Category Archives: Faculty/Staff

Every year, hundreds of new words and phrases that come from internet slang are added to the dictionary.

Some of them are abbreviations, like FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and YOLO (You Only Live Once). Others are words that have been stretched into more parts of speech than originally intended — like when “trend” became a verb (“It’s trending worldwide”). Others still have emerged as we adapt our language to new technologies; think “crowdfunding,” “selfie,” “cyberbullying.”

You might notice how many of these “new” words are actually just appropriated, meaning they are pre-existing words that are combined or given entirely new meanings. For example, “social network” became a word in the Oxford English Dictionary back in 1973, referring to the physical activity of networking in a social atmosphere. In the 1990s, people began using the term to refer to virtual engagement, and that became an official definition in 1998.

For Theme Thursday this week we think about the evolution of language.

Slang and Sociability: In-Group Language among College Students by Connie Eble

Juba to jive: A dictionary of African-American slang, edited and with an introduction by Clarence Major

Slang from Shakespeare: Together with literary expressions, compiled by Anderson M. Baten

Dictionary of Afro-American slang by Clarence Major

Green’s dictionary of slang, by Jonathon Green

The Oxford dictionary of modern slang, by John Ayto and John Simpson

The seeds of speech: Language origin and evolution, by Jean Aitchison

Eve spoke: Human language and human evolution, by Philip Lieberman

The domestication of language: Cultural evolution and the uniqueness of the human animal, by Daniel Cloud

Tools, language, and cognition in human evolution, edited by Kathleen R. Gibson and Tim Ingold

Distance education and languages: Evolution and change, edited by B”orje Holmberg, Monica Shelley and Cynthia White

The ape that spoke: Language and the evolution of the human mind, by John McCrone

Interested in more? Watch this series, available through Kanopy. Speaking in Tongues: The History of Language is a 5 part series. Currently there are more than 6,000 languages spoken around the world. This five-part series traces the history and evolution of language and attendant theories and controversies while evaluating the scope of linguistic diversity, the dissemination of language, the expansion of language into written form, and the life cycle of language. Prominent figures in the field of linguistics–Noam Chomsky, John McWhorter, and Peter Ladefoged, to name only three–are featured.

Watt’s steam engine, developed in 1781, set the stage for the first industrial revolution. But it wasn’t until a century later that the widespread adoption of electricity and the internal combustion engine brought about the second industrial revolution.

The information age didn’t really get going until the 1970’s and that’s led to what to what many are now calling the new industrial revolution, which incorporates computer aided design and advanced fabrication techniques like 3D printing. However, the next revolution, in energy, is already underway.

This Theme Thursday, Ames presents resources to help familiarize you with the energy revolution.

China’s new energy revolution: How the world super power is fostering economic development and sustainable growth through thin film solar technology, by Li Hejun; foreword by Ai Feng

The clean tech revolution: The next big growth and investment opportunity, Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder

Crossing the energy divide: Moving from fossil fuel dependence to a clean-energy future, Robert U. Ayres, Edward H. Ayres

Sustainability: A reader for writers, by Carl G. Herndl, University of South Florida

Zoom: The global race to fuel the car of the future, by Iain Carson and Vijay V. Vaitheeswaran

Energy for the 21st century: A comprehensive guide to conventional and alternative sources, by Roy L. Nersesian

Need a quicker summary? Check out this video, available through Kanopy.

This film journeys across America to shine a light on the communities and individuals who are at the forefront of the clean energy revolution, taking practical steps to transition from fossil fuels to renewable power.

Solar, wind and water could power the planet by the year 2050, according to experts in the film, substantially reducing carbon emissions. What’s needed is the social and political willpower to make the change on a large scale.

Two model towns are highlighted for their exemplary steps towards clean energy: Greensburg, Kansas, and Lancaster, California.

After a devastating tornado in 2007, the town of Greensburg decided to rebuild and “go green” with 100% renewables, harnessing the very energy that destroyed them by building wind turbines. A local politician admits that many residents were skeptical at first, but soon realized “It’s common sense.”

The city of Lancaster set a goal to become the nation’s first “net zero” community, and now runs on solar power with panels installed on practically every rooftop available and even new structures. The mayor notes the economics of renewables are a “no-brainer” as they’ve offset many energy costs.

The film also highlights the broader citizen movements for clean energy, showcasing especially how the youth of today are helping to lead the change.

The Future of Energy illustrates that renewable power on a large scale is not just a dream, but rather a viable option already being implemented by many communities, cities and businesses. The examples and solutions highlighted are designed to inspire others to consider adopting clean, renewable power as a smart choice with substantial economic, public health and environmental benefits.

“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

Those 37 words make up the revolutionary legislation that ensured equal access to both men and women in federally funded educational programs and activities. Although it is the application of Title IX to athletics that has gained the greatest public visibility, the law applies to every single aspect of education, including course offerings, counseling and counseling materials, financial assistance, student health and insurance benefits and/or other services, housing, marital and parental status of students, physical education and athletics, education programs and activities, and employment.

