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Ben is a writer and performer.
He lives in Iowa City, IA.

Some clips are here.

RSS
Archive

Writing

This is a dumping ground for links.

Humor

Sunday Comic Opera - McSweeney’s Internet Tendency (Sept. 2010)
Reaching the Singularity - Cavalier Literary Couture (Jan. 2011)

Reviews

2001: A Space Odyssey - A Bright Wall in a Dark Room (Feb. 2011)
Metropolitan - A Bright Wall in a Dark Room (Dec. 2010)
Showgirls - A Bright Wall in a Dark Room (Oct. 2010)
Stroszek - A Bright Wall in a Dark Room (Sept. 2010)

The Dana Foundation — brain science and arts education news

Brain Scientists Identify Links between Arts, Learning (May 14, 2009)
Music Training Changes Brain Network (May 11, 2009)
New Scanning Technique Diagnoses Hard-to-detect Brain Injuries (January 2, 2009)
New Techniques Link Brain with Machine (January 2, 2009)
Dancing Begins with a Cognitive Act (January 2, 2009)
The Brain in Motion (November 18, 2008)
Experts Explore Memory as Key Target in Mental Disorders (November 3, 2008)
In Cancer Battles, New Drugs Bulk Up Immune System (June 11, 2008)
Brain Tumors Such as Kennedy’s May Be Difficult to Treat (May 21, 2008)
Neurons in the Outfield (April 29, 2008)
A Meeting of the Mind (February 11, 2008)
Meal Frequency Affects Neuron Formation (December 6, 2007)
Mirror Neurons May Come in Different Types (November 21, 2007)
Brain Science Enters the Courtroom (October 12, 2007)
Neuroscience at War: Mind Wars Trans-Atlantic Discussion (September 26, 2007)
NFL Player’s Case Highlights Advancements in Neurologic Repair (September 14, 2007)

Dana Press Blog (for all my blog posts go here)

Virtual therapy yields real results (July 14, 2009)
Attention networks and information overload (June 10, 2009)
Self comes to mind (May 12, 2009)
Subprime science (March 16, 2009)
Darwin’s odyssey (February 12, 2009)
Words and numbers (January 15, 2009)
Dancing on the radio (December 22, 2008)
Great minds in neuroscience history (November 20, 2008)
Dancing with Parkinson’s (November 16, 2008)
Materialists take Manhattan (October 28, 2008)
Shakespeare’s word use embiggens the brain (August 18, 2008)
Marathon mind (August 12, 2008)
My neurovacation (August 8, 2008)
Immunocalifragilisticexpialidocious (June 18, 2008)
Miracle Drug Cures Scientific Ignorance! (May 14, 2008)
Of science, cinema and scaremongering (April 15, 2008)
A pox on cancer (April 9, 2008)
The treatment doctors forgot (April 8, 2008)
Educating the educators (with Immunology Lab Time) (April 7, 2008)
The riddle in Ritalin (March 17, 2008)
Splashing in the shallow end (February 29, 2008)
Nirvana in the neurons (January 11, 2008)
When Art Meets Alzheimer’s (December 20, 2007)
Love Is a Many Neurotransmitter’d Thing (November 6, 2007)
Reaching Out to Everyone (November 5, 2007)
The Enchanted Lute (October 12, 2007)

Space.com – astrophysics, astronomy and space exploration news

Nuclear Reactions in the Lab Mimic Supernovas (August 28, 2007)
Tougher Cameras Designed to Withstand Space Radiation (August 22, 2007)
New Instrument Offers Clearer View of Sun’s Fury (August 15, 2007)
Quasars Caught Eating Galaxies (August 10, 2007)
Dust Cloud Sheds Light on Stellar Brightness Phenomenon (August 7, 2007)

Livescience.com — science news and features

Armstrong, Hinault Top New 54-Year Tour de France Ranking (August 28, 2007)
Living Cells Scanned in 3-D for First Time (August 13, 2007)
Discovery of Middle Asia Cities Recasts Ancient History (August 9, 2007)
Water Discovered to Flow Like Molasses (May 11, 2007)
Ceiling Height Alters How You Think (May 7, 2007)
10 Things You Didn’t Know about You
10 Amazing Things You Didn’t Know about Animals

