POSTED BY MARTIN KICH This is a photo taken in 1937 in Prague of a mechanism called an “elevator desk”: In a period in which Varidesks have become very popular and the emphasis on ergonomic design has become commonplace, this photo may seem very anachronistic. But, I have to admit that I find something absolutely…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH Writing for Inside Higher Ed, Scott Jaschik has reported on how an “Unusual Donor Agreement at UNLV Raises Questions about Fund-Raising and Governance”: Len Jessup is on his way out as president of the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, after receiving unfavorable reviews from the system chancellor and clashing with…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH What follows is a brief descriptive item from the daily newsletter Curbed, taken largely from the announcement from Wright Auctions: A rare work by midcentury designer Isamu Noguchi, a 1948 marble table, is expected to fetch between $1 million and $1.5 million when it heads to the auction block later this year. A…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH The following is from a news story in the Arizona Republic: A bill to fundamentally restructure how Arizona’s three state universities are managed passed an Arizona Senate committee Monday as a fast-tracked proposal that won’t receive much public input. Rep. Mark Finchem, R-Oro Valley, wants to effectively dismantle the Arizona Board…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH What follows is the lead item in last night’s Overnight Technology newsletter from The Hill: Highlights from Zuckerberg’s Interviews: CNN: Zuckerberg said the company was open to some regulation. “Actually, I’m not sure we shouldn’t be regulated.” “I actually think the question is more ‘What is the right regulation?’ rather than ‘Yes…
BY HANK REICHMAN Listening to right-wing Republican whiners, you’d think that America’s college and university campuses have been overrun by thuggish “snowflake” leftists busily drowning out conservative voices in the name of some sort of ideologically purist “political correctness” dismissive of free speech. After U.C. Berkeley failed to find a safe venue for her…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH Our relationship with technology—and, in particular, technological advancements that are on the horizon and that promise major and not entirely predictable changes in how we conduct our daily lives—has always been ambivalent at best. But the newsletter teaser for an article in the Los Angeles Times on the inevitability of human…
POSTED BY MARTIN KICH The Wright State Chapter of AAUP will be holding three community forums this semester on the value of a public university to the Miami Valley region around Dayton. We have decided that since the university seems to de-emphasize faculty in its advertising and public messaging, we will attempt to redress that…
POSTED BY HANK REICHMAN The following is from the Washington Post: A high school student was suspended for “disrespect” after he called his congressman’s office and told lawmakers — as he recalls it — to “get off their f‑‑‑— asses” and pass gun-control laws. Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) has defended his staff member for reporting 17-year-old Noah…