http://www.quadratix.org An Online Magazine of Black Art and Culture Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:24:49 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en It's been nearly a month since Michael Jackson died and amazingly it's taken nearly this long for me to really understand what we've lost and how I feel about it. When Jackson's Thriller came out in 1982 [corrected, thanks Noel] I was a youngster pretty much fresh out of high ... http://www.quadratix.org/did-michael-jackson-invent-the-moonwalk/ I read on the net the other day about the sad case of Jammie Thomas. Ms. Thomas was convicted of copyright infringement on 24 songs she downloaded using a software program called Kazaa. The jury awarded the plaintiffs $1.92 million in damages. No I didn't mistype that. It's damn near ... http://www.quadratix.org/music_industry_die/ So the amazing and tragic story of Michael Jackson is now coming to a close. People who weeks ago were using Michael Jackson as the butt their jokes are now proclaiming his greatness and the tragedy of his loss. Jackson's final performance will be as the star of a media ... http://www.quadratix.org/death-and-taxes-the-curious-case-of-michael-jackson/ So I'd been watching the NBA playoffs on the high def TV I picked up back in December. One of the first things that I noticed with all that resolution are the players tattoos. What used to be a smudge on a players arm is now easily readable in close ... http://www.quadratix.org/nba_tattoos/ I ran across this website recently. The Big Myth is an educational site which seeks to inform students about mythologies across the globe. I've always been interested in mythology, ever since my mom would read African fables to me as a child. Myths and fables have traditionally served an important ... http://www.quadratix.org/the-big-myth-teaching-global-mythologies/ Marquise de Brinvilliers Marie-Madeleine-Marguerite d'Aubray, (1630 – July 17, 1676) was a French serial killer who poisoned her father, brother, and two sisters in order to inherit their property. She was assisted by her lover, Army Captain Godin de Sainte-Croix. The following is an excerpt from a fictionalized account of her ... http://www.quadratix.org/marquise-de-brinvilliers-by-alexandre-dumas-pere/ I'm way overdue for another portfolio. So here's a look at some of the book covers I've designed. Most were done on the job but there are a couple of freelance covers as well. I'm glad that my day job at the Kent State University Press focuses on academic titles. ... http://www.quadratix.org/profo2_bookcovers/ This article is not so much a review as an FYI. We're all very familiar with the African oral tradition. What you may not be so familiar with is the African tradition of writing. It turns out that the Egyptians had a writing system known as Hieratic script which was ... http://www.quadratix.org/afrikan-alphabets/ As promised, here are more Adinkra symbols to use for whatever purpose you see fit. Don't forget to check the previous collection posted earlier. If you're slick you'll click the "Clip Art" category under the "Sight" quadrant. That will put both posts right up front. Part 3 (coming soon) should ... http://www.quadratix.org/adinkra2/ In my last blogpost I warned readers to be on the lookout for more insults, barbs and racist attacks to be leveled against President Obama. This past Monday an African American reporter, by the name of Harris Faulkner, read two comments from their website. One of them compared Obama to ... http://www.quadratix.org/fox-news-continues-to-denigrate-obama/