Jon Stossel is one of the last few remaining investigative reporters, and used to be on television quite often, 20 years ago. His big career-killing problem was he tends to investigate government waste and corruption. It’s painfully obvious today that much (all?) of our mainstream media is just another department of our government, or at […] … learn more→

“Do you want to be the canon’s mouthpiece?” I asked a friend whose university had invited him on to a committee to identify 150 books that all undergraduates ought to read. But then I recalled that once, in my youth as a schoolteacher, I had established a literary canon of my own. One of my […] … learn more→

Students from less advantaged backgrounds are grossly underrepresented in Britain’s top universities. This underrepresentation of certain groups is particularly pronounced in highly competitive courses such as medicine. In England, for example, 80% of medical students come from just 20% of the country’s secondary schools. This leads to a profession dominated by certain demographic groups. This imbalance […] … learn more→

When it comes to the use of race-conscious affirmative action in college admissions, no one seems to be happy with the way it’s playing out. Opponents charge that taking into account an applicant’s race or ethnicity amounts to “reverse discrimination.” Supporters recognize that disadvantaged minorities have been losing ground under affirmative action. Blacks and Hispanics […] … learn more→

Librarians in the University of California system are represented by the American Federation of Teachers.  They are currently engaged in bargaining a new contract.  In the course of that process the UC-AFT proposed that the following underlined language be added to Article 1, Recognition, in the new contract: The University recognizes librarians as academic employees, and further recognizes […] … learn more→

‘Hello!’ to anyone who’s stuck in their PhD. I feel for you. As I write, I’m half-way through my PhD program, and I’ve been stuck too. I’m out the other side now, but it’s made me think: a PhD and Mars have a lot in common. Remember the movie, ‘The Martian’? Matt Damon plays astronaut, […] … learn more→

Some time ago, a professor made a blog post, chastising a teacher for shutting down a student who advocated for, well, traditional marriage. Arguing for heterosexual marriage is a faux pas on campus today, and the school formed a committee to investigate this “inappropriate” behavior. A few posts on a blog. Seven members on the […] … learn more→

By reporting fraud, my husband acted to protect the scientific integrity of repositories of knowledge in libraries and databases. Protecting these valuable but endangered resources from the introduction of falsified publications must be done early in the manuscript review stage. My husband was a faculty member in the School of Medicine and Director of a […] … learn more→

It is a beautiful day, you’re safely and sensibly driving down the street, peacefully keeping yourself to yourself when, all of a sudden – ka-Boom!  Someone runs a stop sign and smashes into your car.  It’s not your fault.  And your day’s already chock full of deadlines, personal multi-tasks and a maybe even concert tickets.  […] … learn more→

This month, more than 4 million students across the nation will begin high school. Many will do well. But many will not. Consider that nearly two-thirds of students will experience the “ninth-grade shock,” which refers to a dramatic drop in a student’s academic performance. Some students cope with this shock by avoiding challenges. For instance, they may drop rigorous coursework. […] … learn more→