Hey Drew Crew:

This came up in conversation today with someone who works upstairs in the records office. When the heck did someone at Drew decide that they could legitimately charge (for the 08-09 school year) $52,131 a year in tuition? GOOD GODS! I'm sorry, I love my alma mater, but there's no way in HELL they're worth that much!

Care to check the figures? http://www.drew.edu/depts/finaid.aspx?id=33137

Out of curiosity, I did some comparisons.

Drew, for the 07-08 school year, charged $49,949
For the same school year, Princeton University charged $47,375 (they expect a "modest" increase for the 08-09 school year)
Brown University charged $48,660
Rutgers, for 07-08 charged, in comparison, $20,096. Seems like small change, no?

For the 08-09 school year, Harvard University is charging $50,250
Georgetown University is at $53,3600
Seton Hall (traditionally one of the three most expensive schools in NJ with Drew and Princeton) is charging $41,290

When did higher education get so ******** expensive? And when will the American people wise up to the fact that the less expensive state schools provide an education that is just as good (and in many cases better)? I weep.

Same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
The court’s 4-to-3 decision striking down state laws that had limited marriages to unions between a man and a woman makes California only the second state, after Massachusetts, to allow same-sex marriages. The decision, which becomes effective in 30 days, is certain to play a role in the presidential campaign.
“In view of the substance and significance of the fundamental constitutional right to form a family relationship,” Chief Justice Ronald M. George wrote of marriage for the majority, “the California Constitution properly must be interpreted to guarantee this basic civil right to all Californians, whether gay or heterosexual, and to same-sex couples as well as to opposite-sex couples.”
California already has a strong domestic partnership law that gives gay and lesbian couples nearly all of the benefits and burdens of heterosexual marriage. The majority said that is not enough.
Given the historic, cultural, symbolic and constitutional significance of the concept of marriage, Chief Justice George wrote, the state cannot limit marriage to opposite-sex couples. The court left open the possibility that another terms could denote state-sanctioned unions so long as that term was used across the board.
The state’s ban on same-sex marriage was based on a law enacted by the Legislature in 1977 and a statewide initiative approved by the voters in 2000, both defining marriage as limited to unions between a man and a woman. The question before the court was whether those laws violate provisions of the state Constitution protecting equality and fundamental rights.
Conservative groups have proposed a new initiative, this one to amend the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage. If it is allowed onto the ballot in November and approved by the voters, Thursday’s decision would be overridden. The groups have gathered more than a million signatures on initiative petitions and submitted them to the state.
Justice Marvin R. Baxter, dissenting, said the majority had should have deferred to the state Legislature, which has in recent years increased legal protections for same-sex couples.
“But a bare majority of this court,” Justice Baxter wrote, “not satisfied with the pace of democratic change, now abruptly forestalls that process and substitutes, by judicial fiat, its own social policy views for those expressed by the people themselves.”
The California Legislature has twice passed bills allowing same-sex marriages, but they were vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said they would overturn the 2000 referendum.
Mr. Schwarzenegger opposes the current ballot initiative seeking a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. He said Thursday that he respected the court’s decision and would not support overturning it, according to The Associated Press.
In 2004, Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco directed the county clerk to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. Before the California Supreme Court halted the practice, more than 4,000 same-sex couples received marriage licenses in San Francisco.

From bbc.com:

A US man who posted an internet video in which he taunted police to arrest him has been jailed for more than six years by a court in Miami, Florida.

Rudy Villanueva, 31, last year filmed himself waving guns in the air, inviting police to "come get some".

Police took Villanueva up on the offer in January, seizing several weapons and hundreds of rounds of ammunition from the flat where the video was made.

He later pleaded guilty to firearms charges, but said he had meant no harm.

Villanueva argued that the video, posted on video-sharing website YouTube, was a misunderstanding.

In the video, he was seen saying: "We's out here, we fighting a cold war."

"Metro Dade Gang unit, here I am baby. You know you hate seeing me like this," he said, taunting the city's anti-gang police officers.

On Wednesday, District Judge Marcia Cooke rejected Villanueva's arguments that he was only joking in the video and never sought to threaten the police.

The judge sent Villanueva to jail for six-and-a-half years, noting that he had 15 prior arrests.

The Pope's chief astronomer says that life on Mars cannot be ruled out.

Writing in the Vatican newspaper, the astronomer, Father Gabriel Funes, said intelligent beings created by God could exist in outer space.

You can probably recycle more than you think. Visit Earth 911 for the rules in your area -- what can be left curbside, and what your local agency will accept at designated drop-off sites.

From Forecast Earth, from the Weather Channel online

( Here are some specific ways to recycle ten surprising items )

From OurFuture.org.

The Opening Paragraph:

I live in a nice place.

I mean that literally. It took some getting used to. After 20 years in Silicon Valley, where people put a premium on being direct and to the point, have no time to waste on small talk or personal sharing, and will call a stupid idea stupid to your face, moving to Canada required a whole lot of gearing back on that brusque American aggressive-in-your-face thing. The humbling fact was: We had to learn to mind our manners.

( read the whole thing. long, but TOTALLY worth it )

Ever wonder what happens if you kill the air conditioning to the room in which ALL of your campus' servers are located? Well wonder no more!

For some unknowable (and unforgivable) reason, the facilities guys decided it would be a good idea to kill the AC to our server room. And one by one, all of our servers overheated and shut down.

