Sociology 201 Final (UD: Prof. Best)

1957: America Finds out They Aren't the Smartest Nation

-Uncle Sam discovers American science isn't ahead in everything -On top of the world in many things, but not smarts -Russia announced that they had orbited a satellite around the world -Life magazine contrasts Soviet and American high school students

Critical Examination of Schools/Teachers in US

-What were they saying 60 years earlier? -"There was a time when a teacher did not hesitate to demand personal, unaided research, intelligence, etc..." -Maybe we can find the Golden Age if we just go back a bit further (1866) -"education in our country, at the present time, is neither in character nor extent with our vision" -Well how about when public education began? -"by the 1840's, reports of the ignorance of common school teachers were widespread"

Stupidity: Overview

-When we started worrying about schools -Are we getting dumber? & the data for that -Explaining the fears

Change isn't Always Upward & Good

-Why did the Roman Empire collapse? -Critics worry about what they perceive as flaws in our society -Will the next generation fail society? (The students in The Blackboard Jungle qualified for Social Security years ago) -The concern remains -"How the digital Age Stupefies Young Americans" ("the dumbest generation")

Food Security

-according to USDA, "food security means access by all people at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life" -There are disparities in who is more likely to experience food insecurity -single mothers, single men, children under the age of 6, black, hispanic -Food Desert= no store within walking distance -pattern of diabetes in these areas

Baby Boomers are Approaching Retirement with Less Savings

-after WWII, men came back and couples got pregnant -baby boomers are starting to reach retirement age -Fewer people can afford to retire -Whether they want to or not, all but the most weather baby boomers will likely have to do some type of work past 62 if they wish to maintain their living standard -Decline in defined benefit retirement plans makes income less certain

Greenland Collapse

-all lasted at least 400 years -Climate change is not a new issue -Fourteenth C Europe experienced severe religious conflicts. -One historian notes: "whatever the religious coloring of particular societies, this was a world that directly attributed changes in weather or harvest to given will, and it seems natural to blame catastrophes on the misdeeds of religious deviant minorities who angered God"

Thomas Malthus (1766-1834)

-argued that population grows faster than food -Malthusian Dilemma -Growth of Resources and Population -Population increases faster than agricultural production -Widespread disaster

Henry Ford and the Model T

-becomes one of the most successful car manufacturers -at first: car was like a play thing for rich kids (didnt really take you that far...) -eventually, Ford made the Model T (T for TOURING) which was meant for families/regular people/actually transportation -Fordism- mass production -Higher wages foster consumerism -The new car-centered suburb (Levitown) -A Levitown home: roads made for cars -garage made with house -Postwar abundance -Baby boomers -gov paid vets to go to college -many bought CARS -Cars transform the economy -people go places for fun drives with friends/family

Cars: Overview

-cities and transportation -the rise of the automobile -dilemmas for the future -Bottom Line: Technology's impacts are not straightforward

Personal Computers

-early predictions about computers were mostly wrong -"handy uses of a home comp" -planning dinner menus, balancing bank account, printing invitations (not really) -basically, people just weren't quite sure what the computer would be good for -Word processing in comps emerges (a "whole lot better than typewriting") -IBM arrived late, and really failed to understand what was going to happen VCR's -Predictions for them weren't much better than computers or airplanes... -Bottom Line: people aren't good at predicting technological advancements

Age Shapes Risks

-if we graph deaths in a modern society, its gonna be a lot of car accidents in teens -causes of childhood, adolescents, elderly, etc deaths vary in the US -in 2004, suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death (of course it was! not too many other ways to die at that age..) -of course, death rates increase with age -so the leading causes of death are those that affect the old -But what is a "cause of death"? -Heart disease is actually tobacco -cancer is actually lack of physical activity, etc

Cars and Identity

-people's choice of car reveals something about who they are -can even be a part of sexual scripts -dates in cars; boys expected to pick girl up in car -ethnicity a factor as well -even mass entertainment (NASCAR) -Technological change in cars -Horse transportation issues -people left manor, and piles reached like 60 ft tall -whats the solution? -CARS! it was actually less expensive -new problems: pollution -Solution: envisioning a new infrastructure

