The Wall Street Journal’s Amir Efrati has an article (Google Gives Search a Refresh) and blog post (What Google’s Search Changes Might Mean for You) on upcoming changes Google to its search engine to exploit semantic data.

“Google is undergoing a major, long-term overhaul of its search-engine, using what’s called semantic Web search to enhance the current system in the coming years. The move, starting over the next few months, will impact the way people can use the search engine as well as how the search engine examines sites across the Web before ranking them in search results.
…
A Google spokesman said the company wouldn’t comment on future search-engine features. But people familiar with the initiative say that Google users will able to browse through the company’s “knowledge graph,” or its ever-expanding database of information about “entities”—people, places and things—the “attributes” of those entities and how different entities are connected to one another.
…
Some open standards come from the W3C Semantic Web and Schema.org, which the major search engine players including Google have agreed to recognize, Cornett said.

UMBC Goes Medieval

As a child, Lauren Bucca loved reading fictional books about medieval times.  As she got older, she devoured historical books on the period, exploring a world populated by real events and people.

So when she came to UMBC, Bucca decided to major in English to study more of the literature from her favorite period.  Last fall, at the start of Bucca’s junior year, a new opportunity opened up: UMBC began offering a minor in medieval and early modern studies. Bucca, of course, signed up.

“It complements my English major very well because I can have a more focused education by studying the period I like best,” she said. “It’s been fascinating to learn how history is interwoven with literature.”

This interdisciplinary minor is a natural complement to UMBC’s course offerings, said Kathryn McKinley, associate professor of English and the program’s director. “Faculty members in these periods have collaborated for a long time,” she said. “This minor is a way of pooling resources for students and enhancing and strengthening their path of study.”

“In the arts, humanities and social sciences, we encourage students to take a multi-disciplinary approach to their studies because it deepens their understanding of a topic,” said John Jeffries, dean of the college of arts, humanities and social sciences.  “This new minor allows students to explore this fascinating and important period from a variety of perspectives.”

“Medieval and early modern studies is an internationally established discipline,” and McKinley said. “UMBC is uniquely situated to have access to archival materials related to the subject.” Just twenty minutes to the north, the Walters Art Museum has one of the largest collections of medieval art and books of hours in the country, and the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., is an invaluable source of material for Shakespeare scholars. “Universities do not always have such outstanding regional resources,” she said.

McKinley recently took advantage of these resources by taking students in her Medieval Dream Visions course, an upper level English course, to the Walters to view medieval manuscripts. “I loved hearing Mr. Will Noel [curator of manuscripts and rare books at the Walters] discuss the manuscripts,” wrote Bucca in response to the trip. “It was incredible to see how meticulously the words were drawn on the pages and the illuminations that were copied from one manuscript to the other.”

The 6-course, 18-credit medieval and early modern studies minor requires students to take two English courses, two history courses and two courses in a discipline of their choice, which might include art, music, modern languages and linguistics, or Asian studies.

Meeting the requirements was not a challenge for Elizabeth Forney ’14, English. “When I signed up for the minor, I had already taken many of the classes required,” she said. “I have yet to take the history classes required but I look forward to them.”

For Forney, and many other students, a minor in medieval and early modern studies is the first step toward more intensive study of the period. “I plan on concentrating on the medieval period in graduate school,” Forney said. “Deciding to take the minor just made sense.” She plans to focus on medieval literature in graduate school and eventually teach high school English and do research.

McKinley said that many students find themselves fascinated with the period. “It’s so distant from modern culture,” she explained. “Students enjoy studying a period in which, for example, genres are much more fluid and alchemy was taken seriously.” She said that courses included in the minor, such as Images of Joan of Arc (ENGL 345) and Art and Society in the Renaissance (HIST 358), are already popular offerings from the departments, and that more courses that fit with the minor are being discussed.

The first medieval and early modern studies minors are expected to graduate in Spring 2012.

(3/13/12)

Mark 6:45-56 (NIV)

⁴⁵ Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. ⁴⁶ After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

⁴⁷ Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. ⁴⁸ He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, ⁴⁹ but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, ⁵⁰ because they all saw him and were terrified.

Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” ⁵¹ Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, ⁵² for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.

⁵³ When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. ⁵⁴ As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. ⁵⁵ They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.

Reflection:

In this passage, Jesus is not with the disciples in the boat, but shows up to help them.He notices their struggles and comes to them, walking on a lake.It’s an incredible way Jesus comes to the disciples, but this is always the way God comes to us… incredible.Incredible, not just because of how, but because it is God choosing to come to us. Not leaving us to wonder or struggle on our own, He speaks powerfully over us, “Take courage!It is I.Don’t be afraid.”

Response:

The next wind storm pushing against our hearts can become another incredible encounter with Jesus. Let’s pray that we would hear the Lord’s voice powerfully over any storm or struggle that we face.Let’s also praise and thank the Lord for who He is and the incredible love He has for us.He comes and not only brings the peace and power of His presence, but in His power and authority, silences the storm.

Kevin “KAL” Kallaugher, editorial cartoonist for The Economist and UMBC artist-in-residence, was featured on WAMU’s Kojo Nnamdi Show last week (interview begins 19 minutes in). KAL discussed his coverage of the 2012 presidential election, the power of caricature and global importance of freedom of expression, and his own career trajectory as a cartoonist.

At UMBC KAL advises student bloggers in their coverage of current events and politics on USDemocrazy.

When asked to chronicle her life since college, illustrator Monica Gallagher did so in the way that meant most to her: in comic book form.
Check out her essay from the Winter 2012 issue of UMBC Magazine:

 
A designer, illustrator and comicker living in Baltimore, Gallagher graduated magna cum laude from UMBC in 2001 with a degree in visual arts, emphasis on animation. While at UMBC she learned Japanese, traveled to Greece with the ancient studies department, fainted in a yoga class, participated in film festivals, worked in the photo cage, stayed up way too late in the computer lab, got hit in the head with a volleyball, and has many, many other awesome memories.
 

When asked to chronicle her life since college, illustrator Monica Gallagher did so in the way that meant most to her: in comic book form.

Check out her essay from the Winter 2012 issue of UMBC Magazine:

A designer, illustrator and comicker living in Baltimore, Gallagher graduated magna cum laude from UMBC in 2001 with a degree in visual arts, emphasis on animation. While at UMBC she learned Japanese, traveled to Greece with the ancient studies department, fainted in a yoga class, participated in film festivals, worked in the photo cage, stayed up way too late in the computer lab, got hit in the head with a volleyball, and has many, many other awesome memories.