The Second Law of Thermodynamics states simply that systems have a universal tendency to gravitate towards disorder

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Final Exam Format


You have to answer question #5. Questions 1-4... pick two of them. Drop the other two. Please email them to me by next week. Best of luck. Email me if you have any questions.

Essay Question #5


What grade do you deserve? Honest, open, self-assessment of your work to-date. I'd like to direct some of you to the syllabus regarding attendance:

Students are expected to attend all classes as scheduled. Four or more absences will lower your grade by one letter. Additionally, students are expected to complete all class activities and be prepared to discuss the assigned readings.

And yes.... I know whether or not you showed up for class.

Defend yourself. Make a case for why you deserve the grade you deserve. Use the syllabus as a baseline for your grades and extrapolate accordingly... I am willing to be persuaded.

Essay Question #4


Ok, you’ve read a couple of articles in favor and against the growing inequality in America. So the questions I propose to you:

Does the growing inequality of the rich and poor make the world a worst place—or is everyone (at least indirectly) benefiting from the growth and greed. Should we be concerned with this? And if so, what would you propose that we do—and what might be some of the unintended consequences of your decision either in favor of action or inaction.

To help you with this question, several youtube clips for and against. The first two are focusing on the disappearance of the middle class from Paul Krugman and Elizabeth Warren—two heavyweights in their respective fields. The Warren talk is about an hour but it’s more than worth it for those who are dedicated and/or have no life.

The second two clips counter the above talks to some extent and are much shorter. The first is from Milton Friedman—one of the most influential economists of the past 100 years and from Michael Novak another distinguished scholar. Enjoy and good luck.

Paul Krugman on the middle Class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kwA-CwFK5A

Elizabeth Warren, Chairman of the Congressional Oversight Panel: U. of CA, Berkeley talk on the coming collapse of the Middle Class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akVL7QY0S8A&feature=related

Milton Friedman on Greed http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWsx1X8PV_A&feature=related

Michael Novak defending the Rich/Poor Gap http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZhQvrkHs4g&feature=watch_response

Essay Question #3


Watch Clay Shirky’s TED Talk on Institutions V. Collaboration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPQViNNOAkw

This video touches on a lot of the themes we talked about in class. Open source, power laws, social capital and collaboration…. So the questions are this:

Question: According to Shirky why will institutions cease to exist—or at least lose emphsis? As part of the internet generation—how different are you from your parents and what will the future look like? Explain Shirky’s thesis to me. And then tell me what you think about it. Is it plausible and if so, is this scary and why?

And for those bolder students of knowledge interested in how the future may look like--check out his more recent talk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_0FgRKsqqU .

Essay Question #2


The Great Reset: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0Tw34XV9K8

What is Richard Florida’s thesis? Is it plausible? What could prevent Richard’s theory from happening according to our lectures (why wouldn’t we have high speed rails to connect cities into megacities/regions?) Explain.

And one more from Richard Florida: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjR1zK5RIl0&feature=related – not part of your question… but it talks about why it matters where you live? Or… why should you have paid attention to this class this past semester and how it impacts your future happiness. Enjoy.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Essay Question #1


Essay Question #1

A.) Recently, Mayor Slay of St. Louis publicly stated that he would be pushing for more charter schools within the city. Is this a viable alternative to traditional public education or something that undermines it? Explain your answer and the rationale behind it.

B.) The trend at the state level appears to be towards limited union power. At the moment there is a strong push for merit-based pay as an alternative in retaining and attracting talented educators. This may come at the cost of teacher union’s collective bargaining power and even over the discontinuation of “tenure” (as well as other possible unintended consequences). Examine both sides of this argument, with a particular emphasis on the possible externalities (both positive and negative) as well as practical implementation issues of this policy. Also address consequences of non-action or alternative approaches (more money is not a suitable answer by itself)

The following links may be helpful as they contain radio discussions on the topic and can be streamed online (for you audio learners).

April 13, 2011

A conversation about ongoing efforts to change the way teachers are evaluated.

http://www.stlpublicradio.org/programs/slota/archivedetail.php?showid=4477

March 09, 2011

A discussion with Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp about the twenty year history of the organization and her new book detailing her thoughts on closing the achievement gap in education.

http://www.stlpublicradio.org/programs/slota/archivedetail.php?showid=4439

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Aerotropolis?


The China Hub credits stirring debate.

A study finished last week by the Regional Chamber and Growth Association predicts that if all the tax credits were used, they would generate 27.6 million square feet of cargo, factory and warehouse space. The companies that fill that space would probably employ about 6,600 people, and the spinoff effects could generate an additional 7,200 jobs.

Would undoubtedly have huge short and long term impacts on the St. Louis region. Good summary of the debate and a look at the possible new global face of St. Louis.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

The Wire


I've referenced this series a couple of times in class and I thought I might direct you to the homepage. Excellent series from HBO, and if you look around on the web I'm sure you can find it for free (or just go to your local Blockbuster store while there still around). I believe there are five seasons, each focusing on a different "urban institution" and it's ultimate decay: gangs/cops, unions, politicians, schools, and newspapers. Great series and highly entertaining in terms of character development and issues addressed. Some universities have used The Wire as an elective course of study to address urban issues.

From it's Wikipedia entry:
The website Metacritic, which gathers reviews from published news sources and translates them into a percentage score, has assigned to The Wire's fourth season a weighted average score of 98%, the highest for any television show since Metacritic began tracking them in 2005.[3]

Mayor Slay Attacks The Performance Of The St. Louis Public Schools


Mayor Slay Announces Three New Charter Schools

Mayor Francis Slay once again repeated his criticism that the city schools are mostly responsible for the city losing 29,000 people between 2000 and 2010. "There's no mistake about it," said an emotional Slay in his City Hall office shortly after announcing three new charter schools will begin operation in the city this fall. "Everybody knows that we're losing population because there's not enough free quality public education, and if anybody's in denial they're just fooling themselves."

interesting link here, and more to come--to help you with one of the essay questions on the final.

Mayor Slay has been a big proponent for charter schools. Last year he was honored by the National Alliance for Charter Schools as an exemplary advocate for its immersion into the public sector.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Missouri Comparative Stats


UMSL's Public Policy Research Center released comparative state statistics on Missouri which gives us a relative barometer on a number of policy areas. In short, we don't pay a lot of taxes in this state, and it may not be as attractive to new business or as productive to our citizens as we may have initially projected. This piece may be particularly useful for some of you in your S.W.O.T. analysis--depending on the scope of your area. Also, I had a request for the Slate piece on income inequality which can be found here or here for the pdf.

State of Recidivism: The Revolving Door of America’s Prisons


http://www.pewcenteronthestates.org/uploadedFiles/Pew_State_of_Recidivism.pdf

If states could reduce their recidivism rates by just 10%, they could save more than $635 million combined in one year in averted prison costs. It's my understanding that much of the cost is tied up in parole violations. Missouri is one of the states highlighted in the report.

3 big poker sites charged with fraud, illegal gambling


More of our previous discussions making headlines; specifically, online gambling world.
The owners of Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and PokerStars, were charged with violating U.S. anti-Internet gambling laws (prosecutor's press release).

The criminal charges outlined a scheme by the company owners and some of their employees to direct the gambling profits to online shell companies that would appear legitimate to banks processing payments.

Which begs the question... what took them so long? All three of these internet venues have been advertising for years on TV--including NBC late at night which is where this press release is from.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Super Rich tax drops


From our classroom discussion to the printing press this was released from the AP over the weekend:

The Internal Revenue Service tracks the tax returns with the 400 highest adjusted gross incomes each year. The average income on those returns in 2007, the latest year for IRS data, was nearly $345 million. Their average federal income tax rate was 17 percent, down from 26 percent in 1992.

Still a bit selective in what data entry points they selected, the drop is nonetheless quite large and will undoubtably play a big role in the elections and the next budget.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Wash U Jobless Forum


Interesting forum and a pragmatic rebuttal from the Post Dispatch from the largely "progressive" jobless forum held at Wash U on Tuesday. Arguments to be made on both sides of this debate, but the current political climate will most likely have the ultimate say in present policy construction (or lack thereof).

Urban Farming in St. Louis


Urban farming sponsored from the International Institute of St. Louis. This is a great organization that does a lot of good for immigrants and refugees here in St. Louis.

In St. Louis, 11 refugees from five countries are going through the three-year program, which starts with English language classes specific to farming terms.

The plot of land is at the Botanical Heights, once a 10 city lot.