Dear Commons Community,

Over the past week, a major free speech controversy has been brewing at the University of California, Berkeley, after the University administration informed Berkeley’s College Republicans, who invited Coulter to speak, that an April 27 event would need to be rescheduled due to concerns that her speech would set off violent protests and make it difficult to maintain campus security.   Bernie Sanders strongly criticized the University administration for its decision.  Here is an excerpt of Sanders’ comments as reported by various media including The Huffington Post:

 “I don’t like this. I don’t like it,” Sanders told The Huffington Post after speaking at a rally for Omaha mayoral candidate Heath Mello on Thursday night. “Obviously Ann Coulter’s outrageous ― to my mind, off the wall. But you know, people have a right to give their two cents-worth, give a speech, without fear of violence and intimidation.”

Campus police have learned that groups responsible for recent clashes during demonstrations on campus and throughout the city planned to target Coulter’s event, according to the university.

Although on Thursday the university offered to host the speech in the afternoon on May 2, Coulter and the College Republicans have rejected the proposal, arguing that students are less likely to be able to attend an afternoon speech. In insisting on the original speaking date, they also note that May 2 is during a period when classes have ended and students are studying for finals.

Coulter has said that she still plans to speak on April 27 in the evening. She and the College Republicans are threatening litigation against the university.

The controversy over Coulter’s speech follows violent clashes between supporters of President Donald Trump and left-wing Trump critics at a pro-Trump rally in a park in the city of Berkeley. UC Berkeley also canceled a speech by right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos in February amid violent protests by some 1,500 people.

The events at UC Berkeley and protests against conservative speakers, which sometimes turned violent at other college campuses, have ignited a debate among progressives about the boundaries of free speech with some on the left insisting that racial demagoguery deserves to be countered as aggressively as possible.

Many other liberals argue that disruptions that effectively veto certain points of view are wrongheaded and counterproductive no matter how repugnant the speaker’s views.

Sanders made clear he is firmly in the latter camp.

“To me, it’s a sign of intellectual weakness,” he said. “If you can’t ask Ann Coulter in a polite way questions which expose the weakness of her arguments, if all you can do is boo, or shut her down, or prevent her from coming, what does that tell the world?”

“What are you afraid of ― her ideas? Ask her the hard questions,” he concluded. “Confront her intellectually. Booing people down, or intimidating people, or shutting down events, I don’t think that that works in any way.”

I am no fan of Ann Coulter but I agree fully with Sanders.  We need not be afraid of ideas but of attempts on the part of persons or organizations that prevent ideas from being expressed.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

The above video was produced by Greenpeace in 2011.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Earlier this year, I posted about the steps that California was considering to stem its teacher shortage.  In the Teachers College Record, Christopher Holland reviews the teacher shortage issue that is looming for many other states.  He attributes the growing “crisis” to a combination of poor working conditions and past education policies that foster teacher attrition.  He proposes several solutions but laments that many states will be reluctant to fund such programs.  Here is an excerpt:

“The Learning Policy Institute’s report, A Coming Crisis in Teaching? Teacher Supply, Demand, and Shortages in the U.S. projects a rather grim image of teacher shortage crises for every state across the nation (Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016). National enrollment levels in teacher-education programs have declined by 35% between 2009 and 2014 (691,000 to 451,000) (Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016). Moreover, a high national rate of teacher attrition (8%) continues to plague American school districts. Compared to nations like Finland and Singapore, the rate of attrition in the U.S. is double the rate of these nations (Heim, 2016; Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016). Among those who leave the profession, the vast majority of educators decide to exit voluntarily before they reach retirement. For example, 43% exit as a result of family or personal reasons and 57% cite job dissatisfaction resulting from a lack of administrative support, testing or accountability pressures, and difficult working conditions as the major reasons for leaving (Haynes, 2014; Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016).

