Annual Baker House Piano Drop Commemorates Spring Drop Date
A 500 pound piano played its last song yesterday evening after it was launched off Baker House’s roof during the annual Piano Drop, which commemorates the spring term deadline for dropping classes.
News Briefs
MIT will offer an energy minor this fall, pending faculty vote on a interdisciplinary council to govern the new minor. The energy minor will require six subjects, including one in each of three categories: energy science, the social science of energy, and energy technology and engineering.
Life Placed On Hold: Visa Delays Present New Hurdles for International Students
When Shuo Chen applied for a new U.S. visa from her home country on Dec. 18, she was expecting to receive it in time to return to MIT at the beginning of January. However, after turning in her application to the U.S. embassy in China, she was told that her application could take up to eight weeks.
Campus Preview Weekend Draws Record Crowd, Awesome Weather
This weekend, a record number of prospective freshmen are expected to arrive at MIT for this year’s Campus Preview Weekend. Over a thousand students from all over the world will gather for a nonstop 72-hour experience involving over 640 events.
Varsity Sports To Be Cut After CPW, Before May
As administrators of MIT’s athletic department continue to deliberate on which of MIT’s 41 varsity sports will be cut, student athletes have little to do but wait for the decision, which is expected before the month’s end.
For Years, IS&T Has Monitored Network Data Without Policy
Since 1999, Information Services and Technology has been collecting information about campus network traffic without an official policy governing how it may use or store the data.
Technical Details of IS&T Monitoring
IS&T is collecting two data feeds that contain information about network traffic. Pages on IS&T’s web site show that one data feed comes from external-rtr-2, one of four routers that are responsible for handling network traffic that is entering or leaving the campus. The device uses a SPAN port, which is Cisco’s system for making a copy of all traffic on a router.
Communication Requirement Sees 15% Cuts, Not 5%
The department in charge of the Communication Requirement will experience over a 15 percent decrease in its budget this year, according to Daniel E. Hastings ’78, dean for undergraduate education. Administrators are now discussing how to implement the cuts, which may involve staff cutbacks.
Prospective Freshmen Looking Forward to the Weekend
Interviews compiled by Claire Nieman ’13. Photos by Andrew T. Lukmann G.
Police Log
<i>The following incidents were reported to the MIT Police between Mar. 21, 2009 and Mar. 31, 2009. This summary does not include incidents such as false alarms, general service calls, or medical shuttles.</i>
In Short
The faculty will move to simplify the humanities degree requirement by eliminating the humanities, arts, and social sciences distribution (better known as HASS-D) at the faculty meeting tomorrow (Wed., 10-250, 3:30 p.m.). The faculty will vote next month on the proposal to be introduced tomorrow, which would replace the HASS-D requirement with a simpler three-category distribution. Freshmen starting in fall 2010 or fall 2011 would be affected. The meeting is open to all. See http://libraries.mit.edu/faculty-minutes.
Students Abduct Tim The Beaver, Demand Sports Teams Spared
Proving once again that nothing is safe in this economy, MIT’s mascot Tim the Beaver was kidnapped Saturday afternoon. The kidnappers, who said they were pressured to action while varsity sports at MIT were being threatened, demand that students’ voices be heard and are seeking a guarantee that all 41 varsity sports are kept at MIT for at least one more year.
Urgency of Climate Change, New Research Emerges at MIT Forum
A sense of urgency pervaded Monday’s clean energy forum, which was sponsored by the MIT Energy Initiative and featured a who’s who of energy and climate change policy. The forum was moderated by Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who is co-authoring legislation designed to tackle technologically and politically difficult global warming and clean energy issues.
Alum Will Fix Hubble For the Last Time
John Grunsfeld ’80 was sitting in an astronomical meeting in Atlanta in January of 2004 when he got a message to come back to headquarters in Washington to talk about the Hubble Space Telescope.
Police Log
<i>The following incidents were reported to the MIT Police between Jan. 16, 2009 and Mar. 21, 2009. This summary does not include incidents such as false alarms, general service calls, or medical shuttles.</i>