The digital humanities is a common subject of discussion in the academic world, and Helen Burgess, assistant professor of English, recently contributed to this conversation by co-authoring an article in the journal “Digital Humanities Quarterly.”

In the article, Burgess and her co-author, Jeanne Hamming of Centenary College of Louisiana, argue that multimedia work places scholars in an extended network that combines minds, bodies, machines, and institutional practices, and lays bare the fiction that scholars are disembodied intellectuals who labor only with the mind.

The article is entitled “New Media in the Humanities: Labor and the Production of Knowledge in Scholarly Multimedia” and was published in the Summer 2011 edition of the journal.

Delegates and representatives have flown home allowing the dust to settle around the COP-17 talks in Durban, but the substance and outcomes of the two week long talks remain a bit hazy. Overall, our world's leading environmental envoys and ministers spent 14 days (after an unusual extension) debating the best approach to addressing global climate change, and came up with:

1) creating a Global Climate Fund to assist developing countries with climate adaptation

2) developing a new global treaty some time in the future to supplant Kyoto and require developing countries to also reduce emissions

Much like previous years, the passive nature of the resolutions is disappointing though not surprising; the fundamental economic disparities between developed and developing countries continue to yield discussions around accountability for emissions as opposed to strategic reductions of emissions.

Still, college students made an impression and conveyed the message that real action is needed, and it's needed fast. Most notably, Middlebury College student Abigail Borah interrupted Todd Stern, the US Special Envoy for Climate Change (see video below): "I am scared for my future. 2020 is too late to wait," she said. "We need an urgent path to a fair ambitious and legally binding treaty."

Photos

Japanese youth at COP-17

Indigenous group protests tar sands

For more photos from Durban, see Sustain Us's Flickr stream

Videos

Middlebury College Student Speaks Up:

US Youth say "2020: It's too late to wait"

Courtesy the NY Times

Integration in public schools? Didn’t that already happen in the 1950s?

While some might argue that Brown v. Board ended the debate on racial integration, other critics argue that the situation has actually become much worse than it was in ‘54.

Today, 40% of Latino students and 30% of Black students attend schools where they are 90-100% of the student body.

So what do we do? With studies showing that the “minority” will actually become the majority in the 2040s, it would be best to figure this challenge out before then. As the CEO of Denver SST Public Schools argues,

“The United States is rapidly becoming a majority-minority country. Learning certain skill sets is imperative in order to live and work successfully with people who look different from ourselves, and it is critical that we begin to deliberately prepare our young people for this reality.

Effectiveness in our colleges and universities, our workplaces, and in public leadership will require it.”

Not buying it? A recent study by the Century Foundation found that low-income students (where there is disproportionate concentration of Latinos and Blacks) achieve more success in better school environments. The report cited that those in who had the opportunity to study at more affluent schoolsperformed nearly two years ahead of their low-income peers who studied in high-poverty schools.

Think integration is important? Is this an effective way to teach America’s youth how to appreciate cultural and ethnic diversity? If so, how best can further school integration be managed?

Image from NPR

2 Questions.

#1: Who thinks it’s a good idea for a 13 year old to have a child?

Okay… we can probably all agree on that one.

#2: How do we prevent 13 year old’s from having children.

Okay… that complicated.

It has also gotten a little more complicated by a decision made in Washington by President Obama last week.

Here’s the background… An emergency contraceptive tablet called “Plan B” was being reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its safety and effectiveness. The FDA declared Plan B was safe for girls to use and should be available to all ages without prescription (it had previously been available only to those over 17).

But then the Obama administration jump into the fray.

Last Wednesday, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius overruled the FDA’s decision, restricting access to this emergency contraception for all minors under 17. She wasn’t convinced Plan B was safe enough for younger children.

President Obama announced that he supported the Secretary’s decision.

This got lots of folks frustrated with the President. Many think his decision was based less on child safety and more on election politics.

Here’s what some are arguing:

1. Plan B is Safe -   Check out this list of 5 commons drugs more dangerous than Plan B.  Should we be stashing Advil behind the counter too?

2. Increases Barriers for Everyone - Fact: Emergency contraception is more effective the sooner you take it.  Putting Plan B behind the counter and requiring ID verification increases the barriers to everyone –   here are some stories about women’s adverse experiences trying to get Plan B

3. Disproportionately Hurts Young Women of Color – The age requirement hurts young African-American and Latina women, who have much higher rates of accidental pregnancy that young white women.  Requiring an ID also prevents undocumented immigrants who lack ID from accessing emergency contraception.  Check out ColorLines coverage of the issue for more.

4. The Daughter Test is Dumb - When Obama came out supporting Sebelius’s, he prefaced his support by saying “as the father of two daughters.”  The writers at Feministing explored the idea of making restrictive public policy decisions based on what we would want our daughters to do over the summer.

5. Increases abortions - Limiting access to contraception decreases use of said contraception.  Decreased use of contraception increases unintended pregnancies.  An increase in unintended pregnancies is pretty likely to cause an increase in abortions.

6. Decisions should be based on science not politics - FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg

reviewed and thoughtfully considered the data, clinical information, and analysis [and found that] Plan B One-Step is safe and effective and should be approved for nonprescription use for all females of child-bearing potential.

So naturally, a political decision was made to overrule this decision.

7. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine all agree with the FDA – and disagree with Sebelius and Obama.  Decisions about the well-being of women’s reproductive health should be made by medical experts – not by politicians attempting to placate conservatives.

What’s your take on the Plan B brouhaha?

TEAR.  

Don't worry, we're not actually crying.  Instead, we are going to Baltimore City to see Through the Eyes of a Refugee (TEAR).  Have you ever wanted to help others, but don't have enough time during the semester?  For four days during spring break, you will spend the night in a residence hall at UMBC and take day trips into Baltimore City to do service with refugees.  Each day, we will work with the refugees by tutoring English, writing and revising resumes, and discussing American culture to help them feel comfortable living in a new country.

In addition to daily service, there will be reflections and group time when you make meals together and play games or do activities.  Finally, we will spend a night camping to simulate a refugee experience of living one night with limited resources.  The trip cost is a total of $75.00.  TEAR is a great way to meet new people at UMBC and help those who really need it.  We are going to have a fun, fulfilling, and heartwarming spring break.  Let's TEAR, but not cry!

DOCcupy the Movement #2 from ircumbc on Vimeo.

DOCcupy the Movement #2 from ircumbc on Vimeo.

USDemocrazy presents a series of short videos documenting the Occupy Baltimore movement. Rather than focus on the oft-purported ideologies of the protestors, these videos focus on the realities and logistics of the movement. The second selection in this installment, this video is about some of the security issues faced by Chief and other members of the movement.

Let us know what you think and be sure to keep an eye out for the third installment in our series.

Hopefully you all have found study groups and are preparing for your final exams.