Apollo 17 Moon Rock Reveals Magnetic Beginnings
The lasting impression left by the Apollo missions is of a moon that is gray, dusty, desolate and dead. But instruments left behind by Apollo astronauts recorded moonquakes and wobbles in its rotation that gave hints of a still molten core.
‘Beginner’s Luck’ Wins 63-Hour Mystery Hunt
The 2009 Mystery Hunt concluded, after 63 hours, when the team Beginner’s Luck uncovered the coin, the traditional goal of the hunt, in the Building 13 basement on Monday at 3:03 a.m.
Big, Hopeful Crowds Gather to Watch Obama’s Inauguration
As President Barack Obama took the oath of office at yesterday’s inauguration, hundreds of members of the MIT community looked on from lecture halls and communal spaces. Students expressed a cautious optimism for the future.
News Briefs
Starting January 24th, the MIT Parking and Transportation Office will operate a shuttle to and from Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market. The shuttle will run every Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2:47 p.m., leaving campus every 30 minutes and making its last pickup on campus at 1:47 p.m. A current schedule can be found online at <i>http://web.mit.edu/facilities/transportation/shuttles/grocery.html</i>.
Optimism in Washington, Pessimism on Wall Street
President Barack Obama took office Tuesday urging Americans to choose hope over fear, but on Wall Street, fear was making a comeback.
Shorts (left)
Some 300 women held at immigration detention centers in Arizona face dangerous delays in health care and widespread mistreatment, according to a new study by the University of Arizona, the latest report to criticize conditions at such centers throughout the United States.
Shorts (right)
Kara Neumann, 11, had grown so weak she could not walk or speak. Her parents, who believe that God alone has the ability to heal the sick, prayed for her recovery but did not take her to a doctor.
Obama Is Sworn in as the Forty-Fourth President
Barack Hussein Obama became the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday before a massive crowd reveling in a moment of profound racial significance, and called on Americans to confront together an economic crisis that he said was caused by “our collective failure to make hard choices.”
Speech Spanned History But Tiptoed Around Bush
Though couched in indirect terms, Barack Obama’s inaugural address was a stark repudiation of the era of George W. Bush and a vow to drive the United States into “a new age” by reclaiming the values of an older one.
Few Israelis Near Gaza Feel War Achieved Much
The wheat and potato fields of this kibbutz, or communal farm, in southern Israel stretch right up to the Gaza border fence. In almost surreal proximity on the other side rise the apartment buildings, water towers and minarets of the Palestinian village of Abasan.
A Break From the Snow, But Not From the Cold
After receiving 12.4 inches of snow at Logan Airport this past Sunday and Monday, Boston could use a break from the snow. Luckily, the weather looks free of precipitation over the next week. Friday will be the warmest day in two weeks, with the high temperature looking to reach 40°F (4°C). Otherwise, temperatures will remain below freezing, not giving the snow already on the ground any chance to melt. Another shot of cold air invades us on Sunday, with a forecasted high of around 10°F (-12°C).
The Gaza Situation
Last Tuesday, Noam Chomsky explained to a packed auditorium at MIT’s Center of International Studies that Israel’s recent invasion of Gaza was nothing if not “familiar.”
Justifying Self-Defense
As reported in <i>The Tech</i>, last Tuesday Noam Chomsky, MIT’s well-known linguistics professor, gave a talk on the Gaza Strip conflict. While he didn’t hesitate in heaping scorn on Israel, he condemned the actions of the United States and its leaders even more.
CONCERT REVIEW Hope at the End of Things
Hearing the all-star cast of the Tashi quartet (Peter Serkin, Ida Kavafian, Fred Sherry, and Richard Stoltzman) record Messiaen’s quartet in 1976 feels much like looking at pictures of your parents before they had any children. Each of these musicians has gone on to an illustrious musical careers of his own, and this particular recording was made before much of their serious careers as musicians. Although younger at the time of this recording, the quartet realizes Messiaen’s work with a mature exuberance and an intense attention to motive and detail that vaulted Messiaen’s music to the fame it currently enjoys: the vast litany of recordings of the work all seem to begin with this one in mind. Though this is an older recording, there is still no surprise that it was recommended by Alex Ross in his recent work, “The Rest is Noise”.
MOVIE REVIEW ★★★ Portrait of a City
Tokyo!” is a three-part film connected only by the Japanese capital and the eerie strangeness of the unconventional, distinctive portrayals. All three directors’ contributions provoke investigation of the supernatural and fantastic, while maintaining the underlying themes of self-discovery and human relationships.
What I’m Listening To
The story of jazz is a desperate struggle of birth and rebirth, of constantly trying to ride the “new,” of reinventing how we feel and relate to the world. Today’s innovators fuse genres, add instruments, at once rejecting the past and later resurrecting it. The jazz gods need constant infusions of blood to stay happy.
Sports Shorts
Preseason All-American James M. “Jimmy” Bartolotta ’09 led the MIT men’s basketball team to an 89-64 victory over Springfield College by scoring 33 points against the Pride in a NEWMAC contest at Springfield’s Blake Arena.
GAME OF THE WEEK MIT Track and Field Takes Top Spot Against Bates and Colby
The MIT men’s and women’s track and field teams kicked off their 2009 campaigns with a pair of resounding first place finishes over Bates and Colby Colleges on Saturday at Bates. The men’s total of 204 points far outpaced second-place Bates, who finished with 128 team points; Colby finished in third with just 21 points. MIT’s women totaled 151 points while Bates finished second with 123 and Colby again came in third with 89.
