Author Archives: davidbdale

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About davidbdale

My name honors my mother Beatrice (Bea) and my father Dale. I am the author of 299 Very Short Novels and several plays and the Artistic Director of Must See Theater company.

Doubting Gravity

Inevitable Coincidence If you and I read the same book over the winter break—let’s say Emma Donoghue’s  Room—without either of us having been instructed to do so, we might consider that a coincidence. But since the book has been at … Continue reading

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Comp Courses on a Blog

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207 Words

Brevity and Clarity We’ll talk a lot in this class about the value of eliminating needless language. Comics know how to get and hold our attention, make a compelling argument, and satisfy us with surprising but inevitable conclusions that we … Continue reading

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First Post—davidbdale

Kit-Kats for Nerds My first reaction to the money used by the Yap was that they were out of their minds. This is the second paragraph. This is the third and final.

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First Post—davidbdale

Partly for the practice of learning to post, but mostly because I want to know what you found most surprising or intriguing about the Stone Money source material, Publish your first post during today’s class, THU JAN 19. Click the … Continue reading

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5 Adjectives

Thank you for your texts. I’ve compiled your adjectives describing your academic writing careers (so far) into a word cloud. The most commonly-used adjectives are the most prominent. All of your submissions appear in the cloud. Post a Reply to … Continue reading

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Reading for Rebuttal Practice: A Price Too High

Is Nuclear Power Worth the Risk? Bob Herbert asks the question in the Opinion pages of the New York Times. It’s pretty clear from the evidence he cites that he thinks the answer is No, it’s not worth the risk … Continue reading

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Nukes in Japan

I find it hard to imagine anything more counterintuitive than the likelihood of a nuclear catastrophe in Japan. The only place in the world that has suffered nuclear attack is Japan. The only people on earth who have ever been … Continue reading

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An Online University with a Football Stadium?

Buying Legitimacy: How A Group Of California Executives Built An Online College Empire Huffington Post March 10, 2011 by Chris Kirkham CLINTON, Iowa — Inside the red brick campus of Ashford University, perched on a bluff above the Mississippi River, … Continue reading

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Do Green Cars Cause More Emissions?

Well, we certainly hope not, but in the spirit of counterintuitive thinking, we have to admit, it’s a strong possibility. Ever since airbags, drivers are less likely to feel they need seat belts and therefore more likely to drive without … Continue reading

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