tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:03:39 +0000Observations on economics, the academy, the wider world, and things that run on rails.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)Blogger5000125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-108407462777245929Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:34:00 +00002009-12-03T19:34:09.302-06:00TAIL TRACK. Barring signal troubles, links to any posts of substance ought to work.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2007/02/tail-track.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-2862641672718638740Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:32:00 +00002009-12-03T19:33:47.354-06:00basketballgood cheerHEY, DUKE, THIS IS A HOCKEY GAME, NOT A CULTURAL STUDIES SEMINAR. You say it was a basketball game? The faithful didn't have to taunt "Duke can't skate."http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/hey-duke-this-is-hockey-game-not.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-7719428777467499031Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:28:00 +00002009-12-03T19:31:50.757-06:00technologyacademic culturehistoryTHE ULTIMATE REVENGE OF THE NERDS.Context at Chicago Boyz.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/ultimate-revenge-of-nerds.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-1284350217625314841Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:18:00 +00002009-12-02T23:22:23.910-06:00Forever Together Forwardwintermusicgood cheerA NEW BACH CHRISTMAS CANTATA.It is an entrant in the Chicago Tribune's New Holiday Classics contest. Voting remains open through December 6.(Via Northern Illinois University.)http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/new-bach-christmas-cantata.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-8444837914269639203Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:13:00 +00002009-12-02T23:18:06.588-06:00decline and fallhope and changecorruptionacademic cultureI DON'T HAVE TO MAKE THINGS UP. Suit: College Lowered Standards For Revenue. In an effort to boost tuition revenues, a State University of New York campus lowered admissions and retention standards to admit unqualified – predominately black – applicants who had little chance of graduating, according to a lawsuit filed by a former dean.The article identifies today's Cold Spring Shops Righteous http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/i-dont-have-to-make-things-up.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-7744854350739012480Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:06:00 +00002009-12-02T23:13:03.885-06:00decline and fallpolicy mythologyGreat LakesHERE I STAND WITH MY LAW, AND HERE YOU STAND WITH YOUR INVASIVE SPECIES. Process worshippers. Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm, not content with killing business in her state, now intends to sue Mother Nature. Gov. Jennifer Granholm wants Michigan's attorney general to take legal action to prevent Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes.Granholm and Lt. Gov. John Cherry sent Attorney http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/here-i-stand-with-my-law-and-here-you.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-612300491075430988Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:54:00 +00002009-12-02T23:07:28.274-06:00decline and fallwinterAS YOU DID IT TO ONE OF THE LEAST, YOU DID IT TO ME. The All Saints Episcopal Church, in a tony neighborhood of Chicago, operates a food bank with health services. The single file outside is as tidy an economic barometer as any Labor Department news release. Federal stimulus aside, the line only gets bigger and inspires grousing by a few neighbors that the church is “attracting” misbegotten soulshttp://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/as-you-did-it-to-one-of-least-you-did.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-5738468858742985143Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:20:00 +00002009-12-01T10:37:33.832-06:00link-whoringferroequinologytransportation policygood cheerSOMETIMES IT IS SIMPLE. The dean at Anonymous Community takes a road trip. By default.(My one-step process for making train travel more appealing: speed it up. Okay, Stephen, have at it.) That link, and a companion link at Inside Higher Ed, has sent numerous wise and worldly readers this way.I've been having at it and at it and at it, and with a few more minutes searching the archives could http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/12/sometimes-it-is-simple.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-7425435588412001245Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:43:00 +00002009-11-30T23:47:16.025-06:00climaquiddickacademic culturehigher educationOBSERVATION OF THE DAY. King Banaian follows up on Recant, or Be Excommunicated with an alert to observers of higher education. If what Climategate teaches is the inherent flaws of the peer-review process, that would be worth as much as sticking another fork in the hockey stick. It relies on people motivated by professional ethics, people who choose to be academics for a variety of reasons that http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/observation-of-day.