How are languages created, and how do they evolve? A group of deaf kids in Nicaragua have developed their own sign language and are teaching linguists much about the evolution of language.
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The Art Of Ethical Industry
“Over the past couple of decades, the ethics industry has kicked into high gear. We now have a growing number of professional ethicists who are prepared to act as superegos for hire to the various professions. Indeed, take any given profession and there is another profession called the ethics of that profession. (Think bioethics, medical ethics, legal ethics, computer ethics, and so forth.)”
A Code Of Ethics For Non-Profits
As government officials consider drafting new oversight rules for non-profits, a Washington group proposes a code of ethics that non-profits could sign on to. “As a matter of fundamental principle, the nonprofit and philanthropic community should adhere to the highest ethical standards because it is the right thing to do. As a matter of pragmatic self-interest, the community should do so because public trust in our performance is the bedrock of our legitimacy.”
Moyers To Retire From PBS
Bill Moyers is retiring from PBS and his show “Now.” “The veteran journalist said he had pondered the new course for some time, and originally considered stepping down in June, when he turns 70. Instead, he will scale back his duties after that, but stay on through the presidential race.”
Flavor Of The Year – Concert Halls
Civic buildings get built in waves, writes James Russell. “Cities often want to build the architectural bauble du jour in their unending search for the grail of world classness. There was a wave of convention centers, followed by sports stadiums, (add a zoo or aquarium here or there) then museums. Now, especially after the tumultuous reception that Disney Hall in Los Angeles received, everyone wants a concert hall.”
Detroit – Where Chamber Music Thrives
Chamber music series all over America have been struggling. But the Chamber Music Society of Detroit, celebrating its 60th birthday, has never been doing better. Its budget has doubled in the past decade, it has a record number of subscriber, and it consistently sells out its concerts.
Who Will Lead Them?
Who will take over the top jobs in New York’s top music administrative jobs? There aren’s a lot of good candidates. “The dearth of leadership material is not a consequence of poor remuneration. It is, rather, the fault of a system which diffuses authority in too many directions. The boss of most opera houses and concerthalls (Carnegie excepted) has an artistic director who makes the fun decisions and a board of big givers who double-guess everything else. The boss’s hands are manacled. Initiative is stifled and financial setbacks swiftly punished. The manager of a tyre plant in Denver has more power to transform the product than the president of any US arts centre or opera house.”
Scottish Opera Ring Won’t Hit Disk
Last year’s acclaimed Scottish Opera production of Wagner’s Ring cycle is blamed for helping precipitate the company’s financial crisis. There was a recording made, but it appears the company isn’t likely to release it. “Making and releasing a recording of the Ring Cycle, with its four separate parts, would be a major undertaking in a shrinking market for new classical recordings. But it is clear that a recording would have been widely welcomed by opera fans in Scotland and worldwide.”
Theatre Development Fund Hid Deficit By Diverting Government Money
The Ontario government has taken contral of a theatre development fund out of the hands of the Toronto Theatre Alliance “after an internal forensic audit revealed $161,000 had been diverted from the fund” into the TTA’s budget to cover up a deficit. “The annual operating budget of the organization is $350,000, but for the past two years, roughly $90,000 per annum was siphoned into it from the Commercial Theatre Development Fund and the Dora Support Fund to make it appear the books balanced.”
The CD Will Be Dead By 2007
“New studies show that young people have little interest in owning prepackaged music when just about every recording they want can be had as a download. For people stricken with the collecting disease, this plastic-free vision of the future sounds a little alarming. Sure, we smirked when Dustin Hoffman’s Benjamin was urged to go into plastics in “The Graduate.” But we’ve really come to love our plastic, especially when it contains the audio and visual stimulation we crave.”