Bits and Tidbits, January 2010

• Digital Mom Report-- here's a fascinating report on how moms use computers and online technology. Check Chuck Warnock's summary of it for a taste before downloading the whole document. (HT: Chuck)
• Fourth Turning predictions-- I've been avidly interested in Strauss and Howe's The Fourth Turning and its implications for several years. This is a list of five predictions for the coming year(s), based on the theories in that book. Very interesting. (They predicted 9/11 in that book, by the way, in not so many words.)
• Was Pat Robertson Hateful (this time)?-- this piece by David Sessions at Patrol offers the best summary of the background from Pat Robertson's recent, er, comment. It also has thoughtful remarks about Pat and his tendency to comment.
• "Has the Internet Changed Our Thinking?"-- this is the 2010 question from the Edge World Question Center, an informally-organized group committed to intellectual inquiry. So far this question has generated hundreds of answers in essay form, with great content like this opening sentence from David Dalrymple: "Filtering, not remembering, is the most important skill for those who use the Internet." (HT: NY Times)
• U.S. Military "Jesus" guns-- Bible references added to Pentagon-purchased gun sights. This one gets the award for the biggest waste of time and money so far in 2010-- from time in investigating the "story" to time reporting it to my time reading it and now posting about it. And yes, I'm wasting your time with it, too; but only because it's a classic example of how ridiculous so-called news reporting has become in our culture. (Bonus link: see this thoughtful piece about the whole thing at Patrol.)