INTERVIEW St. Kitts PM Douglas talks with The Tech
<i>Prime Minister of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis Denzil L. Douglas visited MIT to speak about Caribbean countries’ efforts to invigorate their region’s science and technology agenda at the MIT Caribbean Students’ Conference on Saturday. After the interview, he sat down with </i>The Tech<i> to speak about his background in politics and medicine and his economic development achievements in his country.</i>
Space is Rat’s next frontier
In honor of the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11, the Brass Rat has gone to space. Last Friday’s space-themed Ring Premiere featured a special message from astronaut Timothy J. Creamer MS ’92, who brought the 2012 class ring up with him to the International Space Station. Despite concerns that the leak of the Brass Rat designs on Sunday would dampen excitement over Ring Premiere, over 800 sophomores attended the event in Kresge Auditorium.
Scientists in Washington
In Washington, D.C., “Bill knows everyone, and everyone knows Bill,” said Albert J. Swiston G, president of the MIT Science Policy Initiative student group.
Pike fraternity hopes to restart MIT chapter
Yet another fraternity may be returning to MIT. Representatives of the Pi Kappa Alpha (Pike) fraternity, which has not had a chapter at MIT since 1980, are on campus this week to talk to unaffiliated men in the MIT community as the fraternity attempts to reestablish an MIT chapter.
Problems with card access system
Last week on Monday, many doors, such as those in the Stata center, did not automatically unlock at their scheduled times. The problem was a database failure in the system that controls doors across campus, according to Thomas W. Komola, a project manager in the Security and Emergency Management Office.
Democrats reel as a senator <br />steps aside
WASHINGTON — Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana announced on Monday that he would not seek re-election, sending a wave of distress over his fellow Democrats and focusing new attention on the view that unyielding partisanship had left Congress all but paralyzed.
In California, Exhibit A in health insurance debate
LOS ANGELES — When Bernhard Punzet opened the dreaded envelope from Anthem Blue Cross one recent Saturday, it ruined his weekend.
Shorts (left)
The lack of black and Hispanic professors, highlighted in two recent reports critical of the faculty makeup at MIT and Emerson College, is a problem shared by the most prominent universities in the Boston area, a Globe survey reveals.
Shorts (right)
WASHINGTON —The Taliban’s top military commander was captured several days ago in Karachi, Pakistan, in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and U.S. intelligence forces, according to U.S. government officials.
WEATHER Another Storm Arriving
Boston will experience wintry precipitation today as a storm continues to track northeastward near the East Coast. The associated low pressure center will move towards Boston by this evening and continue toward Nova Scotia thereafter. Although this storm is not expected to be a classic nor’easter, Boston will still experience some gusty winds and mixed precipitation through the day. The metro area should expect anywhere from 2–5 inches of snow by tonight, with higher amounts as you move inland towards New Hampshire and the Worcester area. An easterly wind today will bring warmer air off the ocean, and thus Boston could see light rain mixed with the snow from late morning to mid-afternoon. By evening, snow accumulations should become apparent as ground surfaces cool below freezing.
As China develops ports in south Asia, India frets
HAMBANTOTA, SRI LANKA — For years, foreign ships laden with oil, machinery, clothes and other cargo sped past this small town near India as part of the world’s brisk trade with China.
Militants defy allies on third day of fierce combat
MARJAH, Afghanistan — Ten minutes after walking out of the small outpost on Monday morning, the Marines of K Company were ambushed again.
Greek bailout increasingly unpopular in Germany
BERLIN — As European finance ministers refused Monday to name specific measures to rescue Greece and the Continent’s common currency, opposition grew among Germans to bailing out what they call spendthrifts to the south after years of belt-tightening by workers at home.
It’s the incompetence, stupid
In George Washington’s farewell address, the president warned of the growing influence of partisanship and the dangers of entangling alliances abroad. In Dwight Eisenhower’s goodbye, the president intoned menacingly about the creation of what he called a “military-industrial complex” and its undue influence on the American political landscape. George Bush’s farewell address was devoted to one topic — terrorism — and though the tenor was optimistic, the message was clear: Our enemies remain, and they will attack us again.
MIT needs to take a hard look at labor relations
The most visible and most highly touted aspects of MIT are its faculty and student body. But amid the faculty and students are thousands of hard workers who make possible everything that students and researchers do. The MIT custodians, administrative assistants, police, and countless other employees are just as much part of the MIT culture and success as are the students, faculty, and those ridiculously overworked and underpaid things commonly called post-docs. For anyone who considers the importance of the MIT labor force, it is immediately clear that MIT’s success depends on the groundskeepers, police, staff, custodians, and other facilities personnel. Many of the MIT workers have been on campus for a long time and know the ins-and-outs of the facilities better than anyone else. They know where money is wasted and where inefficiencies arise. With this in mind, it is only logical that the top MIT administrators should make it a priority to maintain and invest in the MIT workforce. MIT administration should consider the campus workforce as an essential partner that is to be respected as much as the faculty and student bodies.
What’s so bad about an online ring premiere?
Future Ring Committees should stop it with the elaborate fake rings and special guests at Premiere and focus more on their core task: designing a ring to represent their class to be revealed at Premiere. Along with that comes the prerequisite that they keep the ring design controlled and only release it when they are ready to. Until they can execute their basic, fundamental jobs correctly, they should drop the frivolities.
Corrections
An article on Friday about the a capella serenades misstated the year of Devorah Kengmana, a Muse. Kengmana is Class of 2012, not 2011. Also, the article stated incorrectly that the Muses sold three times as many serenades this year as they did last year. In fact they sold two times as many.
Scoreboard
Men’s Basketball Saturday, 2/13 vs. U.S. Coast Guard AcademyW 64-53 Women’s Basketball Saturday, 2/13 at Mount Holyoke CollegeL 60-50 Men’s Volleyball Saturday, 2/13 vs. Regis CollegeW 3-0 vs. Daniel Webster CollegeW 3-0 Monday, 2/15 vs. Lesley UniversityW 3-0
Upcoming Home Events
Wednesday, February 10 Men’s Volleyball vs. Harvard University 7 p.m., Rockwell Cage
Bball beats Coast Guard
The No. 11 ranked MIT men’s basketball team raced out to a 23–3 lead and did not look back en route to a 64–53 win over Coast Guard in NEWMAC play on Saturday afternoon. The win clinches at least a share of the NEWMAC regular season title for the Cardinal and Gray, who improve to 21–2 and 9–1 in conference play, and now lead second-place Springfield by two full games in the standings. The 21 wins is a program high for a season, equaling the mark set in 2005–06 and 2008–09. Coast Guard falls to 7–14 (4–7 NEWMAC) with the loss.
ATHLETES’ CORNER
On Saturday, February 13, the MIT Theatre on Ice team competed at the Skating Club of New York Showcase, a United States Figure Skating-sanctioned competition in theatrical skating held in New York City. The team placed second in the Production Ensemble event.
When it’s said and done, <br />will she spit it out or swallow?
I was recently talking to a male friend about sex and what-not — you know, the usual — when he told me that he would never kiss a girl who had just gone down on him.
