MITx is beginning of sweeping new online push
MIT is developing an online educational platform that will be open-sour, largely free, and let users outside of MIT earn certificates for completing Institute-caliber courses online. MIT hopes the initiative, internally dubbed "MITx" will change the way students learn on-campus — by incorporating elements of MITx into existing curricula — and push MIT's educational reach beyond campus borders in a way the current OpenCourseWare (OCW) cannot.
MIT 2010 alum killed in traffic accident
Phyo Kyaw ’10, 23, was killed last night after he was struck by a truck while riding his bicycle at the intersection of Vassar St. and Massachusetts Ave.
Walker Memorial’s future is unknown
The future of Walker Memorial remains a mystery to administrators and student groups alike. In October 2010, members of the administration, including Associate Provost Martin A. Schmidt PhD ’88, announced that plans were in the works to assess the feasibility of a project to repurpose and restore Walker Memorial for use by the Music and Theater Arts department (MTA). Although progress has been made on the project over the summer and this past semester, there is no clear end in sight.
Woof! Puppies to invade campus
If you find yourself in finals week distress, MIT Libraries hopes to help you de-stress with its upcoming “Cookies with Canines” study breaks.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK Occupy protesters make last stand Thursday
Over 1,000 Occupy protesters gathered for one last stand at Dewey Square on Thursday — making it clear that they would not be deterred Mayor Menino’s notice that after midnight, protesters in the area would be subject to “arrest and criminal prosecution,” according to the Boston Herald.
2.009 projects are ‘on the go,’ mobilizing the world
On Monday Dec. 12, students in 2.009, Product Engineering Processes, presented their final projects to an overflowing Kresge Auditorium. Students worked in assigned teams of 11 to 13 people throughout the semester to develop ideas, design products, and build prototypes related to the “on the go” theme. Each had a $6,500 budget and help from professors and shop instructors as they refined their projects. Eight teams presented during the event, which included live music and audience involvement. Eight-minute presentations were followed by five minutes of audience questions.
Alleged assault and battery in Tang Hall
On Sunday morning, a female resident of Tang Hall reported that an unknown male entered her bedroom, attempted to hold her down on the bed, and asked repeatedly for a kiss, according to MIT Police.
Triple homicide in Cambridge
An investigation is under way for a triple homicide followed by a suicide that occurred in Cambridge on Friday, Dec. 9. At 6:40 p.m., police responded to reports of gunshots at a home on Grove Street (North Cambridge), where they discovered three deceased victims. A man was reportedly seen leaving the scene in a white Toyota Camry. After heavily armed police officers searched for several hours, the suspect’s body was found at 10 p.m. along the river at 1400 Soldiers Field Road, near the Brighton State Police Barracks. The suspect apparently died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Students head off to varied externships
When Celena Chan ’12 applied for her externship with Bank of America Merrill Lynch last year, she was looking for some real world experience and a look into the professional world.
MIT fined $125k for shipping unlabled hazardous materials
MIT has paid the Federal Aviation Administration a $125,000 fine for failure to properly label hazardous materials shipped through Federal Express that resulted in a fire on Aug. 25, 2009.
Hearing on terror suspect explores Miranda warning
Almost two years ago, a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent was in Nigeria to question an Eritrean man who was in custody on suspicion of supporting terrorism. The suspect, Mohamed Ibrahim Ahmed, had already been interrogated by other U.S. officials for intelligence-gathering purposes, without having been read his rights.
As Syria urges local voting, UN puts death toll at 5,000
BEIRUT — The Syrian government called Monday for voters to turn out for local elections that it portrayed as good-faith reform efforts, but activists said that most citizens, observing a second day of a general strike, rejected the polls as irrelevant to a country in such turmoil.
Bill would block food stamps, jobless pay for millionaires
WASHINGTON — It is an image many Americans would find rather upsetting: a recently laid-off millionaire, luxuriating next to the pool eating grapes bought with food stamps while waiting for an unemployment check to roll in.
Shorts (left)
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether Arizona may impose tough anti-immigration measures. Among them, in a law enacted last year, is a requirement that the police there question people they stop about their immigration status.
All-time warmest Autumn in Boston
In last Friday’s weather discussion, Austin DiOrio noted that this November was the second-warmest November recorded at Logan Airport. This fits in with the fact that this autumn (September-October-November) broke the record for all-time warmest autumn, with an average temperature of 58.5°F. This is 4°F above normal, and above the previous record of 58.3°F set in 1931. December started out warm as well, with the high temperatures on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of last week a whopping 18°F, 17°F, and 15°F, respectively, above normal. The past few days however, have seen a return to more seasonable temperatures, a trend that will continue today and tomorrow before a brief excursion into the low 50s on Thursday. Looking further ahead, the weekend looks to be chilly with highs in the mid 30s — good weather for staying inside and studying for finals!
Shorts (right)
COARSEGOLD, Calif. — The bottom line of the six-page, single-spaced letter that Nancy Dondero and about 50 of her relatives received last month was brutally simple: “It is the decision by a majority of the Tribal Council, that you are hereby disenrolled.”
