Coursera - free, online, introductory- to upper-undergraduate level classes in a wide variety of subjects, led by instructors from Princeton University, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and the University of Pennsylvania
posted by Blazecock Pileon
on Apr 19, 2012 -
54 comments
LA Times: "When UC Berkeley officials came up with the idea of asking all new students to volunteer a DNA swab as part of an unusual fall orientation program, they expected to stimulate discussion. They weren't quite prepared for how much."
Inside Higher Ed: "
Unwinding Berkeley's DNA Test"
posted by andoatnp
on Jun 4, 2010 -
29 comments
The Doll Games emerged in Berkeley, California, at a time when race, gender, politics, and sexuality were fiercely and publicly debated... The Doll Games held up a funhouse mirror to their times, and what survives of them are historical documents of a wobbly, comical sort. But the Doll Games transcend their epoch. Intricate, obsessional, moral, violent and sexual, funny and tragic... Obedient to no rules except those its practitioners invented for themselves, completely collaborative, the Doll Games defined a truly interactive art form. In this theater of two, every audience member was a co-creator. [some text and pics NSFW]
posted by amyms
on May 18, 2008 -
24 comments
“You could almost see their dicks getting hard as they got new ideas." A
Vanity Fair reporter investigates the chain of command that tossed out the Geneva Conventions and instituted coercive interrogation techniques -- some might call them torture or even
war crimes -- in Bush's Global War on Terror. UC Berkeley law professor John Yoo's now-obsolete 81-page memo to the Pentagon in 2003 [available as PDFs
here and here] was crucial, offering a broad range of legal justifications and deniability for disregarding international law in the name of
"self-defense." Others
say that Yoo was just making "a clear point about the limits of Congress to intrude on the executive branch in its exercise of duties as Commander in Chief." [previously
here and
here.]
posted by digaman
on Apr 3, 2008 -
76 comments
Founded in Berkeley by artist
Jim Mason,
The Shipyard, a collaborative industrial arts space constructed from recycled shipping containers, has hosted numerous large-scale projects and events including a
Survival Research Labs show,
Power Tool Drag Races,
gassification experiments and workshops, and various large-scale Burning Man projects such as 2005's
Clockworks. Short documentary
here (quicktime). However, relations with the city of Berkeley have been consistently
tense. Recently, the city shut off the Shipyard's power, to which the Shipyard responded by going
off grid. On May 8, Berkeley issued 3-day vacate and abate notice, with which the Shipyard is
attempting to
comply (auto-playing video).
posted by treepour
on May 15, 2007 -
8 comments
Physics for Future Presidents is a class taught at UC Berkeley by Physics professor Richard Muller. It's a class specifically for non-physics majors and teaches the real world results of the sometimes impenetrable math involved in university physics.
After every lecture, you should come away with the feeling that what was just covered is important for every world leader to know. I just sat through the entire hour and 13 minute
nukes lecture and was riveted.
posted by quite unimportant
on Nov 7, 2006 -
26 comments
For Orthodox Jewish mothers with small children, the
Shabbat can
be challenging. The answer, for many communities, is the establishment of an
eruv (discussed previously
here, in passing).
This San Francisco Chronicle article details the history behind Berkeley, California's
unique instance. This isn't the first time an
eruv has been attempted in the Bay Area: the failed effort to create one in Palo Alto
was covered by the Chronicle, as well as
the Jewish News Weekly. Berkeley isn't the only United States city with an
eruv—the
Boston eruv maintains a
large list of domestic and international eruvim—nor is it the city with the
most unusual eruv, or even the
largest. Inevitably, perhaps, there's a
blog entirely dedicated to the subject of
eruvim, and
vigorous commentary on the subject from
several others.
posted by scrump
on Jul 7, 2006 -
60 comments
The Online Archive of California brings together historical materials from a variety of
state institutions, including museums, historical societies, and archives. These materials include letters, legal documents, manuscripts, works of art, diaries, and historical photographs. Thousands of
photographs.
From
just the
Bancroft Library at Berkeley:
Artistic homes, 1887-1890,
agricultural laborers, 1906-1911,
the San Francisco earthquake and fire,
construction of the Golden Gate Bridge,
San Quentin Prison, and
war relocation camps. And that's barely scratching the surface.
posted by Gamblor
on Oct 17, 2005 -
5 comments
How Berkeley Can You Be Parade? NSFW (unless your work doesn't mind naked men strutting their stuff).
Found during my surf after the debate last night and well worth a peek, the outraged commentary is pretty funny but it might be lost on the intolerant or those who've never been out to visit Berkeley. Among the pics is this true, true
gem (Klingons do NOT ride in golf carts, not even fat Klingons!)
posted by fenriq
on Oct 1, 2004 -
20 comments
Getting back into the groove : In the corner of a California university laboratory, two men are battling against time to perfect a machine that will read old recordings - using special microscopes to scan the grooves - and software that can convert those shapes into sound. Their work could bring history to life.
posted by starscream
on Jul 26, 2004 -
15 comments
George Lakoff tells how conservatives use language to dominate politics "Why do conservatives appear to be so much better at framing? -
Because they've put billions of dollars into it. Over the last 30 years their think tanks have made a heavy investment in ideas and in language. In 1970, [Supreme Court Justice]
Lewis Powell wrote a fateful memo to the National Chamber of Commerce....He outlined the whole thing in 1970. They set up the Heritage Foundation in 1973"
"So if you go on Fox News....and the question is, 'Are you in favor of the President’s tax relief program or are you against it?' -- it doesn't matter what you say. If you say, 'I’m against tax relief,' you're still evoking that framing. you're still in their frame..." "George Lakoff, a professor of linguistics and cognitive science at the University of California Berkeley, is a specialist in the technique of "framing," a communication tool that creates a "frame" for a message that defines the terms of the debate." (
Interview with Lakoff )
posted by troutfishing
on Jan 14, 2004 -
75 comments
The
SF Chron's big Sunday story is a very timely and huge package about a Republican Governor who went on to become president cooperating with overzealous intelligence agencies to quash dissent. Revelations: Reagan plotted with the FBI against the President of UC-Berkeley, he wanted to mount "
psychological warfare campaign" and the old rumor about Reagan getting some fellow Hollywood artists blacklisted turns out to be true.
Synposis.
posted by raaka
on Jun 9, 2002 -
36 comments
Boycott Berkeley , in the wake of the extreme leftist views expressed by the inhabitants of the California town, some are calling for the boycott of the boycotters. I find this ironic and extremely funny. If Berkeley doesn't want to support the US then the US shouldn't support them. (Via OpinionJournal)
posted by dancu
on Oct 22, 2001 -
60 comments
Berkeley does it again... The Berkeley City Council is considering condemning the US attacks on Afganistan as acts of terrorism. The best quote:
"Berkeley has always been an island of sanity in terms of the war madness that has prevailed in this country," Spring said. "The U.S. is now a terrorist. According to the Taliban these are terrorist attacks." (Via the
WSJ Opinion Page)
posted by madreblu
on Oct 10, 2001 -
30 comments
