how rapidly the data industry is evolving — and how little information individuals have about how their data is being shared.

In his "Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights," released last year, President Barack Obama argued that when companies collect personal data from consumers, they should only share it in ways consumers expect.

If a company decides it wants to share personal information in a new way, Obama suggested, it should notify the consumers who are affected and provide them with choices about how their data is used.

Although Obama pledged to work with Congress to make the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights into law, that hasn't happened yet.

Joseph Turow, a privacy expert at the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication, said the possibility that Democrats might repurpose voters' opinions for commercial marketing is problematic — particularly because they had collected that information through "a relationship of trust" with voters.

Both Democrats and Republicans have long traded information about voters' opinions with outside political groups. Long-time Republican activists have created a new group, the Data Trust, to manage the Republican National Committee's data and coordinate data exchanges between the RNC and conservative and issue advocacy groups.

Asked if the Republican Party sells the party's proprietary data to retailers or credit card companies, RNC spokeswoman Kirsten Kukowsi wrote, "Absolutely not — hasn't happened in past and won't in [the] future."

The Obama campaign's own closely guarded trove of voter information will be used to mobilize support for the president's agenda through a new nonprofit advocacy group, Organizing for Action, led by top Obama aides.

It's not clear what other groups may be given access to Obama's voter data. Organizing for Action did not respond to a request for comment. Staffers have said that passing on the campaign's voter information to an Obama-focused nonprofit reflects the wishes of the president's supporters, although supporters were not asked directly about how the campaign should treat their data.

Sandstrom, the lawyer for the state Democratic parties' National Voter File Co-op, said he doubted the co-op would actually end up selling voters' opinions for commercial uses, calling it an "abstract concern."

Democratic Party chairs were not eager to weigh in on the issue.

Last week, ProPublica contacted 11 Democratic state party chairs — some of them newly elected to their positions — about the National Voter File Co-op. Party chairs in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, Nevada, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin declined or did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

New Hampshire Democratic chair Ray Buckley, who leads the Association of State Democratic Chairs, also declined to comment.

Detail of a miniature of Richard III (b. 1452, d. 1485); from the Biblical and genealogical chronicle from Adam and Eve to Edward VI, England (London or Westminster), c. 1511, with additions before 1557, King's MS 395, f. 33r

By this point, you have probably heard the big news out of Leicester: the skeleton found in the Greyfriars car park is indeed that of Richard III.  It is not very often that the world of medieval studies enjoys the thrill of 'breaking news'.  Of course, as has been well reported, it is not precisely news that Richard was buried in Leicester.  Those of us who were standing by to hear from the University of Leicester team can remember that it was not journalists but chroniclers who got the scoop. To name one example, a genealogical chronicle of the Tudor period includes Richard in the illustrated tree of succession, with the explanatory note: 'Richard that was sonne to Richard Dewke of Yorke & brother unto Kyng Edward the iiii^th, was kyng after hys brother & raynyd ii yeres & lyth buryd at Lecitor [lies buried at Leicester]'.  A statement we now know is true!

A tangled line of succession, culminating in (on the lower page, in roundels marked with coats of arms)  Edward IV, Richard III, and Henry VII; from the Biblical and genealogical chronicle from Adam and Eve to Edward VI, England (London or Westminster), c. 1511, with additions before 1557, King's MS 395, ff. 32v-33r

This genealogy handles Richard's demise and the subsequent succession in a way usual for medieval family trees: it visually erases the discontinuity.  Richard was killed in battle against the forces of his rival, Henry Tudor (Henry VII).  But here we see no great divide between the Plantagenet and Tudor dynasties.  Rather, Henry VII sits directly under Richard on the family tree, his lines of descent snaking up to join the main tree some generations in the past.

Detail of the genealogy of Edward IV, on (below) trees sprouting from Edward I (right) and Peter of Castile (left), and including the severing of Richard II from the tree by a sword-wielding Henry IV (center); from the typological life and genealogy of Edward IV, England, 1460-c. 1470, Harley MS 7353

This is perhaps not surprising in a document originating during the reign of Henry's own grandson, Edward VI.  But at least one genealogy takes a different approach to the death and deposition of another Richard, King Richard II.  Richard II was overthrown by Henry IV, the first of England's Lancastrian kings, whose grandson Henry VI was, in turn, overthrown by Edward IV to restore Yorkist rule.  For this manuscript made during Edward's reign, therefore, Richard II would have been the rightful king unjustly deposed by a usurper.  And in this image, we can see the cutting of the line of succession made literal by a sword-wielding Henry IV, the violence of the dynastic discontinuity perhaps also suggesting violence against Richard II's own person – he died while in Edward's custody.