Title IX benefits everyone — girls and boys, women and men. The law requires educational institutions to maintain policies, practices and programs that do not discriminate against anyone on the basis of gender. Elimination of discrimination against women and girls has received more attention because females historically have faced greater gender restrictions and barriers in education. However, Title IX also has benefited men and boys. A continued effort to achieve educational equity has benefited all students by moving toward creation of school environments where all students may learn and achieve the highest standards.

Want to learn more about Title IX and the the effect it’s had on modern athletics and women’s opportunities in higher education? Check out some of these resources from Ames.

Women’s rights in the USA: Policy debates and gender roles, Dorothy E. McBride, Janine A. Parry

Game, set, match: Billie Jean King and the revolution in women’s sports, by Susan Ware

Invisible seasons: Title IX and the fight for equity in college sports, by Kelly Belanger

Equal play: Title IX and social change, edited by Nancy Hogshead-Makar and Andrew Zimbalist

Getting in the game: Title IX and the women’s sports revolution, Deborah L. Brake

Title IX: A brief history with documents, by Susan Ware

A place on the team: The triumph and tragedy of Title IX, by Welch Suggs

Title IX, by Linda Jean Carpenter, R. Vivian Acosta

The modern English word gender comes from the Middle English gender (also gendere, gendir gendyr, gendre), a loanword from Anglo-Norman and Middle French gendre. In the last two decades, the use of gender in academia has increased greatly, outnumbering uses of sex in the social sciences, as distinctions between biological categories and social constructions grow. The study of gender is not specifically a women’s issue, but the rhetoric grew out of the feminist movement.

Check out some of these resources, available through Ames, to catch up on the conversation.

Michael Kimmel: On Gender – We’ve heard again and again that men and women are engaged in a “battle of the sexes,” that we’re so differently wired and so foreign to each other that we might as well come from different planets. In this powerful new lecture, renowned speaker and bestselling author Michael Kimmel (The Gendered Society, Manhood in America) turns this conventional wisdom on its head. With clarity and humor, Kimmel moves beyond the popular inter-planetary notion that “men are from Mars and women are from Venus” to advance a decidedly more earth-bound and inter-connected view of the things men and women have in common. This is an accessible and entertaining introduction to gender politics and gender theory — as intellectually informative as it is inspiring, and suited for use across a range of disciplines and courses.

The Role of Gender – This lesson focuses on how all of us learn about gender from an early age, and explores some of the ways in which gender-based roles, expectations and assumptions are changing.

FtF: Female to Femme imagines a world in which the journey toward femme was understood to be as radical as journeys to claim and inhabit other queer bodies.Envisioning more than it documents, this documentary celebrates dyke femme identities, combining farce and seduction with analysis and personal history. For years, femmes have forged community and created space for themselves out of edgy performance and authentic parody. FtF recognizes these strategies and builds them into an unforgettable sexy, funny and moving film. Bursts of queer burlesque amplify the idea of a femme drag. A satire of a femme transition support group uses humor to disarm viewers (as it did its participants), finally stripping away layers of performance to arrive at a raw recognition of femme tactics of self-conceptualization. Interviews feature a host of fabulous femmes, including actress/ writer Guinivere Turner, novelist/activist Jewelle Gomez, poet Meliza Banales, rock stars Leslie Mah (Tribe8) and Bitch (Bitch & Animal), professors, activists, artists and dancers. The filmmakers ask these brilliant thinkers and performers to use the language of gender transition to talk about femme identity, opening up new possibilities for understanding femininity while reinforcing connections among gender warriors around the world. A wildly original extravaganza, FtF: Female to Femme presents a saucy, indelible portrait of a people and their politics central to the gender revolution.

Want a historical perspective? Consider this text, available to check out through Ames.

On March 8, 2017, women around the world organized thousands of marches in solidarity with the Women’s March on Washington. From their website – “In the spirit of democracy and honoring the champions of human rights, dignity, and justice who have come before us, we join in diversity to show our presence in numbers too great to ignore. The Women’s March on Washington will send a bold message to our new government on their first day in office, and to the world that women’s rights are human rights. We stand together, recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us.”

Just as protests and activist marches have played a large part in black activism, the Women’s March on Washington was one in a long line of efforts to draw attention to women’s issues. So what are some of those marches, here in the United States and around the world? Check out some of these resources from Ames.

Fields of protest: Women’s movements in India, by Raka Ray

Women and social protest, edited by Guida West, Rhoda Lois Blumberg

Women, work, and protest: A century of US women’s labor history, edited by Ruth Milkman

Protest, policy, and the problem of violence against women: A cross-national comparison, by S. Laurel Weldon

“Viva”: Women and popular protest in Latin America, edited by Sarah A. Radcliffe and Sallie Westwood

Why women protest: Women’s movements in Chile, by Lisa Baldez

Not enough? Check out these collections made available by the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Women of Protest: Photographs from the Records of the National Woman’s Party

This collection includes 448 digitized photographs selected from approximately 2,650 print photographs in the Records of the National Woman’s Party (NWP). The NWP sought to attract publicity, generate public interest, and pressure government officials to support women’s suffrage in order to win passage of a federal amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteeing women the right to vote. View the Collection »

Women’s History Month is an annual declared month that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. It is celebrated during March in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, corresponding with International Women’s Day on March 8, and during October in Canada, corresponding with the celebration of Persons Day on October 18.

For this first Theme Thursday in March, we consider the contributions of women to the Scientific Revolution. The scientific revolution is a concept used by historians to describe the emergence of modern science during the early modern period, when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology (including human anatomy) and chemistry transformed the views of society about nature. The scientific revolution took place in Europe towards the end of the Renaissance period and continued through the late 18th century, influencing the intellectual social movement known as the Enlightenment.

Some well known contributions to the Scientific Revolution by women include the works of

Margaret Cavendish

Maria Winkelmann

Maria Sibylla Merian

Unfortunately, the Scientific Revolution did little to change people’s ideas about the nature of women – more specifically – their capacity to contribute to science just as men do. According to Jackson Spielvogel, “Male scientists used the new science to spread the view that women were by nature inferior and subordinate to men and suited to play a domestic role as nurturing mothers. The widespread distribution of books ensured the continuation of these ideas.” We use spaces like these to combat those preconceptions. What have you learned about someone’s contributions that were usurped by a more dominant social group?

On this final Theme Thursday in Black History Month, we want to focus on revolutionary texts to help you #staywoke. Some of us have had that experience of awakening to what’s going on in the world. Whether it’s from watching a movie documenting the civil rights movement or reading about the life of Malcolm X, there comes a point in time when you might “wake up” and start reading and researching about the issues of institutional and systemic racism. These seven classic revolutionary reads listed here will give you a head start on that path.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X, as told to Alex Haley

Women, Race, & Class

Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community

Assata: An Autobiography

Revolutionary Suicide

Die, Nigger, Die!: A Political Autobiography

Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson

By the way, in case you weren’t sure, Merriam-Webster offers the following definition of woke. “Stay woke became a watch word in parts of the black community for those who were self-aware, questioning the dominant paradigm and striving for something better. But stay woke and woke became part of a wider discussion in 2014, immediately following the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The word woke became entwined with the Black Lives Matter movement; instead of just being a word that signaled awareness of injustice or racial tension, it became a word of action. Activists were woke and called on others to stay woke. Like many other terms from black culture that have been taken into the mainstream, woke is gaining broader uses. It’s now seeing use as an adjective to refer to places where woke people commune: woke Twitter has very recently taken off as the shorthand for describing social-media activists.”

The Black Arts Movement, Black Aesthetics Movement or BAM is the artistic outgrowth of the Black Power movement that was prominent in the 1960s and early 1970s. Time magazine describes the Black Arts Movement as the “single most controversial movement in the history of African-American literature – possibly in American literature as a whole.” The movement has been seen as one of the most important times in African-American literature. It inspired black people to establish their own publishing houses, magazines, journals and art institutions. It led to the creation of African-American Studies programs within universities. The movement was triggered by the assassination of Malcolm X.Among the well-known writers who were involved with the movement are Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez, Maya Angelou, Hoyt W. Fuller, and Rosa Guy. Although not strictly part of the Movement, other notable African-American writers such as novelists Toni Morrison and Ishmael Reed share some of its artistic and thematic concerns.

Read this text and others available in Ames to learn more about the Black Arts Movement.

The Black Arts Movement: Literary Nationalism in the 1960s and 1970s – Emerging from a matrix of Old Left, black nationalist, and bohemian ideologies and institutions, African American artists and intellectuals in the 1960s coalesced to form the Black Arts Movement, the cultural wing of the Black Power Movement. In this comprehensive analysis, James Smethurst examines the formation of the Black Arts Movement and demonstrates how it deeply influenced the production and reception of literature and art in the United States through its negotiations of the ideological climate of the Cold War, decolonization, and the civil rights movement. Taking a regional approach, Smethurst examines local expressions of the nascent Black Arts Movement, a movement distinctive in its geographical reach and diversity, while always keeping the frame of the larger movement in view. The Black Arts Movement, he argues, fundamentally changed American attitudes about the relationship between popular culture and “high” art and dramatically transformed the landscape of public funding for the arts.

Revolutions aren’t always political, social, or cultural. Sometimes the way we do things and the processes for accomplishing tasks are done the same way until someone comes along and revolutionizes it. Sarah Breedlove Walker, better known as Madame C. J. Walker, created a cosmetic empire by inventing a system of hair straightening. This was an important development because for generations before her revolutionary process, blacks had straightened hair on ironing boards, which endangered the scalp and face and broke the hair. She was both an inventor and an entrepreneur; she opened a shop, trained assistants, and opened a beauty school.

Eventually, she moved the operation to Indianapolis and built her first factory. By 1917, Walker employed 3,000 workers in America’s largest black-owned business and was profiting from sales of equipment and supplies and from her chain of beauty schools.

On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker was written by A’Lelia Bundles. Bundles, a journalist and great-great-granddaughter of Madam C.J. Walker, offers a lively portrait of an American businesswoman. Walker, the first freeborn child of slaves, rose from poverty to establish a successful hair-care business, became one of the wealthiest women in the U.S., and devoted herself to a life of activism and philanthropy toward race and women’s issues.