"On the occasion of the American Sociological Association's centennial, The Chronicle asked seven sociologists to discuss what attracted them to the field, what they consider to be the discipline's fortes and failings, and where they'd like to see it go from here." The author of this article describes the concerns that led her to choose sociology…

The death of his father prompts the author and university professor to reflect on the acts of grieving and teaching. He offers a tribute to his deceased father while commenting on the importance of teaching in his life.

The Knight of the Sorrowful Countenance is turning 400. By some accounts, the first part of Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes's masterpiece, was available in Valladolid by Christmas Eve 1604, although Madrid did not get copies until January 1605. Thus came to life the "ingenious gentleman" who, ill equipped with antiquated armor "stained with rust…

As a chemistry professor at a liberal-arts college, the author believes it is his job to find the youthful awe in his students and draw it out so that they will be intrigued once again by science and nature, so that they want to learn about equilibria, pH, and redox reactions. He has to go fishing inside their brains, to find, hook, and reel in…

Media and news companies strive to keep costs down while maximizing profit through electronic news and information dissemination and engaging in unethical personnel managing practices. The author argues that journalism teachers and schools have catered to the demands of media companies by concentrating only on skills demanded by the industry. It…

Media coverage of the worldwide outbreak of avian flu and the potential for a pandemic has resulted in anxiety and consternation among members of the US public. The US President George W. Bush has released the federal pandemic-preparedness plan that calls on communities to coordinate plans with local and state health departments and other…

For the first time in history, technology has given each of us the means to access our own virtual Libraries. Itis fantastic that we can search the treasure house of information that is now available online, pluck out what we want-- or at least think we want-- and drop it into a computer file that we can deposit in an electronic folder. Indeed, in…

Carol Twigg, president of the National Center for Academics Transformation and a secondary school teacher, debates on whether technology in the classroom improves student learning. She claims that the key to increasing student learning is to get students more engaged in what they are studying.

Administrators of various education schools have vowed to ready their institutions for the next major disaster of flu pandemic. While a few colleges with expertise or interest in the area are trying to determine how their campuses should react to a flu pandemic, most seem to be struggling with how to fit all the unknowns of such a crisis into…

The number of families who home school their children is growing between five and 15% per year and it is believed that home schoolers outperform their public-educated peers, though critics believe that home schooling is a form of religious fanaticism and a means of avoiding diversity. A professor explains how he and his wife, home school their…

Author discusses the course that led him to the field of sociology. He argues that sociologists' strength is their immediacy to the subject studied, the social world, and their weakness, sociologists' propensity towards moralism and social ideology. Author advocates detachment for a full understanding of how the social world functions.

Africa produces imaginative and authentic literature whose texture makes it impossible to think of Africans as statistics. African writers, however have to struggle to get recognized in America due to their culture and other racial and social differences, hence suggesting that efforts should be made to give authentic African literature its due.

Despite governmental efforts to reform higher education in Egypt, faculty and students are concerned that academic freedom will remain limited. This article discusses censorship, funding, overcrowding, corruption, and mismanagement in public Egyptian universities.

When Dr. Skorton was tapped as Iowa's president, in 2003, his appointment was widely favored by faculty and staff members. Unlike most academics who give up their day jobs when they become college presidents, Dr. David J. Skorton 55, kept his when he took the reins at Iowa two years ago. A cardiologist by training, he still sees patients with…

The Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader was invited to speak at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in November 2005 to promote the idea that through meditation, an emerging meeting point for science and religion in contemporary culture can be reached. However, some members of the association were offended at the implied endorsement…