The CityLab website has an interesting story about American megaregions, complete with a link to an interactive map. It appears that I now live in “Goldengate” (the SF Bay Area + Sacramento). I’ve also resided in “Laurentide” (Minneapolis-St. Paul area), “Winnebago” (Milwaukee area), “Twain” (St. Louis), “Tecumseh” (Indianapolis area), “Roanoke” (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill), “Catalpa” (Charlotte), and “Peachtree” (Atlanta). Interesting!
etc.
Every weekday (and usually also on Sundays) I commute to work via the Amtrak Capitol Corridor train from Oakland to San José. The trip takes about an hour and 15 minutes each way. Adding time to get to or from the stations in Oakland and San José plus allowing extra time for potential traffic delays, my commute is about two hours each way…four hours per day (!). According to the short documentary Train Life, however, my Capitol Corridor commute is pretty normal. Train Life was made in 2004, and is composed of interviews of passengers on the Sacramento-Berkeley leg of the Capitol Corridor. Someone should remake it to focus on the Oakland-San José leg. If I were the filmmaker I’d also add interviews with the conductors, and ask folks about their use of technology while on the train [I’m a bit surprised that this did not come up in the interviews.] I’d be a lot less happy, for example, without my iPad, Internet access via free Wi Fi, and wireless headphones…
I recently discovered the Atlas Obscura, a website that helps us “discover curious places—in your neighborhood and around the world.” The listing for Hidden Oakland has 21 entries for “weird attractions and unusual things to do in Oakland, California.” I have only experienced three of these places, so I need to get out more!
Citylab has posted a story about the status of various high-speed railroad projects in the United States. As daily commuter on Amtrak between Oakland and San José, CA I would love for a high speed line to be built along the Capitol Corridor. Alas, nothing appears to be currently on the drawing board, but one can hope!
Constitution Day commemorates the formation and signing of the U.S. Constitution. Many universities celebrate the day as a condition of receiving federal funding. The official day is September 17, but at SJSU we held an event on Thursday, September 15 given that a) September 17 is a Saturday, when very few students are on campus; and b) Fridays usually have fewer students on campus, so a Thursday event would draw more folks. We celebrated by reading the Constitution aloud, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM! Readers spook in 15 minutes shifts, including SJSU President Mary Papazian; my shift followed hers. It was a fun event!
On July 1, 2013 I became a dean for the first time, and I used this blog to chronicle my experiences as a newbie to full-time administration. I stopped posting entries at the end of my first year, but then started posting again at the end of the first week of my second dean appointment. Now the second year of the second dean appointment is underway, and it’s the start of my fourth year overall as a dean. I want to continue posting brief notes about experiences and observations as a social scientist who’s also a college administrator, so it’s time for a blog name change! “Dispatches From a New Dean” is now “Dispatches From a Dean.” Thanks to the folks at The Society Pages for keeping me on board!
Recently a friend and I had a conversation on the messaging service WhatsApp about mobile phone charging cables:
I’ll have to visit There’s Research on That! to see if my hunch is correct about mobile phone charging cables causing problems in folks’ ability to fully use their phones and stay connected with friends and family…
The Pacific Standard magazine has a short article about a book with a very intriguing title: Why Does the Other Line Always Move Faster? The Myths and Misery, Secrets and Psychology of Waiting in Line. I will have to add this book to my reading list, as I always end up in long lines, no matter what!
The Atlantic‘s CityLab website has an interesting article: “Why Are Little Kids in Japan So Independent?” Here in the Unites States some call children who are allowed to travel and/or play without much adult supervision “free-range kids.” As a child growing up in the 1970s I remember a time when “free-range kids” were just “kids.” I wonder if the U.S. can ever return to that state…
Next year I’ll have to organize a group photo of the SJSU College of Social Sciences Dean’s Office staff for an entry in the National College Colors Day Challenge. Perhaps we can all get shirts and hats like this:
Every weekday (and usually also on Sundays) I commute to work via the Amtrak Capitol Corridor train from Oakland to San José. The trip takes about an hour and 15 minutes each way. Adding time to get to or from the stations in Oakland and San José plus allowing extra time for potential traffic delays, my commute is about two hours each way…four hours per day (!). According to the short documentary Train Life, however, my Capitol Corridor commute is pretty normal. Train Life was made in 2004, and is composed of interviews of passengers on the Sacramento-Berkeley leg of the Capitol Corridor. Someone should remake it to focus on the Oakland-San José leg. If I were the filmmaker I’d also add interviews with the conductors, and ask folks about their use of technology while on the train [I’m a bit surprised that this did not come up in the interviews.] I’d be a lot less happy, for example, without my iPad, Internet access via free Wi Fi, and wireless headphones…
I recently discovered the Atlas Obscura, a website that helps us “discover curious places—in your neighborhood and around the world.” The listing for Hidden Oakland has 21 entries for “weird attractions and unusual things to do in Oakland, California.” I have only experienced three of these places, so I need to get out more!
Citylab has posted a story about the status of various high-speed railroad projects in the United States. As daily commuter on Amtrak between Oakland and San José, CA I would love for a high speed line to be built along the Capitol Corridor. Alas, nothing appears to be currently on the drawing board, but one can hope!
Constitution Day commemorates the formation and signing of the U.S. Constitution. Many universities celebrate the day as a condition of receiving federal funding. The official day is September 17, but at SJSU we held an event on Thursday, September 15 given that a) September 17 is a Saturday, when very few students are on campus; and b) Fridays usually have fewer students on campus, so a Thursday event would draw more folks. We celebrated by reading the Constitution aloud, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM! Readers spook in 15 minutes shifts, including SJSU President Mary Papazian; my shift followed hers. It was a fun event!
On July 1, 2013 I became a dean for the first time, and I used this blog to chronicle my experiences as a newbie to full-time administration. I stopped posting entries at the end of my first year, but then started posting again at the end of the first week of my second dean appointment. Now the second year of the second dean appointment is underway, and it’s the start of my fourth year overall as a dean. I want to continue posting brief notes about experiences and observations as a social scientist who’s also a college administrator, so it’s time for a blog name change! “Dispatches From a New Dean” is now “Dispatches From a Dean.” Thanks to the folks at The Society Pages for keeping me on board!
Recently a friend and I had a conversation on the messaging service WhatsApp about mobile phone charging cables:
I’ll have to visit There’s Research on That! to see if my hunch is correct about mobile phone charging cables causing problems in folks’ ability to fully use their phones and stay connected with friends and family…
The Pacific Standard magazine has a short article about a book with a very intriguing title: Why Does the Other Line Always Move Faster? The Myths and Misery, Secrets and Psychology of Waiting in Line. I will have to add this book to my reading list, as I always end up in long lines, no matter what!
The Atlantic‘s CityLab website has an interesting article: “Why Are Little Kids in Japan So Independent?” Here in the Unites States some call children who are allowed to travel and/or play without much adult supervision “free-range kids.” As a child growing up in the 1970s I remember a time when “free-range kids” were just “kids.” I wonder if the U.S. can ever return to that state…
Next year I’ll have to organize a group photo of the SJSU College of Social Sciences Dean’s Office staff for an entry in the National College Colors Day Challenge. Perhaps we can all get shirts and hats like this:
