Monthly Archives: August 2014

Is “Google Science” about to transform the publication of scientific papers

Someone has disseminated what purports to be a portion of a presentation on Google’s progress in developing “Google Science,” an open-source platform for the publication of scientific papers that might radically transform not just the way in which the results of scientific research are disseminated but also the ways in which scientific research is conducted. […] … learn more→

Why I’m asking you not to use laptops

At a teaching workshop last week, a new faculty member asked me how I felt about students using laptops in the classroom. I replied, “I ask students not to use laptops in my classroom—unless a student tells me they need or strongly prefer a laptop to take notes (for any reason), in which case we […] … learn more→

5 Signs your College is in serious financial trouble

An increasing number of schools are unable to balance their books. Make sure yours is not one of them. When Corinthian Colleges Inc. agreed in July to sell off or close nearly all of its 107 campuses, it left 72,000 students wondering about their futures—and whether they should have seen the writing on the wall. […] … learn more→

Common Core to eliminate “white privilege”?

I’ve looked quite a bit at Common Core, and frankly I’ve been puzzled at the curriculum, which seems to ignore common sense, science, and basic respect for humanity. A reason for this aberration has been advanced by someone in a position to influence Common Core: as penance for his white privilege. Here’s a part of […] … learn more→

An unexpected english lesson

So I walk into the little dry cleaners near my office and these are the first words I hear: “Where were you? In bed with your—Polack!” For a split second I’m stopped in my tracks. I listened for a moment to the voice coming from some unidentified space between the full-length mirror and the ironing […] … learn more→

Local boy makes a word

Idea for a sitcom: The Big Lang. Theory. Premise is that a bunch of language nerds sit around and talk about their observations, obsessions, and pet peeves. Let’s say their names are Geoffrey, Lucy, Allan, and Ben, and that they’ve got some wacky neighbors, Bill, Anne, Ilan, and Rose. For the pilot episode, one of […] … learn more→

The case for undergraduate Law degrees

The legal profession is in flux, and law schools are struggling to respond as globalization, low-cost online legal products, and outsourcing of legal services to nonlawyers are reshaping the profession. These changes are reflected in the type of employment law graduates can find—with fewer securing jobs for which a law license is required—­as well as […] … learn more→

What will you do when your doctorate is done?

In a recent post on her blog “100 days to the doctorate and beyond” Dr Evelyn Tsitas reflects on her post PhD experience. Like many part time doctoral candidates, Evelyn was working full time throughout her doctorate and, after it was done, finds herself, at least temporarily, back where she started, doing the same job […] … learn more→

What data can’t convey

Several years ago, when passing the house where my father grew up, I noted an odd distinction. Dad, it seemed, had been more familiar with the families that had lived on his street in Cincinnati than I had grown to be, a generation later, with those who lived near our house outside Buffalo. Friendly neighbors […] … learn more→