Change: Overview

-progress, decay, inevitability -resisting and promoting -predicting the change -The Bottom Line: Change not only shapes, but is shaped by society

Population Pyramids

-pyramid graph -Nigeria as an example of a developing country (population growth pyramid) -High fertility in developing nations -average woman should have: 2.1 babies (average number of births to women needed to keep the population stable) -In most developed nations, fertility has fallen below the replacement level -Sweden- note small number of young children -European fertility rates are very low -Immigrants fill demand for workers -And its not just Europe: "The fertility rate in Mexico...has undergone one of the steepest decline in history, from about 6.7 children per woman in 1970 to about 2.1 today" -The US has higher fertility than most advanced nations -Note the changing patterns -as development spreads, global population growth will decrease -meanwhile, life expectancies will increase

Downtown Institutions

-the department store -Movie theaters -had to be transported

Constant Apocalyptic Warnings

-we are bombarded by apocalyptic warnings- global economic crisis (the Great Recession of world), -terrible epidemics (Ebola! still limited to parts of Africa, but what if it spreads?!), -nuclear war, -this would cause a nuclear winter (dust covering earth, causing temp lower)= death -nuclear terrorism -major meteor...this could also -devastate dominant species (meteor shower and the dinosaurs) -Supervolcano (its about due!): a huge volcano sleeps under Yellowstone -There are LOTS of scenarios (what about robots?!) -Nanotechnology produces "gray goo" -Collision with planet X -Solar Storm

Are Americans Stupid?

-we joke about it -books and TV shows (blah blah for dummies/ are you smarter than a 5th grader?) -Maybe we're not alone -"Hitler wasn't real" -But maybe we're really worse -Politicians warn us -as do experts -"if we continue on our current course, and the number of nations outpacing us in the education race is ridiculous" -An even more influential report from 1983 ("A Nation At Risk")

Airmindedness

-we weren't always good at predicting change -The airplane captured people's imagination -"Airmindedness" -movement of people who thought flying would transform the world in crazy ways... -the end of war, sexism, racism, etc... -the flying car: we would all transport by planes (hasnt really happened) -flying tanks? nope -the atomic age produced similar fantasies! -atomic cars ... didn't catch on

Center City- "The Combat Zone"

-with suburbs boom, -parking impossible on city streets! -why wouldn't you go to huge theaters at mall instead? -also...cities streets becoming known for "low rent" activity -All happened fast, and... -cars needed highways -Interstate system

Explaining Auto Insurance Rates

-younger drivers die more -older drivers die more

Collapse Critics: Bottom Line

we need to find a place in between Chicken Little's "the sky is falling" and "eh we're fine"

So Americans have always worried about a Stupidity Epidemic. What does the data show?

1) More people are getting more educated -way more people are graduating high school/college -People are taking higher level courses 2) Test scores are going up -NAEP declining? Not really, NAEP scores for reading, 1973-2013: gap between races is narrowing! -same pattern for math! -SAT scores fell through 1980 as the number of seniors taking the test boomed (30% in 1960, more than 50% today) (ITS BECAUSE MORE PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO GO TO COLLEGE) -International results are hard to interpret, but the US does about as well as Europe 3) General Knowledge -Poll Correct Answers about Political Knowledge -Able to Name Vice president? 50's: 67%, 03: 69% -First 10 Amendments are the Bill of Rights? 50's: 31%, 03: 47% -International comparisons are ambiguous... -scientific literacy questions (we don't do well when q's conflict wit religious beliefs) -Americans answers seem to reflect belief, not knowledge 4) IQ Scores -"If we're talking about stupidity, shouldn't we be measuring intelligence/IQ?" -average IQ= 100 -the average IQ goes up 3 points a year! This is called the Flynn Effect (Intelligence test performance has been rising!) -"Imagine this scenario: a person who tests in the top 10 percent of the US in 1920 time-travels 80 years in the future and take the IQ test agin. Thanks to the Flynn Effect, he would be in the bottom third for IQ scores today"

So Why are We Still Convinced that We're Getting Dumber?