The autograph of Richard III (as Duke of Gloucester, before 1483); from Chroniques de France ou St Denis, France (Paris), last quarter of the 14th century, after 1380, Royal MS 20 C. vii, f. 134r

While Richard III's untimely end is one of the most colourful aspects of his story, it is also possible to reach out to the living king.  Richard owned a number of books during his life, a few of which still survive today, some in the British Library.  We know from signatures contained in its pages that Richard owned a copy of the French romance Tristan – a delightful tale of love and adventure.  And another book, on the 'Dedes of Knyghthode', holds the coats of arms both of Richard (as king of England) and of his wife, Anne Neville.  This volume was perhaps made for their young son Edward, who predeceased his father in 1484.  When we look at these books, they help bring back to life the hands that held them, a controversial monarch at a turbulent period in England's past.

Initial 'H'(ere) of the arms of Richard III; from Vegetius, De re militari (The Book of Vegecy of Dedes of Knyghthode), England (London?), c. 1483-1485, Royal MS 18 A. ii, f. 1r

Nicole Eddy

Don’t ask me to explain

enochianwarbirds:

OH MY FUCKING GOD

i borrowed my friend’s laptop and here’s the desktop

which is a little creepy but ok

but did you know that you can set your desktop to change every now and then

BECAUSE I DIDN’T AND I MINIMIZED MY BROWSER

I NEARLY PISSED MYSELF

Follow @nataliedee on Twitter or join the Natalie Dee Facebook Page.

Oh man. We have something big to announce for the book. STAY TUNED GEEKS!

Today my highschool put in WiFi for student use.

I love me some aristocratic drama. The wildly popular Downton Abbey, which airs Sunday nights on PBS here in the States, follows a rich family and the many servants who live in the titular mansion.

The show overflows with romance, backstabbing, and intrigue, so it’s the perfect material for an SNES game … right?

As first reported by Tiny Cartridge, chiptune musical artist Bill Kiley went ahead and showed the world what Downton Abbey on the SNES would look like:

Kiley re-created the beloved Downton Abbey theme music in the style of SNES 16-bit music. He released the video to help promote his new musical arrangement, which he is selling on Bandcamp.com under a name-your-own-price model.

I have to say that Kiley did an excellent job capturing what the essence of Downton Abbey as a Super Nintendo game.

My favorite part? Matthew Crawley’s unreliable bowels, of course.

Filed under: Games

Miniature of a monk (Bede?) kissing the feet of St Cuthbert, from the preface to Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 1v

Last year the British Library was pleased to announce the acquisition of the 7th century St Cuthbert Gospel (Additional MS 89000) following the largest public fundraising campaign in our history; see here, here and here for more.  Following the acquisition, the St Cuthbert Gospel was exhibited in our Treasures Gallery alongside another manuscript equally well known to lovers of all things Cuthbertian, Yates Thompson MS 26.

This 12th century manuscript is our latest addition to the Digitised Manuscripts website.  Yates Thompson MS 26 contains a number of texts about England's favourite hermit and bishop, most notably Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert (vita beati Cuthberti).  But it is probably most famous for its extensive programme of illumination, which documents almost every episode in St Cuthbert's holy life.  Key events depicted include the establishment of Lindisfarne, Cuthbert's ridding the wife of King Ecgfrith's prefect from the demons that beset her, the saint's much-mourned death and subsequent healings at his tomb.  These miniatures are beautifully interspersed with those of more 'mundane' miracles, like a crow bringing lard in atonement for stealing straw and Cuthbert curing a monk of diarrhoea.  Some of our other favourites are below:

 

Miniature of St Cuthbert praying to God to change the winds beside the river Tyne; miniature of two monks at the monastery of Tynemouth praying for the safety of those blown away in a gale, from Chapter 3 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, ff. 10v-11r

Miniature of the young St Cuthbert kneeling in prayer, interrupted by his horse finding bread and cheese wrapped in linen hidden within a roof, from Chapter 5 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 14r

 

Miniature of (lower left) Cuthbert praying in the sea, and, after he has finished (lower right), otters coming to warm and dry his feet with their breath and fur, while (above), another monk secretly watches the miracle, from Chapter 10 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 24r

 

Miniature of St Cuthbert in a boat at sea, with two other men, from Chapter 11 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 26r

 

Miniature of an eagle bringing St Cuthbert and his companion a fish, which they then share with the eagle, from Chapter 12 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 28v

 

Miniature of St Cuthbert building his hermitage on the island of Farne, with the help of an angel, from Chapter 17 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 39r

 

Miniature of St Cuthbert miraculously discovering a roof beam for his church in the waves of the ocean, from Chapter 21 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 45v

 

Detail of a miniature of St Cuthbert's vision of the soul of a man, who was killed by falling from a tree, being carried to heaven, from Chapter 34 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 63v

 

Miniature of monks at St Cuthbert's hermitage signalling with torches to the monks of Lindisfarne that Cuthbert is dead, from Chapter 40 of Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, England (Durham), 4th quarter of the 12th century, Yates Thompson MS 26, f. 74v

 

The Life of Cuthbert is the first British Library manuscript from the Yates Thompson collection to be made available on Digitised Manuscripts, but we can promise you that it will not be the last.  Much more information about the extraordinary collector Henry Yates Thompson and his eponymous collection can be found in our virtual exhibition appropriately titled Henry Yates Thompson's Illuminated Manuscripts. 

Sarah J Biggs

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