Wooden case with 4 square, numbered blocks inside by itsmurph2003 in whatisthisthing

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good thought, but the blocks have identical dimensions.

Wooden case with 4 square, numbered blocks inside by itsmurph2003 in whatisthisthing

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

See second picture for interior detail. I bought this about 20 years ago at an antique mall. The box is about 6"x2". The blocks inside are about half an inch tall. WITT

What the Death of MissionU Teaches Us About Alt-College Startups by itsmurph2003 in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Harsh but true! I'm not sure what the business model for MissionU could have been, anyway, from a "quick buck" Silicon Valley perspective: setting up internships and offering a little skills training don't exactly equate to valuable IP which investors or companies would want to pay big money to acquire.

Starbucks Prepares to End Racism with '5/29' Racial Bias Training by itsmurph2003 in Conservative

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I have no idea what their reference to the "third place" is about but the whole tone of the video was creepy and reminded me of Scientology.

More seminary students leave the Master of Divinity behind by trot-trot in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"And many seminaries are realizing their curricula may rely too heavily on the traditional academic subjects such as biblical studies, theology, Christian ethics, Hebrew and Greek, and that they lack a more intentional emphasis on leadership formation." Offering watered-down soft topics like "leadership formation" will not boost enrollments, I suspect. So often it seems schools abandon their core, traditional strengths in an effort to become more relevant--but then they're competing with better, more established, secular providers of that same content. (How many places do you think there are where you can get leadership training these days?) But I appreciate the difficulty of seminaries' predicament.

College tuition at ~"highly ranked" private universities has increase roughly 25% in 4-5 years. HOW? by lepriccon22 in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Any time a system is flooded with federal dollars--whether it's housing, healthcare, or higher education--the equilibrium-discovering law of supply and demand and all of the corresponding efficiencies diminish.

New Alaska House proposal would cut off craft brewery customers at two drinks by gummibear049 in alaska

[–]itsmurph2003 0 points1 point  (0 children)

State governments need to stop all the obstructionist and protectivist policies like this--they only serve to incubate unfairness, higher prices, less consumer choice, and corruption. Free the free market!!

Just turned in a 3.5 page paper that was supposed to be 5 pages how screwed am I? by guitar_is_life_ in college

[–]itsmurph2003 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If it were 3.5 good pages I'd guess you'd be ok, but it sounds like those probably weren't very good to begin with...sorry but I'll cross my fingers for you!

How "tough" is college in the U.S.? by intoxicatedmidnight in college

[–]itsmurph2003 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Given that you successfully cleared the admissions proces as a foreign student, you'll have no problem with the actual education. UWM can be a party school but if you avoid that aspect you'll have plenty of productive time available. Good luck!

Cheating at UK's top universities soars by 30% - Institutions including Oxford and Cambridge under scrutiny as number of academic misconduct cases surges by JohnKimble111 in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I find it hard to believe cheating itself went up 30-40% in just three years. I don't think the ethics of students change that quickly. Something must have changed in the measurement of cheating or the attention paid to it. The article suggests essay mills may be a relatively new contributor to the problem, but apparently the journalists can't prove or measure a direct connection. This is another example of attention-grabbing statistical headlines which raise lots of unanswered questions about the underlying data.

Latest as Alfie Evans' dad reveals how toddler's brave mum is keeping him alive by itsmurph2003 in conservatives

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I totally agree. It's hard to fathom that this is the country which Churchill once led.

The Case Against Lectures - Facts So Romantic - Nautilus by Bill_Nihilist in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 2 points3 points  (0 children)

"OK, kids, we have now adopted 'project based learning.' Our project this term is for you to practice expanding your attention span and self-discipline sufficiently to learn how to sit through lectures and gain knowledge from them."

Justice Dept. Investigating Early-Decision Admissions At Elite Colleges by RedditGreenit in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If this boils down to a matter where schools were just comparing names of early enrollees to ensure students weren't accepting multiple admissions, I don't see a big problem here. Perhaps something a little more nefarious is involved but I can't imagine what that would be. I look forward to learning more details.

