Archive for February, 2007

This is an amazing, must-read article about the generation whose whole lives are being played out, in every aspect, online (in a way that even tech geeks our age (dinosaurs!) can’t get)–where the illusion of privacy is decimated, where everyone is “on” all the time, “operating in a space midway between behavior and performance.” (Mark Morford says, dismissively, that it’s just the same old generation-gap story of the youngens freaking out less-adaptable adults, but, alternatively, there’s also the argument that this time it’s qualitatively different.)

I updated the blog software that we are using. You’ll notice a few changes when you write a post and in a few other places. For those of you who like information and to read change logs, check out the changes. Let me know if you see any strange behavior or other fallout. Thanks.

Imagine a world that was made from a mashup of your two favorite books. My two favorite books are “A Tao of Pooh” and “Another Roadside Attraction.” My favorite potential outcome of these books is a summed up as “a sudden return to calm.” In other words, no matter which journey you take in life, you’ll be blissful and peaceful.

What are your two favorite books? What would the world be like if you lived in a mashup of the two?

In the spirit of my last post, explicate.

I’m serious.

I can’t post comments from this computer, damnit. So, in response to Josh, I say thanks. Peak performance, I guess.

I am pleased at how this is progressing.

Hi may, I like this construction, have John post. I would really like to hear his comments, as I have never understood people who go into the military, I just don’t understand it. I appreciate the idea, but I don’t understand it. I have a student who finds out in less than two weeks if the Air Force will let him fly–he told me I was on his list. When I asked what the hell the list was, he tells me the list is those he is going to take up, I am stoked from that, I hope I puke and nearly pass out and can’t walk afterward. Flying in a jet, I never thought that would happen.

I played racquetball with Chadd tonight and we talked after. Chadd has been published, Hi may is ABD, Liz soon, Beth is basically a doctor now, life and death stuff. There are times when I think, man I need to do this and many other moments when I have no desire, but it is a weird feeling to think that four of my good friends will be Doctors soon, oh and Hi May, post about your job.

So this leads me to think about what I am doing and why. I love advising, it is “below” my capabilities and perhaps, well I don’t know, perhaps…

I have written, spoken and thought about this a lot, and it is fundamentally why I wanted to start a blog in this manner. I have always, mostly, thought about blogs in a narcissistic manner, I didn’t want to put random crap out there, it always felt as ‘listen to me.’ I wasn’t interested, but sometime in the last few months I realized that I wanted to do this as a community. It is no shock to those who know me, see Liz’s post and the responses that I do my best thinking in conversation. I am a better than adequate writer, and a good researcher, but that is not where I am at my best. I thrive in conversation, in logically and theoretically explaining and probing and questioning. And, that is advising.

I like my ideas, and I am usually right, ah narcissism. But I need reaction, and thought and that moment where I philosophically slap someone across the face, I need that feedback. One of the greatest compliments I ever received was from Bob Antonio when we were talking about grad school and he said that I was good in class, he said that I had a certain elan that people listened to. Elan, I like that. So, in that spirit I converse.

I think a lot about living up to my potential, as others, especially my mom (no baggage there) have told me, and I think about what I do and what I want to do. In my interview for my promotion they asked a question about how this job fits with my goals (my impulse response is that goals are for the weak), they always ask this question. My response: I want to be in a place in which ideas are discussed and respected and where I can be weird and people accept that. At times, I find that brilliant. At other times I want that cultural capital that comes with the Ph.D.

So, back to Bob Antonio, in some ways I equate myself to Bob. He, I believe, could have taught anywhere, but he once told me that he likes KU b/c of the hardiness of midwestern students. He publishes and does a fine job, but he is an educator. His classes are litmus tests. If you can please Bob, then you are in fine shape. The point is that Bob decided that educating was more important that any other imprint he could have left.

I think about this when I think about advising. My ideas are sound, but I don’t know if they are revolutionary, besides when does an article in the Journal of Sociology really do anything? But, advising turns me on for two reasons. I get to feed off students and their interests. During a day I get to talk about higher order Mathematics, sociological theory, religion and politics and they pay me for it. Now, I also work with those who can’t or won’t get it, but there is still reward in helping them understand their weaknesses, strengths or real desires, like ‘why the hell are you in college.’ For someone who really believes we are a doomed species I find a lot of affirmation in helping others.
I am rambling. The point is that I have many interests and I get to explore those with/through my students. This is also great b/c there are times when they really are surprised that I can pull a random fact about whatever, and then they believe me and listen to my sagelike advice, I am tricky like that.