1) Stupidity isn't increasing, but ignorance is booming -Consider this: with how much information that is out there NOW, its impossible to consume all of it as fast as it is being produced! -This is called the KIP= Knowledge Information Paradox 2) What we need to know keeps changing -how to harness a horse to how to drive a car -Yale thought at first that Latin and Greek needed to be taught, but now that is almost completely phased out -What we expect schools to teach changes!!! 3) Expanding access changes the student population -at the beginning (colleges in US), it was mostly white, male, urban demographic -if you went to college back then, you were probably among the smartest of people -now, more than 1/2 of students try college 4) We expect A LOT from schools -we live in a society with a lot of inequality, but Americans are okay with that because of the concept of UPWARD MOBILITY -but, that doesn't change the fact that some kids grow up in a better learning environment! -people think that schools should give EVERY type of demographic of kids the SAME types of opportunities -"Schools should magically transform students into smart, model citizens" -all the pressure is on public schools 5) Scaring people works -"scaring people makes them more willing to help fund programs" -"this is the dumbest generation" is a great way to get people's attention 6) Scaring people about kids works ESPECIALLY well -Children are our future/most important natural resource

Debt Clicker Questions

1. Debt and the American Dream points to similarities between: Mortgage debt and student loan debt 2. People are most likely to have trouble paying their student loans if they attended: For-profit colleges

Diamond's Factors for Societal Collapse

1. Inadvertent environmental damage 2. Climate change 3. Hostile neighbors 4. Less contact with friendly neighbors 5. Responses to problems

Stupidity: Clicker Questions

1. The "First Time 'Everything Changed" was: Sputnik (the first official satellite) 2. Bracey's attitude toward No Child Left Behind was extremely skeptical

Boston Streetcar

Colonial Boston -called "the walking city" (its how people got around!) -Mass transit arrives: STREETCARS -car pulled by horses -Suburban living: 19th century style -House along a streetcar line -Boston in 1880: note how development follows streetcar lines -to make transportation more convenient -"nicer" houses were along the street car line -soon: the street car line was electrified (no more horse needed)

Sociologist Opinions about Industrial Revolutions

Emile Durkheim: Change (trying to explain the industrial revolution) -Mechanical solidarity -minimal division of labor -Organic solidarity -complex division of labor Karl Marx: Change (Ind. Rev.) -Social conflict -Marx saw industrialization as a source of class conflict Max Weber: Change (Ind. Rev.) -"more sophisticated of the three" -Protestant Ethic -people encouraged to learn to read the Bible in their own language -no priest standing between God and people. People encouraged to have an individualized and personal relationship with God

Car Clicker Question

In "Teen driving as Public Drama", Amy Best is criticizing those who exaggerate the dangers posed by teen drivers

Collapse Clicker Question

The Collapse of the Mayan Civilization was caused by ecological problems (overpopulation and drought)

Research about Women and Pain Treatment

They are typically... -dismissed -not taken seriously -not given the same medical treatment -prescribed sedatives rather than painkillers

Housing Clicker Question

What does the Williams and Collins article argue is the root cause of racial health disparities? -Segregation

Population: The Demographic Transition

Why does the death rate go down? -medical technology -agricultural technology -clean water -but the birth rate remained high! -people were STILL having just as many children -people moved to cities -less space -people started to realize that they needed to have fewer kids -too expensive to have 12+ kids -Hence, the Demographic transition -this is a TYPICAL cycle!

Promoting Innovation is BUILT INTO the Constitution

-"Congress shall have the power to promote the progress of science and useful arts..." -America became center of world for progress (quickly topped Europe)

What is Health Disparity

-"Health disparities are preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations" -Examples: obesity, diabetes, etc...

