Despite the geekiness of my previous post today, I had to double dip with this: H/T Jeff Emanuel
Friday Nerd Blogging Way Early
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Steve Saideman
Steve Saideman is Professor and the Paterson Chair in International Affairs at Carleton University’s Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. He has written The Ties That Divide: Ethnic Politics, Foreign Policy and International Conflict; For Kin or Country: Xenophobia, Nationalism and War (with R. William Ayres); and NATO in Afghanistan: Fighting Together, Fighting Alone (with David Auerswald), and elsewhere on nationalism, ethnic conflict, civil war, and civil-military relations.
Recent Posts
Game of Thrones Over-Thinking: Applications from Ethnic Conflict and Civil War
What do Arend Lijphart, John McGarry and Tywin Lannister have in common? Power-sharing! Since we are halfway through the third season, and we got a nice dialogue about the interplay between nation, nationalism and anarchy between Varys and Littlefinger (not in the book), it is time for us to ponder how these basic concepts play in Westeros.* * A reminder that Westeros is only one part of this world--there are the places beyond the seas that have their own political systems and identities. Plus the world beyond the Wall is not really part of Westeros either. When I first wrote about the IR...
Friday Nerd Blogging: The Eve of the Fourth
With tomorrow being May 4th, it is only good and proper that we mark the eve of that most awesome of nerd holidays with this video. I have a serious case of envy. It would be a heap of fun to do what it takes to join the 501st Legion. I would definitely choose to wear a Rebel outfit. But I don't have the dedication or the skills to do what it takes. All I can say is: May the Fourth Be With You. And it will be with all of us soon enough as Disney starts kicking out new Star Wars movies on a regular basis in just two years.
Friday Nerd Blogging: Mashing Up GoT
It has been a week or two since we have FNB-ed. After last week's events, we could use some extra silliness:
Professing and the Policy World
There is so much criticism of the academic enterprise these days, asserting that professors are too focused on research and not enough on teaching and not enough on relevance to the policy world. These critiques are hardly new, but bear more weight in a time of austerity. It is easy to point to some work that seems hardly relevant and some professors who seem least interested in engaging the “real world,” but I am constantly reminded of the opposite—professors who become deeply engaged in policy-making one way or another. Tuesday night, I had the honor of being invited to the Canadian...
Is It the Gate or the Stuff Inside?
One of the topics online and at the ISA has been the gated-ness of academic writings. Journal articles are almost always behind a paywall so that ordinary folks cannot get at them. This is likely to change as many folks are now complaining and the threat of ditching academic publishers for the net may force the journal publishers into being responsive. We are already seeing more journals temporarily providing open access to various articles and issues. But, I am afraid, my friends, that is almost entirely irrelevant. Why? Because why would any ordinary person want to read a jargon...
Friday Nerd Blogging: Globalization Edition
Why show a trailer for an Indian zombie movie? Two reasons: it has the word globalization in it; and it helped me make it to the Final Four of Twitter Fight Club 2013. To newbies, the first rule of #TFC13 is to talk about it. So, check out the competition of the international security wonks, and then vote for me on Monday. That way, I can be utterly distracted at the ISA for the finale is Wednesday. Enjoy your weekend.
Rule Number One For Graduate School Applicants
Spring (where it exists) is the time of year when applicants to PhD programs find out the outcome and decide where, if any place, to go. While there are many factors that one must take into account, including what might happen if your preferred adviser leaves (Will Moore's take and mine), there is something far more fundamental: are you going to get funding?* If the answer is no, then the decision is painful but easy: don't go. * This post is inspired by a question asked at Political Science Job Rumors. Even if the poster was really trolling, it is an important...
Pop Popular Understandings of Game of Thrones and Nerd Blogging Friday Two Days Late
My post at e-ir on how folks understand IR and its manifestations in Game of Thrones is eclipsed by this series of videos. For the conclusion with heaps of paens to teen movies:
Friday Nerd Blogging: Game of Thrones and Popular Understandings of IR
Check out my new post at e-IR for a consideration of how Game of Thrones tends to reflect how non-IR scholars might be thinking about IR.That's all, folks.