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Social Sciences

Summer 2008

Letters – Summer 2008

 

The lonely flower

Your most interesting article about “The Orphan Flower” intrigued me. What a lovely and unique flower and leaf. Thank you for sharing its appearance with us.

I may say also, that having discovered Washington State Magazine in my today’s mail, I spent the entire afternoon enjoying each article. What an exciting place is Washington State University. Receiving this publication is always stimulating and certainly makes me proud of the work being done there. Please extend my congratulations to each one making this a better place in which to live.

Marley Austin Jesseph ’47
Bloomington, Indiana

 

School in the woods

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Spring 2009

Brewing Justice: Fair Trade Coffee, Sustainability, and Survival

Brewing Justice Book cover

About twelve years ago, I drank my first cup of fair trade coffee. I didn’t spend much time thinking about the implications—it just seemed like a decent idea to pay farmers a good price for their product.  But even the simple assumption that a fair trade or organic label guarantees farmers a better income or life can be questioned. Do farmers actually receive extra profit? Are they more successful than conventional producers? Do the labels mean anything to them? In Brewing Justice, Washington State University sociologist Daniel Jaffee explores those questions, and other complications … » More …

Spring 2002

Essentials of the American Constitution

Essentials of the American Constitution examines five closely integrated components that make up the fundamental law: the compact, separation of powers, federalism, representation, and the Bill of Rights. The interaction among these components gives the constitution its dynamism. Landmark decisions handed down by the Supreme Court involve two or more of them.

The book’s unique approach shows how these components often work together, assisting, explaining, or reinforcing one another. Author Charles H. Sheldon provides an overview of the fundamental principles of the American Constitution and gives a firm foundation for readers interested in American government and politics, constitutional law, or civil liberties.

A member of … » More …

Summer 2004

Competing Devotions: Career and Family Among Women Executives

To be or not to be a devoted mother, corporate executive—or both? These are the choices and challenges facing career women more than ever. In Competing Devotions: Career and Family Among Women Executives, former Washington State University sociology professor Mary Blair-Loy examines the lifestyles of two groups of women and the decisions they made regarding the delicate balance of raising children along with—or versus—the long hours they spend behind an executive’s desk.

The first group, made up of 56 predominantly white female finance executives, was called the career-committed group. The second group, the family-committed group, was made up of 25 white women who left full-time, … » More …

Spring 2004

All Abraham's Children: Changing Conceptions of Race and Lineage

This thoroughly documented study of race and identity within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints unravels various ways Mormons have constructed and negotiated their identity throughout history. Armand Mauss, professor emeritus of sociology at Washington State University, makes the intriguing argument that Mormonism provides a unique case in which religious prejudice or particularism actually undermines secular prejudice. While Mormon relations with other races have not been without difficulty, documentation provided here demonstrates that in specific cases, Mormons hold less prejudicial attitudes than other white Americans.

This is due, according to Mauss, to a theology linking Mormon lineage with other ethnic groups. Believing Native … » More …

Spring 2005

Children at Promise: 9 Principles to Help Kids Thrive in an At-Risk World

Many of us assume that the absence of adversity in a child’s life predicts success. Hence, we strive to protect children from such experiences. In Children at Promise: 9 Principles to Help Kids Thrive in an At-Risk World, Cheryl Bostrom and Timothy Stuart challenge this assumption with the belief that adversity can become the tool by which children can learn to succeed and prosper.

The authors skillfully apply sound theoretical principles of child development and parent education in a practical and useful format. They embed these principles within a framework of faith-based positive thinking and resiliency, suggesting that all children face adversity throughout their lives. … » More …

Fall 2003

Opening Minds: A Journey of Extraordinary Encounters, Crop Circles, and Resonance

 

In Opening Minds: A Journey of Extraordinary Encounters, Crop Circles, and Resonance Simeon Hein (’93 Ph.D. Soc.) sets out to show that Western rationalism and the rise of technology have alienated us from our world and from each other, but that by tapping into the “quantum perspective,”; we can access hitherto unknown realities and achieve integration with the universe. Hein provides an insightful sociological critique of information technology and our uses of time, then launches into discussions of his own experiences with “the universal mind grid”; through resonant viewing (a form of telepathic perception), encounters with extraterrestrial beings, and some of the stranger aspects … » More …

Winter 2007

O Palouse!

O Palouse!, a DVD about the area, obviously started as one of those absolutely great ideas. Take an area that’s extraordinarily photogenic. Good geologic bones, good seasonal color. Unique personality. Add a rich history of relatively recent European settlement and a fairly well documented Native history. Throw in a few major conflicts between settlers and natives for drama. Then there’s the two-universities-in-the-middle-of-nowhere angle. Then we’ll get a lot of sponsors and work them into the story just a little, and bingo! O Palouse! Oh! Oh! Oh!

And for the most part, it works. O Palouse! is a fine general introduction, a perfect stocking stuffer, a … » More …

Summer 2008

A Dialogue with the Past

A fierce Pacific storm in February 1970 revealed early remains of Ozette, on the Olympic Coast between Cape Flattery and La Push. Worried about the site's vulnerability to looters and further storms, Makah tribal leader Ed Claplanhoo '56 called archaeologist Richard Daugherty at Washington State University, commencing an 11-year excavation of the site. The excavation yielded thousands of well-preserved artifacts and a wealth of clues to the history and culture of Makahs and other coastal tribes. » More ...