Livescience.com — “Life’s Little Mysteries” column

How Environmentally Friendly Are Plastics? (September 6, 2007)
Why Do We Love Music? (August 20, 2007)
How Do Post Office Machines Read Addresses? (August 16, 2007)
What Is It Like to Be an Ant? (August 10, 2007)
How Do They Build Underwater Tunnels? (August 9, 2007)
How Does an MRI Work? (August 8, 2007)
What Is It Like to Be a Monkey? (August 7, 2007)
Why Does the Body Tan? (August 3, 2007)
What Is the Doppler Effect? (May 29, 2007)
Does Boxing Cause Brain Damage? (May 14, 2007)
How Are Utensils Made? (May 9, 2007)
How Do Scientists Date Ancient Things? (April 30, 2007)
Why Do You Stink? (April 25, 2007)
Does the Heart Ever Skip a Beat? (April 20, 2007)
Is There a Hangover Cure? (April 10, 2007)
Does a Virus Really Cause Cervical Cancer? (April 9, 2007)
How Many Cells Are in the Brain? (April 5, 2007)
What Makes Wheels Appear to Spin Backwards? (March 28, 2007)
What Is a Sonic Boom? Can I see One? (March 23, 2007)
Why Can’t We Reach the End of the Rainbow? (March 23, 2007)
What Is a Species? When Does Speciation Occur? (March 20, 2007)
What Is Fire? (March 16, 2007)
Why Is Ice Slippery? (March 5, 2007)
Why Do Mosquitoes Buzz in Our Ears? (February 25, 2007)
What Are Birthmarks? (February 21, 2007)
Will California Ever Fall into the Ocean? (February 20, 2007)
Why Do Blood Types Differ? (February 17, 2007)
Why Haven’t All Primates Evolved into Humans? (February 15, 2007)
Why Do Soft Drinks Go Flat? (February 13, 2007)
Why Do We Grind Our Teeth? (February 6, 2007)
Why Do Men Go Bald? (February 2, 2007)
What Are Eyelashes For? (February 1, 2007)
Why Are Planets Round? (January 31, 2007)
Why Is Grass Green? (January 24, 2007)
Why Is Cow’s Milk White? (January 22, 2007)
What Is 20/20 Vision? (January 18, 2007)
What Is Whiplash? (January 11, 2007)
Why Do We Sleep? (January 9, 2007)
How Many Muscles Does a Human Have? (January 3, 2007)
How Does Squinting Help Us See? (January 2, 2007)
What Was the First Museum? (December 28, 2006)
What Causes Hiccups?(December 26, 2006)
Why Does Pain Make People Scream? (December 26, 2006)
How Does Humidity Affect Evaporation? (December 22, 2006)
How Did America Get Its Name? (December 19, 2006)
Do Pigs Sweat? (December 18, 2006)
Does Cold Weather Cause Colds? (December 12, 2006)
Why Do We Blink? (December 5, 2006)
Why Are Ears Shaped So Strangely? (December 4, 2006)
Why Do Men Have Nipples? (November 22, 2006)
Why Don’t Penguin Feet Freeze on Ice? (November 21, 2006)
What Causes a Charlie Horse? (November 17, 2006)
What Causes Hunger Pangs? (November 15, 2006)
Why Is Yawning Contagious? (November 13, 2006)
Do Tornadoes Strike Outside the United States? (November 9, 2006)
What Is Amnesia? (November 8, 2006)
Why Is Fecal Matter Brown? (November 1, 2006)
How Does a Microwave Oven Work? (October 26, 2006)
Why Do I Close My Eyes when I Sneeze? (October 24, 2006)
What Causes a Fever? (October 23, 2006)
Why Do We Cry? (October 19, 2006)
Where Do Electrons Get Energy to Spin Around at Atom’s Nucleus? (October 18, 2006)
Are Left-Handed People Smarter? (October 17, 2006)
Why Does My Arm Fall Asleep? (October 17, 2006)
What Makes My Ears Ring? (October 9, 2006)
Would I Weight Less at the Equator? (October 8, 2006)
What Causes Goose Bumps? (October 7, 2006)
When Was Beer Invented? (September 29, 2006)
How Old Is Earth? (September 27, 2006)
Why Do Bright Lights Make Me Sneeze? (September 26, 2006)
Can I Control My Dreams? (September 24, 2006)
Who Invented Chess? (September 19, 2006)
How Many Senses Do Humans Have? (September 9, 2006)

Laurel Leader — weekly newspaper (circulation ~30,000)

Domestic Violence Aide Speaks from Experience (August 10, 2006)
Laurel High Class of 1956 Goes Golden (July 26, 2006)
City Targets Speeding Drivers on Fourth Street (July 20, 2006)
Laser-Tag Arena Hosts National Tournament (July 13, 2006)
Laurel Goes Fourth (July 6, 2006)
Chandler Robbins: A Career for the Birds (September 29, 2005)
40 Youths and Kids in ‘Music Man’ (August 11, 2005)
Group to Deliver Groceries to More Laurel Shut-Ins (August 11, 2005)
Toucan Taco Dishes 30 Years of Mexican Fare (August 4, 2005)
South Laurel Rocked by Officer’s Slaying (by Pete Pichaske and Ben Mauk) (July 23, 2005)
Rabbi Completes 25 Years with Synagogue (July 21, 2005)
Relay Raises Hope for Cancer Cure (June 16, 2005)
New Office for Laurel Board of Trade (July 7, 2005)
Special Olympics Athletes Challenged to Inspire Greatness (June 23, 2005)
MSA Scores Rise for Most Local Schools (June 23, 2005)
Main Street Dealer Sells Black Figurines as Art, Investment (June 9, 2005)