Five suggested links for you to click when the boss isn’t looking:
The New York Times is starting a series on how the “new immigrants” are changing the country. Not to be missed is the map on this page that allows you to see where immigrants are settling in the U.S. You’ll also want to read this profile of a Vietnamese immigrant in today’s Worthington Daily Globe (registration possibly required).
Snow? Cold temperatures? Baaaaah! Baseball is going to be back before you know it. The Hardball Times today has a nice little collection of statistical nuggets that were rejected from stats guru Bill James new book. Here’s one for Twins fans: Scott Baker pitched better in his losses than in his wins.
What must a convention of obituary writers be like? The Society of Professional Obit Writers (motto: “We write about the dead for a living”) is getting together in Charlotte next month. They’re asking people to vote for their favorite obituaries of 2008. Find them here. My favorite? The obituary for the 100-year-old newspaper carrier in the category “obituary for an average joe.”
Cramer vs. Not-Cramer. If you’re not keeping up with the feud between The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart and CNBC “personality” Jim Cramer, you’re missing the best series on TV at the moment. You might want to keep the speakers turned low for the most recent episode. The shot that started the feud is here.
Free university courses. Every day more free university lectures are being added to this page. The most recent one is Stanford’s “Colonial and Revolutionary America.” Oh, you wanted some music? Then you want Eric Lewis on the Ted Web site. The guy plays the piano without touching the keys.
If you’ve discovered something online worth sharing, post it (preferably with the html) below.
Bob Collins