What if you went to school for free?
Next year, MIT says, the all-inclusive cost of tuition, room, and board will top $50,000. What would happen if MIT made an executive decision that, by 2020, tuition would be free?
Student fell, lay for hours at Stata Ctr.
A freshman was found seriously injured after a long fall that left him immobilized for hours in the Stata Center on Thursday morning.
Lerman will be provost at George Washington in July
Vice Chancellor and Dean for Graduate Education Steven R. Lerman ’72 will leave at the end of this academic year for George Washington University, where he will be Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Let’s Regulate the Freshmen in FSILGs.
An unknown number of second-semester freshmen choose to live in their fraternities, technically breaking MIT rules, and the Institute does not regulate the practice. Everyone knows about it. Regulating the practice, rather than pretending it does not exist, would protect MIT students from whatever risks it may incur.
No Choice for Police
MIT police probably would not have called in the fire department to inspect a bomb-shaped concrete hemisphere on Kresge Oval if someone had taken responsibility for it before or immediately after they put it up.
Graduate Student Guangtao Cong is Missing
Administrators believe that “as far as we now know,” missing graduate student Guangtao Cong “is safe and we know his whereabouts,” said Dean for Graduate Education Steven R. Lerman ’72 on Saturday.
Sophomore Died in Bedford on Saturday
Kabelo Zwane ’12 was found dead on Saturday, Nov. 7, in a wooded area in Bedford, Mass., the MIT News Office reported yesterday afternoon. He was 21.
Team Will Study Athena Clusters To Gauge Potential Cost Savings
Conceived in an era when most students didn’t have access to their own computers, are MIT’s Athena computing clusters still relevant today?
Tech Review: iPod Nano
<b>WHAT IT IS: </b>The latest generation “iPod Nano” represents Apple Inc.’s contributions to the hot world of portable music and video players, currently a market dominated by Apple Inc.
‘Boston Globe’ Discovers 2007 MIT Project
When science reporters write about technology that isn’t really new, they should say so up front.
Institute Planning Task Force Suggests Major Cuts, Changes
No more paper Add/Drop forms? Undergrads forced out of their dorms after three years? Online master’s degrees? GIRs taught during the summer? Shuttered Athena clusters?
’07-08 Tute Disciplines Fewer; Eight Suspended
The Committee on Discipline heard fewer cases in 2007-8 than in the prior year, a decline driven by fewer charges of unauthorized access and academic misconduct.
ATO Receives Housing License; Alcohol, Roof Access Restricted
Members of the Alpha Tau Omega (ATO) fraternity can soon come home. Yesterday afternoon, the Cambridge License Commission unanimously approved them for a long-sought housing license.
Final Blue Ribbon Report Removes Some Unpalatable Recommendations
The final report of the Blue Ribbon Committee on Dining to MIT, dated May 11, 2009, recommends that the existing House Dining program be dismantled and replaced with a declining-balance program. But in the report, the committee says it does not recommend a mandatory meal plan for all students, charging students in dining hall dorms an “opt out fee” where they would pay to eat nothing, or turning the MacGregor Hall convenience store into a dining hall.
Gadget Review
<b>What it is:</b> Apple’s newest iPod Shuffle, a portable music player that holds 4 gigabytes of songs (about 72 hours, more than a thousand songs).
Final Blue Ribbon Dining Report Removes Some Unpalatable Recommendations
The final report of the Blue Ribbon Committee on Dining to MIT, dated May 11, 2009, recommends that the existing House Dining program be dismantled and replaced with a declining-balance program. But in the report, the committee says it does not recommend a mandatory meal plan for all students, charging students in dining hall dorms an “opt out fee” where they would pay to eat nothing, or turning the MacGregor Hall convenience store into a dining hall.
MIT Student Spread Swine Flu to Dental School at Harvard U.
Last week, an MIT student did something that three decades of snowstorms haven’t been able to do: He shut down Harvard.
No Choice for Police
MIT police probably would not have called in the fire department to inspect a bomb-shaped concrete hemisphere on Kresge Oval if someone had taken responsibility for it before or immediately after they put it up.
Mass. Department of Public Health: Two ‘Probable’ Swine Flu Cases at MIT
Two MIT affiliates are considered to have had “probable” infections of swine flu, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health told MIT Medical on Friday.
Student Tested For Swine Flu; Results Aren’t In Yet
An MIT student was diagnosed with influenza yesterday, and samples taken from the student are being tested for the H1N1 swine flu. The test was routine and the student is not at high risk of having contracted H1N1 swine flu, an MIT physician said.
MIT Medical Is Prepared in Case of Swine Flu Outbreak
MIT’s emergency planning arm is prepared to handle an outbreak of the swine flu, although administrators say they expect the disease to manifest less like a pandemic and more like a tough flu season.
