MIT May Cut Employee Pension Plans, Saving $200M
MIT may cut employee pension plans as part of a plan to save $27–$199 million over the next 2–10 years, according to the preliminary report of the Institute-Wide Planning Task Force released in August. The retirement plan cuts constitute much of the proposed cuts in workforce policies and practices recommended by the report.
Should MIT Have Fewer Grad Students? Admins Still Evaluating Options
Among the 200 cost-cutting ideas presented in the preliminary Institute-wide task force report, several ideas stand out for their potential to impact graduate student life at MIT, if implemented:<br> ¶ “Right-size” graduate student body<br> ¶ Reevaluate TA costs<br> ¶ “3+2” transfer programs<br> ¶ Online-based masters degrees
MIT Greets President Obama
President Barack Obama will speak at MIT today “challenging Americans to lead the global economy in clean energy, and to highlight Recovery Act investments that are creating jobs and making advancements in wind energy,” the White House said.
Task Force Suggests Increasing Transfers, 3+2 Masters Program
Is MIT really going to increase the undergraduate class size? MIT isn’t sure when or how much, but some sort of increase looks likely.
Stubbe, Winner of National Medal of Science, Praised for Research Passion
After studying chemistry, math, and art history in her undergraduate years, JoAnne Stubbe went into graduate school thinking she would study the chemical effect of light on paintings. She had no idea she would go on to unravel protein mechanisms that replicate and repair DNA and win a National Medal of Science, the nation’s top science award, for this work.
Harvard Admits to $1.8 Bil. Blunder in Cash Holdings
Harvard University, one of the world’s richest educational institutions, stumbled into its financial crisis in part by breaking one of the most basic rules of corporate or family finance: Don’t gamble with the money you need to pay the daily bills.
MIT Medical Reports Fewer Flu Infections Now than September
Cases of both seasonal and H1N1 flu have decreased steadily since mid-September, said MIT Medical Chief of Internal Medicine Howard M. Heller yesterday. H1N1 vaccinations have begun to arrive on campus, but will be distributed first to top-priority candidates, a group that, for the time being, only includes health care workers.
Saferide Changed Routes Due to Neighborhood Noise Complaints
Some MIT shuttle services have changed their services this year in response to neighborhood complaints of disruptions along shuttle routes. Amidst neighborhood complaints and new funding, various MIT shuttle services have seen a change in routes this year: the Boston West Saferide is running smaller buses, and the Star Market grocery shuttle is running during later hours on Saturday.
Colleges Make Plates, Portions Smaller to Curb Overindulgence
Colleges trying to encourage a well-balanced diet have a message for students sizing up that all-you-can-eat smorgasbord in the dining hall: What you don’t know can help you.
Dining Plans Awaiting Task Force;Dean Says No Changes This Year
Changes to MIT’s dining system will have to wait another few months—at least. Competing proposals released last spring from the Blue Ribbon Dining Committee and the UA Dining committee await the final report from the Institute-wide Planning Task Force before discussions concerning them can continue.
MAS.967 Pushes Phone Medical Tech., Payments
It’s an unlikely medical device: a sleek smartphone more suited to a nightclub than a rural health clinic. But it’s loaded with software that allows health workers in the remote northernmost Philippines province of Batanes to dramatically reduce the time it takes to get X-rays to a radiologist — and to get a diagnosis for a patient being tested for tuberculosis.
DSL Releases Break-down of Student Life Fee; UA is Surprised
After several years of inquiry from the Undergraduate Association and <i>The Tech</i>, the office for the Dean for Student life released the breakdown of the student life fee last Tuesday.
Chemistry Graduate Student Is Dead after Collapse in Marathon
Peter N. Curtin, 23, a graduate student in Course V, died Saturday after collapsing at the 25-mile mark in the Baltimore Running Festival Marathon at around 11:20 a.m. He was immediately taken to the Union Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 1:11 p.m, hospital spokeswoman Debra Schindler told <i>The Baltimore Sun</i>.