News
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Social Scientists Seek Ways Past Clash Over Climate Change
Eighty-three percent of Americans believe the world's temperature is rising. Now researchers are studying why no one wants to talk about it.
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Politics Aside, Climate Researchers Grapple With Real Uncertainties
Most scientists agree that it's getting hotter. But if you want to know why, and how, and what's going to happen next, the answers aren't as easy.
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Climate Scientists Meet the Public—With a Range of Approaches
Five researchers react differently to the global-warming debate, and they explain why.
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State Climatologists Caught in Global-Warming Crossfire
The academics—who are also college faculty members—have lost their jobs over markedly different stances on global warming.
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After Fanfare, Colleges Try to Meet 'Climate Neutral' Pledge
The American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment is in the "slog" phase as signatories work on cutting emissions and using less energy.
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Interactive Timeline: Climate-Change Research Heats Up, 1987-2011
In 1987, almost no one was writing about climate change. Use The Chronicle's interactive tool to see how quickly the field blossomed—and where it stands now.
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What's in a Name? For Yale in Singapore, a Whole Lot
Complaints about the partnership are varied, but much of the discussion comes down to what exactly it means to put the esteemed university's name on a new college.
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From Graduate School to Welfare
Many people with master's degrees and Ph.D.'s are surviving on government assistance, and their numbers are rising fast.
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4 Academics on Food Stamps
People with advanced degrees, from Texas to Chicago to Vermont, talk about what it's like to have to live on federal aid.
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Complaints Soar Over Aggressive Student-Loan Debt Collectors
Over the past five years, the number of complaints filed against agencies collecting on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education has grown by 45 percent.
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28 College Leaders Pledge 5% of Earnings to Fight Poverty
The current and former presidents and chancellors step forward today as charter members of a campaign that has proved more difficult than expected.
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Boon or Boondoggle? New Jersey's Merger Plan Leaves Faculty Dubious
It's all about politics. It's not the right answer. It's already doing damage. Criticism of the plan to merge Rutgers-Camden with Rowan takes off as details remain scarce.
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In Arizona, Community-College Interns Survey the Local Economy
Student internships at Estrella Mountain Community College provide work-force data for the institution and local government.
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Elsevier Experiments With Allowing 'Text Mining' of Its Journals
Working with an open-access advocate, the publisher has hammered out a deal with the University of British Columbia.
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Wired Campus: Harvard and MIT Put $60-Million Into New Platform for Free Online Courses
The two institutions announced a partnership that will host online courses from both of them, free.
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Firing at LSU Puts Spotlight on a Governor's Reach
Critics say Gov. Bobby Jindal plays an outsize role in managing university affairs, though they haven't directly linked him to John V. Lombardi's dismissal.
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NYU Dean to Devote His Sabbatical to Expanding U. of the People
Dalton Conley, who is finishing a term as dean of social sciences, will spend his year off as dean of arts and sciences at the growing free online university.
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Criminologist Takes Job at Penn State to Ensure Openness About Crime
Gabriel Gates is the new compliance coordinator at the university, which has been criticized for keeping silent about abuse allegations.
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Transitions: Southern Mississippi President Steps Down, But Will Teach at Branch Campus
Martha D. Saunders is credited with increasing enrollment and private giving in tough economic times. Read that item and other job-related news.
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2 Presidents, 2 Campuses, One Long-Distance Marriage
Anthony and Robin J. Tricoli lead colleges in neighboring states, a three-hour drive apart.
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A Laughing Matter: $3,333.33 Scholarships
The University of Portland will award a new scholarship to students who create projects that make people laugh and draw them together.
The Chronicle Review
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Don't Pick Up
Love them if you have to, but to free your mind, leave them behind.
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The Voyeuristic Lure of Hazardous Occupations
From human grizzly-bear bait to "Deadliest Catch," hazardous occupations have always fascinated Americans. Why?
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Do Birds Have Emotions?
It's impossible, at this point, to know, but the evidence is tantalizing.
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When Fictionalized Facts Matter
Whether we approve of the liberties taken with history depends on who is taking them—Hilary Mantel or Showtime.
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A Professor-Filmmaker Courts Controversy
A professor turned filmmaker aims his lens at Zionism.
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Leaving the Land—Through Forces of Change
A new memoir harvests bittersweet memories of a forward-thinking farm family.
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Israel's Rights and Moral Quandaries Israel's Rights and Moral Quandaries
Readers respond to the commentary "Israel's Moral Imperative," by Alan Wolfe.
Commentary
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A College's Endowment Portfolio Should Match Its Mission
It need not suffer an inevitable trade-off in performance by incorporating responsible-investing criteria.
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Next Time, Fail Better
Computer-science students are used to failure's being part of the creative process. We need to help humanities students think the same way.
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Tired of Debating Teacher Assessment? Reform It
The dean of the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia says the failure of a government proposal should spark new ideas.
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At Salem State U., 'We Regularly Bemoan the Plight of Our Adjuncts'
"For every adjunct who wants to hold out for better conditions, there are several more ready and swift to subvert such organization by accepting substandard compensation."
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5 Degrees, 20 Years' Experience, One Job Interview
"I am beginning to feel that my work experience outside the academic world is simply not valued."
Advice
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Teaching Ph.D.'s How to Reach Out
Should doctoral students be required to take a communications course?
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A Letter to a New Chair
The job of department chair carries an ounce of cachet and a ton of weight, but it's worth doing.