From the “your undergrad degree does not necessarily determine your life’s trajectory” files comes this interesting article on the much headlined (but, according to this author’s research, mythic) shortage of STEM researchers (STEM = science, technology, engineering, and math). Apart from little agreement in the literature on just what constitutes STEM disciplines and employment areas, the article finds: […]
Month: October 2013
The Practical Humanities
Did you see this recent post from the former CEO of Seagram Corporation entitled “Business and the Liberal Arts”? In it he advises students to pursue a major in the Liberal Arts rather than “pragmatically oriented majors” such as Business or Computer Science. He explains, For all of the decisions young business leaders will be asked to make based on facts and figures, needs and wants, numbers and speculation, all of those choices will require one common skill: how to […]
Please (Don’t) Take One
In 2005 I had the good fortune to attend a conference in Japan. Out exploring a little corner of the city one afternoon, I crossed one of those stereotypically busy Tokyo intersections that you sometimes see in the movies — me, my friend Willi, and hundreds of other people — and, on the side we were all heading toward, I spied two clean-cut, blond-haired young white guys in white shirts, black pants, and conservative ties, standing side-by-side and handing out […]
Fieldwork
Did you read what our recent guest lecturer had to say about her time in REL? […]
Women’s Places
The Gideons are on campus today, like every Fall, handing out copies of the New Testament. While I leave it to others to debate the place of such an activity on a US public university campus, I thought I’d relate a conversation I had with a gentleman just outside my parking deck this morning. Me: Are there female members of the Gideons? Him: Yes, there’s a women’s auxiliary. Me: I ask because I’ve never seen women handing out New Testaments […]
The Modernity of History
Photo courtesy of Hoole Special Collections Library By Andie Alexander Andie Alexander earned her B.A. in Religious Studies and History in 2012. She currently works as a staff member in the Department as a Student Liaison and filmmaker. Andie also works as the online Curator for the Culture on the Edge blog. The other day I stumbled across an intriguing article in The Crimson White (CW), the University of Alabama’s student newspaper, about the history of some building names at UA. […]
Survey Says…?
Have you seen this new Pew Foundation survey on being Jewish in America? Like all surveys it raises some interesting questions, such as whether it simply describes an already existing object of study (one that nicely divides into a variety of easily and clearly distinguishable sub-types) or whether the questions, categories, and sub-divisions actively constitute an object of study. What’s more, who is doing that constitution: group members themselves or the people who study them? For a survey such as […]
Grand Theft Auto Anyone?
By Seth Cox Seth Cox is double majoring in Religious Studies and Philosophy. He is interested in the interactions between practitioners of historically Asian religions and the rest of the world. This post originally appeared at Monks and Nones, the blog of REL 371. Controversy. It doesn’t matter which side of a controversy you are on, if the controversy is big enough it will catch public attention. Grand Theft Auto V (or GTAV) is the fastest game to reach 1 […]
A Few Moments with Monica Miller
Dr. Monica Miller, of Lehigh University, recently delivered the inaugural Day Lecture — an annual lecture in memory of one of our graduates, and generously established this year by his family and friends. Our own Dr. Merinda Simmons sat down and talked with Dr. Miller about her work and the field of the study of religion. A video of Dr. Miller’s lecture will also be posted soon…. A Few Moments with Monica Miller from UA Religious Studies. […]
Ritual Fail
Several of our students and faculty members were at the College of Arts & Sciences’ tent this past Saturday for Homecoming, when Departments are invited to staff a table or two for a few hours and do something creative for fans and alumni attending the football game. There’s face painting and beanbag games, lots of candy and performances by students from the School of Music. While we can’t compete with the huge snakes that the Department of Biology always brings, […]