Interstellar Relations, Monday, 5th Period
The lights were dimmed as students entered the room and signed in. Professor Roslin sat at her desk, a laptop computer angled off to her right. The most immediately visible item, however, was the large plasma screen with the accompanying SmartBoard, illuminated behind her. Closer inspection showed that the image on the board was simply a larger version of her laptop screen. Several sheets of paper are on the desk, prepared for each student. On top is a copy of the syllabus.
She frowned a bit at the computer as it dinged loudly and tossed a few error messages her way, each one visible on the main screen. "Oh, stop that," she said quietly, clicking through them. Her eyes darted a glance at the clock. She quickly closed down one program, booting up another. A political map of the world flickered onto the screen.
Rising from her seat, she made her way to the front of the desk and removed her classes. She stood with her arms folded across her chest, weight resting against the forward edge of the desk, and legs crossed at the ankles. "Okay, today we're going to jump right into the basics: What is a state, and how do we define it? What is the difference between a state and a nation? Is there a difference?"
She took a few responses, pointing with an index finger at each person who raised their hand. "Okay, so as we can see, things are just a little intertwined -- that most states actually incorporate nations, and that many nations have either sought or won statehood. One of the questions you should be thinking about is where should the nation-state line stop? Should it? I know I mentioned it in our previous class, but it really begs repeating.
"Now that we've gotten that little bit out of the way, let's jump ahead a little to get a rundown of the government systems we're going to be looking at. What you should have found on your desk when you arrived are handouts, each one covering the various systems of interest to us."
Roslin moved to the front of the room as the students flipped through the documents. Included were handouts on the following government systems: Presidential Systems; Semi-Presidential Systems; Parliamentary Systems; Parliamentary/Constitutional Monarchy; Absolute Monarchy; Single-Party States and Military Dictatorships. At the front of the room, she picked up what looked like a marker, then returned her attention to the class.
"Interestingly enough, most of these are currently represented in nations here on Earth. What examples can you give me for each of these systems?" Tapping the screen with the marker, the white side of the screen filled in with a bulleted list of the systems. Roslin seemed very impressed that they actually showed up correctly. "Don't worry; we're not going to do every country on the map -- just a few examples. I hope you have all been paying attention to the world around you."
Nations filled in with various colors as they were mentioned in class. When it seemed the well had run dry, she pursed her lips. "Okay, so, let's see what it looks like, all filled in." She touched a small icon on the lower right of the screen, and the map suddenly filled in. "So what does this map represent? It represents a lot of different systems of government trying to do business together, in the international arena. The same principle can be applied" -- she tapped the screen again, this time the political map of the Earth, replaced with one of known sections of the universe, the colors corresponding with the Earth map -- "in a larger forum.
"Can any one hazard a guess why some of these systems don't get along? Take a peek at your handouts if you need to."
As the class discussed the various conflicts that might arise, Roslin made her way around the room. It was close to the end of class by the time she made it back to the front. She switched on all the lights as she passed the switch and then resumed her place leaning against the front of the desk. "Okay. One more boring lecture to get through, and then we get to have a little fun. Study your systems, paying close attention to the presidential and parliamentary systems. There may or may not be a quiz." Laura gave her best presidential smile as the bell rang to signal the end of class. "Go on; get out of here."
[Wait for the OCD, please! OCD up! Also, note: I'll be AFK till at least 6 PM EST.]
She frowned a bit at the computer as it dinged loudly and tossed a few error messages her way, each one visible on the main screen. "Oh, stop that," she said quietly, clicking through them. Her eyes darted a glance at the clock. She quickly closed down one program, booting up another. A political map of the world flickered onto the screen.
Rising from her seat, she made her way to the front of the desk and removed her classes. She stood with her arms folded across her chest, weight resting against the forward edge of the desk, and legs crossed at the ankles. "Okay, today we're going to jump right into the basics: What is a state, and how do we define it? What is the difference between a state and a nation? Is there a difference?"
She took a few responses, pointing with an index finger at each person who raised their hand. "Okay, so as we can see, things are just a little intertwined -- that most states actually incorporate nations, and that many nations have either sought or won statehood. One of the questions you should be thinking about is where should the nation-state line stop? Should it? I know I mentioned it in our previous class, but it really begs repeating.
"Now that we've gotten that little bit out of the way, let's jump ahead a little to get a rundown of the government systems we're going to be looking at. What you should have found on your desk when you arrived are handouts, each one covering the various systems of interest to us."
Roslin moved to the front of the room as the students flipped through the documents. Included were handouts on the following government systems: Presidential Systems; Semi-Presidential Systems; Parliamentary Systems; Parliamentary/Constitutional Monarchy; Absolute Monarchy; Single-Party States and Military Dictatorships. At the front of the room, she picked up what looked like a marker, then returned her attention to the class.
"Interestingly enough, most of these are currently represented in nations here on Earth. What examples can you give me for each of these systems?" Tapping the screen with the marker, the white side of the screen filled in with a bulleted list of the systems. Roslin seemed very impressed that they actually showed up correctly. "Don't worry; we're not going to do every country on the map -- just a few examples. I hope you have all been paying attention to the world around you."
Nations filled in with various colors as they were mentioned in class. When it seemed the well had run dry, she pursed her lips. "Okay, so, let's see what it looks like, all filled in." She touched a small icon on the lower right of the screen, and the map suddenly filled in. "So what does this map represent? It represents a lot of different systems of government trying to do business together, in the international arena. The same principle can be applied" -- she tapped the screen again, this time the political map of the Earth, replaced with one of known sections of the universe, the colors corresponding with the Earth map -- "in a larger forum.
"Can any one hazard a guess why some of these systems don't get along? Take a peek at your handouts if you need to."
As the class discussed the various conflicts that might arise, Roslin made her way around the room. It was close to the end of class by the time she made it back to the front. She switched on all the lights as she passed the switch and then resumed her place leaning against the front of the desk. "Okay. One more boring lecture to get through, and then we get to have a little fun. Study your systems, paying close attention to the presidential and parliamentary systems. There may or may not be a quiz." Laura gave her best presidential smile as the bell rang to signal the end of class. "Go on; get out of here."
[Wait for the OCD, please! OCD up! Also, note: I'll be AFK till at least 6 PM EST.]