During the summer after my sophomore year in high school, I read Stephen Jay Gould's Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History. My wonder regarding fossils received some content. And paleontology seemed right around the corner, i.e., if Indiana Jones-like archeology dried up ;-) That story did not come to pass, but I returned to a consideration of Gould's work as part of an Oracles of Science: Celebrity Scientists versus God and Religion book discussion.* Not surprisingly the concept of … [Read more...] about What’s NOMA?
academic culture
Twitter: a tool for a new generation of academic conversation or Not? (Updated)
You might remember various Technology in Higher Education posts exploring: “Creepy Treehouse”? Friending Your Professors or Students New Technology and Academic Research Who do you trust? Google and information gathering What Tools Do You Use? Should we not leave Twitter out as a tool for a new generation of academic conversation? A brief piece from The Chronicle of Higher Education reports on how Ed Techie, an education blogger, finds On Twitter, Academic Debates Fall Short. Note: Comments on the The … [Read more...] about Twitter: a tool for a new generation of academic conversation or Not? (Updated)
What Life and Higher Education Asks of Us
HT to Arlene Miller, retired nursing faculty at Messiah College (Grantham, PA) and co-author of two InterVarsity Press Books (Called to Care: A Christian Worldview for Nursing and Values in Conflict: Christian Nursing in a Changing Profession), who shared with me What Life Asks of Us. What do I find of interest regarding David Brooks' NY Times Op-Ed piece? The individualism of modern culture reinforced by groups of professors, such as those at Harvard, who define the purpose of liberal education as … [Read more...] about What Life and Higher Education Asks of Us
Elevating Science, Elevating Democracy
That's the title of Dennis Overbye's NY Times essay on what it means to restore science to its rightful place.* He begins by sharing how he too wept tears of joy at the words of President Barack Hussein Obama (reference to the NY Times article Scientists Welcome Obama's Words). Question: If you're a member of the scientific community, did you likewise become teary eyed (or even weep) at the words of our new President on your own (or with your colleagues)? If so, why? If you're outside of the scientific … [Read more...] about Elevating Science, Elevating Democracy
What is the ‘Rightful Place’ of Science?
What are your thoughts on 'the Rightful Place of Science' and the topics mentioned below? Many scientists have complained that the Bush administration relied on questionable science and disregarded the recommendations of scientific advisory boards, for example, in deciding to limit federal support of stem-cell research and to refuse to regulate carbon-dioxide emissions to deal with the threat of global climate change. In contrast, Mr. Obama nominated Steven Chu, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist concerned with … [Read more...] about What is the ‘Rightful Place’ of Science?