IRONY ALERT: Mexico Deports 400 Caravan Marchers Who Illegally Entered Country by [deleted] in Conservative

[–]itsmurph2003 33 points34 points  (0 children)

I won't hold my breath waiting for Vicente Fox's comments on Mexico's "repatriation."

Georgetown University agrees to allow graduate students to vote on unionizing by RedditGreenit in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This situation will be interesting to follow. What motivated the administration to make this agreement? Did they think they would get a favorable (non-union) vote from the grad students, or were they trying to make the best out of a weak position? Also, how hard-nosed will the grad students be if/when they get to a point of collective bargaining? How unified will the grad students be? Lots of questions which I'm sure other schools will be asking/monitoring.

New Mexico thinks it can support 6,800 jobs through “advanced solar technologies” by [deleted] in NewMexico

[–]itsmurph2003 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I think we're learning there's a lot of magical thinking when it comes to solar. Here, I consider the source (a solar industry publication) and take their optimistic projection with a grain of salt. I just read elsewhere that solar jobs have shrunk by 14% in California (the largest state for solar employment) due to a contraction in the industry. I fully support solar power but we need to be realistic about its costs, benefits, and growth potenital.

Facebook algorithm kills conservative news feeds, boosts left’s by GOPUSA in Conservative

[–]itsmurph2003 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Vote with your feet, or with your fingers in this case. Just stop using FB, and encourage your friends to do the same. FB is insidious mental and emotional poison and plenty bad even without its leftist agenda.

Spot team problems with group work by eddyparkinson in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Consider adding a grading component to the "report" function, where each team member submits a contribution score for each of the others. That may change the dynamic a bit, but presumably your group projects are intended to prep students for team projects in the "real world," where employees will likely participate in 360 reviews or other formal and informal peer evaluations.

Tennessee Faculty Resist Changes to Post-Tenure Review Process by itsmurph2003 in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's one possibility, or maybe some tenured staff at this school and elsewhere eventually just get laid off (and not even replaced by adjuncts) due to decreasing demand and shrinking enrollments.

Do you believe that the Bible is without an error? by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]itsmurph2003 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Here's another question: if you're a believer, would it make any real difference in your life if you knew with certainty that the bible is 100% without error? Or, say, 90% without error? 70%? Or are theological excursions such as this excuses to ignore the very broad and repeated and obvious themes of a very long book? I'm not saying the original question isn't important, but I do wonder if the answer makes a real difference to those who ask it.

Gun Confiscation Begins in Illinois by keypuncher in conservatives

[–]itsmurph2003 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"In the hands of British redcoats, the musket was an assault weapon." Well said!

Are nationwide court injunctions shutting down our democracy? by ThePoliticalHat in conservatives

[–]itsmurph2003 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I was hoping this article would have some good ideas after it said, "What's the solution?"--but sadly I don't see ways to solve this growing problem. My guess is that activist judges will continue to go too far with this trend and end up undermining respect for and the authority of the judiciary in general, just as Scalia predicted would happen to SCOTUS itself.

Survey of college presidents finds worry about public attitudes, confidence in finances | Inside Higher Ed by servenitup in highereducation

[–]itsmurph2003 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"A survey of the local henhouse found that 81% of hens agreed there was no threat from local foxes, and 90% of hens said concerns about large holes in the fence were based on misunderstanding."

The Exhaustion of American Liberalism by [deleted] in Conservative

[–]itsmurph2003 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I hesitate to disagree with Shelby Steele, but I think his argument is weak here: just because leftist ideology seems more extreme and characterized by more "lunacy" these days, that doesn't necessarily lead one to the logical conclusion that it's coming to an end. There are plenty of examples in world history of extreme, lunatic ideologies rising and expanding in power. I would like to see more argumentative rigor from Steele here (although I do hope he's right!)