Republican bill would benefit doctor-owned hospitals
WASHINGTON — The House Republican bill to hold down payroll taxes and extend unemployment benefits, coming up for a vote Tuesday, offers a special dispensation to doctors who invest in hospitals.
British regulator takes partial blame for RBS failure
LONDON — Britain’s financial regulator said Monday that it was partly to blame for the failure of Royal Bank of Scotland, and it proposed new preventive measures, including holding bank executives more accountable for bad decisions.
EDITORIAL Towards further engagement
Student-administration relations have seen progress this year. We’ve taken particular notice of Chancellor Eric Grimson PhD ’80’s efforts to foster more frank discussion between students and the administration, and those efforts should be lauded. However, substantial work remains to restore a sense of trust and partnership, and to build a shared vision of a better MIT.
Why the Occupy movement failed
Sparking up all over the world, the Occupy movement was one of the most popular trends of the second half of 2011. Starting with Occupy Wall Street, the movement soon spread to more than 95 cities around the globe. Before getting to its shortcomings, let’s first reexamine what the Occupy movement really is.
Google and others cyber-arming protesters
As I surfed the web exploring the Internet’s role in the Arab Spring for a cyber politics class, I stumbled upon the website . The site’s homepage immediately grabbed my attention with a large advertisement for a “How to Bypass Internet Censorship” guide. Not typical of the average political blog, I decided to investigate further. I was amazed to find Google-owned YouTube, CBS News, Pepsi, MTV, Facebook, MSNBC, and National Geographic listed as sponsors of the site. Moreover, the co-founder of Movements.org is Jared Cohen, the current Director of Google Ideas.
CORRECTIONS
An article published last Friday on Nightline misquoted Isabella S. Lubin ’12 as saying, “but often we feel that students should reach out to peers as a first step.” Lubin actually said, “but often we feel that students might want to reach out to peers as a first step.” The same article misquoted Tzipora R. Wagner ’12 as saying, “students won’t always need to go to a doctor or psychologist first.” Her comment was actually “students won’t always need to go to a doctor or psychologist.” This article also incorrectly listed Nightline’s hours as 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. — they are actually 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.
ENTERTAINMENT FEATURE How to waste your time this IAP
TV networks have picked up on the altogether too-close-to-home fears and problems of the recession period. While the idyllic life of Carrie Bradshaw may be glamorous during normal economic times, in times of layoffs and high unemployment, it’s a grand joke. 2 Broke Girls centers around the eponymous characters who work at a Brooklyn diner and aspire towards a shared dream of opening a bakery. The contrast of Max (Kat Dennings), a sharp-tongued scrappy Brooklynite, against Caroline (Beth Behrs), an ex-socialite who’s reduced to rags because of a Bernie Madoff-like father, provides for much whiplash humor and one-liners. Imagine Gilmore Girls meeting college-girl raunchiness and a laugh track.
Hard-fought win against Tufts
If there is one thing that MIT’s men’s basketball team has done consistently this season, it’s winning. Last week, MIT increased its record to 11-0, grabbing two tough wins against Tufts (6-2) and Salem State (6-2). The undefeated Engineers have the top record in all of Division III and are currently ranked 7th in the nation, though they look to be moving up in the coming days.
Niehuus ’07 qualifies for Olympic Marathon Trials
On Dec. 4, Rachel M. Niehuus ’07, a member of the elite San Francisco-based Impala Racing Team, qualified for the Olympic Marathon Trials with her 2:44:58 finish at the California International Marathon (CIM) in Sacramento, Calif.
43-36 victory over Mt. Holyoke
Nine unanswered points during a span of seven minutes helped propel MIT to a 43-36 victory over Mount Holyoke College in a NEWMAC women’s basketball game on Saturday afternoon. Freshman Alexxis R. Isaac tallied 10 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists as the Engineers improved to 6-3 on the year and 3-1 in conference play.
IN YOUR COMMUNITY Meet Professor Robert Langer
“When I first came here, after a year or two, a lot of people told me I should leave. They said I was never going to even get promoted past assistant professor. A lot of people in the scientific community didn’t believe in the science I was doing; they thought it was wrong. And so I got my first nine grants turned down,” recounted Professor Robert S. Langer ScD ’74.
Events: Dec. 13 - Dec. 15
Events Dec. 13 – Dec. 15 Tuesday (9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) MIT Student Art Association Ceramics Sale — Lobby 10 (12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) Large Hadron Collider Higgs Jamboree seminar, status revealed on the research of the Higgs Boson particle — 32-123 Wednesday (5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Defeating Alzheimer’s: The science and business of solving neurodegenerative disease — 32-123 (8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Roadkill Buffet Free Comedy Show — 6-120 Thursday (2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.) Cookies with Canines Study Break, take a study break and de-stress with a dog — Hayden and Barker libraries (6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) I “Heart” Neutrinos: A Film Screening by Jennifer West — E15 (Bartos Theatre) Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