This teacher shortage issue is especially evident in California, a state that educates over 10% of America’s K–12 students. Here, attrition and teacher education recruitment rates reflect a problematic trend. Enrollment in teacher preparation programs declined over 70% during the period between the academic years 2001–02 to 2014–15 (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017). Furthermore, although attrition rates in California (6.1%) are lower than the national average (8%), they are still well above the 4% experienced by top educational systems around the world (Camera, 2016). As a result of these trends, California schools became increasingly reliant on hiring educators with substandard credentialing. During the period 2012–13 to 2015–16, emergency-style provisional and short-term teaching permits increased by over 200% (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017). According to the Learning Policy Institute (2017), 55% of California school districts reported that they hired teachers with substandard credentials. Moreover, shortages continue to be worst in STEM, bilingual education, and special education classrooms throughout the state (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017). Finally, schools with higher rates of minority students and lower income students continue to feel the pains of teacher shortages at disproportionate rates compared to those districts with Caucasian students and higher income students (California Department of Education, 2015).

Besides issuing substandard credentials, state and local officials implemented other ineffective strategies to fill the gaps that have been caused by teacher shortages. These strategies include hiring substitute teachers, assigning teachers outside of their credentialed field, leaving positions vacant, increasing class sizes, and canceling courses (Learning Policy Institute, 2017). Although these policies were originally intended to be temporary solutions for the teacher shortage crisis, they exacerbate larger issues of subpar instruction and diminished student achievement (Learning Policy Institute, 2017).

Three proposed bills currently in the state legislature would maintain grant programs, loan forgiveness programs, and tax credit programs that aim to increase recruitment and retention rates for teachers. Although each piece of proposed legislation considers the financial realities that teachers face, they do little to fix the core issues associated with California’s teacher shortage problems. First, AB 169, introduced in the State Assembly on January 17, 2017, would reauthorize the Golden State Teacher Grant Program to provide up to $20,000 in grant money to teacher education students to complete certification requirements as long as they taught a high needs subject for at least four years after completing a degree or certification (2017). Second, AB 463, introduced in the State Assembly on February 13, 2017, would reauthorize the state’s Assumption Program of Loans for Educators incentive. This would earmark $5 million for a teacher recruitment program that provides high-achieving postsecondary students from disadvantaged backgrounds with the necessary financial resources to complete a degree and teach in rural low-income schools across the state for at least four years (2017). Third, SB 807, or the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Act of 2017, introduced in the State Senate on February 17, 2017, would provide educators with tax relief through two efforts (2017). First, it would offer credit for money spent on earning teaching credentials. Second, it would allow teachers who remain in the profession for more than five years to be free of paying any state tax on income earned from their profession.

Each of these three bills shares a significant budgetary focus and provides pre-service and full-time educators with major incentives to enter and stay in the classroom. Despite this, they do not address the major reasons behind teacher shortage. As was stated earlier, the vast majority of educators who decide to leave the profession do so voluntarily before retirement (Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016). Personal life events and employment dissatisfaction overwhelmingly rank as the most cited reasons for leaving teaching early (Sutcher, Darling-Hammond, & Carver-Thomas, 2016).

Moreover, many educators like Stephen Mucher link high percentages of disgruntled teachers to an undesirable educational system that negatively impacts recruitment efforts (Strauss, 2015). Although not a full empirical investigation, Mucher’s reflection on his efforts to find and recruit pre-service educators highlights connections among college students’ lack of enthusiasm for entering the teaching profession and growing efforts to standardize K–12 curricula, eliminate tenure and seniority, maximize school choice, and further advance efforts to expand high-stakes accountability through standardized assessments (Strauss, 2015). In this respect, state officials should conceptualize the issues of attrition and teacher recruitment as entwined and use innovative solutions in structuring proper interventions that can resolve both of these problems.”

This is “crisis”that will get worse before it gets better. It will also lead policymakers to consider greater use of online learning technology to alleviate the teacher shortages that will plague many public schools.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

A team of scientists from multiple universities and clinics have been collaborating on new technology to develop a sort of “pacemaker” for the brain.  The technique — called direct neural recording – is based on the clinical placement of electrodes and is fast becoming  the leading edge of research into the biology of human memory.  Here is an excerpt from a New York Times article describing the latest development  in using this technology

“Well-timed pulses from electrodes implanted in the brain can enhance memory in some people, scientists reported on Thursday, in the most rigorous demonstration to date of how a pacemaker-like approach might help reduce symptoms of dementia, head injuries and other conditions.

The report is the result of decades of work decoding brain signals, helped along in recent years by large Department of Defense grants intended to develop novel treatments for people with traumatic brain injuries, a signature wound of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The research, led by a team at the University of Pennsylvania, is published in the journal Current Biology.