The second reason: I, at this point, find more value in helping others search and think about their passions than really exploring whatever mine might be. Helping a student understand that Public Health is really some amalgamation of Biology, Ecology, Political Science and Geography is so much fun I can hardly stand it. Getting them to define their interests Socratically and helping them understand that there is no answer is relevatory.

Molly is going to NOLS, Jared is going to fly jets, Taylor will try and fix Africa, Rhonda is going back to Western Kansas to teach–where else do you get to do this? Now the caveat is that most of my students are 28+ ACT, so that makes life easier.

So why advising? Because they are surprised that their advisor is competent, they are surprised that I know what the hell they are saying and b/c they aren’t ready for that, the defenses are down.

That being said, I am taking a class this semester. Geography 576: Cultural Geography of the United States. We talked about barns for two days, if you can’t understand how exciting that is then I don’t know what to tell you. I had to write a paper, a five pager. Literally, three hours, if that of work. It is strange getting old, it has been three years since I have written anything that directed. I have forgotten how to write, it was an unorganized mess, but it felt good. Being in front of a keyboard at two in the morning, moving paragraphs, writing topic sentences (for Hi may, for those of you who don’t know, Jaime, Hi may.) Papers have always been a logic puzzle for me, you just have to look long enough and massage the info enough to get it to fit. I also have gained a better understanding of the difference between undergrad and grad school. In grad school you don’t have to follow prompts on bad questions, this assignment was a bad question.

But, it was very fulfilling. I was not at all pleased with the final product, but the act of doing research, of reading a book with a pen. What a great feeling that is, I did it for awhile after I graduated but I felt pompous, I love reading a book with a pen, writing notes in the margins, underlining.

I don’t know, maybe there is more to be said, this is a disgustingly long post, but these are things I have been thinking and wanted to share. The writing of the paper makes me want to compose.

According to Minnesota Public Radio, we should be experiencing 10-12 inches of snow over the weekend, including THUNDERSNOW!

Apparently, thundersnow is a snow storm where it lightenings and thunders as the snow falls, creating (I think) an almost strobe-light effect. One Canadian blogger I read, who saw today what’s coming our way, had this to say about it:

“As we stood there, there was a crazy flash of light that illuminated each and every enormous flake falling from the sky. They all appeared to be suspended for an instant, then resumed falling. For a second I thought I was actually having that stroke I keep telling the girls they are giving me, and then we heard it. A very loud, strange and muffled “boom”…that was bizarre in the context of a heavy snowfall, but unmistakable. Thunder.

Thunder? Thundersnow. It was something. Totally something. I don’t remember seeing or hearing anything like it before. … Nice show, Mother Nature. Wicked surprise.“

I can’t wait!

I’ve spent some time collecting journal articles relevant to my interests; mostly online, but about 10% of them I’ve had to pull out of the university library (the actual physical building! in this day and age!). And as shocking to me as it is, I have only recently considered all the time people must have put into these articles. How many hours go into the research for just one article? Extrapolating that to one binding with dozens of articles, then the entire shelf you are standing next to, then the entire floor, and entire library, completely blows my mind. I wonder how many collective research hours/years are in a university library?

I guess actually starting my own project and realizing how much time it is taking me, combined with the forays into the library that end with me lugging an awkward 30 pounds of bound journals (for only 6 actual articles, damn giant bindings!) down to the copy room has precipitated these thoughts. I am disappointed that I’ve never though a second about it before. As an undergrad, all those rows were just an impedance to the specific thing I was looking for.

Here’s a nice little design that i did for the thing that i’m working on. This appears center chest on orange shirt.

I don’t know everyone on this post, so I thought I would just introduce myself. Hello, my name is Liz. I moved from Lawrence 4 years ago and have been on the west coast ever since. Also, I am Trevor’s cousin. Nice to meet you. There, done.

I am, at the moment, and for most moments for the next 6 weeks, studying for my qualifying exams, writing my proposal, and writing a computer model to look at how well marine reserves work when you assume adult animals move (as they often do). So I will pose a question:

What do you know about marine reserves?

I have been working on this for so long that I have no idea anymore what the average intelligent person who isn’t entrenched in this everyday thinks or knows about the subject, and I am very interested to find out.

If you would like to know more I can send my powerpoint to Trevor. He gives a mean presentation of my project. But you’ll have to get him drunk first.

Tim Ryun (D) Ohio, “I don’t yield.” Tim Ryun gives his “friends from the other side” a piece of his patriotic mind.