Drug usage is a big issue on many campuses. It’s also a big topic of discussion. Some favor tougher laws and enforcement. Here’s an interesting video in which Judge Jim Gray takes the other side:
Think your tuition is going up?
In the U.S. tuitions have tended to rise 5 to 7 percent a year. There’s a big uproar in the U.K. right now over rising tuitions, which are going up by 300 percent! The present tuition cap in the U.K. is 3,000 pounds (US$4,800). It’s going up to 9,000 pounds (US$14,500). Here’s one student reaction: […]
Changing the Way of Education?
Here’s a YouTube clip from Cognitive Media, a UK-based group, that seems intent on reforming U.S. education: Lots of accusations of what’s wrong, some gestures at needed changes, but no coherent program for actually implementing far-reaching reform. We’ll be watching to see if this goes anywhere.
Bias and Self-Selection in University Departments
When you take a course at a college or university, the course itself will be offered by a particular department (or school). For instance, if you want to take a course in macroeconomics, it may be offered by the economics department or the business school. If you want to take a course in rhetoric, it […]
The “God Debate”
The “God Debate” is big at colleges and in the media, especially with the publication of such bestsellers as Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion and Christopher Hitchens’ God Is Not Great. Below are some of the more thought-provoking video interviews and scholarly debates on the Internet concerned with atheism. Enjoy! 1. William Crawley interviews Richard […]
Pell Grants and Rising Tuitions
Pell Grants are government funds issued to students in financial need to help cover their cost of a college education. The government has lately been pumping lots of money into Pell Grants. So lots more students are now able to afford a college education, right? Not so fast. Because the government is pumping money into […]
China poised to take lead in supercomputing
There’s a cool website called “Top 500” that keeps track of the 500 top supercomputers in the world. For some years now the U.S. has captured the top spot. That’s about to change (see here). Although Oak Ridge’s “Jaguar” computer still comes out on top in the speed with which it computes standard algebraic problems […]
College tuitions: way way back, way back, and now
A musician born almost 100 years ago recently emailed: When I was accepted at Harvard in 1935, with a nice telegram from James Bryant Conant on the night of my HS graduation, I had an IQ between 147-152. No longer. Did not receive my expected scholarship at the last moment, and accepted one at Eastman […]
Can Homeschooling Be a Handicap?
Homeschooling a handicap? Yes, if it prejudices a university selection committee against your acceptance. The homeschooled student may have had a better education, but in today’s cultural climate, that may not be the selling point that one would expect. Homeschooling’s performance Generally, homeschooling is associated with higher academic achievement. There’s no magic in that. A […]
Ten Reasons You May Not Need a Degree
Do you need a degree? The question isn’t whether somebody else needs a degree, but whether you do. It’s your time, your life. Let’s evaluate the opportunities in a practical way. Here are ten issues to consider carefully: