As a student in the Brown/RISD Dual Degree Program, senior Youbin Kang uses textiles to bring attention to global issues. Her work hangs in the Watson Institute as part of a new initiative to showcase art by students, faculty, and staff.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Banglatie, a knit garment made by senior Youbin Kang, hangs on a wall of the Watson Institute, its form loosely resembling the shape of a person, with arms, legs, and feet dangling from the nails that hold it in place. (more…)
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Freedom of the press is viewed by many as a cornerstone of democracy. But can it actually help improve people’s lives and make them happy? Researchers at the University of Missouri have found that citizens of countries with press freedom tend to be much happier than citizens of countries without free presses. Edson Tandoc, Jr., a doctoral student in the MU School of Journalism, says that press freedom directly predicts life satisfaction across the world.
“We already know that having reliable, objective news sources can benefit democracy, but in this study, we found that press freedom also benefits communities by helping improve the overall quality of life of citizens and, in the process, by also making them happier,” Tandoc said. “People enjoy having an element of choice about where they get their news. Citizens of countries without a free press are forced to rely on the government for information, when what people really want is diversity in content where they are free to get the information they want from the source of their choosing.” (more…)
The United States prizes freedom above most other civic values, yet Bernard Harcourt believes the notion is widely misunderstood and inconsistently applied.
Freedom from government interference is a key tenet of the free market system that the United States champions, but Harcourt notes that Americans expect vigorous government action in imprisoning criminals. The result is a deep inconsistency, he argues, for even as the United States preaches freedom in the marketplace, it maintains the world’s highest incarceration rate. (more…)
ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Americans are united when it comes to many core values, according to a University of Michigan survey. But the nation is deeply divided about certain issues, including gay marriage, immigration and universal health care.
