Category Archives: Lafayette Courses

Resources for Learning about the Corona Virus/COVID-19

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Compiled by Dr. Paul D. Barclay, Professor of History, Lafayette College

Data and Reports

Science. Articles about COVID-19 are unlocked. https://science.sciencemag.org/

The Lancet (open access): https://www.thelancet.com/coronavirus 

Nextstrain (Real-time tracking of pathogen evolution) https://nextstrain.org/ (Thanks Professor James Orr)

“Coronavirus COVID-19: Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU).” Accessed March 27, 2020. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Wu, Jin, Weiyi Cai, Derek Watkins, and James Glanz. “How the Virus Got Out.” New York Times, March 22. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/03/22/world/coronavirus-spread.html

Wu, Jin, Allison McCann, Keith Collins, Karen Yourish, et. al. “Coronavirus Map: Tracking the Global Outbreak.” New York Times, last updated March 27.  Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/world/coronavirus-maps.html 

Desjardins, Jeff. “The 7 Best COVID-19 Resources We’ve Discovered So Far.” Visual Capitalist, March 24. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/7-best-covid-19-resources/

World Health Organization Situation Reports

https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports/

Debunking Myths about COVID-19

Snopes.com fact-checking website. https://www.snopes.com/

Historical Context

A collection of open access articles: “Anthropology and Epidemics, a Quarantine Reading List.” American Ethnologist. April 21, accessed April 23, 2020. https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1111/(ISSN)1548-1425.anthropology-and-epidemics?fbclid=IwAR1DuS5_kCPJiC01m-jtLLZ6n9b-cFRwj_VvYbZg0KgZFHPZy80WwXGlAyg

Strochlic, Nina and Riley D. Champine. “How Some Cities ‘Flattened the Curve’ During the 1918 Flu Pandemic. National Geographic. March 27, accessed April 20, 2020. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/03/how-cities-flattened-curve-1918-spanish-flu-pandemic-coronavirus/?fbclid=IwAR3F2BPobXBcTQv-aOwsbl30f13PebmfYEG1WLuij3aVm9R-1Yic1QxWDFY/

Kolbert, Elizabeth. “Pandemics and the Shape of Human History.” The New Yorker. April 6, Accessed April 9, 2020. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/04/06/pandemics-and-the-shape-of-human-history.

Rhodes, Ben. “The 9/11 Era Is Over.” The Atlantic. April 6, Accessed April 11, 2020. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/its-not-september-12-anymore/609502/  (Thanks Professor Josh Sanborn)

De Waal, Alex. “New Pathogen, Old Politics: Thinking in a Pandemic.” Boston Review, April 3. Accessed April 11, 2020. http://bostonreview.net/science-nature/alex-de-waal-new-pathogen-old-politics (Thanks Professor Jeremy Zallen).

Porter, Katherine Anne. Pale Rider, Pale Horse: Three Short Novels. (published in 1939).https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pale_Horse,_Pale_Rider 

Timelines

“Maps and Trends: Hubei Timeline.” Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). Accessed April 28, 2020. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/hubei-timeline

“Daily Confirmed New Cases (5-day moving average).” Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). Accessed April 28, 2020. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/new-cases

Schumaker, Erin. “Timeline: How Coronavirus Got Started.” ABC News, March 25. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://abcnews.go.com/Health/timeline-coronavirus-started/story?id=69435165

“Coronavirus Outbreak Timeline Fast Facts.” CNN, March 26. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/06/health/wuhan-coronavirus-timeline-fast-facts/index.html

“Timeline: How the New Coronavirus Spread.” Al Jazeera, March 27. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/timeline-china-coronavirus-spread-200126061554884.html

Taylor, Derrick Bryson. “A Timeline of the Coronavirus Pandemic.” New York Times, March 27. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/article/coronavirus-timeline.html

Allen-Ebrahimian, Bethany. “Timeline: The Early Days of China’s Coronavirus Outbreak and Cover-Up.” Axios, March 18. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.axios.com/timeline-the-early-days-of-chinas-coronavirus-outbreak-and-cover-up-ee65211a-afb6-4641-97b8-353718a5faab.html

Kiernanand, Samantha and Jason Socrates Bardi. “UPDATED: Timeline of the Coronavirus.” Think Global Health (Council on Foreign Relations), March 3. Accessed March 27, 2020. https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/updated-timeline-coronavirus

Chalfant, Morgan and Brett Samuels. “White House Grapples with the Coronavirus Outbreak: A Timeline.” The Hill, March 23. Accessed March 23, 2020. https://thehill.com/homenews/news/488942-white-house-grapples-with-the-coronavirus-outbreak-a-timeline