Previous attempts to stimulate human memory with implanted electrodes had produced mixed results: Some experiments seemed to sharpen memory, but others muddled it. The new paper resolves this confusion by demonstrating that the timing of the stimulation is crucial.

Zapping memory areas when they are functioning poorly improves the brain’s encoding of new information. But doing so when those areas are operating well — as they do for stretches of the day in most everyone, including those with deficits — impairs the process.

“We all have good days and bad days, times when we’re foggy, or when we’re sharp,” said Michael Kahana, who with Youssef Ezzyat led the research team. “We found that jostling the system when it’s in a low-functioning state can jump it to a high-functioning one.”

Researchers cautioned that implantation is a delicate procedure and that the reported improvements may not apply broadly. The study was of epilepsy patients; scientists still have much work to do to determine whether this approach has the same potential in people with other conditions, and if so how best to apply it. But in establishing the importance of timing, the field seems to have turned a corner, experts said.

Experts said the new report gives scientists a needed blueprint for so-called closed-loop cognitive stimulation: implanted electrodes that both monitor the functional state of memory areas, moment to moment, and deliver pulses only in the very microseconds when they’re helpful. The hope is that such sensitive, timed implants could bolster thinking and memory in a range of conditions, including Alzheimer’s and other dementias, as well as deficits from brain injury.”

This is indeed an important breakthrough and a glimpse into the future of man-machine interfaces that overcome diseases and injuries to the brain and other human organs.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

A fifteen-story high iceberg ran aground earlier this week off New Foundland that is providing a photo shoot for people in the area.  It is a majestic chunk of the Arctic Sea that is captivating locals and tourists alike. Here is its story as reported by the Associated Press and the New York Times:

“An iceberg ran aground over Easter weekend just off the small Newfoundland town of Ferryland, population 465, drawing knots of tourists eager to catch a glimpse.

Some are locals or travelers who happened to be nearby, but many are a special Canadian breed, the iceberg chaser — people who flock to the coasts of Labrador and Newfoundland at this time of year hoping to see the huge frozen chunks of broken glacier that drift by on a stretch of sea known as Iceberg Alley.

The berg at Ferryland rises about 15 stories above the waterline — and that is only about 10 percent of its mass. Some of the submerged ice comes into view when the berg is seen from above.

“Most folks can’t wrap their heads around how big it is,” Barry Rogers, the owner of Iceberg Quest Ocean Tours, a Newfoundland tour operator, said in an interview on Thursday.

Iceberg season starts in April, and there has been a bumper crop this year. More than 600 bergs have drifted into the North Atlantic shipping lanes so far, a count not usually reached until late May or early June, according to the International Ice Patrol of the United States Coast Guard in New London, Conn. The typical amount for April is closer to 80.

Heavy winds have blown several icebergs close to shore — a boon for iceberg chasers, but a nuisance for the local fishing industry. The entrance to the harbor in St. John’s, the provincial capital, is “plugged solid,” Mr. Rogers said. “A lot of our fisher folks are just tied onto the wharf, waiting for the ice to move offshore.”

The stunning view that is causing traffic jams of onlookers on the coast road is actually a snapshot of the iceberg’s death throes, 15,000 years in the making. What began as snowflakes falling on Greenland during the last ice age has crept to the sea in a glacier and then broken off, probably sometime in the last three years, to float slowly out into Baffin Bay. Bumped and nudged by one another and by melting pack ice, the bergs eventually get caught up in the southbound Labrador Current and sail down Iceberg Alley.

Exposed to the warmer sun of spring and summer in lower latitudes, the bergs begin to shrink and to develop large crevices that channel floods of meltwater. If they come near shore, the bergs may bottom out on the ocean floor and come under immense pressure as the seawater stops supporting their weight. Falling tides are often the final straw, causing the grounded iceberg to break up suddenly into the waves.”

Incredible sight!

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

I returned home last night from Andalucia after eighteen hours of travel on trains, planes, and automobiles.  It was a wonderful trip to an interesting part of the Western world.  Lots of history, culture, and friendly people.

