MIT Students Clone Popular Websites: Students Connect on ‘isawyou.mit.edu’
MIT students have become addicted to two new popular websites, MIT FML (http://mitfml.com/) and I Saw You MIT (http://isawyou.mit.edu/), created this past semester. Filled with anonymous, quirky, Twitter-like posts the two sites were designed to entertain, bond, and poke fun at the MIT community.
UA Finboard Releases Winter/IAP Funding Results
Summer Fall 2009 Allocations Ops. Ops. Capital Capital Events Events P&P P&P Total Total % Group Requested Received Requested Received Requested Received Requested Received Request Received Received Active Minds at MIT — — — $1,620 $1,120 $650 $550 $2,270 $1,670 74% Asianc Dance Team — — $250 — $900 $750 $550 $150 $1,700 $900 53% African Students Association — — $3,171 $1,066 — $100 $3,171 $1,166 37% African Information Technology Initiative — — — — $350 $350 $150 $100 $500 $450 90% Alpha Phi Alpha $520 — — — $950 $650 $450 $175 $1,920 $825 43% Alpha Phi Omega — — — — $200 $200 — — $200 $200 100% Alternative Spring Break — — — — $200 $200 $65 $65 $265 $265 100% American Red Cross Team and Network $615 $540 — — $720 $460 $185 $185 $1,520 $1,185 78% American Medical Students — — — — $1,500 $500 $60 $30 $1,560 $530 34% Anime Club, MIT — — $2,055 $860 $1,207 $648 $144 $84 $3,406 $1,592 47% Asian American Association $120 — $200 — $2,560 $860 $90 $90 $2,970 $950 32% Asian Baptist Student Koinonia $502 $217 — — $560 $180 $172 $172 $1,234 $569 46% Asian Christian Fellowship $2,600 $300 $220 $220 $1,500 $730 $125 $125 $4,445 $1,375 31% Assassins’ Guild $320 $320 $320 $220 $970 $970 $100 $100 $1,710 $1,610 94% Association of International Relations and Model United Nations $115 $115 — — $1,000 $600 $266 $236 $1,381 $951 69% Association of Puerto Rican Students $175 $175 — — $3,617 $1,105 $82 $72 $3,874 $1,352 35% Association of Taiwanese Students — — $195 $195 $2,496 $2,496 $100 $100 $2,791 $2,791 100% Asymptones — — $50 $50 $300 $100 $50 $50 $400 $200 50% Baptist Student Fellowship — — — — $750 $450 $50 $50 $800 $500 63% Best Buddies $375 — — — $325 $155 $50 $50 $750 $205 27% Bhakti Yoga Club $2,520 — — — — — $200 — $2,720 — 0% Bhangra $1,800 $1,000 $465 $465 — — — — $2,265 $1,465 65% Biological Engineering - Biomedical Engineering Society — — — — $1,975 $725 $325 $150 $2,300 $875 38% Black Students’ Union — — $40 $40 $773 $773 $100 $100 $913 $913 100% Black Women’s Alliance — — $100 $100 $3,375 $1,320 $270 $270 $3,745 $1,690 45% Brain and Cognitive Sciences Society — — — — $765 $365 $5 $5 $770 $370 48% Brain Trust $55 $55 — — $1,292 $587 $108 $108 $1,455 $750 52% Campus Crusade for Christ — — — — $800 $800 $50 $50 $850 $850 100% Campus Crusade for Cthulhu, MIT — — $225 $225 $425 $425 $150 $150 $800 $800 100% Caribbean Club $17 $17 — — $1,955 $400 — — $1,972 $417 21% Casino Rueda Group $700 $350 — — $200 $200 $50 $50 $950 $600 63% Caving Club $355 $355 $670 $670 $950 $150 $40 $40 $2,015 $1,215 60% Chamak $530 $300 $250 $250 $350 $350 $100 — $1,230 $900 73% Chess Club — — — — $800 $120 — — $800 $120 15% China Care $720 — — — $480 $440 $135 $100 $1,335 $540 40% China Development Initiative (CDI) $20 $20 — — $810 $810 $300 $200 $1,130 $1,030 91% Chinese Ensemble — — $230 $230 $295 $295 $40 $40 $565 $565 100% Chinese Students Club $258 $158 $440 $240 $2,880 $1,500 $200 $200 $3,778 $2,098 56% Colleges Against Cancer $200 — — — $700 $500 $300 $100 $1,200 $600 50% Concert Band $200 $200 $900 $300 $900 $700 $170 $170 $2,170 $1,370 63% Cross Products $405 — — — $70 $70 $104 $104 $579 $174 30% Curling Club $240 $240 — — $770 $270 — $50 $1,010 $560 55% Dance Troupe $500 — $800 $250 $2,800 $1,500 $600 $200 $4,700 $1,950 41% Debate Team $2,414 $1,000 — — — — — — $2,414 $1,000 41% Expediting Access to Secondary Education $40 $40 — — $280 — $170 $120 $490 $160 33% Emergency Medical Support $250 $100 $850 — $950 $650 $515 $200 $2,565 $950 37% Engineers Without Borders - MIT $170 $80 — — $650 $400 $565 $200 $1,385 $680 49% Equestrian Club $600 $600 — — — — $25 $25 $625 $625 100% Filipino Students Association $50 $50 $140 $140 $2,585 $1,310 $70 $70 $2,845 $1,570 55% Flying Club — — $100 $100 $650 $650 $25 $25 $775 $775 100% GaMIT — — — — $800 $600 $660 $400 $1,460 $1,000 68% Gilbert and Sullivan — — $1,000 — $250 $250 — — $1,250 $250 20% Global Poverty Initiative — — — — $751 $451 $200 $100 $951 $551 58% Go Club $120 $120 $350 $350 $130 $130 $75 $75 $675 $675 100% Gospel Choir $1,360 $660 — — $2,890 $890 $1,150 $200 $5,400 $1,750 32% Habitat for Humanity $3,375 $875 — — $1,949 $1,171 $430 $200 $5,754 $2,246 39% Hapa — — $100 $100 $2,170 $900 $20 $20 $2,290 $1,020 45% Hawaii Club $250 — — — $2,490 $850 $328 $200 $3,068 $1,050 34% Hillel $625 $450 $400 — $4,900 $1,500 $775 $200 $6,700 $2,150 32% Hindu Students’ Council $55 $55 $80 $80 $1,515 $1,515 $370 $200 $2,020 $1,850 92% Hong Kong Student Society — — — — $1,300 $1,300 $100 $100 $1,400 $1,400 100% Horizon Music Club — — $1,593 — — — $100 — $1,693 — 0% Imobilare — — — — $2,937 — $100 $100 $3,037 $100 3% International Development Consulting $144 $144 — — $200 $200 $200 $200 $544 $544 100% Korean Students Association $160 $60 $130 $130 $1,650 $1,350 $250 $250 $2,190 $1,790 82% La Union Chicana Por Aztlan $580 $330 — — $1,100 $1,100 $178 $178 $1,858 $1,608 87% Lab for Chocolate Science — — $100 $100 $950 $900 — $50 $1,050 $1,050 100% Latter-day Saint Student Association $110 $110 — — $695 $695 $100 $100 $905 $905 100% Lion Dance Club $120 $120 — — $550 $350 $50 $50 $720 $520 72% Live Music Connection — — $456 $240 $600 $600 $724 $325 $1,780 $1,165 65% Logarhythms — — $500 — $4,000 — $500 $100 $5,000 $100 2% Marching Band $100 $100 $430 $430 — — $70 — $600 $530 88% MentorConnecion $600 $600 — — $250 $200 — $50 $850 $850 100% mitBEEF $50 $50 — — $1,350 $1,000 $400 $200 $1,800 $1,250 69% Mocha Moves Dance Squad $100 $100 $250 $250 $1,376 $926 $100 $100 $1,826 $1,376 75% Movements in Time Dance Company $500 $500 $600 $450 $540 $540 $95 $95 $1,735 $1,585 91% Mujeres Latinas — — — — $1,370 — $20 — $1,390 — 0% Muses $300 $300 $1,500 — $400 — $100 $100 $2,300 $400 17% Musical Theatre Guild $822 $822 $1,000 — — — — — $1,822 $822 45% Mystery Hunt $200 — — — $973 — $50 — $1,223 — 0% National Society of Black Engineers $900 — — — $1,310 $410 $190 $70 $2,400 $480 20% National Society of Collegiate Scholars — — — — $2,117 $1,000 — — $2,117 $1,000 47% Natya — — — — $740 $740 $200 $100 $940 $840 89% Network of Sloan Undergraduate Women — — — — $1,300 $1,200 $200 $200 $1,500 $1,400 93% NOBCChE — — — — $1,200 $600 $70 $170 $1,270 $770 61% Oori — — — — $274 $224 — $50 $274 $274 100% OrigaMIT $305 $105 $110 $110 $400 $400 — — $815 $615 75% Pershing Rifles C-12 (ABN) $10 $10 $658 $658 — — — — $668 $668 100% Pro-Life — — — — $450 $450 $30 $30 $480 $480 100% Protestant Student Community — — — — $1,200 $200 $100 $100 $1,300 $300 23% Quidditch Team $100 $100 $1,000 $800 $300 $180 $50 $50 $1,450 $1,130 78% Quiz Bowl $1,250 $620 — — — — — — $1,250 $620 50% Resonance $520 — $150 — $2,000 — $280 $280 $2,950 $280 9% Ridonkulous $1,120 $500 $200 $200 $2,380 $1,230 $680 $100 $4,380 $2,030 46% Roadkill Buffet $70 $70 — — — — — — $70 $70 100% ROTCSA — — — — $1,500 — $500 $100 $2,000 $100 5% RUNE Magazine — — — — $255 $255 $2,850 $2,000 $3,105 $2,255 73% Science Fiction Society — — $2,690 $1,000 — — — — $2,690 $1,000 37% Shakespeare Ensemble $740 $740 $1,400 $400 $50 $50 $100 $100 $2,290 $1,290 56% Sloan Undergraduate Management Association — — $130 $100 $2,215 $1,000 $160 $160 $2,505 $1,260 50% Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers — — — — $700 $700 $100 $100 $800 $800 100% Society of Mexican American Engineers and Scientists $250 — — — $4,540 $700 $330 $50 $5,120 $750 15% South Asian American Students $75 $75 $200 — $3,330 $760 $810 $100 $4,415 $935 21% Southeast Asian Service and Leadership Network $310 — — — — — $570 — $880 — 0% Stammtisch — — — — $450 $450 $10 $10 $460 $460 100% STAND — — — — $900 $600 $75 $75 $975 $675 69% Strategic Games Society — — $250 $220 $200 $200 $5 — $455 $420 92% Students for Israel — — — — $3,085 $335 $205 $70 $3,290 $405 12% Students for the Exploration and Development of Space $400 — $200 $200 $900 $700 $50 $50 $1,550 $950 61% Swara — — $100 $50 $2,500 $100 $450 $100 $3,050 $250 8% Syncopasian $35 $35 $20 $20 $600 $400 $290 $250 $945 $705 75% Techiya $390 — $30 $30 $1,000 $500 $100 $100 $1,520 $630 41% The Chorallaries of MIT $200 — — — $1,010 $500 $300 $200 $1,510 $700 46% Toons $958 $236 $30 $30 $850 — $280 $160 $2,118 $426 20% Traders@MIT — — — — $700 $140 $200 $50 $900 $190 21% Undergraduate Biochemistry Association — — — — $535 $375 $63 $63 $598 $438 73% Undergraduate Research Journal $2,000 $2,000 $150 — $250 $200 $150 $100 $2,550 $2,300 90% United Christian Fellowship $100 $100 — — $275 $75 $100 $100 $475 $275 58% Victory Campus Ministries — — $100 $100 $220 $220 $40 $40 $360 $360 100% Vietnamese Students Association $40 — $100 — $1,075 $975 $20 $70 $1,235 $1,045 85% Voo Doo Magazine — — — — — — $1,750 $1,750 $1,750 $1,750 100% Western Hemisphere Project — — — — $850 $400 $50 $50 $900 $450 50%
In Wake of Climate Research Controversy, MIT Faculty Discuss Validity of Concerns
Last December, a panel of MIT faculty organized “The Great Climategate Debate” to address the media fallout from England’s University of East Anglia’s e-mail scandal preceding the Copenhagen climate summit. While examining the issue of scientific standards, panelists also raised concerns that the mass media and politics have taken the science out of climate science.
Student Support Services Task Force Report Recommends More Staff
Student Support Services (S^3) should consider adding staff, deciding what support, if any, to provide to graduate students, and defining clearly its services and confidentiality policy, a task force charged with evaluating the unit recommended in its final report.
