Alex FriedrichA University of Minnesota official is calling yesterday’s chemical spill in one of the labs a simple mistake made in a rush. Industrial hygienist Neil Carlson said a post-doctoral associate and an assistant professor — not two students as previously reported — were in a medicinal chemistry lab using pyridine as a reagent and a Read more →
MPR News Intelligence on higher education
Archives for September 2010
I”ve covered what University of Minnesota President Bob Bruininks had to say during this week’s Bright Ideas discussion about the “Troubled Waters” controversy, but you can watch him yourself. Click here to view the video snippet containing his comments on the documentary flap.
I’m always interested in study tips and techniques, so I checked out this University of St. Thomas student reporter’s take on a recent New York Times article about studying and the brain. TommyMedia discussed the piece and asked folks from the school to add their own tips, which I’ve condensed: Change study locations. Research shows Read more →
Authorities are still investigating yesterday’s chemical spill at a University of Minnesota lab, which injured two students and closed off a couple of blocks along Harvard Street Southeast. U spokesman Dan Wolter wrote in an e-mail, “There is nothing to suggest there was improper handling of materials at the current time. However, as with every Read more →
MPR’s Tim Post has this report on how some faculty at the University of Minnesota are on edge over academic freedom after the pulling of the Troubled Waters environmental film — even though some say the U has a solid track record of backing up its researchers. The film has since been given the green Read more →
Digging Out of the Hole A flurry of recent reports show a number of college endowments are beginning to rebound after taking a brutal hit during the recession, but even some of the top performers are struggling to reach the high-water marks of yesteryear. (Inside Higher Ed) Thinking Outside the Bottle More and more colleges Read more →
Even as higher ed picks up a little steam in the Minnesota gubernatorial race, it’s getting some real attention in a number of the three dozen other races across the nation — and is a key issue in three other states: Ohio, California and Florida. But whereas increased higher ed spending is being pushed by Read more →
It doesn’t sound like some members of the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources are buying the assurances today of Dean Al Levine of the U — or those of President Bob Bruininks yesterday — that no censorship or self-censorship was involved in the pulling of Troubled Waters. Here are some edited comments from this afternoon’s Read more →
Here are some notes on U of M College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Dean Al Levine’s remarks to the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. They are not a verbatim account: I’m very sorry about the way it all played out. I have never experienced any censorship. We always defend the faculty first and Read more →
I’m at a meeting of the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. They’re now taking a lunch break to watch Troubled Waters: A Mississippi River Story, the river pollution documentary that the University of Minnesota pulled and later allowed to be shown. I’ve taken notes. So far, the commission’s co-chair, state Rep. Jean Wagenius (DFL), told U Read more →