Laundromats

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Kizmet, Aug 7, 2017.

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  1. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

  2. heirophant

    heirophant Well-Known Member

    I read it and I still don't get it.

    It seemed kind of incoherent and stream-of-consciousness to me.

    The author, an ivy-league sociology PhD, sees some kind of analogy between the declining number of laundromats in upscale communities and changes in higher education that he thinks exacerbate what he calls "privilege".

    Or something.
     
  3. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Actually, I don't get it either. I expect sociologists to be useless, but Josh Kim, the reviewer, actually mentions the real reason for the decline of laundromats (that washing machines keep getting cheaper in real terms) but then scurries away as if that didn't explain that things are getting better for those on the bottom rather than worse.
     
  4. heirophant

    heirophant Well-Known Member

    The guy got his sociology PhD at Brown, works at Dartmouth and writes about class and "privilege". I guess that he knows.

    I think that his analogy with laundromats is kind of weak and the logical structure of his essay lacks coherence. Much of what he writes seems based on his own personal experiences. I'd suggest that ivy-league experiences don't 'scale-up' very well to what students in the rest of American higher education experience.

    From the ivy-league perspective, aren't less tony students already patronizing the laundromats, which show no signs of dissappearing?

    This guy apparently is in charge of Dartmouth's e-learning. (I didn't know that Dartmough had any.) He could have said something interesting about the possible disruptive effects that DL and the increasing trends towards lifelong learning from non-traditional providers might have on established academic hierarchies, but sadly he didn't.
     
  5. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    From the article: "When I was in college we used to go each week to watch movies chosen by the university film society - called the Filmboard. I never hear about my older daughter going to campus movie screenings, as she and her friends seem to gather around laptops to watch video."

    When I was in college, the on-campus weekly movie was the place to go and neck. Another obsolete practice, I assume.
     
  6. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    When we got married in the 60s, we did our laundry with a small counter-top device, the Komome Home Washer. Turn crank, it builds pressure, forces soapy water through clothes. Cost $25 and worked like a charm. The dambthing is still around, now called WonderWash, and sold on Amazon for $39. http://tinyurl.com/y8cqstae Can this be one reason for decline of laundromats?
     
  7. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    going to the on-campus weekly movie or necking?
     
  8. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    I'm sorry that you don't know the answer. :sorry:
     

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