Office Hours

Imagine you've been doing research on the possibility of revolution in Egypt and you've just published a paper [1] asking why revolutions in Egypt have failed to materialize and then, two weeks after publication: revolution in Egypt. That's the situation Hazem Kandil found himself in these past few months, and in this episode Kandil, who is a PhD candidate in the UCLA sociology department, talks with Sinan Erensu about the causes and consequences of revolution in Egypt and how sociology can help us better understand what happened and is happening still.

Download Office Hours #26 [2].

[1] http://www.springerlink.com/content/f277313jk0455712/

[2] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH26_Kandil.mp3

This episode we talk with three authors of two articles from the Winter 2011 issue of Contexts: Lisa Dodson [1] and Wendy Luttrell [2], authors of Families Facing Untenable Choices [3], and Stefanie Mollborn [4], author of “Children” Having Children [5]. We discuss why Americans are so tough on single moms and teen moms, the untenable choices that they face, and why supporting moms is a smart social investment.

Happy Mother's Day!

Download Office Hours #25 [6]

[1] http://www2.bc.edu/~dodsonli/

[2] http://www.wendyluttrell.com/

[3] http://contexts.org/articles/winter-2011/families-facing-untenable-choices/

[4] http://sobek.colorado.edu/SOC/People/Faculty/mollborn.html

[5] http://contexts.org/articles/winter-2011/children-having-children/

[6] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH25_Dodson_et_al.mp3

We sit down with Hans Rosling for a discussion about how visual graphics can unveil the underlying beauty of data. Highlights include a discussion of the history behind Rosling’s gapminder [1], who is leading the pack on adopting a “fact-based worldview,” the work that goes into Rosling’s famous TED Talks [2], and the historical relationship between Sweden and the US (and Minnesota, in particular).

A special thanks goes to the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment [3]. Rosling spoke at Minnesota as part of their Momentum 2011 [4] series and they were kind enough to allow us to interview him as well.

Download Office Hours #24 [5]

[1] http://gapminder.org

[2] http://www.ted.com/speakers/hans_rosling.html

[3] http://environment.umn.edu/

[4] http://environment.umn.edu/momentum/eventseries/speakers/hans_rosling.html

[5] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH24_Rosling.mp3

This week we talk with Richard Lachmann, author of the article, The Roots of American Decline [1] in the Winter 2011 issue of Contexts. Lachmann addresses common misunderstandings we Americans tend to have about our government's spending, particularly military spending, and the current "fiscal crisis". Lachmann compares the decline of American dominance with past empires and offers some lessons about what we might do to have a graceful decline as opposed to a painful, violent one.

Download Office Hours #23 [2]

[1] http://contexts.org/articles/winter-2011/the-roots-of-american-decline/

[2] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH23_Lachmann.mp3

This week we talk about meth, Iowa and the dystopia of modern  young adulthood, with Maria Kefalas [1] from St. Joseph’s University.

Our discussion is centered on Dr. Kefala’s recent book review [2] in Contexts on Nick Redding’s Methland: the Life and Death of an America Small Town [3]. Because the content of Redding's book pairs well with  Kefala's own fieldwork in Iowa,  we discuss the premise that social  problems like the use of meth in rural America are really the "symptoms" of the gradual decline these communities have been experiencing in the wake of de-industrialization.   Moreover, while issues of crime and drugs tend to be understood as urban issues, Kefalas argues that rural America is experiencing its own decline in term of the opportunities it can offer young people. We conclude with Kefala’s suggestion that we “re-imagine” young adulthood and the types of educational and training opportunities made available to young people in the new global economy.

We also discuss our latest podcast, New Books in Sociology [4], a joint venture between us here at The Society Pages and the New Books Network [5].

Download Office Hours #22 [6]

[1] http://www.sju.edu/academics/cas/sociology/faculty/mkefalas.html

[2] http://contexts.org/articles/winter-2011/from-the-music-man-to-methland/

[3] http://www.methlandbook.com

[4] http://newbooksinsociology.com

[5] http://newbooksnetwork.com

[6] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH22_Kefalas.mp3

This week we talk with Nathan Palmer [1] about teaching sociology in the internet age. Nathan talks about Sociology Source [2], the Soc101 Class Pack [3], and how we should be excited, not scared, about what the internet can do for our teaching.

Download Office Hours #21 [4]

[1] http://www.sociologysource.com/nathanpalmer/

[2] http://sociologysource.com

[3] http://sociologysource.squarespace.com/soc101classpack/

[4] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH21_Palmer.mp3

This episode we talk with humorist Dylan Brody [1] about the power of humor and storytelling to transform the way people look at the world around them. Brody discusses the effects of television on political comedy, the sad state of heroes in our storytelling today, and how he incorporates his political knowledge and ideals into the personal stories he tells before audiences.

After you listen, be sure to check out Brody's albums:

Brevity [2]

A Twist of the Wit [3]

True Enough [4]

Download Office Hours #20 [5]

[1] http://www.dylanbrody.com

[2] http://astore.amazon.com/ismistrecordinwe/detail/B0028ND1SU

[3] http://astore.amazon.com/ismistrecordinwe/detail/B004IJZHCK

[4] http://astore.amazon.com/ismistrecordinwe/detail/B0028ND1T4

[5] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH20_Brody.mp3