PGD Anyone?

ALBANY, N.Y. – I just received this e-mail from Tufts:

Do you have an interest in biogenetics and the science behind Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD)? Take an online course at Tufts this winter for only $75!

This is what Tufts' thinks I want to take time out from the Real World to learn about? And pay them money for a four-week distance learning course, which carries no credit and won't be technical enough to put on my resume?

Sounds cool, but I've got to study for language school. I may be a college graduate, but I'm definitely not retired.

The Woes of September

WICHITA, Kan. – My last month here in Kansas began with three unpleasant surprises, all related to the calendar and all happening on the first of the month (I was too distressed to write about them yesterday, hence this entry's appearance on the second).

I have my pleasures and vices here in Wichita, the main one being fountain drinks from QuikTrip. I might have been somewhat skeptical about the place several weeks ago, but I've grown to love it. I don't take coffee breaks from work, I take QuikTrip runs. There I grab some concoction made of soda, syrup and frozen drinks and bring it to the counter. Friday, around 11 a.m., I did just that.

"That will be 85 cents," the clerk said. I was confused. I go to QuikTrip a lot. My debit card account is three-quarters under a dollar purchases from QuikTrip. A 32 ounce soda costs 63 cents with tax. I looked over the price wall for confirmation. But there, I saw that the "59 cents" sticker had been removed from the 32 oz. sign. Instead a plain-looking 79 cents was revealed behind it.

The answers came back at the office: QuikTrip lowers the price of its 32 oz. drinks during the summer. And apparently Sept. 1 is the corporate-designated end of the summer.

I came home from work, looking to celebrate the end of a long week with a beer and some "Entourage." I turn on the television, only to find Channel 15 full of static. Channel 16, Cinemax, was also dead. Then I remembered a tiny strip of paper posted on my door a couple weeks ago: "We can no longer offer HBO service. Starting September 1, you will have to make outside arrangements for the channel." And come September 1, it was gone.

I went to the gym to cool off and get rid of some of those QuikTrip calories. After I returned, I finally opened that beer and decided to read a bit. Not in the mood for the latest Paul Theroux book, I cruised over to the Economist Web site. I love the Economist. It's international, serious, funny and a great read. It also costs more than $150 a year, so I can't afford the print edition. I access it through a proxy server at my old school. I enter in my PIN number, nine magic digits that were all-important for four years, and access is granted.

But there's a problem. "That PIN is invalid."

I guess Tufts believes September 1 is far enough after graduation to close the knowledge spicket. I eventually did manage to get on the Web site, but was not happy.

That was my first day in September. I certainly hope better things are coming for the rest of the month. After all, aren't months supposed to taketh and giveth in equal measure?

Mengzi Mixup

BOSTON - The path to the East slams shut at the door to Miner Hall.

This is the lesson I've learned with my recent dealings with the Tufts Philosophy department. My time here is winding down, and that means I'm take care of my final degree requirements and assorted paperwork. This has meant in the past couple weeks I've been trying to get credits from courses I took in Hong Kong approved to count toward my diploma. This has in general been an easy process: complete a form online with the course name and a short description, and three or four days later, it shows up on your transcript.

I did receive one surprise. While in Hong Kong, I took several philosophy courses. Philosophy is not my major, but I'm interested in the subject and considered it as a field of study for a time. At Hong Kong University I was fortunate to take a class in the fall on Mencius (孟子), the famous Confucian scholar. He's often referred to as the "first Chinese philosopher" or the "founder of Chinese philosophy." Not according to Tufts philosophy Department: my petition for credit was denied.

This is a school that recently flew its president, Provost and Board of Overseers for a two week schmooze-fest around Mumbai and Delhi, and is constantly releasing press releases with quotes emphasizing that Tufts is trying "“advance its international mission,"” and be at the forefront global citizenship and leadership. (You can reach more about that trip here: http://www.tuftsobserver.org/news/20051209/tufts_in_incredible_india.html)

Tufts is supposed to be a bastion of liberal thought and diversity. There is a mandatory world civilization requirement, and all students are required to take six classes on foreign language and culture. We have dozens of Asian groups -- even a Gamelan Ensemble. But too often, these initiatives aren't evenly distributed around the university. The more activists push for superfluous actions like an Asian-American Studies major and censuring Google for its operation in China, the more suspicious the rest of the university the becomes. The result is unfortunate: "traditional disciplines" retreat into their own fiefdoms.

I mentioned this to my adviser -- who is a professor specializing in Chinese politics in the Political Science Department -- and she didn't seem surprised. "They should really call it the Department of Western philosophy," she said.

I don't disagree.