The Modern Version of Debt:

-Access to Credit Becomes Central Determinant of Life Chances -"What's your credit score?" -what affects credit score?: payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, new credit, types of credit used -Individuals with higher credit scores are more likely to form relationships (and have those relationships last)

Immigrants and the US

-America has always attracted immigrants, but countries of origin have changed -Controversy is not new

Change= Progress

-Americans equate change with progress -Manifest destiny and cultural optimism -Greek Angel ("Columbia") leading pioneers westward

Bankruptcy

-Bankruptcy is now more common -Court declares someone bankrupt and then they don't have to pay, but they take assets and credit score goes way down

Easter Island Collapse

-Best known for statues that line the coast -The location is quite remote, fewer animals -Logs needed to move statues from quarry, raise them -big question was "how did they move these things"? -but there aren't many trees -and wood needed for canoes in order to fish -Jared Diamond -what happened to Easter Island? -why no trees?/why collapse? -Diamond argues that the Easter Islanders destroyed their environment to support the statues -Other scholars assign blame differently. Seafarers (new people) probably reached Easter Island around 1200 -used canoes that carried rats -some argue that the rats ruined everything! and that the -Easter Island was a rat paradise- no predators, plenty of palm nuts and seeds to eat- the rats caused the deforestation -Easter Island's population seemed to have remained relatively stable until the natives were exposed to European diseases -Diamond also offers other cases- the Anasazi -these people needed fire, therefore burnt many trees -more deforestation

Cars: Ernest Burgess (1886-1966)

-Burgess Model -Concentric Zone Model (circles of different class zones) -Urban space has become specialized (each zone is its own "thing"/style)

Apocalyptic Globalization

-Business -Technology -Culture -Economic cycles can cross national borders -Critics argue that globalization fosters exploitation -what about widespread virus globalization ? -West Nile Virus

Japan: Trading with Western Societies

-Change is not necessarily welcomed. Perry opens Japan -Japanese culture didn't "like" guns at first because they were "inconsistent with their values" (swords/physical strength/samurai) -Originally, Japanese attempted to confine foreign traders to designated outposts as ports -Dutch were especially important -Japanese adopted Western technology SUCH AS fire arms! -this violated the samurai ethic (skilled swordsman) -and firearms were effectively prohibited -Meiji Restoration: fearing colonization, Japan decided to modernize -had to keep up with the times: fire arms -What does it mean that the Meiji Emperor chose to be photographed in a Western officer's uniform? -it was a signal to Japanese culture that they were going to need to leave the samurai stuff behind -and then in 1905: Japan Defeats Russia on Land and at Sea!

Social Determinants of Health

-Conditions in the places where people live, learn, work Social determinants of health... -Neighborhood -Education -Social Capital -Employment -Housing -Food Security

Debt- Overview

-Debt in a consumer society -Student loans -The dynamics of bubbles -The Bottom Line: Debt pays a central role in contemporary society Debt involves a social relationship between lender and borrower

Collapse: Overview

-Diamond's model -apocalyptic scenarios -sociology of collapse -The Bottom Line: Social arrangements aren't permanent and they are vulnerable

Consumer Credit

-Early 1980's- Delaware becomes one of the first states to end cap on interest rates banks can charge on credit cards-banking becomes of major business in the state -Debt has risen much faster than income -Another effect of the Great Recession- People claim to be saving more -But people today are saving less than their parents and grandparents -Most people don't have credit card debt (includes those without cards) -Most with cards pay them off -Still credit cards pose bigger problems for those with lower incomes

Education

-Education has a profound effect n people's health -People with more education have higher life expectancies and better overall health -Infant mortality rates decrease as the mother's level of education increases -even things like smoking rates decrease with more education -Brown v. Board of Education (separate but equal schools= ruled unconstitutional) -Because of lingering residential serration and the concentrated poverty in these areas, many school districts have experienced bad health

Education & Change with Females

-Education- particularly for girls- leads to big changes -places like Egypt, Nigeria, etc, if mother is educated, daughter will NOT be circumcised -"reducing unwanted birth rates is equated with sending girls to school"

Employment

-Employment conditions can have a direct impact on health for both the individual and their family -The Whitehall Study -Study conducted by Michael Marmot that followed the health outcomes of British civil servants for ten years in the 70s -Varying positions (ranging from lower level messengers to upper level administrators) -Found that those in lower level positions had mortality rates 3 times higher than those in upper level positions -Low skilled, high paying jobs have moved away from urban areas and into suburban areas, adversely affecting entire communities -"Spatial mismatch"- populations residing in areas without access to high paying entry-level jobs -"Skills mismatch"- populations does not have the necessary skills and trying to qualify for the jobs that are available -Laid off workers are 83% more likely to develop a stress-related condition, such as heart disease -People who are underemployed or lower income are less likely to receive help

