• Student Vice President
• Welcome from President
• Announcements
• Interesting Links
• Book Review
New Student Vice President Named
Chris Goss, a music major, has been named as the first-ever student vice president for the university's chapter of PKP. Homeschooled for most of his studies, he graduated from Augusta Christian in 2005. He talks frankly about his learning disabilities and the academic success he has had in college, calling it miraculous. He is anxious to make other students aware of their potential and this new role in PKP will help. Chris plays classical guitar and recorded Swing Away -- some original cross-over country music. Following graduation, he plans to move to Nashville and pursue a career in the music industry.
Welcome from the chapter president
Welcome to a new academic year at Augusta State and to the first email newsletter of ASU's chapter of Phi Kappa Phi. Although I have already had the opportunity to see many of my colleagues and students, I am looking forward to our first chapter meeting of PKP to renew the anticipation and promise for our chapter's future.
As many of you already know, this year will be challenging for all of us as we enter into an uncertain time for our university's budget.
This is important to our chapter of Phi Kappa Phi because as the university's budget becomes tighter and tighter, we will find it harder to get the economic support for our programs that we have enjoyed for so long.
For many chapters, this lack of support would cause a significant downturn in campus programming but here at ASU the enthusiasm of our members and their inspiring commitment to intellectual curiosity and diversity has already generated a full calendar of scheduled talks and programs. This should tell us all one thing; our chapter is truly one of the most active and committed members of the Phi Kappa Phi family. As the president, I would like to start this year out by thanking each and every one of you that works so hard for this chapter and our students. If it were not for your work, Phi Kappa Phi would not add the tremendous intellectual value that it does to our campus.
It is clear to me that our chapter of Phi Kappa Phi and the leadership of this university have a commitment to the academic life of this institution and to the advancement of our students. Our chapter clearly seems to understand that Phi Kappa Phi is not a club or faculty organization, but rather an institution committed to the advancement of our students, and for this we should all be proud. It is this commitment that is reflected in the vibrancy and brilliance of the university's academic life.
I trust that all of you, like me, are ready for the fresh opportunities this year will bring as we continue the work that makes PKP the center of academic life of this institution.
Ray Whiting, president
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Arsenal Speaker Series: Learning is Life
Thurs., Sept. 25, 1 p.m., Butler Rm., JSAC. Tom Nakashima, Morris Eminent Scholar in Art.
Fri., 0ct. 10, 10 a.m., Coffeehouse, JSAC.--Hubert van Tuyll, War and History: Comprehension & Performance
Wed., Oct. 29, 1 p.m., Coffeehouse, JSAC. Sam Robinson.
Chapter Meetings
Noon, E 156, Allgood Hall --
Sept. 9; Oct. 14; Nov. 11, Dec. 9
Congratulations
2008 Award of Excellence Award Winner: Jason Sumerau
“Income, War, and Elections” (Vol. 88, No. 2., Summer 2008, p. 26-27) by Jurgen Brauer, PhD., Professor of Economics, Hull College of Business, appeared in FORUM, the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi journal.
Member Benefits Announced!
Special discounts are available to active PKP members on Dell products, including Inspiron, Studio and XPS Laptops and Desktops. Your PKP member discount can be combined with other Dell specials or coupons. When placing an order, simply reference PKP's exclusive Discount ID: PS72681359.
PKP has partnered with T-Mobile to provide savings that include a 13% rate plan discount on monthly services, choice of free phone, waived activation fees, and free standard shipping. This benefit is available as a call-in offer only. Call 1-866-464-8662 (option 3) and provide promotion code: 9781TMOFAV.
Digital/print subscriptions of The Chronicle of Higher Education are available at 33% off standard rates. ($49 for a full year (49 issues) in its digital format/or a one-year print subscription for only $65. include e-mail every Monday and complete access to The Chronicle's Web site.
Keep us posted!
If you would like to share a recent accomplishment, book review, or column with the membership of PKP, please submit it to Kathy Schofe, James Garvey, Jeff Heck or Fay Verburg.
Castles, Battles & Bombs: How Economics Explains Military History, by Jurgen Brauer & Hubert van Tuyll
Brauer and van
Tuyll reconsider key episodes of military history from the point
of view of economics —with dramatically insightful results. For
example, when looked at as a question of sheer cost, the building
of castles in the Middle Ages seems almost inevitable: though
stunningly expensive, a strong castle was far cheaper to maintain
than a standing army. Similarly, great commanders of the Age of
Battle such as Napoleon, Marlborough, and Frederick the Great
are shown to have engaged in cost/benefit calculations: because
the risk of losing an entire army usually far outweighed the
potential spoils of victory, they chose to fight relatively few large engagements. The authors also reexamine the
strategic bombing of Germany in World War II and provide new insights into France’s decision to develop nuclear
weapons. Drawing on these examples and more, Brauer and van Tuyll suggest lessons for today’s military, from counterterrorist
strate- gy and military manpower planning to the use of private military companies in Afghanistan and Iraq. ****
My skepticism was relieved by the preface, my expectations enhanced by the first chapter, my confidence
assured by the second. This study is serious, creative, important. As an economist I am happy to see
economics so professionally applied to illuminate major decisions in the history of warfare.
–Thomas C. Schelling, University of Maryland, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics
A short YouTube video on the characteristics of students today was shown at one of the summer's PAC meetings.
- Common Craft: This site uses simple format and real-world stories to make sense of complex ideas.
- Media Issues from Media Awareness Network--Excellent backgrounders on issues like violence in media, online hate, information privacy, and stereotyping of women, men, ethnic minorities, etc.
- 50 Best Website of 2008 - Time Magazines picks of what's best on the Web