Geraghty, Jim. “The Comprehensive Timeline of China’s COVID-19 Lies.” National Review (blog), March 23. Accessed March 29, 2020. https://www.nationalreview.com/the-morning-jolt/chinas-devastating-lies/

Journalism/Opinion

Atlantic Monthly (open access): https://www.theatlantic.com/category/what-you-need-know-coronavirus/ 

New York Times (open access): https://www.nytimes.com/news-event/coronavirus

Foreign Affairs (open access): https://www.foreignaffairs.com/tags/coronavirus

PBS. https://www.pbs.org/articles/2020/02/heres-what-you-should-know-about-the-novel-coronavirus/

BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/coronavirus

Caixin Global 财新传媒 https://www.caixinglobal.com/2020/coronavirus-live-update/

Think Global Health (an initiative of the CFR): https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/

The Nation https://www.thenation.com/keyword/coronavirus/

The National Review https://www.nationalreview.com/

The Economist (pay wall): https://www.economist.com/news/2020/03/11/the-economists-coverage-of-the-coronavirus

Wall Street Journal (pay wall): https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/coronavirus

Higher Education and COVID-19

Maloney, Edward J.  and Joshua Kim. “15 Fall Scenarios: Higher Education in a Time of Social Distancing. Insider Higher Ed. April 22, accessed April 27, 2020. https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/blogs/learning-innovation/15-fall-scenarios#

Paxson, Christina. “College Campuses Must Reopen in the Fall. Here’s How We Do It.” New York Times. April 26, accessed April 27, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/26/opinion/coronavirus-colleges-universities.html

Wood, Graeme. “There’s No Simple Way to Reopen Universities.” The Atlantic. April 27, accessed April 27, 2020. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/colleges-are-weighing-costs-reopening-fall/610759/

Inspiration from World Leaders

Angela Merkel:

Queen Elizabeth II:

Imperial China Graphic

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I found an old tattered b/w diagram of “Status and Power” hierarchy in Imperial China in my teaching folders. This diagram was produced by G. William Skinner. It was brought to my attention by Edward L. Farmer, at the University of Minnesota. I scanned it and used my Adobe Illustrator to update it. I’ve not found a better shortcut to explaining, in a simple way, how misleading the tag “peasant” can be as a social category. If you like this image, let me know and I’ll send you a file.

INDS 140: A History of Japanese Culture and Government

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January 7th: Hiroshima Peace Park, Museum and Related Sights. This is a picture of the “A-Bomb Dome,” or 原爆ドーム.  The building was erected in 1914 as an industrial promotion hall. It was near the hypocenter of the August 6th, 1945 atomic-bomb attack.

The A-Bomb Dome has come to symbolize the destruction wrought by the weapon. It is being carefully preserved as a monument to the attack, and has been under consideration for World Heritage Site status:

Here is the approach to the Peace Memorial Museum, which includes the Memorial Cenotaph (designed by Kenzo Tange). The students spent a few hours in the museum and looking at the various monuments in the area, also known as the Peace Memorial Park.

 The monuments, parks and museums contain the world “Peace” but the content of all of these sites are related to war, and to a specific war at that. Within a general message that the bomb is a scourge of humanity, and that nuclear weapons must be destroyed to make the earth safe, is a competing story about why the bomb happened to fall on Hiroshima of all places (and not, say, Sidney or Rome). Several plaques in the museum, and at least one memorial statue speak to the role of the Japanese military as an aggressor in China and Korea leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor:

While the first ten or so panels in the museum’s chronological exhibits highlight Hiroshima’s military function in the wars against China, this next plaque indicates how the focus remains upon Japan’s suffering. Even in a discussion of the horrible wars that cost China twenty- to thirty million lives, the effects of economic belt-tightening at home are emphasized. Yet this plaque at least acknowledged the place of China and Korea in the larger story:

Throughout our in-country class, we’ve noticed that most signs for tourists appear in Japanese, English, Korean and Chinese. And we’ve heard all of these languages spoken at various sights and sites. Regarding the atomic bomb, there is also a sub-plot in the museum about Korea’s victimization at the hands of Japan. There is also a special monument built to the Koreans who perished in the blast:

First memorial service for the Koreans who suffered from the attack (1968):

The monument to the Koreans who died or survived, built by an association of Koreans who are resident in Japan:

Taken as a whole, it would seem that students, tourists, and visitors of any sort are left to sort out the meaning of the museum, the park, and the various monuments in Hiroshima for themselves. While the preponderance of images of suffering and destruction focus the local Japanese, there are hints, texts, and suggestions sprinkled throughout the complex that suggest a reality about A-Bombs that is more difficult than simply declaring “no more Hiroshimas” in annual proclamations. As a history teacher, I hope that Hiroshima’s monuments and placards will continue to evolve until a more regional perspective can be presented.