Home Ownership is Celebrated

-Endorsed by both Democrats and Republicans...Why? -Republicans -gives sense of ownership -Democrats -way of investing/saving -spreads prosperity -Post-World War II policies encouraged home ownership- principal form of wealth for most people -Ended up being called the "housing bubble"

The Housing Bubble

-Expansion of home buying credit to higher-risk borrowers -people buying houses thought that it was inevitable that the value of their house would GO UP -not really true...housing markets crash! -The bubble POPS! The Marriage Advantage -80.3% of married people own their homes

Southdale Mall (1956)

-Fist fully-enclosed climate controlled shopping mall -the advantages were apparent -you could do everything INSIDE! (from dentist apt to shopping for clothes/food) -Meanwhile, back in Boston -lots and lots of ROADS being made (a whole web!)

Agrarian to Industrial

-For sociologists, the key historical event is the shift from agrarian to industrial society -From the UNSCHEDULED fields to the SCHEDULED factory -Sociology emerged in the nineteenth century in an effort to understand this historic transformation -Emile Durkheim

The Great Depression

-Generations are marked by distinctive experiences, such as the Great Depression -The Postwar Baby Boom -1946: most babies born Pythons swallow their pray whole, resulting gin a visible lump as they digest -the boomers are visible moving up the age structure in successive population pyramids -Torrez notes that the fact that women tend too level longer and have lower retirement benefits create considerable poverty among older females

Housing Conclusion

-Health disparities: Preventable differences in health (burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities for better health) experienced by socially disadvantaged populations -Social determinants of health: Conditions in the places where people live, learn, work, and play that have the power to affect a wide range of health risks and health outcomes -All are interconnected! Housing, segregation's and health outcomes are just one way in which they all interact

What is health?

-Health is more than going to the doctor and having access to medical care

Genius: History as a Story of Great Individualism

-How did calculus get invented twice- at roughly the same time? -Samuel Morse and Charles Wheatstone BOTH invented telegraphs in 1838! -Genius is located in society -Issac Newton: "if I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants" -"progress comes in tiny increments and steps! we're always moving forward" -This is why two people will probably invent the same stuff around the same time!

Why Student Loan Debt Keeps Rising

-Increasing proportion of people going to college (inevitably increasing average risk) -Increasing college costs -Increasing proportion of students needing to borrow -Increasing average amounts borrowed -Is Student Debt the next "Bubble" ? -There have always been bubbles... (Tulip Mania Example) -dutch bought tulip bulbs thinking they'd only get more valuable as time went on -early financial bubble

Population Clicker Questions

-Kneels ("Choosing Single Motherhood") focuses on the dramatic growth in college-educated, unmarried mothers among blacks -According to Torrez ("Aging Women, Living Power"), the chances that a woman over age 65 will be poor increases as she ages

What happens to those who can't get credit?

-Long sharking a standard form of organized crime -borrowing money from a non bank (much higher interest) -Payday lending- legitimate business or racket? -Lottery ticket purchases are highest among the poor -less educated, poor people more likely to purchase lottery tix -White slavery -Images that ignore role of debt -Human trafficking/Prostitution -picture of debt

Lending, Borrowing, and Risk: High vs. Low

-Low-Risk Borrower (highly likely to repay loan) charged lower rate of interest -High-Risk Borrower (less likely to repay loan) charged higher rate of interest

Neighborhoods

-Lower income minority neighborhoods are targeted for tobacco and alcohol advertisements -Neighborhoods with lower crime and better sidewalks and playgrounds encourage walking around, being active, in fresh air -After the Civil War, the level of black-white segregation increased in both Northern and Southern cities, stabilizing in the 40's -Civil Rights Act -Despite this Act, residential segregation in the US remains quite high and housing discrimination still exists -Examples of discriminatory practices that affect neighborhoods: -Steering: When realtors direct prospective tenants tornado a particular area of the community or certain rental units based on characteristics of the renter -Rending: a discriminatory practice by which banks wont issue loans within specific geographic areas, especially inner-city neighborhoods -More subtle than this

