Archive for November 29th, 2012

Quote of the day.

Thursday, November 29th, 2012

I’ve always liked Alfred Bester’s The Stars My Destination (also known as Tiger, Tiger in the UK).

The last chapter struck me rather forcefully the first time I read it. Especially the ending: I’m putting this quote behind a jump because it contains possible spoilers for the book.

(more…)

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Random notes: November 29, 2012.

Thursday, November 29th, 2012

Zig Ziglar obits: NYT. LAT.

Coaches’ salaries have soared in recent years at colleges throughout the country, often reaching several million dollars a year, as university officials have intensified efforts to claim some of the sport’s growing riches that come from billion-dollar television contracts, merchandise sales and alumni contributions. But college officials do not seem encumbered by the large contracts; rather, they appear willing to pay the coaches handsomely to go away and make room for new hires — despite little evidence that coaching changes generally result in better teams.

More:

The results, tracked over a five-year period following the coaching changes, might surprise many. The lowliest teams subsequently performed about the same as other struggling teams that did not replace their coach. Mediocre teams — those that won about half their games in the year before a coaching change — performed worse than similar teams that did not replace their coach.

The Washington Wizards beat the Portland Trail Blazers last night. Narrowly, but they did win, and there are now no NBA teams with a chance of going 0-82.

Posted in Clippings, Loser, Obits, Sports | Comments Closed