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The Dynamic and Volatile World of Commercial Fishing

The Dynamic and Volatile World of Commercial Fishing

December 17th, 2015 , Posted by Anonymous (not verified)

It is said that George Moskovita bought, repaired, traded, and sank more boats than most fishermen would work on in a lifetime. Moskovita spent his adult life out on the Pacific Ocean. When he first started fishing at the age of 16, he thought to himself, “Boy, this is not for me!” but he couldn’t have been more wrong. “But of course it was for me!” he later said. There is nothing like being out on the open ocean, surrendering yourself to the dangers of the waves and witnessing the beauty around you.

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Psychic Numbing and a Rational Arithmetic of Compassion

December 4th, 2015 posted by Anonymous (not verified)

We are constantly bombarded with ever-increasing amounts of information, creating a real challenge for our brains to process it all. Yes, the human mind is powerful and able to accomplish amazing things, yet how can we deal with everything?  From the violence woven throughout fictional media to the real-world horrors presented 24/7 on the news, these stimuli can easily desensitize us. Scott and Paul Slovic describe how such psychic numbing can be countered in their book Numbers and Nerves. Today Paul Slovic explains how psychic numbing and desensitization may occur and how it affects us. If you missed Scott Slovic’s post from last week, read it here.

The Dance of Reason and Effect

November 19th, 2015 posted by Anonymous (not verified)

According to Scott Slovic, there is “a new kind of power to appreciate what’s happening in our heads” and that statement couldn’t be more true. Our minds are a powerful thing, and being able to understand them better can help us become more self aware and develop a stronger ability to interpret the world around us. In Numbers and Nerves, Scott Slovic and his father Paul Slovic write about psychological concepts and how they can empower us. This week Scott Slovic talks to us about how Numbers and Nerves came to be and what he would like authors and readers to take away from the book. Next week Paul Slovic will talk about the human mind, psychic numbing, and desensitization.

In Conversation with Larry Landis, author of A School for the People: A Photographic History of Oregon State University

November 12th, 2015 posted by Marty Brown

Today, in celebration of University Press Week (November 8-14), we join dozens of other University Presses for a blog tour. Today's topic is "In Conversation with Authors." We hope you will enjoy our conversation with Larry Landis, author of A School for the People. And we hope you'll take the time to visit the blogs of other participating university presses. You'll be amazed by the breadth, depth, and diversity they represent.

20th Century Culture Wars

November 5th, 2015 posted by Anonymous (not verified)

The rugged Pacific Northwest known to the earliest settlers was not for the faint of heart. These settlers had come to work in the mines and forests, but their free time was spent in the saloons, gambling halls and brothels. This was not a place built for families and religious peoples. In his new book Outsiders in a Promised Land Dale Soden writes about how early Protestants, Catholics, and Jews worked together to provide social institutions in the Pacific Northwest. Today Soden shares with us his personal experiences as an undergraduate student during the 70’s and how he became interested in studying religious activists in the Pacific Northwest.

Ground-Truthing: Research Through Hiking, Exploration, and Adventure

October 29th, 2015 posted by Anonymous (not verified)

Today we welcome Jessica McDonald and Lorraine Anderson, joining them for their interview discussing what it was like working with their contributers and doing hands-on outdoor research for Wild in the Willamette. This is the second post about the newly published book.   If you missed Jessica's background story for the book in the first post, you can find it here.