BC ‘Dance Till You Drop’ Stunt Fizzles Out
On Friday morning, a dormitory hall’s publicity stunt bombed.<br> The Cambridge Bomb Squad responded to a heavy concrete block painted to look like a cartoon bomb, advertising the annual Dance Till You Drop party held by the Burton Third Bombers.
Cambridge Bomb Squad Inspects Burton Third’s Concrete ‘Bomb’
On Friday morning, a dormitory hall’s publicity stunt bombed.<br> The Cambridge Bomb Squad responded to a heavy concrete block painted to look like a cartoon bomb, advertising the annual Dance Till You Drop party held by the Burton Third Bombers.
MIT Avoids Norovirus; Campus Police Conduct Routine ‘Well-Being Checks’
<i>This occasional feature follows up on news stories long past their prime. In this edition: a contagious stomach bug misses the Institute but strikes close to home for one campus leader; don’t be alarmed if the police come knocking — they might just be checking that you’re OK; and a Walker Memorial bathroom has now been getting the same anti-gay graffiti for five years.</i>
Admissions Reduces Staff, Travel, Will Use The Web for Recruiting
The admissions office has laid off staff, will reduce travel spending by 30–50 percent, and will move much of its communication with students to the Web. The measures will help Admissions meet MIT’s mandated 5 percent budget cut for the fiscal year beginning in July.
A Technical Solution to a Human Problem
The only threat “to disrupt the ability to run a timely election” in the latest fiasco from the Undergraduate Association’s Election Commission came from the leaders who decided to fire their computer guy three weeks before he was supposed to start running the elections.
24 Broad Institute DNA Scientists Were Laid Off on Tuesday
Twenty-four MIT employees were fired yesterday morning from the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Their jobs have been made redundant by new technology, the institute said in a press release.
Institute To Cut Budget, Slow Hiring
MIT will cut general spending by five percent in the fiscal year beginning next July, and by 10–15 percent within the next three years, the president and provost said in a letter to the MIT community yesterday. The announcement mirrors announcements by elite universities similarly affected by the global financial crisis.
Public Documents Seem to Show Free T Fare
Documents made public by an MBTA lawsuit against MIT undergraduates show how anyone can get free T fare by copying an existing CharlieTicket or by making their own.
Students’ Subway Security Talk Canceled by Court Order
Three MIT students will not be presenting their security research at the annual DEF CON hacker convention this weekend because of a temporary restraining order filed by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority on Friday afternoon. The students — legally represented by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit advocacy group — are appealing the order.
Overloaded Spam Filters Dropped Some Gmail E-mails Sent to MIT
If your friend swears he invited you to that party, but you never got the e-mail, he might just be telling the truth.
Grad Student Receives Pretrial Probation After Assault Charge
A graduate student has received pretrial probation, effectively halting the four charges filed against him in connection with an incident at the List Visual Arts Center in October 2007.
MIT Responds to Students; MBTA Drops Federal Case
<i>This occasional feature will follow up on news stories long past their prime. In this edition: how MIT fired, and un-fired, a women’s support administrator; and whatever happened to that MBTA lawsuit?</i>
Video Camera in 10-250 Broadcasts at All Hours
A word of warning: if you’re in 10-250, you may be on MIT Cable’s channel 11. A camera that points at the front of the room often broadcasts to that TV channel, even long after teaching hours are done.
End of Good Times for Emporium
Good Time Emporium, the Assembly Square family fun center which combined the best and worst of a Chuck E. Cheese’s, an indoor Go Kart track, and a sports bar, but whose reputation was marred by a 2004 stabbing, a 2007 shooting, and a spring 2008 brawl, is closed and will not reopen. Many of the attraction’s attractions will be auctioned off in Brockton on Saturday.
Hutchings Elected New IFC President
David J. Hutchings ’10 and O. Russell Rodewald ’10 were elected president and vice president of the Interfraternity Council last Wednesday, Oct. 29. Hutchings said that his main goals for the upcoming year include fostering a spirit of interfraternity community and improving the image of MIT fraternities in the community.
Police Seek Intruder Who Tried to Assault Student
An intruder tried to sexually assault at least one Senior House resident early Sunday morning. The intruder apparently fled after attracting attention from residents.
Gender Ratios Vary Widely Across MIT Courses
Although MIT’s undergraduate population is almost half female, only about a third of the undergraduates in the most popular course, VI, are female, according to statistics released by the Office of the Registrar on Oct. 3, 2008.
Gadget Review
<b>WHAT IT IS: </b>The fourth generation “iPod Nano” represents Apple Inc.’s contributions to the hot world of portable music and video players, currently a market dominated by Apple Inc.
Prof. Haldeman’s Novel ‘Forever War’ Picked Up By 20th Century Fox Film
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation has acquired the rights to <i>The Forever War</i>, an award-winning 1974 novel by science fiction author and MIT writing professor Joe Haldeman. The film will be directed by Ridley Scott, whose last science fiction films were <i>Alien </i>and <i>Blade Runner</i>. The producers are now searching for a writer.