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-2207966792614705541Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:18:00 +00002009-11-30T23:39:15.833-06:00academic cultureeconomic educationA CATECHISM FOR THE HOLY INQUISITION. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has challenged the University of Minnesota for treating race-class-gender-culture models of social structure as the received theory for schoolteacher preparation. The college intends to mandate particular beliefs and values "dispositions and commitments"-for future teachers. These are not just things like thehttp://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/catechism-for-holy-inquisition.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-6974955014127881227Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:00:00 +00002009-11-30T23:09:58.866-06:00decline and fallinstitutionsfootballhigher educationAN OPPORTUNITY TO DEFLATE THE BUBBLE? Notre Dame fires football coach Charlie Weis. The article details the team's continued underachievement, and a televised sports report noted previous coaches who did not live up to Knute Rockne standards. Accompanying articles suggest disinterest on the part of head coaches at other prominent football programs in the job.Notre Dame has the opportunity to http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/opportunity-to-deflate-bubble-notre.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-6298974253899274240Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:49:00 +00002009-11-28T19:55:53.256-06:00ferroequinologycounterterrorismOUR THOUGHTS ARE WITH THE RUSSIANS. The Moscow to St. Petersburg Nevsky Express has been bombed, with serious loss of life.Moscow Station in St. Petersburg.The bombing occurred on a remote stretch of track, not easily reached by ambulances or med-evac helicopters, and a second bomb that exploded nearby later might have been timed to cause injury to rescuers.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/our-thoughts-are-with-russians.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-3978328894224928536Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:37:00 +00002009-11-28T19:49:04.671-06:00decline and falleducationacademic cultureTEACHING IS TOO IMPORTANT TO LEAVE TO NOVICES. The Wall Street Journal files a report on the finalists for Baylor University's Robert Foster Cherry Award for Great Teaching. As much as [Williams mathematician Edward Burger] finds math fascinating, he realizes that most people will not use calculus after college. The utilitarian promise "is an empty one," he notes. "You don't need to know how to http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/teaching-is-too-important-to-leave-to.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-272150335278230372Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:32:00 +00002009-11-28T19:35:46.069-06:00institutionshope and changecounterterrorismEARN YOUR PEACE PRIZE. The Friday night vigils continue, with participants taking the Obama administration to task for continuing the Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns. (The post title comes from one of the newer banners on display.)http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/earn-your-peace-prize.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-9087558594649216577Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:30:00 +00002009-11-27T23:37:10.122-06:00Andreyev 4-14-4ferroequinologymodel railroadTHE DIAMOND JUBILEE. The prototype 4-14-4 rolled out of Lugansk in December, 1934.Moscow, January 1935.The model might be in running condition by January.Cold Spring Shops, November 2009.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/diamond-jubilee.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-6491934013779262841Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:15:00 +00002009-11-27T23:28:41.179-06:00humorhope and changeelection folliesTHE DISCONTENT SPREADS. This Thanksgiving's political joke:Have you heard about the Obama Bomb the taverns are serving?Three parts Jägermeister, one part hope, get somebody else's change to pay for it.http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/discontent-spreads.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-5992603805538252353Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:00:00 +00002009-11-25T11:01:33.485-06:00MARKING OFF. Happy Thanksgiving. (If the Wall Street Journal runs the same piece the Wednesday in advance of each Thanksgiving, why not I?)I give thanks for your readership and your comments.Spare a few moments thanks for the young people in harm's way around the world, for the people in emergency services who deserve to sit down to the turkey without the alarm ringing, for the people in http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/marking-off.