Terrorists Could Target Reactor; MIT Delays Conversion of Fuel
MIT’s 50-year-old nuclear reactor, one of only three US research facilities not run by the Department of Energy that still use material that could also be used to make atomic bombs, will probably not be converted to use a safer fuel for at least another five years because of technical obstacles, according to a recent government report obtained by the Globe.
Registrar Doubles Official Transcript Prices
Official transcripts will cost students and alumni twice as much this season as the cost was raised from $4 to $8 at the start of MIT’s fiscal year on July 1, 2009. Registrar Mary Callahan said that the cost was increased in order to “help cover the steadily rising costs (postage, paper, and handling) associated with its production.” Other schools have also increased the cost of transcripts, although not as drastically: Harvard raised its price to $5 on April 1, 2009, up from $3 for the first, $2 for each additional. The transcript fee for MIT students was last increased eight years ago in 2001 from $3 to $4. Unofficial transcripts remain free.
MIT Admits Record-Low 10.4 Percent of Early Applicants, Rejects Record-High 17 Percent
About one fifth of applicants, an unusually large fraction, were rejected outright in this year’s early admissions cycle, which saw a record-high of 5,684 applications and a record-low admission rate of 10.4 percent.
Gaggle Cops 130th Managing Board Elections
On December 7, 2009, <i>The Tech</i> took over the UA Senate chambers in W20-400 for these momentous affirmations of journalistic excellence.
Randall Munroe, xkcd Creator, Holds Q&A and Signs Books in 26-100
“XKCD is here in 26-100 tonight.”
Institute-Wide Planning Task Force Releases Its Final Report
The Institute-Wide Planning Task Force released its final report on December 16 after nine months of collaboration among approximately 200 students, faculty, administration, and staff within the task force. The 88-page document, which was originally scheduled to be released in November, compiles the reports from nine Working Groups and organizes them into five themes.
Police Log
<i>The following incidents were reported to the Campus Police between November 13 to December 31. The dates below reflect the dates incidents occurred. This information is compiled from the Campus Police’s crime log. The report does not include alarms, general service calls, or incidents not reported to the dispatcher.</i>
Diversity Report is Late
The Initiative on Faculty Race and Diversity will release its final report concerning underrepresented minority faculty members on January 14, 2010, a month later than scheduled, according to chair of the Initiative Paula T. Hammond PhD ’84. The Initiative established in 2007 investigated how race and ethnic status affect the professional lives, including the hiring, promotion, and tenure, of minority faculty at MIT. The report will discuss the Initiative’s findings and issue recommendations on how MIT can increase faculty diversity and improve the underrepresented minority faculty experience.
MIT & Startup Sue Hard Drive Manufacturer Seagate
A decade-long lawsuit pitting a tiny company called Convolve against Seagate Technology has taken an unexpected turn after a whistle-blower claimed that Seagate had appropriated Convolve technology and later destroyed evidence in the case.
Shorts (left)
Some widely prescribed drugs for depression provide relief in extreme cases but are no more effective than placebo pills for most patients, according to a new analysis.
Military Drive to Build Afghan Expert Corps Seen to Lag
The military’s effort to build a seasoned corps of expert officers for the Afghan war, one of the highest priorities of top commanders, is off to a slow start, with too few volunteers and a high-level warning to the armed services to steer better candidates into the program, according to some senior officers and participants.
China’s U.N. Envoy Objects To Tougher Penalties for Iran
Imposing tougher sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program is a poor idea while diplomatic negotiations remain possible, Zhang Yesui, the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, said Tuesday.
Obama Faults Intelligence Agencies In Failure ‘To Connect Those Dots’
President Barack Obama said Tuesday that the government had sufficient information to uncover the terror plot to bring down a commercial jetliner on Christmas Day, but that intelligence officials had “failed to connect those dots.”
Television Begins Push <br />Into the 3rd Dimension<br />
Ralph Kramden can finally buy a television.
U.S. Saw a Path to Qaida Chiefs Before Bombing
Before detonating a suicide bomb in Afghanistan last week, a Jordanian militant was considered by U.S. spy agencies to be the most promising informant in years about the whereabouts of al-Qaida’s top leaders, including Ayman al-Zawahri, the terrorist group’s second-ranking operative.
