On June 13, we had the great honor of hearing Paul Jacobs, chairman and CEO of the global semiconductor company Qualcomm, announce a $20 million gift to UC Berkeley during a live webcast of the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting in Chicago. Dr. Jacobs — who holds three degrees from Read More…
An education system as diverse as California Community Colleges — the largest publicly funded system in the United States, if not the world — is going to experience its share of disagreements. Faculty, administrators, trustees, students and classified staff members won’t always see eye to eye with one another. The Read More…
Up until age 19, I was a Chinese-American homework robot. My “tiger parents” made it clear that playing outside was for losers who didn’t get into UC Berkeley. Other than working on extra-credit math problems and practicing piano, what else was there for an obedient brainiac to do? Quietly and Read More…
Radical. From the latin word “radix,” or root. Square a number, and the number it came from is the root. Let’s liken squared numbers to the lack of public confidence in the government to serve our best interests. How about 25 — only roughly a quarter of Americans in a Read More…
When we turn on the tap, we hope to enjoy a clean glass of water. However, more and more prescription drugs, such as anti-anxiety or anti-seizure medications and even hormones, are being found in our drinking water. With no consistent and convenient method of disposal, residents either stockpile unwanted drugs Read More…
When I graduated from UC Berkeley — 2010 — my annual fees were 36 percent higher than they had been in my freshman year. Since then, fees have increased further, due largely to the state’s disinvestment in public higher education. Students will get a reprieve from more increases this year, Read More…
Our planet’s terrestrial and marine ecosystems, together with their climatic envelopes and geological substrates, and the processes and products resulting from their functioning represent humanity’s life-support systems. Their roles include the capture of carbon dioxide and release of oxygen, supplying food, provisioning of drinkable water, controlling soil erosion, suppressing pest, Read More…
Although there have been thousands of preventable casualties in garment factory incidents of the developing world, many are still unconcerned with the unsafe working conditions multibillion-dollar companies provide. But is safety the responsibility of the major corporations that hire subcontractors, or is safety the responsibility of government, which creates policy Read More…
In May, I walked across the stage in Zellerbach Hall, symbolizing the completion of four years at Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design. Strangely, what I remember most about those fleeting moments is being inexplicably and overly concerned about whether my feet were on the mark when I was photographed. But Read More…
In recent years, much has changed in the learning and living conditions of students and workers at the University of California. Since 2008, undergraduate students’ annual tuition rates have risen more than $4,000, housing and health costs have spiked, campus workers have faced layoffs and cuts to their pension plans Read More…