We've managed to get the air back on, but it'll be at least two hours until it's cool enough in there to start bringing things back up. And, of course, they have to be brought up in a specific sequence.

Meanwhile, it's finals time, and final projects time too. And the panic phone calls are pouring in.

Please shoot me?

So, after discussing things with the prof who runs the MAT program, we decided to not put off my final two zero-credit classes until next spring, but to do them in the fall along with student teaching and my current-issues class. So, the other two things I'm doing are:

EDUC 615/Capstone Experience: TheTeaching Professional 0 cr.
This course will assist students in completing the exit requirements for the Master of Arts in Teaching program and prepare them for future roles as teacher-leaders. Emphasis is on three areas: (1) communication— verbal, written, and electronic; (2) the interpretation of information amassed across course work, and their integration into a personal and collective understanding of their profession; and (3) the creative presentation of these materials in a public arena as a demonstration of this self-knowledge, of mastery of their content knowledge, and of a commitment to the teaching profession, specifically to the continuous investment of themselves to lifelong learning and to student learning.

SCED 700/Comprehensive Examination: Secondary Education
Every candidate for a graduate degree must take a comprehensive examination that requires the candidate to synthesize and apply knowledge acquired throughout the program.

Good news folks, we have found a home for the puppy. The response we got was OVERWHELMING to say the least (Mike, Carina, and I all emailed everyone we know in the area who are dog folks). We decided to take folks in the order they replied to us, and after the first few folks ended up taking themselves off the list for one reason or another, we have opted to go with a retired (early 50s) couple living in Clinton. They have three acres for him to run around in, and another dog (of approximately the same age and size) to keep him company.

Thanks to all of you for your feedback

Eye Gaze Tracking for MMORPGs.

Hello all.

We've a slight problem. Well, a slight puppy might be a better way to phrase this. Here's the story:

Yesterday afternoon, a puppy wandered into our back yard here in Ewing. Larry went out to see it, and it crawled over to him on his belly (very submissive). It came in the back door, saw me, and did the same thing. The poor thing was filthy, and his hair was all matted. No collar or tags on the little guy at all. Larry had a small collar and leash in his car (he keeps them in case he finds strays on the side of the road. He's like that), so he hooked the puppy up and took him for a walk around the block. Nobody knew who he was or where he came from (one friendly guy gave Larry some dog food so we could at least feed him). Larry gave him a bath in the sink (which he just sat there and too). We've yet to hear him bark, although he will whimper a little, and growl playfully when tugging on toys. At any rate, we contacted some friends of ours who know dogs, and they agreed to look at him. So we drove up to Branchburg. They identified the dog as a "schnoodle", which is apparently a cross between a schnauzer and a poodle. Carina (one of our friends) has a whole grooming kit that she uses on her dogs, so she (with Larry holding the little squirmy guy) managed to do a good job of trimming him and removing all of the matted hair, leaving him with a nice soft coat. Then she bathed him again.

We're estimating that he's less than a year old (I think less than 9 months), but we're not sure. He's about 15 pounds at this point, and we think (based on dirt and matting of fur) that he was on his own for at least two weeks, possibly longer. He's not a timid fellow: VERY friendly (likes to lick, and is kind of spring loaded - he bounces a lot), and will explore if allowed. He seems to have been lead trained (he doesn't tug when on a leash, and stays near the person walking him), and sort of understand the "sit" command (although it may have been more of a tone of voice thing).

The problem is, Mike and Carina can't keep him. They have two dogs already and a baby on the way. And Larry and I can't take in a dog either. So we're trying to find a home for him as quickly as possible. We don't know what (if any) shots he's had at this point. So he may need those. But what he really needs is a place to live. Spread the word, so we can find this guy a home.

Thanks

A woman from the governing party in Ecuador has proposed that a woman's right to enjoy sexual happiness should be enshrined in the country's law.

Nope, I'm not kidding. Neither is she.

I just took The Bush-McCain Challenge -- an online quiz to see if you can tell the difference between George W. Bush and John McCain. Check it out, and see if you can do any better than I did! (I scored 4 out of 5)
Click here for the quiz

Just in time for the summer

(blame tristam)

I Am A: Neutral Good Elf Druid (5th Level)


Ability Scores:

Strength-12

Dexterity-9

Constitution-11

Intelligence-13

Wisdom-13

Charisma-11


Alignment:
Neutral Good A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing what is good without bias for or against order. However, neutral good can be a dangerous alignment because it advances mediocrity by limiting the actions of the truly capable.


Race:
Elves are known for their poetry, song, and magical arts, but when danger threatens they show great skill with weapons and strategy. Elves can live to be over 700 years old and, by human standards, are slow to make friends and enemies, and even slower to forget them. Elves are slim and stand 4.5 to 5.5 feet tall. They have no facial or body hair, prefer comfortable clothes, and possess unearthly grace. Many others races find them hauntingly beautiful.


Class:
Druids gain power not by ruling nature but by being at one with it. They hate the unnatural, including aberrations or undead, and destroy them where possible. Druids receive divine spells from nature, not the gods, and can gain an array of powers as they gain experience, including the ability to take the shapes of animals. The weapons and armor of a druid are restricted by their traditional oaths, not simply training. A druid's Wisdom score should be high, as this determines the maximum spell level that they can cast.


Find out What Kind of Dungeons and Dragons Character Would You Be?