MuseBlog

Editor Elizabeth Preston sent us this announcement:

MUSE wants YOU! Well, we want your stories, anyway. Do you have something unique to share? Have you traveled with a circus? Are you the last known speaker of an indigenous language? Maybe you always wanted to write a Math Page about your original geometry research. We want to hear your voices. Starting in September, everyone else will hear you, too. Send us an email (no attachments, please).

Here’s what Elizabeth says about the new section:

Starting in the September issue, we’re including a new column called the “Reader’s Report.” The idea arose because one girl sent us a series of well-written emails about a bird-rescue experience she’d had, saying we should do an article about it. And we thought, why not have what she sent us BE the article? So she’ll be the first one. The idea is a one- or two-page regular feature, written by a reader and laid out/illustrated like any other article, about an experience or viewpoint unique to that person (i.e., not “This is how I feel about gun control” or “My report on rocket ships”). I’m hoping the kids get excited about it and send lots of submissions. But we need to get submissions coming in before it’s announced in the September issue.

[The magazine’s e-mail address is muse@caruspub.com.]

The ever-popular guessing game: Post under a false name, and try to guess who other posters are.

Continued from v. 2008.3.

NOTE: Check your posts before sending them. The Administrators will not rescue you if you accidentally submit one under your “real” blogname. Many an alter ego has fallen victim to a careless “submit” click.

We never get tired of these. Continued from version 2008.1.

MBers probe deeper and deeper into the revolting mysteries of the hot-pink bunnies.

Continued from Part Two.

IBCF’s video shows how much is at stake here.

WARNING: PotentiallyDecidedly disturbing content within.

*Round-Robin ‘Riting.

Requested by Hypatia.

[Part 1 closed to new posts on November 27, 2008; Part 2 continues the tale. –Admin.]

If the onset of summer makes you feel giddy or even a little crazy, the June Random Thread offers you a chance to join along in this fine old Middle English song:

Svmer is icumen in,
Lhude sing cuccu!
Groweþ sed and bloweþ med
And springþ þe wde nu,
Sing cuccu!
…
Cuccu, cuccu, wel singes þu, cuccu;
Ne swik þu nauer nu.
Sing cuccu nu. Sing cuccu.
Sing cuccu. Sing cuccu nu!

In modern English: “Summer has come in / Loudly sing, Cuckoo! / The seed grows and the meadow blooms / And the wood springs anew, / Sing, Cuckoo!
…
“Cuckoo, cuckoo, well you sing, cuckoo; / Don’t you ever stop now, / Sing cuckoo now. / Sing, Cuckoo. / Sing Cuckoo. Sing cuckoo now!”

Unlike the random thread, this discussion thread stays on topic until the topic changes.

Newcomers should read The Rules and The Guide before plunging in.

Current topic: The Beatles
Wal-Mart
Odd Characters We Know

(Coming soon: Places We Want to Visit During Our Lifetimes)

“Neophyte” comes from Greek roots meaning “newly planted.” If you’ve landed on the blog and think you might want to put down roots here, stop in for a friendly welcome and some helpful tips from those already here.

Please read The Rules. You might also glance at The HG2MB (Hitchhiker’s Guide to MuseBlog), which contains helpful hints regarding local customs, lingo, and other peculiarities of the blog; smiley information included.

Continued from Vol. I, No. 3.

Help others navigate the blog by signposting your favorite threads here. As always, we start this thread anew from scratch every month.

(Note: Please include the URL (Web address) with your requests. It also helps if you limit your requests to a few at a time, four or five at the most.)

Current categories:

ADVENTURES IN THE MUSIVERSE
Chronicles of Museica (IBCF)
Pieceful Pie Planet (IBCF)
Ship’s Logs (IBCF, kiwimuncher)
Muse Scouts (Hypatia)
Wungs (GAPA’s choice)

LIFE BEYOND THE VIRTUAL DIVIDE
Vegetarians, Vegetarianism, Vegetables, Vegemite (Purple Panda)
Religion and Religions (Hypatia)
Hot Topics (Hypatia)
Romance and Relationships (Karinnn Tayyy)
Advice (Karinnn Tayyy)
The Kokonspiracy (Vixen in the Eyes of the Moon)

SILLY FUN
Ble! Newlluj-No Fulst (IBCF)
penguini’s Christmas Bunny Melée (IBCF)
Dissing Mr. Joe, Again (IBCF)
Bunny Apocalypse (IBCF)
Muse Academy RPG (Kokonilly, Mogget’s Little Sister)
Round Robin Smiley Stories (Zinc the sorceress, Mogget’s Little Sister)
The Polling Place (kiwimuncher)
Alter Egos (Trebel_Cone_Freeskier!)
Stupid Senseless Smiley Stories (Midnight Fiddler)

WRITING – RRRs
The Sea Roc (Purple Panda, kiwimuncher, Mogget’s Little Sister)
SMASS-TT (Hypatia)
Etheterre (Alice)
Terraformed (rewrite) (Alice)

WRITING – ASSORTED OTHER
Role-Playing Writing [The Empowered] (Purple Panda)
Poems and Songs (Hypatia)

