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Category: Column

  • Oaklee Sidwell Remembered for Her Loving Spirit

    (Southern Utah girl Oaklee Sidwell passed away after a wind gust picked up the backyard trampoline she was sitting on and sent it flying more than 150 feet.)

    By Sidwell Family

    Our sweet Oaklee Lynn Sidwell, 9, left us on August 14, 2013 in Salt Lake City, after a tragic accident. She was surrounded by all of her loving family as she went back into the arms of her Heavenly Father. She was born July 11, 2004 in Panguitch to Tracy and Desiree Griffin Sidwell, the sister of Tyler and Jordan Sidwell.
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  • Dr. Tso-Cheng Chang, a Pioneer in Organic Farming

    Tso-Cheng Chang is a small-scale farmer in Amherst, Massachusetts. His popular restaurant, Amherst Chinese Food, attracts people from all over the Pioneer Valley to its fresh, organic, delicious Chinese food. Dr. Chang is a strong believer in soil re-mineralization; he has been using rock dust on his organic farm since 1995 in his determined quest to eliminate the need for pesticides and to grow nutrient-dense food. At this point, his soil has become so rich that he has not felt the need to add rock dust in the last few years.
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    Dr. Chang at Amherst Chinese Food.
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  • Book Review: The Smartest Kids in the World

    By Stand for Children

    The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way is a gripping new book by Amanda Ripley addressing the question, ‘what exactly is happening in classrooms in the countries that out-perform the U.S. academically?’ Ripley investigates this question by spending time where the action is: in classrooms abroad, specifically in Poland, South Korea, and Finland.  Her “informants” are American high school students who chose to study in those countries, and foreign students who come to the U.S. to study.
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    The Smartest Kids in the World is a page turner. Ripley’s characters are fascinating, her writing style is accessible, and her observations are fresh. There’s no hint of tired education talking points or polarizing rhetoric. Ripley lets facts and first hand observations guide her conclusions, not the other way around.
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  • Art for Life’s Sake — Conversation with Yo-Yo Ma

    Streamed live on Jun 27, 2013

    “When we tell a story using all of our senses, we touch with our eyes and our ears a movement; we make that memorable. Then we become curious; we start to want to learn more and our world becomes bigger.” — Yo-Yo Ma at 2013 Aspen Idea Festival
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  • Reflections on an Active Retirement

    By Yu-Chi Ho, written in 2001, updated in 2007 ( from blog.sciencenet.cn/blog-1565-3498.html )

    Four years ago, much to the surprise of my dean, I told him that I planned to retire in 2001 after 40 years on the faculty of Harvard University (Note added 2007. Currently in the US there is no mandatory retirement age for university professor. This has in fact becoming somewhat of a problem since many tenured faculty chooses to stay on rather than retire. Thus, they block openings and advancement for younger faculties). Since then I have prepared my self for this transition, reflected on my life, and finally gone through the experience. Collected below are some insights that I learned from others, discovered for myself, and emotions that I experienced before, during, and after the transition. They are offered as amusement, free advice (probably worth the same), and my own catharsis.
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  • Diaoyu Islands: “Stolen” Territory since 1895

    There are solid reasons for China to claim ownership of the Diaoyu Islands.

    The islands have been under the jurisdiction of China’s navy as islands affiliated with Taiwan since the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The Ming and Qing dynasties of China exercised sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands and their affiliated islands, and officially included them in maps.
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    A group of Hong Kong residences protest in front of Japanese Consulate in Hong Kong on July 6, 2013.
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  • May Peace and Tranquility Return to Xinjiang–Four Years after the July 5 Massacre

    BEIJING, July 5 (Xinhua) — Four years after the traumatic July 5 riots, many people in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region still live in fear of outbreaks of deadly violence.

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  • Boston’s Environment and Energy Chief on President’s Climate Action Plan

    By Brian Swett, Chief of Environment and Energy, City of Boston

    President Obama’s announcement this week of several federal climate change initiatives will reduce greenhouse gas emissions nationwide and help prepare the country for the impacts of climate change. As a coastal city, Boston is especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Without significant national and international action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Boston and many other cities could face potentially catastrophic impacts within the next 100 years.
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  • Welcome Speech at 2013 GBAAYSO Summer Concert in Lexington

    By Oldat Lai, Asian Cultura Center Greater Boston Asian American Youth Symphony Orchestra (GBAAYSO)

    Welcome to our summer concert 2013. This is Oldat Lai, executive director of the orchestra.

    Community outreach performance is a crucial part of our orchestra. During the past two and half years, our orchestra members have performed more than 65 repertories, in many greater Boston areas.
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    Oldat Lai (left) hands out award to George Li and Claire Huang.
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  • So Long Acton, Mass., after 31 Years!

    By Mr. and Mrs. Steve Lee

    We as a couple have lived in Acton for over 30 years and enjoyed living in this wonderful town and our quiet neighborhood. We are now retired and would like to move to a warm-weather city, and join our old friends.
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