Five at 8: 4/6/09

Posted at 7:37 AM on April 6, 2009 by Bob Collins (3 Comments)

Monday. Yeeha! Nope, that didn't work.

Before we begin, please stand for our national anthem... for today.

(h/t to Nick Young of the CBS World News Roundup for that inspiration)

Raise your hand if you had a care-free time during your school years. For everyone else -- and let's face it, that is everyone else -- this is for you. Psychologists and some educators are thinking it's time schools teach emotional knowledge -- "the ability to read other people, manage our own emotions, and thereby master social situations - doesn't have to be imparted solely through the cut and thrust of lived life. It can be taught, they say, just like trigonometry or French grammar," the Boston Globe reports. Read this article, and then tell me you weren't born years too soon.

It wasn't that many years ago that Major League Baseball was the worst of all of the major sports online. How can a league that can't figure out who's cheating and who can't have such an impressive online component, including an upgrade this season for live out-of-market video? This season, MLB's online video player acts like a DVR. Silicon Valley Insider has the inside story of how this is possible. Oh, by the way, my Facebook fantasy baseball league needs more teams. Are you in?

In commemoration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 Cornerstone project, "Around the World in 80 Telescopes" followed 24 hours at telescopes night and day around the globe "to some of the most advanced observatories on and off the planet." Though the live portion ended Sunday night, there's a ton of archived video on the Web site. It's probably a good idea to look anywhere but at our own planet right now.

Whoops. Two-hundred mosques in Mecca are pointing the wrong way. Worshipers are said to be worried about the "validity" of their prayers.

Another reason why newspapers are in trouble. Concert reviews are more insightful on blogs. Like this one. Still, you have to love the observation that the predominant sound of the concert is the "clopping of high heels on the sidewalk" on the way to Target Center.

What's on MPR?

Midmorning - Selecting colleges and T. C. Boyle. Yes, in that order.

Midday - In the first hour Brian Atwood, dean of the U of M Humphrey Institute will discuss the successes and failures of President Obama's European trip. Then -- because it's opening day for the Twins -- Howard Sinker will be in the studio for our traditional opening day of baseball call-in show. As befits tradition, Howard will overrate the Twins and dismiss the overall excellence of the Cleveland Indians.

On All Things Considered this afternoon, Dan Gunderson will add up what the Red River flooding is going to cost. From Washington, Alex Cohen will report on the love children of newspapers -- non-profit news sites online, like Voice of San Diego. Tangent: The Guardian asks if the Huffington Post will replace newspapers. OK, look, it's time to ask the question we're not allowed to ask in this business: Does anyone care outside of journalists what happens to newspapers? I'm not insensitive to the concerns, of course, but isn't the day-by-day coverage a little out-of-perspective? Isn't this an example of the bias journalists use when selecting what stories to cover?

What I'm doing

I'm filling in for Jon Gordon on Future Tense this week. Posting here might be a little sparse as I look though the world of tech in search of something I understand.