“I went to school the same time as Al Gore. The only difference is that I went here and he went to Harvard,” lectured Professor Marde Gregory to her Speech 1 class as a segue into the topic of global warming. Although greenhouse gasses weren’t exactly popular conversation in the 1970s, they have eased their […]
Author Archives: Rashmi Joshi
Oprah’s school too limited and extravagant
Not so long ago, there was a Queen of Talkshowland, who was richer than even Midas. She was generous and quirky, and people generally liked her. One day, she made a promise to a revolutionary leader of far away South Africa to build a school for the children of his country. She built it, the […]
Beyond basics: educating outside the box
College students beware: Classes other than history, English, math and science might be of mild import in opening your eyes. But of course, novelty is dangerous in education, and anyone who goes above and beyond the well-worn “do re mi” scale of life is bound to be driving that bus to hell. Tell me you […]
From Russia with fraud
Begin with eerie spy-movie music, red lighting and a silhouette creeping along a darkened hallway. Gunshot. No, make that two. Last week, in what felt like Cold War deja vu, newspapers carried stories of dark Russian deeds. Investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya was murdered in broad daylight in October. Then, just last week, Alexander Litvinenko, a […]
Knowing thyself an astronomical task
A queen hangs upside down. She has grown accustomed to the company of a hunter mistakenly killed by a goddess and an age-old dragon, protector of golden apples and the Golden Fleece. This strange pseudo-realm where she exists was first referred to as “the heavens,” then unfurled after several ages into a “sky,” and now […]
‘Tis the season to be secular
I walked into a Starbucks this weekend and it was already covered with Christmassy Christmasness. Peppermint mocha was already being pushed as a “special” and snowman mugs and gingerbread loaves sat plump, enthroned on the coffee-store counter. Pilgrims before reindeers, that has always been the schedule right? But since the pilgrims don’t give out presents […]
Trial must be taken off political agenda
It was just supposed to be a trial of a high-profile dictator, not the global, finger-pointing, conspiracy-theory-provoking, divisive issue that it has become. “Politicize” is definitely the verb du jour; everything from Sept. 11 to abortion to stem cells has been used to further individual politicians’ agendas. Silly me ““ I thought Saddam Hussein’s trial […]