“Grand Valley professor shares kung fu approach to philosophy with NY Times readers - MLive.com” plus 1 more |
| Grand Valley professor shares kung fu approach to philosophy with NY Times readers - MLive.com Posted: 09 Dec 2010 02:04 PM PST Published: Thursday, December 09, 2010, 4:55 PM Updated: Thursday, December 09, 2010, 5:16 PMGrand Valley State University philosophy professor Peimin Ni appears today in the online opinion section of the New York Times as a contributor to the paper's series on philosophy, the Stone. His piece, Kung Fu for Philosophers, explains, as its title suggests, a kung fu approach to thinking about the origins of different cultures' schools of philosophical thought. As of this afternoon, it's one of the most popular articles on the Times' website. He writes:
Ni, according to Grand Valley's website, is a founder and past president of the Association of Chinese Philosophers in America and is currently president of the Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy. His most recent book is titled "Confucius: Making the Way Great." Email Troy Reimink at treimink@grpress.com or follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/troyreimink. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Posted: 09 Dec 2010 08:56 AM PST It was methodical, deliberate, and impressive. From the way it was engineered to the end result that was produced, the Cowboys' 81-yard drive in the fourth quarter of their 38-35 victory Sunday over Indianapolis was a defining sequence for this team. This march was indeed something to behold. As it moved downfield on way to scoring a touchdown, Dallas ran 18 plays and absorbed 10 minutes, 18 seconds off the clock. Not once during that period were the Cowboys not in control. They dictated the tempo and hammered the Colts like a battering ram, pushing them closer and closer to their own goal line. "You're sitting there holding the ball, you're eating up clock and you want to come away with a score," center Andre Gurode said. "And we did." In many ways, the Cowboys willed their way to the end zone, making choices during that possession that clearly indicated their offensive philosophy has changed dramatically since Jason Garrett was elevated to head coach in early November. That became increasingly evident after each of the seven first-down plays they executed during the drive. All were runs. That was quite revealing, considering that a team's modus operandi in first-down situations usually offers clues about the overall tendencies of the offense. This season Indianapolis and New Orleans have attempted more passes on first down than any other NFL club. That should come as no surprise, because with a fresh set of downs, an offense is no longer a victim of circumstance and can accentuate what it values. In turn, it does not need to adjust its strategy based on the outcome of the previous play. Only when it is pinned in the shadow of its own end zone or has been penalized are a team's options limited on first down. In most cases, the offense dictates the terms. That's why it's so remarkable how substantially the Cowboys' choices in these situations have changed during the course of the season. In the last eight games of Wade Phillips' tenure, Dallas attempted 81 rushes on first down- the fewest number in the NFL during that span. In that same period, and in similar circumstances, they threw 144 times - more than any other team in the league. But since Garrett has been the head coach, the Cowboys are not nearly as trigger-happy once they have been presented with a new set of downs. In the last four games, the Cowboys have run the ball 63 times on first down - the seventh-highest total in the NFL during that period. On the other hand, they have attempted only 47 passes on first down in that same stretch. This wouldn't be surprising if the results on the ground have improved noticeably. But they haven't. In the first eight games, just like the last four, the Cowboys have gained 3.8 yards per rush attempt on first down. So, what gives? "I couldn't tell you the reason," said running back Tashard Choice. There are extenuating factors that may have influenced the shift in strategy. The loss of quarterback Tony Romo, and the resultant promotion of Jon Kitna, could have forced Garrett to be less aggressive. The fact that the Cowboys have had more leads to protect recently could have also affected Garrett's playcalling on first down. But because of how marked the transformation has been, all signs seem to indicate this was a premeditated course correction. Never was that more apparent than on that drive against Indianapolis, when the Cowboys ran the ball over and over again, showing a commitment to a philosophy they seemed reluctant to embrace only months before.
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