back to the phd grind

it's back on the phd horse as i prepare for my defense next month. i cracked my dissertation open a few days ago and am trolling through it. i wish my shipped cargo would hurry up and get here because there is a box of research papers that i have referenced that i really could use in the next phase of studying. i made some notes on these publications, and it would be helpful to see what i wrote on those papers in summary. reading all 130 references again is probably not the most efficient option.

success

i was just flipping through the channels during a late lunch about an hour or so ago and came across this news segment (headline news) reading facebook comments from individuals about how graduating high school students are not prepared for college. my experience has confirmed this amongst my peers. this whole 'no child left behind' mess for k-12 of the previous administration was one of the worst things done in the school system that i can remember. as one of the facebook commenters (a former college educator) wrote in "there isn't a success story for everyone."

upon reading this initially it sounds harsh.....very harsh. BUT, the problem is that it is not incorrect or false. it is just incomplete. what should have been stated is that "there isn't an IDENTICAL success story for everyone IN THE SAME FIELD IN THE SAME WAY." i am in no way trying to state that education isn't for everyone because i believe whole-heartedly that it is. however, what i am saying is that 'success' in formal education will be different and is relative for each student. there is no catch all program for education to make everyone a straight 'A' student. that is not everyone's path. and most importantly, that is not success for every student. that is not what education is about. the educational system in america is so screwed up, and it is only being exaggerated by educators that do not realize (either by choice or by ignorance) the intense responsibility that they possess.

school has become this institution to teach memorization and not how to apply the knowledge that is being gained. true success is being able to take what you learn and synthesize it into something useful.......NOT simply to be valedictorian.

black clergy: where are you?

my dad and i just had a great conversation over lunch, and he pointed me to this great article he saw in the paper yesterday. my comment was about the responsibility we as black people have to make sure we are holding ourselves accountable for our communities. and what has been the cornerstone of the black community since slavery---the black church.

great 2 minute read. it will spark a lot of thought, and i hope it sparks even more action and awareness. enjoy.

http://www.macon.com/151/story/995699.html

relaxing these last few weeks

it's been an awesome feeling being able to forget about graduate school and my dissertation for the last few weeks. i still have some more relaxing to do before i must pick up my dissertation and publications and references to prepare for my viva. it's funny because i had a mini-nightmare last night about not knowing anything in my dissertation. then....i came to my senses and realized that when i was writing my dissertation, i knew so much more than i gave myself credit for. in addition to that, when i was preparing for and during the interview process, i had such a strong sense of confidence in my work and my knowledge that i have nothing to worry about. i'll gladly take a couple more weeks of relaxing, but when the time comes to start preparing for my viva, it will be greeted with confidence and positive thoughts.

rethinking happiness

this video is 2 hours long, but i promise you that it will be well worth every second of your time. please watch and enjoy.

http://www.pbs.org/thisemotionallife/video/rethinking-happiness

happy founders day to the brother of kappa alpha psi fraternity, inc

how could i have left this off my previous post.

YO YO!!!

twitter is a beast

been puttin in a lot of work on my twitter page (@equbed). it's really interesting to see how social media is revolutionizing the way we consume information. i read one person describe this new wave of targeted and subscribed information being 100% available to us anywhere as 'hyper-connectivity.'

what i am finding is that the abyss that is the world (by way of the internet) can be very intimidating and carving out your niche such that your voice is heard is very challenging. in addition to all of this, i am finding it difficult to maximize my participation while at the same time minimizing the time spent generating my contribution. i think this is the key.

twitter users and those deeply immersed in social media: thoughts???

happy new year!!!

been really crazy and busy the last few days. who knew relaxing back at home would turn into such great fun. enjoying every bit of it, but there is still much preparation as i transition to the next steps.

and yet another...

the nytimes is running an interesting article on "children covered by Medicaid [being] given powerful antipsychotic medicines at a rate four times higher than children whose parents have private insurance. And the Medicaid children are more likely to receive the drugs for less severe conditions than their middle-class counterparts, the data shows." [free registration required]

it is terrible and scary that this is occurring. but, what is even more terrifying is the fact that you have 'educated' idiots that do not see any problem with this. (see comments in the slashdot article here) these bastards are so busy with their pissing contest to see who is the smartest that they totally miss the point of the article. the article ain't about 'is our study correct', i mean hell, this work has been accepted to a PEER-REVIEWED medical journal!

i guess this is just what happens when you are so far removed from reality and the extent to which people are struggling and hurting in the world. you just don't know any better. what do you expect, most of these commenters probably were using computers in the 70's and did not want for anything. so they probably don't give a damn anyway...until too many 'undesirables' begin to move into their neighborhood...and the concern is again in the wrong place.