Population: Overview

-Malthus's bleak vision -the demographic transition -new population issues -The Bottom Line: Malthus may have been wrong, but we aren't out of the woods

Freeways/Transportation: Tokyo vs. US cities

-Not all cities liked the highway route idea -Think of Tokyo, Japan... -Roppongi Hills (tallest building) view -Not a whole lot of freeways! -people needed to prove that they had a good place to park in order to own a car -You need two maps for Tokyo's subway system (routes SO complicated! because of lack of freeways!) -because NO ONE drives cars, EVERYONE takes subway -Contrast with NYC and LA subway systems (very simple routes!!!) -cars offer convenience and congestion -and walking becomes impossible. everything is TOO FAR

Change= Bad

-Not everyone holds such cheery views -"Sometimes change is bad" -The French Revolution was viewed with horror (guillotine) -The rise of democracy followed the Enlightenment -Democracy Ratings -Literacy Rates correlate with democracy, prosperity, etc

Grocery Shopping in Amsterdam vs. US Example

-Parking ramp near Amsterdam's train station -MANY ride BIKES instead of cars/subway -Amsterdam super market: TONS of bikes parked...no car parking lot -contrast with: Costco! -VERY car-centric shopping system -have to have big car for big grocery load -plenty of PARKING everywhere "Everyone needs to be a driver" -create a society where this is true -all these things are how technological advancements can shape lives!

Success as a Sign of God's Favor

-Paul Revere -The idea of predestination= if you are prosperous, the God is looking over you -Leads to individualism as a value

Preindustrial Families: Children and Retirement Plan

-Preindustrial families wanted lots of children -not uncommon for a woman to have 12 children -their labor was needed after old and retired (preferably male), but they often died in infancy -common for about half of children to die within first 5 years of life

Problems with Banks/Debt and Poor People

-Redlining -Race, class, and credit -if live in a certain demographic: have trouble getting credit -Generating revenue through criminal justice- why the outrage in Ferguson? -many tickets being given out

Old Fashioned Debt

-Religious reservations discouraging debt -Middle Ages- usury (lending at interest) condemned by the Church Max Weber -Reformation: Protestants accepted lending at interest (usury becomes defined as excessive interest rates) -Debtors Prison (mostly respectable people- poor people couldn't get credit) -catch 22 (couldn't work and get money to pay off loan any more)

Social Capital

-Social Networks have value -Social Capital consists of all the resources available in and through personal and business networks. The resources are in the networks themselves -Who we know and our relationships with people can be as powerful as our own individual knowledge and skill set -can help go to college, get job, etc. -Bourdieu (sociologists) Three Forms -Economic capital -Financial resources -Cultural Capital -education, knowledge -Social capital -actual potential resources through social relationships

Gambling

-States encourage gambling instead of thrift -Legalized gambling across 48 states!

Student Loans

-Student loans have been going up -Students as victims or villains? -Student deadbeats: alarming rise in loan defaults -rising fear of student bankruptcy -College tuition has outpaced medical inflation -State budgets offer less support for higher education -more money spent on prisons -Student indebtedness is rising

Housing

-Substandard housing conditions can contribute to chronic health problems such as asthma -mold, ventilation, pests -stable, affordable housing is crucial to health outcomes -there is a shortage of affordable housing in every state in the US -"Evicted" Book -cycle of housing instability, lack of affordable housing leads to getting behind on rent and being evicted, which makes it harder to maintain a job, succeed in school, eat healthy, etc

Dooms Day Clock

-The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists offers a Doom's Day Clock -which gets reset as dangers shift -recent years: worried about climate change causing a large scale catastrophe -Sociological classic found that a disconfirmed prediction did not cause believers to lose faith -lady said she was in contact with aliens and the world was ending -2012: world is ending fiasco. world didn't end, people still followed that faith

Other Empires that have Collapsed

-The Roman Empire -The British Empire -Colonial Wars (South Africa, Afghanistan, Sudan) -and there were political movements The four horsemen of the apocalypse- war, pestilence, famine, death (Revelations) -History offers lots of terrible example: the Irish potato famine -The Great Depression (US) -Economic collapse

Thrift vs. Credit

-The value of thrift is celebrated less in a credit society -The US tends to value consumption