Interestingly, the Shukkei-en, a large Japanese garden that was built by the Asano clan of “Chushingura” fame, has preserved even more evidence of the complexity of A-Bomb memory politics. This monument, which is sustained by the prefecture, invokes a story-line that is recounted in John Hersey’s book Hiroshima. Namely, that Japanese military and police authorities were quite slow to react to the bombing and help victims. Here is a sign at the “Shukkei-en,” presumably the “Asano Park” mentioned in Hersey’s book:

In addition to the a-bomb related activities, we also visited the prefectural museum of modern art, ate Hiroshima-yaki (a seafood/noodle/pancake/pork dish) and rode the street cars around town.

January 6th: Osaka Castle and the 4th Army divisional headquarters. Both built in 1931 w/public subscription. Osaka castle was originally the stronghold of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who is considered by most to be the unifier of Japan (ca. 1590). He also launched invasions of Korea and NE China in the 1590s, as did the Japanese Army in 1931. So there are linkages between the old division headquarters and the castle, though they are not apparent in the signage.

Osaka Castle

4th Army division HQ (1931-1945)

 Northeast Asia Interconnections

 

First photo for trip:

January 3d, eve of departure

Course Description:

Between 600 and 1868 AD, the literary, religious, architectural, artistic and culinary elements of Japanese civilization were created, refined, and re-invented in tandem with a number of reconfigurations of Japan’s political structure. Over the course of these twelve centuries, before Japan’s political and economic center shifted eastward to Tokyo, most major developments occurred in western Japan, and revolved around the imperial courts in and around Kyoto.

Yoshimasa's Silver Pavilion in Higashiyama area

This interim course will immerse students in the aesthetic and political history of a nation which gave the world its first novel, Zen Buddhism, epic war poetry, samurai castles, sushi, and a number of internationally admired performance and artistic traditions. Within Japan’s sometimes elaborate, and sometimes austere cultural structures, distinct codes of conduct and governance also flourished, and have survived well beyond the passing of the old feudal orders. Through a combination of directed readings, language study, site visits to major monuments, participation in cultural demonstrations, and lecture/discussion classroom activities, students will gain a basic grounding in this most complex and storied history.

While we are in Western Japan, we will also take a day trip to Hiroshima to visit the Peace Park and the sites related to the atomic-bomb attack. Below is a memorial to Hiroshima’s past as a departure point for naval vessels en route to East Asia theaters of war.

North Korean Art

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At a joint Conference of the International Convention of Asia Scholars and the Association of Asian Studies in Honolulu, Hawai’i (March 31-April 3 2011),  I attended a well organized and researched panel (session 600) titled “Picturing National Narratives of North Korea”. From a talk by Professor Koen De Ceuster of Leiden University, I composed this list of websites for North Korean art, which should be of use to members of the Lafayette course “Interconnections in Northeast Asia.” If you see this list and take it as an endorsement of the government of North Korea, please keep surfing and send your comments to someone else, thanks.

Mansudae Art Studio (North Korea)

Nord Korean Hidden Treasures Revealed (Lithuania)

Fine Art from DPR Korea (London)

Koryo Studio (Beijing)

Pyongyang Painters.com (Commercial)

Gallery Pyongyang (Germany)

Some issues raised during the panel:

North Korean art is not studied or collected in the same way that art by South Koreans, or from most other parts of the world, might be. It is clearly branded “North Korean” instead of by individual artist. Access issues, politics, and the expectations of viewers/collectors have resulted in an international exhibition complex that is marked by a lack of clearly defined collection criteria–i.e., collections in even the best museums are built opportunistically and have a patchy quality about them.

The emphasis on North Korean art as Propaganda or as socialist-realist kitsch has obscured the fact that North Korea does have artists who are not only highly skilled, but who delight in their craft. In North Korea, the craft entails celebrations of the regime and its history, but at the same time portraiture, landscapes and other genres give rein to other artistic intentions. And it is the view of the art from the artists’ perspective that is missing in international scholarship and exhibitions about North Korean art. It may well be that the sharp distinction many make between propaganda and art is not made at all by these artists, and thus may not be the best optic through which to view such art.  In sum, the state of scholarly knowledge regarding North Korean art is still rudimentary, largely for political reasons beyond the control of curators, scholars and collectors, but also for ideological reasons having to do with what outsiders “need” from North Korea to shore up their own notions of normalcy, freedom, and individualism (this last point shades into my own gloss on the panel: please don’t hold panelists listed in the link responsible for this statement).

A short discussion and slide show with Nick Bonner, and highly regarded (by scholars) art collector, author and exhibitor.

Interconnections in Northeast Asia