Kaiser withdraws as chief of NIGMS
Biology Department Head Chris A. Kaiser PhD ’88 withdrew his candidacy for the director of the National Institute of General Medicines (NIGMS) this past Monday, citing personal reasons. Kaiser would have assumed the position on April 30.
Harvard student’s death ruled suicide
The state medical examiner’s office has ruled that the Harvard College senior found dead in her room Saturday morning committed suicide.
Akamai CEO departs
Paul Sagan, chief executive of Akamai Technologies Inc., the giant Internet infrastructure company in Cambridge, said Wednesday that he would leave his post by the end of 2013, as the company adapts to the increasing use of mobile devices to surf the Internet.
MIT proposes $450m facility
WASHINGTON — The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is proposing to build a $450 million research facility at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford in a long-term venture that would reinforce the base’s high-tech mission without requiring new federal spending, according to government officials.
Sloan prof. and son in hedge fund fraud
MIT Sloan School of Management Professor Gabriel Bitran PhD ’75 and his son Marco Bitran ’97 have agreed to pay $4.8 million to settle hedge fund fraud charges brought against them by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the SEC said on Friday.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: MIT-SU Scholar Program
During this past spring break, I had the fortunate opportunity to visit Turkey in an all-expense-paid trip courtesy of the MIT-Sabancı University (SU) Freshman Scholar Program. A total of eight students were invited for a week-long stay at SU in Istanbul, Turkey by merit of their performance in freshman-level classes.
Sherley continues arguing against stem cell research in court
James L. Sherley, the former Course 20 MIT professor trying to stop government funding of embryonic stem cell research, had his day in court yesterday — again. This was his third time before the appeals court.
Binghamton halts pledging amid hazing concerns
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Binghamton University, one of the Northeast’s top public colleges, has halted all fraternity and sorority pledging this spring after what it called an “alarmingly high number of serious hazing complaints.”
Craighead/Walsh win by a hair
In what was the closest election in recent memory, Jonté D. Craighead ’13 and Michael P. Walsh ’13 were elected Undergraduate Association (UA) president and vice president last Friday.
Phyo Kyaw ’10
Phyo N. Kyaw ’10, 23, died on Dec. 27 in a traffic accident while riding his bicycle at the intersection of Vassar Street and Massachusetts Avenue. At the time of his death, he was working as a research scientist at Cambridge-based Soane Labs. Kyaw received an SB in chemical-biological engineering, Course 10B, in 2010.
Friends remember Phyo
I often joked with Phyo that he looked like the Buddha on earth, always kind-looking, always smiling. His happiness is contagious, and his words are always comforting! Phyo is someone I’d cry in front of because he emphasizes and his words empower my spirit, and so he does for others as well! But through his always bright smiles, I see also his strong and relentless spirit — no difficulties can ever rob his happiness and optimism — because Phyo is also determined! Freshman year, Phyo struggled with his every breath as we ran by the Charles River because his severe congenital health conditions had prevented him from doing any physical exercises since birth. Before graduation, Phyo had transformed himself to be an avid workout member of Z-Center and MIT crew team. It is his unyielding spirit that bears the fruits of his physical transformation, his unfailing smiles, and his passion for life. And because Phyo’s spirit never gives up, his smiles and his passion forever linger in our minds, brightening our spirit in the dark nights. Phyo never left us, he is always here.
Hope for Alcator C-Mod
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations met Wednesday to discuss the energy and water appropriations bill — the same one that proposed to cut funding to MIT’s Alcator C-Mod for fiscal year 2013.
Postdoc found dead in jail cell
Yaron Segal, arrested on March 28 for allegedly arranging a sexual encounter with minors, died on Friday, April 13. An Israeli national, Segal was a postdoc in MIT’s Photovoltaic Research Lab (PVLab) and had received his PhD in physics from Yale last year.
Kendall committee summarizes work
The MIT student community was a no-show at Tuesday’s presentation on the reinvention of Kendall Square. There were about 100 people in attendance; 80 percent were the general public, while the remainder were city employees, committee members, etc. Two MIT students were there, and also many community residents, including some MIT faculty and retirees from 303 Third Street.
Additional updates to orientation report
The Review Committee on Orientation (RCO) released its final recommendations on Orientation last week with more updates on the state of Residential Exploration (REX) and freshman pe-orientation programs (FPOPs) for this fall. The biggest changes are that REX will no longer include a freshman adjustment lottery to change dorms, and an additional fee will be charged to FPOP students arriving early and staying on campus. The timing of FSILG Recruitment will be subject to further committee-based assignment, but no change in timing will be made for this coming fall.
What do students want in a pres.?
On April 6, the Student Advisory Committee to the Presidential Search released their preliminary report, entitled “The Student Perspective on the MIT Presidency.” Drawing upon the responses they received from six town hall meetings, each of which were attended by between 10 and 60 people, as well as hundreds of student responses from online forms, paper questionnaires, focus groups, and informal discussions, the SAC described in their 20-page report what they found to be the most important challenges, desires, and concerns of MIT. This preliminary report does not contain the list of candidates that the SAC would like to nominate.