Railroad may see commuter traffic by 2012
Simmons residents may need to get used to a lot more train whistles come 2012. Last year, Massachusetts purchased the railroad tracks between Albany and Vassar Streets and has proposed to the Cambridge City Council that it be used as part of a commuter rail linking Boston’s North Station and Worcester. That may mean as many as twenty trains will run along the north edge of MIT’s campus every day, potentially as early as next year.
Corrections
An article published on Jan. 19 about a 37 percent increase in Finboard allocations incorrectly attributed the increase solely to a higher over-allocation percentage. Between the Summer/Fall 2010 Finboard cycle and the IAP/Spring 2011 Finboard cycle, available funds increased by 20 percent from $100,628 to $121,170. The remainder of the total allocation increase is due to the over-allocation percentage, which was raised from 10 percent to 30 percent.
UNTITLED
Competition Winner Frosting Eating Contest Victoria M. Enjamio ’14 Green Building Challenge Team: Varsity Lightweight Men’s Crew Individual: Cameron S. McAlpine ’13 Taco Bell Eating Contest Eliot Avila ’14 Human Dogsledding 1st place: Team Teach for Spark from ESP 2nd place: Team Beef Erection from 2nd East
IS&T begins ID card-based printing plan
Printing out a pset? Make sure you have your MIT ID on hand. On Friday, IS&T changed over several pilot printers to the Pharos “hold-and-release” system, which requires students to swipe their card to complete the print job. Pharos will be the future of printing at MIT.
Economy Hardware will remodel, CCTV moves in
Economy Hardware, a store frequented by members of the MIT community, closed its doors earlier this winter to undergo renovations. Economy Hardware owner Larry Friedman confirmed that the store will reopen sometime in mid-spring at a reduced capacity, sharing the space with Cambridge Community Television. CCTV has also signed a lease with the MIT Investment Management Company on the space formerly occupied by Economy at 438 Massachusetts Ave.
Consultants sought on future of Kendall/Central
The City of Cambridge is seeking to hire a consultant team to run a “comprehensive urban design and planning study for the Central and Kendall Square area.”
Maseeh starts accepting applications
Maseeh Hall (W1), MIT’s newly renovated undergraduate dorm, is now open for transfer applications. Current students who wish to move to Maseeh Hall must complete a short online application posted yesterday afternoon. Members of the Phoenix Group, undergraduates who committed to living in Maseeh Hall when they came to MIT and who are currently housed at the graduate residence Ashdown House (NW35), and Phoenix Group social members, who do not live at NW35 but participate informally in the community’s events, are guaranteed a spot in W1.
Allocations jump 37%
The UA Finance Board’s IAP/Spring 2011 budget allocation for student groups increased 37 percent from 2010. This increase is not due to more available funds but owes to a larger over-allocation percentage in the Finboard budget. The over-allocation percentage, which is the percent Finboard gives over its available funds in the apprehension that some will not be spent, was previously set at 10 percent during the 2009-2010 year. It rose to 30 percent in Fall 2010 and then to 40 percent in Spring 2011.
To-do maintenance: $2.1 billion required
It’s no secret that MIT invests in cutting-edge research centers while many existing buildings and their environs fall into disrepair. Not far from the gleaming new Media Lab, Koch Institute building, and Sloan School building, rusty windows, cracked sidewalks, and leaky basements are hard to miss.
Corrections
An opinion column published on Jan. 12 about potential G.O.P candidates for 2012 incorrectly stated that Tim Pawlenty was the current governor of Minnesota. Mark Dayton succeeded Pawlenty as governor on Jan. 3.
Blizzard causes the worst tree damage on campus since 1997
The blizzard last Wednesday caused the worst storm-related tree damage at MIT since the April Fool’s Storm on April 1st, 1997, according to Norman H. Magnuson, Jr., Manager of Ground Services in the Department of Facilities. The storm destroyed at least three entire trees near East Campus and one in front of Burton Conner.
Codex wins Hunt in 42 hours
Disaster interrupted the wedding of Mario and Princess Peach. Guests watched as Princess Peach was kidnapped by Bowser, they then went into teams to solve the Mystery Hunt puzzles to help Mario find Peach and, in turn, to win the Hunt.
Malfunctioning AEDs in Bldgs. 16 & 4 fixed
Two Automated External Defibrillator (AED) machines, one in Building 16 and one in Building 4, were out of order for a month starting in the middle of December. By Jan. 16, both machines were deemed fully functional.
Highlights from the November/December 2010 Faculty Newsletter
Highlights from the November/December 2010 Faculty Newsletter
Corporation talks dining
No action to reevaluate the proposed dining plan was made by the MIT Corporation after an informal discussion took place at the Corporation meeting on Dec. 3. Dining was not on the original meeting agenda.
Zoning board lukewarm about MIT’s plan for Kendall
On Dec. 21, MIT representatives presented MIT’s vision for the future of Kendall Square to the City of Cambridge Planning Board. The response they got was mixed, with some of the five members present comfortable with the proposal, and others cautious. All had criticisms to offer.
Phillip L. Clay considered for president of UMass system
Phillip L. Clay PhD ’75, who will be stepping down as Chancellor this spring, is a candidate for president of the University of Massachusetts system (UMass), according to the Boston Globe. A UMass presidential search committee will conduct a round of interviews with fewer than six candidates on Jan. 13, the Globe reported last Tuesday. Clay remains under consideration after a set of first-round interviews.