We're still in the midst of our March Madness in basketball. If you're tired of hoops, try this bracket. Read on.
Smarty pants brackets
I'm a fan of the proliferation of brackets that model the hoopla of the NCAA basketball tournament. The U.S. Census Bureau hits a beautiful jump shot in my book with this population bracketology, because it reminds me of the wonkish knowledge games I enjoy. Trivia! Click on the name in each matchup that you think has the larger population. You can choose metropolitan areas or states. Give it a shot and see how you fare.
www.census.gov/dataviz/visualizations/057/
Words should die
ADVERTISEMENT
You probably recall James Rabe from his FM radio days in Rochester. He's still doing well and making a living on the airwaves. Now he plies his trade in Idaho. His brother, John, whom folks might recall from his MPR days, also uses his skills. He's on public radio in California. Their talented father was the creator of many great things at Lake Superior State University. He created this list of words that should be banned. I love it. "Selfie" was on the list this year. But learn more. Here's what LSSU says about Mr. Rabe: "The late W.T. (Bill) Rabe, known for his clever PR stunts from his days as a Detroit-area publicist, created the Unicorn Hunters in 1971, shortly after he was hired as LSSU's Director of Public Relations." He worked with others to come up with came up with the Unicorn Hunters "as a way of garnering more publicity for LSSU, which had just established itself as an independent school after being a branch of what is now Michigan Technological University. The Unicorn Hunters made the news often for activities and events including: the annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness, burning a snowman on the first day of spring, World Sauntering Day, International Stone-Skipping Tournament held annually on Mackinac Island, Unicorn Questing Season and Teacher Thank You Week."
www.lssu.edu/banished/current.php
Picture this
The good old days are fondly remembered, but here's a site where a guy recreates those scenes. They look real, but they're miniature recreations. It's hard to tell. Give it a look. It was getting lots of looks on Facebook a week ago.
www.viralnova.com/takes-pictures-of-model-town/
Fun and amusement
Remember that eagle-eyed editor I mentioned last column? Well, he's got a dutiful assistant who spotted this one. We don't have a staff here at Digital Mike, but we do have the wandering web wayfarers and they are as good as a dedicated staff of webbies. I found a site like this many editions ago, but this is a new one from the Drag things and let them go — they float around and crash into each other like they're in zero-gravity. Indeed they do. It might feel a bit like life at times. Do this one when you feel like some fun chaos.
www.mrdoob.com/projects/chromeexperiments/google-space/
ADVERTISEMENT
Foodie fun?
I spotted this one a week or so ago — stay tuned for the P-B staff to be looking into it. In the meantime, check it out yourself. It's a food tour group in Rochester. It sounds fun. I want to learn more, but I love the concept, especially as our weather gets nicer (it will, I promise!). Give it a look.
Mike Dougherty is a freelance writer. Digital Mike is always looking for great websites to share with readers. Send your ideas to life @postbulletin.com or follow him on Twitter @mjdougherty3 . Check out the column at PostBulletin.com for additional interesting links.
