As online education rises, financial aid fraud grows
While serving nine months in a South Carolina prison on forgery charges, Michelle N. Owens capitalized on the explosion in online higher education to tap into a new — and highly lucrative — way to profit from fake documents.
Hybrid & electric cars gain traction in fuel economy
The formula for better fuel economy in cars has long been a simple equation: The smaller the vehicle, the farther it goes on a gallon of gas.
MIT tackles hunger
What’s for lunch? Next Friday, participants in Hunger Strike will be tackling significantly larger-scale hunger issues. The planned 12-hour fast marks the conclusion of Hunger Week, a series of events and fundraisers sponsored by MIT Fighting World Hunger (MFWH). Community members are welcome to commit to the Strike by paying $5 for an event T-shirt.
House dining popular with 15’s
The new House Dining program is popular among freshmen, but less so among upperclassmen, according to enrollment statistics released to The Tech by the Division of Student Life. The mandatory meal plan for residents of Maseeh, Baker, Next, Simmons, and McCormick amassed a total enrollment of 1,888 students, 45 percent of which are freshmen.
Former MIT police officer D’Amelio sentenced to 2.5 years in jail
Former MIT police officer Joseph D’Amelio, charged in 2009 for trafficking prescription drugs, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail at his trial Tuesday.
Not so fast, neutrinos
On Sept. 23, European scientists announced that they had observed neutrinos, a class of subatomic particles, traveling faster than the speed of light — the universe’s fundamental “speed limit.” The experiment, OPERA (Oscillation Project with Emulsion-tRacking Apparatus), was a collaboration between the Italian Gran Sasso National Laboratory (LNGS) and Europe’s high-energy physics laboratory CERN. Since the announcement of this anomaly, the scientific community has been hotly debating its validity, as well as the possibilities that could arise from such results.
Black smoke covers Cambridge
On Wednesday afternoon, large plumes of black smoke billowed from the MIT Power Plant after a water feed pump stopped functioning at the plant. The smoke lasted for two hours.
Postdocs get an independent voice in new self-government Postdoctoral Association to replace Advisory Council
Postdoctoral researchers at MIT have decided to take matters into their own hands. Postdocs will be represented by the new, autonomous Postdoctoral Association (PDA) instead of the Postdoctoral Advisory Council (PAC), which was organized by the office of the vice president for research. The move gives MIT postdocs an organization more similar to the Undergraduate Association or the Graduate Student Council.
Steve Jobs leaves legacy of innovation and leadership
Steven P. Jobs, the visionary co-founder of Apple who helped usher in the era of personal computers and then led a cultural transformation in the way music, movies, and mobile communications were experienced in the digital age, died Wednesday. He was 56.
CORRECTIONS
Last Friday’s article on the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony ambiguously referenced “Epsilon Sigma Pi,” which is actually the Educational Studies Program (ESP). ESP is not a Greek organization. Additionally, though a group of ESP-affiliated students were at the Prize Ceremony, it was not an official Ig Nobel delegation.
Economy Hardware still empty
Economy Hardware — formerly the value hardware store of choice for many MIT students — still seems to be “spring cleaning.” Though it began renovations last December, a store representative said that Economy Hardware plans to reopen its location in Central Square by the end of this month. The store originally hoped to be open this spring.
Sam Allen looks forward to 2 years as faculty chair
On July 1, Samuel M. Allen PhD ’75 succeeded Tom A. Kochan as the chair of the faculty.
D’Amelio trial set for Tuesday
Former MIT police officer Joseph D’Amelio is going to trial next Tuesday in Suffolk Superior Court for trafficking prescription painkillers.
Police Log
Sep 8 Bldg. 13 (105 Rear Massachusetts Ave.) 5:12 p.m., Report scooter stolen. Reporting party believes he left the keys in the ignition. Report taken.
Can evolution explanations be found in slime?
Most of the aliens that come out of Hollywood don’t really look alien at all. They may have pizza-size eyes or roachlike antennae, but their oddities are draped on a familiar humanoid frame.
New off-campus places!
Exam season is starting up again! But if you decide to take a study break and get out of the bubble, you’ll notice there are a few things right off campus that have changed since last semester.
Nobel Prize comes a bit too late
When a representative of the Nobel Foundation could not reach Dr. Ralph M. Steinman by telephone Monday to deliver the thrilling news that he had been awarded a Nobel Prize in Medicine for his breakthrough work in immunology, he sent him an email about the honor.
Ambitious goals at State of the Institute
In her Monday morning State of the Institute address, President Susan J. Hockfield spoke about MIT’s preparation for the future in four main areas: attracting and retaining high-quality students, faculty, and staff; digital learning technology; encouraging the growth of this region’s “innovation cluster”; and making strides in the area of advanced manufacturing.