Monthly Archives: June 2011

Thoughts on Watching Public Enemies

Posted on June 27, 2011 by

I had the chance to watch Public Enemies over the weekend, and highly recommend it. (It’s from 2009, so yes, I’m behind on this.) The basic plot line is the effort by Melvin Purvis, of the Bureau of Investigation, to capture … Continue reading →

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The Positive Features of Disagreement

Posted on June 24, 2011 by

[Continuing the series on the structure of academic conversation which began here.]  In the previous post on this topic I mentioned the negative features of disagreement, namely, that they distract attention and energy that could be used more productive. I … Continue reading →

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Social Media and the Arab Revolutions

Posted on June 22, 2011 by

No, not those Arab revolutions—I’m referring to those of the first third of the twentieth century. And not that social media: long before Facebook and Twitter, there were newspapers and journal publications. Apropos of the previous post (and Anderson’s Imagined … Continue reading →

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The Structure of Academic Conversation

Posted on June 22, 2011 by

Or, “What is the purpose of academic journals?” [Please note: This is a question that has been on my mind for a while, so this is the first part of what is likely to become a multi-post series. It has … Continue reading →

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Mexico Captures Another Cartel Leader

Posted on June 22, 2011 by

Jose de Jesus Mendez, described as a top leader of La Familia drug trafficking organization (DTO), has been captured. The Mexican government appears enthusiastic about the results of arresting Mendez, who has had a $30 million peso bounty (~US$2.4 million) … Continue reading →

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Thoughts (and links) on the Turkish Election

Posted on June 12, 2011 by

Topline: Erdoğan will now become Turkey’s longest serving prime minister as his Justice and Development Party (AK) achieves its third consecutive general election victory. Foreign policy: From The Guardian, The AKP will face a rocky third term. Analysts predict a … Continue reading →

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Turkish elections this Sunday

Posted on June 10, 2011 by

Turks head to the polls this Sunday for general elections. According to a recent Pew survey, there doesn’t seem to be any reason to suspect broad dissatisfaction with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).  For those who are interested, … Continue reading →

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Food politics: EU-Russia edition

Posted on June 8, 2011 by

As Russian and EU diplomats prepare for a summit, relations have turned icy. Russia has tightened it’s restrictions on vegetable imports from Europe in the wake of an E coli outbreak that’s killed over two dozen people. More from the … Continue reading →

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Dangers of low blood sugar

Posted on June 8, 2011 by

Right now, my conscious-but-still-dumb choice to skip lunch is causing me to send a lot of links to my one of my new favorite apps, Instapaper, instead of just reading them right away. If you’re in an Israeli prison seeking … Continue reading →

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Canada falls short, again

Posted on June 4, 2011 by

File this under data visualizations and the politics of food. The USDA released its long-awaited replacement to the aging food guide pyramid this week, called MyPlate.  Without regard to the actual nutritional effects of such a diet (it pretty well … Continue reading →

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