Category Archives: Education

On Sherry Turkle's "Alone Together" and How I Sleep With Stuffed Animals, Not Furbies, As They Make All That Noise When You Roll Over in the Night

So in my (not-yet-ended) quest to get to the bottom of this whole “digital distraction” thing, I’m now reading Sherry Turkle’s Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other (I mean, with a feel-good title … Continue reading

Posted in books, books/film, Education | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

On Hanna Rosin's "The End of Men": The End of Men? Maybe Not, But Thanks for Asking

So I’ve been reading Hanna Rosin’s The End of Men (2012)—why? out of sheer obstinacy, no doubt—which is at turns annoying, blockheaded, fascinating, fun, and scary. And for all those responses, it must be doing something right. I would have … Continue reading

Posted in books, Economics, Education | Tagged , | Leave a comment

"A Flag From the Poor Kid": A Christmas Essay

So a week ago I attended my daughter’s first community choir event for the Christmas season, at a Lutheran church no less. It was a lovely—even, dare I say, spiritual—event, a crowd of darling children singing (or not) Christmas carols in … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Education, Politics, The West, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

James Hansen Rants on Obama, and E.O. Wilson Gets Reviewed in the NY Times

So I liked the review in the NY Times this weekend of E.O. Wilson’s The Social Conquest of Earth, which I’m still reading (it’s long), which is here. One thing I’ll note: Although I knew about and recognized his argument for … Continue reading

Posted in books, Climate Change, Education, Politics, The West, Weird Science | Leave a comment

Mitt Romney as The Feckless Male

So one thing fascinating about being a professor is that you notice over a span of years the changes in student behavior and trends. While I’m of the mind that human behavior doesn’t change all that much across the ages, … Continue reading

Posted in books, Education, Politics, writing | Leave a comment

On Charles Murray's "Coming Apart": It Comes Apart at the End

So I have to say this about Charles Murray’s just-published, semi-controversial look at the state of White America, Coming Apart: The State of White America1960-2010: I read it all the way through to the end, rather quickly, too—in a few days. … Continue reading

Posted in books, Education, Politics, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Year Without a Winter, and Just How Many Republican Voters Does It Take to Pick a Kook?

So as we slide down the (snow-free) hill that is the rest of February 2012—usually the coldest month here in central Pennsylvania, temperatures usually below freezing, and often in the single digits at night—I think we should (un)officially start dubbing … Continue reading

Posted in books, Climate Change, Education, The West | Leave a comment

On Reading Charles Murray's "Coming Apart: The State of White America 1960-2010": Changes in College Attendance and the Blue-Collar Work Ethic

So I’m reading Charles Murray’s much-talked-about analysis of the state of our States, Coming Apart: The State of White America 1960-2010, and I have to say that so far it’s fascinating. I’m on the opposite end of the political spectrum … Continue reading

Posted in books, Education, Politics | Leave a comment

Death of an MFA Program, an Insider's View

So as is becoming known throughout the university world and blogosphere, Penn State cut the funding for its MFA program, of which I’m the director, and we’ve chosen to cease admitting new students, rather than expect them to pay many … Continue reading

Posted in Art, Education, writing | Leave a comment

On Nicholas Carr's "The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains"

So in between dressing up stuffed animal rabbits as Rapunzel and noticing that leopard-skin tights, boots, and earmuffs seem to be popular among mallrats, I’m reading Nicholas Carr’s The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains (2010). It’s … Continue reading

Posted in books, Education, Weird Science, writing | Leave a comment