The top news this morning has to be the ouster of Bill O’Reilly at Fox News because of sexual harassment charges by multiple women.  O’Reilly had the top-rated cable news show for years, was a hugely successful author with his “Killing….” series of books, and had a popular touring show with Dennis Miller.  The Murdoch family had no choice but to oust O’Reilly after sponsors started abandoning the show.  Below is an excerpt from page one of the New York Times:

“Bill O’Reilly’s reign as the top-rated host in cable news came to an abrupt and embarrassing end on Wednesday as Fox News forced him out after the disclosure of a series of sexual harassment allegations against him and an internal investigation that turned up even more.

Mr. O’Reilly and his employers came under intense pressure after an article by The New York Times on April 1 revealed how Fox News and its parent company, 21st Century Fox, had repeatedly stood by him even as he and the company reached settlements with five women who had complained about sexual harassment or other inappropriate behavior by him. The agreements totaled about $13 million.

Since then, more than 50 advertisers had abandoned his show, and women’s rights groups had called for him to be fired. Inside the company, women expressed outrage and questioned whether top executives were serious about maintaining a culture based on “trust and respect,” as they had promised last summer when another sexual harassment scandal led to the ouster of Roger E. Ailes as chairman of Fox News.

That left Mr. O’Reilly’s fate in the hands of the Murdoch family, which controls 21st Century Fox. In the end, according to two people familiar with the decision, Rupert Murdoch and his sons, James and Lachlan, made their call after reviewing the results of an internal investigation that found that multiple women had reported inappropriate behavior by Mr. O’Reilly.”

While we applaud Fox News for taking this step, we have to wonder what kind of a misogynist culture Murdoch and the owners allowed to develop at the network. 

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Cordoba has a wonderful old city that includes the Mezquita Mosque and Cathedral as well as a number of other interesting sights. The Guadalquivir River has several beautiful bridges and Roman ruins on its banks.  La Juderia or the Jewish Quarter is a series of winding small streets  with crafts shops and well-kept homes.  A dark part of Spain’s history was the expulsion of Jews  from the country in 1492 by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabela.  A wonderful bronze sculpture of Ben Maimonides sits in one small square in La Juderia. Maimonides was a medieval Sephardic Jewish philosopher, astronomer, and physician who was born in Spain and who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah scholars of the Middle Ages.  Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York is named after him.  La Sinagoga (Synagogue), a small square building in this Quarter, dates to 1315. It is one of only three medieval synagogues still in existence in Spain.  The other two are in Toledo.

Tony

Sculpture of Ben Maimonides in La Juderia

Inside La Sinagoga

Dear Commons Community,

We are spending two days in Cordoba and our first place to visit was Mezquita.

Mezquita has to be one of the world’s most impressive buildings thereby making it one of the top tourist attractions in Spain.  Each year approximately 1.5 million tourists marvel at this landmark that features several architectural styles and unites religious elements of Islam and Christianity. Originally a mosque dating to 784 AD, part of the interior was converted into a cathedral between 1523 and 1766 when King Carlos I gave permission to rip out the centre of the Mezquita in order to construct the Capilla Mayor (the main altar area) and coro (choir).  

The original mosque was intended as a horizontal and simple space, where the spirit could be free to roam and communicate easily with God – a kind of glorious refinement of the original simple Islamic prayer space (usually the open yard of a desert home).  However, the breadth of the interior with its 856 marble columns just goes on forever and ever in every direction.

The garden has cyprus, palm and fruit trees with wide paths for people to walk in around the Mezquita.  An enormous bell tower replaced the original minaret.

Incredible structure!

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Yesterday we visited the University of Seville and several nearby parks.

The University has a rich history.  Its origin was the Santa María de Jesús School, founded by Rodrigo Fernández de Santaella in the late 1460s.  It moved to its present location in 1948 which previously was the site of the Royal Tobacco Factory, a massive building created by the engineer Van der Beer.  The factory, constructed between 1728 and 1771, was the second largest building in Spain and at one time produced 75% of all cigars that were sold in Europe.  This factory was the setting for the famous opera Carmen by Georges Bizet where the main character, Carmen – a woman who worked in the factory – fell in love with one of the soldiers guarding the building.  Signs on the wall of what is now a University building commemorate that it originally was the Fabrica Real Tabacos.  In 2010,the University of Seville was recognised as a Campus of International Excellence, thanks largely to its Andalucía Tech Project.

Near the University are several parks and plazas that are pleasant open spaces that were being enjoyed by people on a warm Saturday afternoon.  The photos below were taken at the Parque Maria Luisa and the Plaza de Espana.

Tony