Shorts (right)
For the better part of three decades, the car plant here was a seemingly endless source of trouble for General Motors.
Weather in the New Year
There was active winter weather over the holiday season in the Boston area, with two major snowstorms occurring over the last two and a half weeks. After a snowy start to the new year this past weekend, this week will be decidedly quieter. There will be relatively clear skies today and tomorrow. Temperatures will continue to be slightly below normal, with high temperatures around freezing (32°F, 0°C) both today and tomorrow. A shortwave trough will move over New England on Friday, bringing snow showers to the region. Light accumulation is possible. The shortwave will also intensify a coastal low pressure system, which should pass well to our southeast, and not have much of an impact in Cambridge. Over the weekend, an arctic air mass will move in behind the shortwave that passed through on Friday. Skies will be mostly sunny with colder temperatures and moderate (10–15 mph) winds from the northwest. Calm weather is expected to continue into early next week.
The Off-Campus Option
For a lot of reasons, undergraduates are often scared off from moving to apartments in Cambridge, Boston, or Somerville. Finding an apartment is a significant investment of valuable time and there are more unknowns than living in dorms or FSILGs — how much will utilities cost? How will I get to class? What’s a security deposit? But with the right strategy and the right attitude, moving off-campus can be financially, socially, and developmentally well-worth the risk.
Iran’s Numbered Days
Some countries are no better than publicity-crazed celebrities. Britney Spears has a breakdown one day just so she can make a comeback the next. As a global example, North Korea claimed in April to have put a satellite into orbit with a Taepodong-2 missile. Of course, anyone who saw part of the very same missile fall into the Sea of Japan must be lying. And any radar tracking the missile must have been malfunctioning.
MOVIE REVIEW ★★★ ½ / 4 Staff Writer Kevin Wang vs. ‘Avatar’
A<i>vatar</i> is like <i>Planet Earth</i> if it were 100 times more violent and all of the boring animals (I’m looking at you, ground sloths) were replaced by machine guns. If the CGI industry were a boxing match, going up against <i>Avatar</i> would be like fighting a Kodiak bear made out of flamethrowers. Over the course of over 200 glorious minutes, <i>Avatar</i> coldly and systematically makes the entirety of the rest of the film industry look like a handy-cam Youtube video of cats using a litter box. With a pure, creamy blend of wildlife and sci-fi helicopter battles, the film perfectly captures the crossover market between a National Geographic special and <i>Blackhawk Down</i>, and is one of the most stunning movies ever made.
TV REVIEW Glee & Musicals in the Context of Popular Culture
My first introduction to musicals in the popular media was through Zac Efron. The teen idol’s glaringly bright white smile set against the flawless tan skin gleamed at me from every cover of <i>People</i> magazine. This was known as the <i>High School Musical</i> craze. I was utterly flabbergasted as to how a made-for-T.V. movie could seize storms of teenage girls in a frenzy (not dissimilar to the <i>Twilight</i> fans). Of course, the High School Musical wave was more geared towards those in their late pre-teen years, still easily swayed by the smooth facial hair-less boys. When my friends started urging me to watch <i>Glee</i>, all I knew was that it was also a teen musical and shook my head adamantly.
CD REVIEW Genre in Review
Metheny-esque in his versatility, yet aggressively daring in his devotion to groove, Kurt Rosenwinkel is one of the most interesting and well-rounded guitarists on the scene today. Rosenwinkel seamlessly weaves together elements of funk, bop, classic rock, and modern compositional (a la Ravel), producing works that are both innovative and listenable — the well-mannered wing of the avant-garde, if you will. His work may be haunting, joyful, melancholic, or thoughtful, but it’s always modern, and ahead of the curve.
Members of MIT Debate Team Win National and Int’l Awards
For their fourth consecutive year, the duo of Kathleen A. Clark-Adams ’10 and Adam J. Goldstein ’10 have been winning significant awards for the MIT Debate Team on a circuit that emphasizes political, public policy related, and philosophical topics. Similarly, Goldstein and Bill H. Magnuson G have had enormous success at international tournaments, which use the British Parliamentary (BP) format of debate.
Harvard Hands First Loss <br />To Men’s Basketball Brown Collects All-America, <br />ECAC Accolades
MIT Men’s basketball suffered its first loss of the season last week, 88-61 to Harvard. The Engineers, ranked number 22 nationally, fell to 11-1.
