“By the second half of the 20th century, it had assumed a dominant position in the world market in higher education. Compared with peer institutions in other countries, it came to accumulate greater wealth, produce more scholarship, win more Nobel prizes, and attract a larger proportion of talented students and faculty. US universities dominate global rankings. How did this remarkable transformation come about?”
Category: issues
University Free Speech Is Being Tested On US Campuses. It Should Be
“The current campus disruptions over what is and isn’t acceptable speech cannot be judged a blessing in disguise—they are far too illiberal and misguided for that. But by interfering with business as usual, perhaps they will also make it harder for the purported leaders of U.S. higher education to speak in lofty clichés while selling their birthright to deep-pocketed authoritarian sponsors.”
Weeks After Hurricane Harvey, Surveying The Damage To Houston’s Wortham Theater Center
“Long air ducts – large plastic tubes or funnels – run everywhere, even to the upstairs foyers. An indoor lake consumed the carpet at the front of the main theater’s auditorium (now covered in plastic sheets); fortunately the orchestra pit was sealed off. … The waters covered the focal point of any theater – the stage, not yet completely dry. An entirely new stage may be required. The full havoc that descended on the Wortham, however, becomes evident only on a visit to the corridors beneath the orchestra pit.”
Scotland’s Arts Funder Says Its Income Is Down, So Cuts Are Coming
“A reduction in National Lottery money, as well as an expected standstill or reduced grant from the Scottish Government, has led to Iain Munro, deputy chief executive of Creative Scotland, to warn arts, theatre, dance, literature and music companies that some will lose out in looming spending round.”
Trump Pulls US Out Of UNESCO
“UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization known for its designation of world heritage sites, is a global development agency with missions that include promoting sex education, literacy, clean water and equality for women. In a lengthy written statement, Irina Bokova, UNESCO’s director-general, expressed regret at the American withdrawal and said that the American people shared the organization’s goals.”
The Bilbao Effect – 20 Years Later
“For all its fame, there are many who ask if so-called the “Bilbao effect” is real, and if so, if it is easily repeatable. Was the Guggenheim Bilbao a unique combination of a project at the right time and in the right place—a great architect and daring museum combined with an unusually forward-looking regional government willing to invest? Have the reasons for its transformative effect been misunderstood, explaining why its model has been frequently imitated but its extraordinary success rarely replicated?”
Laughing In The Time Of Trump
“Humor in the time of Trump is a triumph for our democracy. There’s nothing he can do to stop it and the message has plenty of messengers. Information is there for anyone who wants to know, as comedy takes on a pioneering new role in the dissemination of that information. Resistance takes many forms, and humor may turn out to be the most potent of all.”
Eight Ways Non-Profits Talk About Exploiting Workers
“The nature of nonprofit exploitation is revealed in the language we use uncritically. I’ve ranked eight common nonprofit phrases from least to most exploitative.”
Lessons From The Collapse Of Lincoln Center’s Concert Hall Project For The NY Philharmonic?
“The ‘Old World’ model of Geffenesque patrons seems to be receding, making way for donors striving to solve real-world problems. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to shoehorn a $500-$800 million capital project for a legacy institution into a paradigm that frames the arts as a vehicle for social change. This trend is permeating public policy, as well. Consider the political landscape that is Bill de Blasio’s New York City. While legacy institutions have expected some sort of public support from the mayor’s office since time immemorial, de Blasio has instead shifted the city’s focus to smaller institutions across the five boroughs.”
New Evidence That Online Dating Is Changing Our Culture
eal social networks are not like either of these. Instead, people are strongly connected to a relatively small group of neighbors and loosely connected to much more distant people. These loose connections turn out to be extremely important. “Those weak ties serve as bridges between our group of close friends and other clustered groups, allowing us to connect to the global community.”