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-6472519830961583357Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:10:00 +00002009-11-25T10:50:02.061-06:00decline and fallclimaquiddickfourth turningacademic culturehigher educationRECANT, OR BE EXCOMMUNICATED. Angus at Kids Prefer Cheese explains the climate change consensus.Thanks as always to Tyler for bringing this "scandal" to my attention. I am using quotes here because, in my opinion, this is just business as usual in academics. There may not be such a blatant electronic "paper trail" on display, but protecting turf, punishing heretics, and rewarding your friends ishttp://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/recant-or-be-excommunicated.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-6686641610522372083Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:23:00 +00002009-11-23T23:44:07.460-06:00business follies50 Book ChallengeinstitutionsREMAINDERED GOODS ON A LARGE SCALE. Book Review No. 45 features Sam Walton: Made in America. In previous years, I've offered reviews of How Wal-Mart is Destroying America and Wal-Mart: The Face of Twenty-First-Century Capitalism, works that recite grievances about the corporation. Mr Walton, not surprisingly, offers a different perspective, offering inter alia the advice that a business that http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/remaindered-goods-on-large-scale.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-4119287331508333424Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:05:00 +00002009-11-25T10:04:50.717-06:00decline and falleconomicsacademic culturehigher educationREGRESSIVE TRANSFERS. It's been a regular theme at Cold Spring Shops. The recession has induced some families to scale back their aspirations, with some of the upscale universities objecting to tax-subsidized competition. I've noted the trade-off inherent in tuition subsidies. Perhaps the proper role of the government is to make possible the conditions under which people might prosper, though it http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/regressive-transfers.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-52027410391017776Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:27:00 +00002009-11-21T17:35:44.588-06:00academic culturehigher educationWHY I PERSEVERE. It's not a well-written column, but when a student posts a gripe about absentee professors, it bears circulation. I paid my tuition to hear you lecture and pontificate to me for only 42 hours. Not holding class regularly is not acceptable. Yes, us students may sometimes be absent, but we are not the ones getting paid. Do students get a check for every class a professor skips? http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/why-i-persevere.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-700749908962612469Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:57:00 +00002009-11-21T17:27:24.799-06:0050 Book ChallengehistoryAN EMPIRE REGAINS HOPE. I've deliberately stolen the title of Anatole Shub's An Empire Loses Hope to introduce Book Review No. 44, Michael Meyer's The Year that Changed the World: The Untold Story of the Fall of the Berlin Wall. Untold Story exaggerates: that Poland and Hungary were well on their way to reform early in 1989 is not a secret, and that East Germany's government changed its position http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/empire-regains-hope.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-1758866977630751095Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:37:00 +00002009-11-21T16:50:11.382-06:00educationpublic policymathematicsDON'T SQUANDER THE ADVANTAGES. A team of Northern Illinois University researchers investigates the science gender gap. Girls enjoy science less. They concentrate less. They doubt their skills. They’re bored. They’re stressed. They’re less intrigued by a challenge.Ironically, many girls earn good grades in science but still feel less competent than their grades would indicate. Also, both genders http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/dont-squander-advantages.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-3206706853719219014Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:20:00 +00002009-11-21T16:33:23.243-06:00fourth turningOPPOSITION REQUIRES SUBSTANCE. Victor Davis Hanson interprets Sarah Palin's continued visibility as a reaction to what is. Yet Palin won’t quite go away, given her opposition to the two most unpopular institutions in America today: Big Government and High Finance.The voters are tiring on left-wing, condescending big government. An Eric Holder, Timothy Geithner and Barack Obama are the best http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/opposition-requires-substance.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3760005.post-5066694220740203056Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:34:00 +00002009-11-21T15:53:12.880-06:00public policyacademic culturehigher educationECONOMIES AND DISECONOMIES OF SCOPE. John J. Miller makes an observation on the allocation of effort in higher education. I don't want to knock the importance of original research into obscure subjects, but I also suspect that the quality of a lot of this work is quite low—and that broadly speaking, we'd be better served if more professors performed less scholarship and did more teaching.He http://coldspringshops.blogspot.com/2009/11/economies-and-diseconomies-of-scope.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen Karlson)0