Still Awaiting Decision on Sudan
A decision on whether MIT should divest from corporations involved with the Sudanese government will have to wait until at least early March. Although the last meeting of the Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility was on Dec. 15, the next meeting will be at the beginning of March, close to the next MIT Corporation meeting on March 2, said Michael Baenen, staff to the ACSR. The delay of almost three months has made some students and ACSR members unhappy.
MacVicar Day Celebrates Learning, MIT Professors
Five professors were honored on Friday, March 2, MacVicar Day, as the 2007 Margaret MacVicar Faculty Fellows for demonstrating excellence in teaching. The award includes $10,000 per year for 10 years to be spent on improving teaching methods and course curriculum.
City Councillors Seek New 2-Year Terms in Cambridge Elections
Next Tuesday, Nov. 3, voters will decide who will sit on the Cambridge City Council for the next two years. There will be at least one new face, since only eight incumbents are running for re-election.
Book Explores History of Measurement, MIT Smoot; Author, Smoot Visit Institute
The story of the MIT Smoot is gaining new fame, thanks to a recently-published book called “Smoot’s Ear: The Measure of Humanity.” Oliver R. Smoot ’62, the Smoot’s namesake, was on hand to hear author Robert Tavernor, an architect and professor of architecture and urban design at the London School of Economics and Political Science, discuss the book last Tuesday.
MUSEUM REVIEW Shoe Mania Hits Museum of Fine Arts
If you’ve been avoiding any of Boston’s museums because you can’t tell a Renaissance painting from a Post-Impressionist, your excuse has just been smashed. “Walk This Way,” one of the Museum of Fine Art’s latest exhibits, is a parade of shoes, some new and some old. Everyone can understand shoes — we wear them, don’t we?
Don’t Neglect the Necessities
I don’t like grocery shopping, probably because of the chilliness of the frozen food section and because I don’t like lugging heavy bags. Or maybe it’s just because I’m lazy. Either way, you should not follow my example because it must be possible to enjoy shopping for basics like food, bedding, and toiletries. Here’s a list of places where you can go to try to achieve nirvana or at least find a good deal:
Finding Fun
Most of us are now definable by our Facebook profiles. We’ve named our hometowns, our majors, and our favorite music in neat lists. The moment our tastes change, we rush to update our profiles, lest someone mistakenly believe we still like The Get Up Kids, even though we’ve now declared allegiance to The Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Outfitting Yourself
It’s no secret that most MIT students don’t give a great deal of thought to how they look. So you used to curl your hair every morning in high school? You think better in a blazer? Forget how you used to look in high school, because odds are, you’ll look a lot worse soon. Depressing, sure, but thankfully there will be days when you’ll feel like an ordinary, non-stressed human and will stop wishing that public nudity were a social norm. Shop now and you’ll be prepared for those bright days when you actually care about what you’re wearing.
Dining Out
I know you’re in awe of LaVerde’s beverage selection right now, and you probably will be for another few months. But once you’ve grown tired of that lingonberry soda and tomato egg salad sandwich (both of which I consumed almost every day of my first semester), you’ll realize that you can’t rely on LaVerde’s for all of your meals. And even if you can and do cook, you’re sure to crave a restaurant-cooked meal someday soon. When that day comes, pick up this guide, find a friend, and eat out!
EXHIBIT REVIEW Moving Jewelry Beyond the Bauble Boundary
It's hard not to like jewelry. The familiar shape and feel of it against your skin and the memories it brings make wearing jewelry a small everyday pleasure. The glances and admiration it sometimes elicits are not to be underestimated, either. But those of us who love jewelry don't quite know what it is to really love jewelry until we've visited the new Museum of Fine Arts exhibit showcasing it: "Jewelry by Artists: The Daphne Farago Collection."
Visitor Kadeer Calls For Action to Help Uyghur People
<i>Rebiya Kadeer, a nominee for the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, is working to spread awareness about the Uyghur people of the Xinjian Uyghur Autonomous Region. This region was once East Turkestan, before China annexed it in 1949. She visited MIT in early May to speak at an event sponsored by Amnesty International and the MIT Muslim Students' Association, as well as several other groups.</i>
MIT Chooses to Divest From Sudan
Ending months of speculation, MIT yesterday released a statement on the issue of divesting from corporations involved with the Sudanese government.
Congressman Tierney Advocates Plans For College Affordability
In early April, I sat down for a leisurely and candid conversation with Massachusetts Congressman John F. Tierney (D) in his Salem, Mass. office. Although our talk touched on topics as diverse as Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the presidential candidates, students might breathe a sigh of relief when they hear that Tierney has plans to make college more affordable.
MIT Flyer Distribution Policy Raises Dispute
A policy regarding students passing out flyers on campus was called into question yesterday, after a student passing out sheets outside a meeting was told by a Campus Activities Complex employee that he was unwelcome.
Getting Started on the Future Today
"We recognize it is an incredibly urgent issue … we don't have time to do five years of research," said Jason J. Jay G, as he talked about the challenge of creating a more sustainable future with new technologies and policies. Jay, a doctoral student who has an academic interest in corporate and social responsibility and the study of organizations, said that the challenge of sustainability is "for our generation what getting into space was for our parents."
Two Student Life Deans to Leave MIT in June Newly Announced Position Will Combine Duties of Deans For FSILGs and Residential Life Programs
Two student life deans will leave MIT on June 30, 2007 as their positions are merged. The decision to combine the positions of Dean David N. Rogers, assistant dean and director of Fraternities, Sororities, and Independent Living Groups, and Dean Andrew J. Ryder, assistant dean for Residential Life Programs, comes in the wake of an earlier reorganization of the Division of Student Life.
Panhel Reports Record Bid Numbers
Sorority recruitment experienced a banner year, with a record 154 bids being given out to women who went through the recruitment process, a 12 percent increase over last year’s 137 bids. Most of those bids were spread out evenly among four of the five chapters.
AEPhi Sorority Decides Not To Continue Leasing House
Starting next fall, the sorority Alpha Epsilon Phi will not have a house to come home to. The sisters of AEPhi have decided not to renew a two-year housing lease, said incoming AEPhi President Elizabeth Katcoff ’08. The reason for the decision is not financial, she said, but is because the house has not played as big a role in helping the sisters spend more time together, as had originally been hoped.