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What is Sociology?

    Sociology is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the structure of groups, organizations, and societies, and how people interact within these contexts. Since all human behavior is social, the subject matter of sociology ranges from the intimate family to the hostile mob; from organized crime to religious cults; from the divisions of race, gender and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture; and from the sociology of work to the sociology of sports. In fact, few fields have such broad scope and relevance for research, theory, and application of knowledge.

    Sociology provides many distinctive perspectives on the world, generating new ideas and critiquing the old. The field also offers a range of research techniques that can be applied to virtually any aspect of social life: street crime and delinquency, corporate downsizing, how people express emotions, welfare or education reform, how families differ and flourish, or problems of peace and war. Because sociology addresses the most challenging issues of our time, it is a rapidly expanding field whose potential is increasingly tapped by those who craft policies and create programs. Sociologists understand social inequality, patterns of behavior, forces for social change and resistance, and how social systems work. As the following pages convey, sociology is an exciting discipline with expanding opportunities for a wide range of career paths.

From: https://sociology.case.edu/what-is-sociology/. Accessed on 05/11/2019

Germany prepares adaptation of the TV Series “Merlí”

      “Merlí”, the new TV3 series produced by Nova Veranda, based on an original idea and script by Héctor Lozano, directed by Eduard Cortés and starring Francesc Orella, will soon arrive Germany. A deal selling rights to the “Merlí” format will allow German audiovisual group Beta to adapt the adventures of this peculiar philosophy teacher and his favorite pupils, the Peripatetics.
      The series “Merlí” finished shooting its third and last season last week, and its plot revolves around philosophy professor Merlí Bergeron (Francesc Orella). Like a modern-day Aristotle, Merlí chooses a group of High School students whom he teaches to reflect upon and question all aspects of life. This atypical, multifaceted professor confounds everyone around him as he encourages his students to set goals and objectives, sometimes using questionable methods.
      The series continues to reap huge international success and is now preparing its arrival in Germany hand-in-hand with Beta thanks to an agreement with its international distributor Lagardère Studios Distribution, a strategic partner for Nova Veranda’s parent company Boomerang TV. This is not the first time the series has crossed borders. It has already aired through Netflix in the Spanish-speaking U.S. and in Latin America as well as on Canal Plus France’s Cinema+ Famillie network.
      In this most recent agreement, the Beta Group has acquired the rights to adapt “Merlí” for the German market. In Spain, Movistar+ acquired broadcast rights for the series, which airs on the platform. The series is available nationwide for all of the platform’s subscribers and can be seen in its original (Catalonian) version with Castillian subtitles. “Merlí” has also been acquired by ETB for the Basque Country, where it will be dubbed into Euskera.

From: https://goo.gl/UcYXP9. Accessed on 04/25/2018

Favela Chic: gentrifying the slums of brazil

A walk through Rio de Janeiro’s Vidigal favela is a full sensory experience on any given day. The smell
of grilled meat mixes with that of exhaust from motorcycle taxis traversing the slum’s corridors.
And then there are the sounds. Normally it’s Rio’s trademark funk music blaring from various
cars or trucks, but lately it has been the sound of German, English or French being spoken by its
[5] new inhabitants.
Favela Chic, as it’s come to be known, has quickly taken Vidigal by storm, as well as its favela
neighbor Rocinha. A combination of new security forces, low prices and curiosity by outsiders have
brought a wave of new renters to neighborhoods that were once considered unsafe to even visit.
American Kristine Witko moved into Vidigal during the World Cup and says she loves it. “It has more
[10] life because there’s always something going on”, says the 27-year-old New Jersey native. “Bars with
people spilling out of them at 6 a.m., music blaring constantly, always people in the street”.
But in addition to a spate of World Cup visitors, Rio’s favelas have also become popular among
venture capitalists looking to rent or sell to higher-income buyers. Less than 10 years ago, a modest
home here would cost only $2,500. Today it can fetch $75,000 or more.
[15] While some former favela residents are being priced out of their homes by land prospectors from
the U.S. and Europe, others have been forcibly removed. In Rio, as many as 250,000 have been
relocated, many to the outskirts of the city, far from their former homes. Many complain that the
compensation packages, when offered, are inadequate.
Besides, favelas have often acted as the shelter for those unable to afford other housing options.
[20] “From the beginning, favelas have been not only housing for the poor, but also the poor’s preferred
housing, given the alternatives available and consistent actions of the state to not provide for the
poor, but to hide them from sight”, writes Jason Cummings in his dissertation for Harvard Graduate
School of Design, “Confronting the Favela Chic”.
With the 2016 Rio Olympics looming on the horizon, what will the gentrification in Rio and
[25] throughout Brazil mean for the 12 million people who inhabit the slums out of necessity? Priced
out or forced out, this creates a continuing clash of class for which there are no easy solutions. 

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