After CLC Decision, ATO’s Future Hinges On IFC Presidents’ Vote
Having lost the housing license to its water-damaged fraternity house, and facing allegations of rush misconduct by the Interfraternity Council, Alpha Tau Omega may be expelled from MIT.
Students’ Presentation Shows How to Get Free T Fare
Documents made public by an MBTA lawsuit against MIT undergraduates show how anyone can get free T fare by copying an existing CharlieTicket or by making their own.
MBTA Sues Three Students to Stop Speech on Subway Vulnerabilities
An MIT student project showing how anyone with a magnetic card writer can ride the Boston subway for free was not presented at this summer’s DEF CON hacker convention because of an emergency court order. But details sufficient to repeat the attack were published in open court documents by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority in its request for a restraining order.
Government Declares Some Grad Students Are ‘Security Threats’
Eight MIT graduate students with student visas were denied a key credential by the Department of Homeland Security. After their department appealed the decisions on their behalf, the DHS declared at least two of the students “security threats.”
Green Hall Residents Will Leave In Fall and Thetas Will Move In
Green Hall, the women’s graduate dormitory, will become undergraduate housing and will exclusively house members of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority in fall 2008, residents were told in January. Current Green Hall residents were asked in January to leave by June 30, and they will have the option to move to any other graduate dormitory.
Counterpoint Will Become Wellesley-Only Publication
<i>Counterpoint</i>, the monthly magazine which aimed to chronicle campus life at MIT and Wellesley College, will resume publication in September as a Wellesley-only publication, the publication’s co-editor announced in May’s issue.
MIT Will Release Student Birth Dates, Enhance Opt-Out System
MIT will release students’ dates of birth for statistical purposes, but it will not publish those dates. The release will take place in the fall, following a proposal discussed by Dean for Undergraduate Education Daniel E. Hastings PhD ’80 at a meeting with undergraduates last night.
Dean for Student Life Search Committee Will Start Interviews in May
The search for Dean for Student Life Larry G. Benedict’s replacement is well underway, and a preliminary list of the top eight candidates will be chosen Monday afternoon.
Jessop, Bennie Elected UA P/VP
With voter turnout up 13 percent, Noah S. Jessop ’09 and Michael A. Bennie ’10 won the Undergraduate Association elections for president and vice president.
Faculty Hear Discipline Report, Vote on Degree, Curriculum Changes
Seventy people were accused of misconduct and had cases brought before the Committee on Discipline in 2006–07, according to a presentation at Wednesday’s faculty meeting.
MIT Student Fights to Protect Activists’ Privacy
A New York City Law Department subpoena to an MIT graduate student over text messages has raised questions about how the First Amendment protects online speech, and whether the government is allowed to ask service providers for messages they store.
Student Center Cleaners Closed by State
If students looked a little wrinkly this week, it’s probably because their dry cleaners have been out of a job.
Next House Housemasters Medard, Simmons Will Leave at End of Term
Next House housemasters Muriel Medard ’89 and John Simmons ’90 will leave the post at the end of the 2007–8 academic year to focus on their family.
Oversubscribed Biology Class Will Spill Into 4-370
Although 659 people have preregistered for Introductory Biology (7.013), only 566 seats are available in the 26-100 lecture hall where the subject will be taught. Students who cannot fit in 26-100 will still be able to see the lecture via a live video stream shown in 4-370. A course instructor and teaching assistants will be in the overflow room to answer students’ questions.
Recording Industry Sends Demand Letters
The Recording Industry Association of America tried a new legal tactic in the past year: the association sent 63 letters to MIT in 2007 and 19 more in January 2008, asking for money and threatening to file copyright infringement lawsuits against MIT community members.
With Supporters’ Help, Tosci’s Reopens
Beloved neighborhood ice cream store Toscanini’s is back in business as of Friday, Jan. 25 after paying off part of its $167,000 tax debt and making a schedule to repay the rest. Much of the money came from donations made by loyal customers — a situation one tax official called “unusual to the point of unprecedented.”
Student Center Thefts on the Rise; Dozens of Steelcase Chairs Stolen
Frustrated by a rash of thefts in the Student Center throughout the fall semester, especially the loss of $20,000 worth of chairs, Campus Activities Complex Director Phillip J. Walsh said he is facing a new problem of physical security.
COOP Board Announces Student Election Is Void
An election to choose the eleven student members of the Coop’s board of directors was declared void by its stockholders, and a new election scheduled, after it emerged that a candidate had voted using the credentials of several of her supporters, with their consent. As the second election’s closing date loomed, it remained unclear whether the vote tally would reach the minimum number required for student input to be counted. It was additionally unclear whether the Coop’s governing body had nominated as many MIT students as it is required to.