The symbol of the university as a bastion of independent thinking and liberal-mindedness seems a little out of place in the middle of the Saudi Arabian desert. The New York Times does an excellent job drawing attention to the sense of inherent contradiction that underlies the construction of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. The article describes the Saudi King's desire to build the M.I.T. of the Middle East and suggests that some social laws would be relaxed on the campus, although many would prevail, with men and women watching lectures separated by partitions. The descriptions in the article suggest a gated oasis, but lest the reporter slip into idealizing the subject, there is also a comment from a professor at MIT who does not see the opportunity to teach in Saudi Arabia to be enticing enough to leave the already-defined Massachusetts university.
An article in The Boston Globe today about Dominican candidates campaigning in Massachusetts provides an interesting contrast to an article I read a few weeks ago about American presidential candidates wooing wealthy ex-patriate voters living in the U.K. The Globe article covers Dominican president Leonel Fernandez's visit to Boston as part of his reelection campaign and examines the many motives Dominicans in Boston had for attending the event he hosted: feelings of connection to their homeland, the desire to tell their family still in the Dominican Republic how to vote or just to enjoy the music and dancing Fernandez arranged. It's an interesting issue, backed up well by statistics and well-chosen quotes that reveal something of the personality behind the speaker.
The Patriot Ledger offers a somewhat quirky story today in an article about the reenactment of Abigail and John Adams' wedding yesterday in Weymouth. The lede sets the scene for a historical narrative, although I think it would have been more effective to begin with the second paragraph (description of the scene), rather than acknowledging up front that this was a performance; a good reenactment should suspend disbelief for a little while, so coverage of the event should do the same.
The Times of London reports on the U.K.'s decision to offer the HPV vaccine to 12- and 13-year-old female students beginning next year. The article does a fine job explaining the risks of the human papillomavirus in causing cervical cancer with plenty of figures to back it up. But the coverage is a bit too objective: in the U.S., controversy surrounded the same decision last year, and other news coverage (including some comments I just heard on the news segment of London-based Virgin Radio) suggests that similar controversy exists in the U.K., too. One interesting bit of information from this article, though: I had no idea British English referred to shots as "jabs." Somehow, I don't think that makes vaccinations sound any more pleasant.
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