Ari Kohen on the value of "edutainment": Finally, and most importantly, is the central claim that the test of education is whether or not it’s entertaining. Wales asks, “why wouldn’t you have the most entertaining professor, the one with the proven track record of getting knowledge into people’s heads?” Is there evidence that the most entertaining lecture is the one that gets “knowledge into people’s heads”? Again, I’m not suggesting that a...
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ISA Theory Section Call for Conference Paper Awards
The Theory Section seeks nominations for its new conference paper awards. All papers with a strong theoretical focus which were presented at the 2013 ISA conference in San Francisco are eligible. The Theory Section seeks to honor excellent work in theorizing international politics across the plurality of theoretical approaches. Two awards will be granted: one for a paper presented by a graduate student or other non-PhD holder, and another for a...
Kenneth Waltz (1924-2013)
Kenneth Waltz died last night. From an email sent by Robert Jervis: It is with great sadness that I have to report that Ken Waltz died last night. As many of you know, his health had been uncertain ever since he lost much of his sight a year ago, and about a month ago he was hospitalized with pneumonia. While he recovered enough to be discharged to rehab, a combination of a return of pneumonia and congestive heart failure sent him back to the...
Monday Morning Linkage
Here's you linkage (...in case you're still trying to avoid grading...) Manan Ahmed of Chapati Mystery fame has an op-ed in the New York Times on Pakistan's Tyrannical Majority. Praveen Swami asks whether it really matters to India who is the Prime Minister of Pakistan? Fahad Deshmukh did a wonderful little piece on Pakistan's election symbols. (Vote Bucket!) Shaik Ubaid argues that Bangladesh is heading for a religious civil war ever since a...
The Post-1979 ‘Asian Peace’ & Economic Miracle are Probably Connected
Newsweek Japan asked me to write an introductory essay for a special issue on tension in Northeast Asia. Basically I plea not to throw out all the remarkable growth of the last 35 years in an orgy of nationalism. It’s almost certain that the post-79 Asian peace was a necessary condition for simultaneous economic growth. So fighting over some empty rocks (Liancourt Rocks, Pinnacle Islands) is a terrible idea. And for IR, I think the current...
Friday Nerd Blogging: Better Late Than Never
It is that time of year when people are getting the official letter informing them that their tenure/promotion has cleared the final hurdles--the President, the Board of Regents/Governors/Trustees/Assorted Rich People. So, congratulations to those that have made it past all of the various hurdles along the way.
Friday Anti-Nerd Blogging: Matthew Kroenig Meme
Things have been getting too nerdy here on the Duck. And what is less nerdy than a hot guy? I give you Matt Kroenig of Georgetown University
Friday Morning Linkage
More on the question of Red Lines. I asked so what? John Mueller wants them erased. Malfrid Braut-Hegghammar wants them enforced. Must read from Dexter Filkins on Obama administration's thinking on Syria . Tom Ricks sees some wisdom in the lessons from Iraq on Syria. Steve Walt applauds the administration's buck passing. Zbigniew Brzezinski argues intervention will make things worse. Daniel Serwer on how Syria is affecting Iraq. Colin...
Thursday Morning Linkage
Here is your Thursday Morning Linkage, starting with some energy and environment links: Illegal fish trade costs $10 billion to $23 billion in global losses each eyar China's coal mining companies and coal burning power plants accounted for 15% of the country's total freshwater withdrawals China leading the United States on climate change? Charles Mann on the perils of petro-energy abundance (Drezner dissents) In other news, Syria is heating up...
Why Reading Scott Sagan Scares Me.
Over the years I've taught Scott Sagan and Charles Perrow for a range of different courses. Based on those two books, I'm pretty sure that I'd rather not read these two terms in the same sentence: "nuclear weapons" and "rot." From this morning's Washington Post: The Air Force stripped an unprecedented 17 officers of their authority to control — and, if necessary, launch — nuclear missiles after a string of unpublicized failings, including a...
Midweek Mélange
I don't know whether to feel horribly manipulated, simply appreciate the nerd-fest humor, or both. Andrew Philips on the new Australian Defense White Paper. Dan Trombly on the efficacy of US intervention in Syria. Jay Ulfelder wants to restrict our use of the term "state" to, as best as I can tell, sovereign-territorial entities. His intentions are good--break unilinear understandings of state (trans)formation--but his methods are wrong: they...
Friday Nerd Blogging Way Early
Despite the geekiness of my previous post today, I had to double dip with this: H/T Jeff Emanuel