Jen Ann Ban

ancientart: The Moon-goddess Selene or Luna accompanied by the...

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 21:35:35 -0700

The Moon-goddess Selene or Luna accompanied by the Dioscuri, or Phosphoros (the Morning Star) and Hesperos (the Evening Star).

Marble altar, Roman artwork, 2nd century CE. From Italy.

Courtesy & currently located at the Louvre, France. Photo taken by Marie-Lan Nguyen

ancientart: Ancient Roman fresco from the villa of P. Fannio...

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 18:38:10 -0800

ancientart:

Ancient Roman fresco from the villa of P. Fannio Sinistore in Boscoreale, 43-30 BCE.

This extraordinarily well preserved image makes remarkable use of perspective and colour. It is unknown what the function of the orb on the table is, perhaps it is a glass bowl with a butterfly pattern on it.

Courtesy & currently located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Photo source: Wikipedia Commons

The Face of Beauty

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 09:39:10 -0700

The Face of Beauty

buttsandviolins: kimmismiles: AHAHAHA HE ACTUALLY TWEETED ....

Wed, 01 Aug 2012 00:45:15 -0700

buttsandviolins:

kimmismiles:

AHAHAHA HE ACTUALLY TWEETED . YES.

Just like orchestra rehearsals :’D

Something I learned at work today: Chimerism and mosaicism

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 10:35:00 -0700

Something I learned at work today: Chimerism and mosaicism

Photo

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 18:04:15 -0700

My percussive instrument is better than yours

Sun, 22 Jul 2012 23:01:59 -0700

My percussive instrument is better than yours

oceanblued: Let’s pretend for five seconds that I can draw and...

Sat, 21 Jul 2012 01:13:30 -0700

oceanblued:

Let’s pretend for five seconds that I can draw and this is hilarious

“HERE WE GO!” » as requested by coolcidsclub

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 22:03:23 -0700

“HERE WE GO!” » as requested by coolcidsclub

Photo

Sat, 14 Jul 2012 01:03:20 -0700

Kitchen adventures

Wed, 04 Jul 2012 20:20:00 -0700

Kitchen adventures

Minecraft farming

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 04:07:00 -0700

The speed of which pumpkins and melons grow in Minecraft terrifies me sometimes. They’re like rabbits.

On the other hand, Nether wart is a pain in the butt.

Oh, don’t give me that look, pumpkin.

Mice on Venus, and derpy farm animalsViolin and guitar

Mon, 11 Jun 2012 00:34:00 -0700

Mice on Venus, and derpy farm animals
Violin and guitar

UC System: How long will it take for public school tuition to equal that of private schools?

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 14:00:00 -0700

It’s commonly known that public schools are more affordable than their private counterparts due to differing administrative and cost obligations. Public institutions are supported by state funds, a percentage of which includes monies from taxes. Because of this, public systems, such as the good ol’ UC system, are state owned, and restrictions placed on these systems help create affordable tuition fees for a larger majority of the population when compared to private schools.

Well, that’s the long-term plan, at least…

One of the top headlines in the UCLA Newsroom today: “Academic Senate approves UCLA Anderson proposal for self-supporting M.B.A. program”

It’s written to sound like a good thing, benefitting UCLA by rerouting (so to speak) funds into the rest of UCLA’s Schools that would otherwise go to Anderson. Truthfully, that is good news. With yearly tuition increases, UCLA needs as much support as it can get. The UC system used to receive 33% state support. It is now around 15%. Considering this cut, if more programs and Schools of UCLA follow this trend, wouldn’t higher education become even more affordable for students over time?

It’s wishful thinking.

To put things in a different perspective, there were many complaints against it from the faculty. The plan was denied in the past, but was open to an appeal. What problems were foreseen? Being a self-supporting program essentially turns it into “private” program – one in which there is increased reliance on student fees, gifts, and grants, rather than state support to cover their direct and indirect costs. Because they are self-supporting, they enjoy less budget and expense restrictions, giving them the flexibility to charge much higher tuition fees and pay faculty and administrative staff at a higher rate. In addition, revenue made from the MBA program does not flow back into the School as a whole, and therefore does little to financially aid the University.

Addressing the point on salaries: Public university faculty are paid less than faculty from private universities. If faculty from self-supporting programs begin to enjoy salaries equivalent to private institution appointments, faculty from other departments may seek to find ways to increase their own, either by leaving the public university and finding employment in a private college, or rallying with other members to establish their programs as self-supporting. Both scenarios will cause fees to rise.

Already, higher tuition is “bad news bears” for current and prospective students, and there’s even more cause for worry. While converting to a self-supporting program may sound like great news for academic and administrative staff (UC employees don’t have the freedom to request, or experience, raises in pay because we are paid off of grant monies – a set amount of funds for a period of time), they still need to ensure that their ledgers do not hit red. And much like our own nation, when finances are in the red, costs will rise, and will keep rising until the deficit is resolved.

There are more reasons why turning a program into a self-supporting one would bode ill for students, but for the sake of brevity, if an entire School (and not just a program) can find a way to become self-supporting, much like UC Berkeley’s School of Law, the gap between public and private costs will shrink. Fewer students will be able to afford a public education. Worst case scenario: Students attend a public institution but pay tuition fees equivalent to that of Ivy League universities.

Terrifying.

Violin and guitar. Interpretation/arrangement of the short...

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 00:01:00 -0700

Violin and guitar. Interpretation/arrangement of the short somber composition from “A Scandal in Belgravia” with a theme from “The Woman” (ost).

Someone, teach me how to swing :D

Thu, 31 May 2012 13:27:08 -0700

Someone, teach me how to swing :D

From the mnmlist blog: "living for everyone else"

Tue, 22 May 2012 11:28:20 -0700

From the mnmlist blog: "living for everyone else"

IT vs. US coffee sizes

Tue, 15 May 2012 21:22:44 -0700

Mom: Why are most of the servings for coffee in Italy so small?
Me: Because that's how it's traditionally served. You're supposed to drink it after you order it at the "bar". Not take it to-go.
Mom: Then why do we have such big sizes here? Like grande, or venti.
Me: Because America is an obese nation.

Duke professor leaves classroom, hopes to restore importance of language, history, literature - Education - NewsObserver.com

Thu, 03 May 2012 01:01:16 -0700

Duke professor leaves classroom, hopes to restore importance of language, history, literature - Education - NewsObserver.com

Ok so how do I comment on things, I'm still a noob :(

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:04:55 -0700

I don’t think you can, unfortunately :[