OTHER THINGS WE LIKE
Visual Arts (Purple Panda)
History (Hypatia)
Space (Hypatia)
Books and Reading (Hypatia)
A Thread for HAPPY Things (Crazy Titan Nerd)
Music (Kari)
Manga, Anime, and Graphic Novels (Kari)
Coy Woodnesse (Hypatia)

USEFUL ITEMS
May’s Don’t Forget These Threads (curious and questioning)
HG2MB v.2008.1

Known Muser birthdays this month:*

06-04 Donaldo the supercoolio awesome nerd’s birthday (1994 – color?)
06-05 Potato Chip’s birthday (1994)
06-06 Romana2’s birthday
06-11 yesterdays_kinked_moose’s birthday (1992)
06-13 King george the stroodle’s birthday (1992)
06-13 muselover’s birthday (year? color?)
06-15 earthgirl’s birthday
06-20 Kricket’s birthday (1993 – light blue, electric green, pastel purple, or tie-dye royal purple, gold, and anything sparkly)
06-26 Gaea’s birthday (1995 – salmon)
06-29 Blufyar27’s birthday
06-29 Brave Sir Robin’s birthday (1993 – tie-dye)

You turn 5,000 days old this month if you were born between September 24 and October 23, 1994.
You turn 6,000 days old this month if you were born between December 28, 2991, and January 27, 1992.

*Note: Listed MBers who have been inactive for several months won’t appear on next year’s birthday calendar unless they show up again.

Part 2008.1.

The lounge is on campus and is open to students from all houses. It’s much more informal than the Hare & Hedgepig (to say the least). Amenities include a refrigerator and all sorts of games, including a nicely broken in Paker deck. A good place to unwind from academics and to mingle with members of other houses.

Robert is having lunch with speller73 and her parents this Saturday, May 31. Anybody else like to come along?

(La Speller has just progressed to the semifinals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.)

When does it start? How are you going to spend it? This perennially popular topic deserves a thread of its own.

That’s a relief, after two days in limbo.

You’ll have noticed that the “Latest Comments” sidebar has disappeared. There’s a story behind that: During the hiatus, our host company noticed that MuseBlog had been overloading its server with queries. The problem turned out to be coming from the sidebar. The plug-in that creates it operates very inefficiently, by looking through the whole blog every time to find the most recent comments. So we had to disable it.

(Someone has noticed that you can check recent queries almost as easily by looking at the RSS feed.)

The good news is that we’re upgrading our service to something called a “virtual server,” which will allow us to make as many queries as we like without inconveniencing anybody else. If it works, “Latest Comments” will be up and running again within a couple of weeks. The only drawback to the virtual server is that it costs more money, so everybody should hurry over and buy lots of T-shirts from Musery Loves Company Robert will be living off oatmeal for a while.

Anyhow, welcome back, and happy blogging! A round of pies for everybody!

Born on 25 May 1859, he gave the world Sherlock Holmes (who, by the way, said both “elementary” and “my dear Watson,” but never together). A few pies of gratitude, please, for the Master.

Slow loading and error messages have been plaguing us this afternoon. We’re not sure what’s going on. If MuseBlog goes off line, we’ll reopen our “lifeboat” blog:

museacademy.wordpress.com

See you there (if necessary)!

May 25 is the day when fans of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy celebrate H2G2 and its creator, Douglas Adams, by, well, carrying around a towel. Go thou and do likewise (or otherwise, if you like), and talk about it here.

WARNING: MISCELLANEOUS SPOILERS LURK ON THIS THREAD. IF YOU WANT TO AVOID ALL RISK OF ENCOUNTERING SPOILERS, STAY AWAY.

If you really need to talk about something you’ve read or seen but don’t want to ruin it for everybody else, this is your place. Post a spoiler notice before your post (example: “SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD SPOILER.” — remember to end with a period!), and then rant away. We’ll list the spoilers as they accumulate, as a warning to others.

Now, go ahead — let it all out!

SPOILERS:
Prince Caspian (movie)
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (book)
Indiana Jones
Percy Jackson
Deathly Hallows
Order of the Phoenix (movie)

The monthly random thread sashays into its final installment as Bo contemplates whether hems taste better with a dip.

(Users’ Manual: Obey The Rules. Consult The Guide. Have fun!)

Continuing the high standards set by Part 2.

Please put a period somewhere early in the post — perhaps after the song title. Otherwise the lyrics will clog the recent comments panel.

Requested by Hypatia and POSOC.

It’s in Washington, D.C., on June 5 and 6 May 29 and 30. speller73 is taking part. Anyone else?

The event takes place just a block from Robert’s office, so any MBers and their families are welcome to stroll over for a tour of Science magazine and/or lunch at the National Press Club.

The 2007 bee made for some high drama on the blog. You can read about it here.

The final frontier — and a darned big one, too. Requested by Beatlesrockr.

Muse Academy’s big spring event, continued from Part 1.

The Organizing Committee thread contains useful reference information, such as a menu of hors d’oeuvres and pictures of some of the gowns students are wearing.

If you need a break from the music and dancing, you can skip upstairs to the rooftop garden.