Electronic Communication And Life Histories
Do you think that social networking tools like Facebook and MySpace are eliminating the need for real social interaction? I was doing an Internet survey the other day that was about interactions with close friends — something along the lines of, “list your top five friends, and then list the last way you communicated with them.” For me, few of my closest friends live in the same city as me, so my answers largely involved some form of electronic communication — e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging and others.
Capitalism and Functioning Democracy Are at Odds
The fundamental debate is whether the right to increases in capital and property supersedes the right to equality, i.e. the right to equal access to labor and life. If the two rights are considered absolute they cannot coexist; one destroys the other (per “What is Property” by French anarchist Joseph-Pierre Proudhon).
Corrections
The solution for the sudoku in Tuesday’s issue was incorrect. The correct solution is printed here, to the right.
Are You There Chris? It’s Us, Students.
In August 2008 the newly-appointed Dean for Student Life Chris Colombo told <i>The Tech</i> that “there is a process where the conversation goes both ways” in regards to student life policy. However, this vital communication pipeline has been ineffectual or broken down in a number of areas since Dean Colombo took office last year.
Letters to the Editor
Lobby 7 is already a beautiful architectural space, to which the apparently empty plinths (waiting for the viewer’s imagination, or the viewer’s person, to fill them in) contribute greatly. Putting in statues, even classical ones in keeping with the Roman feeling of the lobby, would detract from the effect; worse yet would be inserting artwork so trendily contemporary as to turn one of the main entrances to the Institute into a permanent display of one decade’s taste.
UA Update
Senate met on Monday, November 16. Additions to Summer/Fall 2009 Finance Board Appeals were passed, and 41 U.A.S. 6.3: Fresh Fund Allocations allocated money from the Fresh Fund to many newly-recognized student groups. The 2013, 2012, and 2011 Class Council budgets were also approved by Senate. 41 U.A.S. 6.4: Re-Charging the Enrollment Committee, a bill to re-charge the UA Committee on Enrollment in light of the likely increase in enrollment, was passed. Two bills regarding the procedure to nominate a student to a position on an Institute Committee, 41 U.A.S. 6.1: Applicability of Nominations Committee Process and 41 U.A.S. 6.2: Nomination Process for Ex Officio Members of Institute Committees, were presented, but both will be voted on at later meetings. Finally, summaries of the past three years of Senate prepared by the UA History Committee were approved.
MIT’s Obligation to the Hyatt’s Workers
Recently, I was jogging near my dorm when I passed a group of people holding bunches of red helium balloons that read, “Boycott Hyatt.” Curious, I approached a protester and asked him why he wanted to boycott the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, a hotel next to Tang Hall patronized by MIT visitors, parents, and scientific meetings.
Letters to the Editor
I was excited to read a letter written to <i>The Tech</i> on November 3rd by Rachel Sealfon, “Where are the College Democrats.” It is a question I and many other members of the College Democrats of Massachusetts have asked. MIT is world-renowned for being on the forefront of political action and social thought in our nation, so why is it that there is no organized group of College Democrats on campus? I worked last year as the Student Coordinator for the Obama campaign in Massachusetts, and saw firsthand the amazing work that “MIT for Obama” accomplished. Leaders of that group, like Catherine Havasi ’03 and Shankar Mukherji G, were able to register hundreds of MIT students from “Obama swing states” to vote in that state, where their vote could make a difference. Imagine the work an organized and established group could do on behalf of the re-election campaigns of Governor Patrick, President Obama, and many other progressives. So here is my challenge: the Executive Board of the College Democrats of Massachusetts will sit down with anyone interested in starting a MIT College Democrats chapter, anytime, anyplace. Feel free to contact me, (508) 241-6200 or <i>johnsonp@macollegedems.org</i>.
The Empty Plinths of Lobby 7
As one who is particularly fascinated by the synergistic relation between people and architecture (how architecture affects people and how people interpret and affect architecture), I find the plinths in Lobby Seven to be one of the most endearing and defining aspects of MIT. What many may not know is that William Welles Bosworth, the architect of MIT’s main academic buildings, also intended to erect a three-story statue of Minerva in front of Building 10. However, such an enormous idol was vetoed by Richard Maclaurin, President of MIT, during its transition from Boston to Cambridge, and it soon became a running joke between the two (Bosworth was adamant about the Minerva, but President Maclaurin would have none of it). As such, when one enters Killian Court nowadays, he or she is greeted by the overwhelming mass of the buildings themselves, topped by the imposing dome of Barker Library —much more representative symbols of the Institute than a literal and figural (not to mention gargantuan) representation of wisdom.
A Defense of Capitalism
In his November 6 column in <i>The Tech</i>, entitled “Who Does Capitalism Really Work For?,” Alexi Goranov argues that, given the current economic and social state of America, it is clear that there must be an overhaul of the system. Greedy corporations and those in the upper echelon of the economic ladder have stopped at nothing to profit at the expense of America’s working class. The system has rewarded the few while failing to provide for the majority of Americans. Therefore, it is our responsibility to initiate a new, democratic way of doing things, one that puts people before money.
Letters to the Editor
The recently filed will of Jeffry Picower, who granted 50 million dollars to MIT (2001 to 2005) to fund the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, specifies that much of his remaining assets be placed in a new charitable foundation devoted largely to funding medical research. What will be receiving attention at the MIT Treasurer’s office no doubt is that the will directs that the new foundation in its first year grant MIT an additional 25 million dollars for the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory. It is now known from court filings in the Madoff case that Jeffry Picower received over 7 billion “net” in phony profits from the Madoff Ponzi, and that this constitutes the bulk of his wealth. So I ask:
To Research or Not to Research?
“We need more research!” This was the rallying call of climate scientist and MIT alum David Keith ’91 at the Geoengineering Symposium held at MIT just over a week ago. This is, of course, the scientist’s traditional response when challenged, but when considering research in geoengineering, the risk is that we may be damned if we do and damned if we don’t.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi Act
I wrote an article in the October 20 <i>Tech</i> in which I lambasted our government’s wasteful spending. While much time was spent offering examples of wasted tax dollars, there was little discussion of where I would want my money to go. In addition, what reforms or new programs should be set up to provide more tangible benefits than studying drunk Argentineans? There is a specific area in which the federal government needs to step up, and I hereby propose the Obi-Wan Kenobi Act.
Letters to the Editor
On my way to class this past Wednesday morning, November 4, I was very humbled to see the POW/MIA vigil occurring in Lobby 10. Stopping to take a moment to watch one of the ROTC members march, I felt a great sense of pride that a school with as much hustle and bustle as MIT was able to take a day to stop and remember those who bravely fight for the freedom we enjoy here at MIT and in the United States.
Corrections
An October 30 article on MIT’s wrestling team incorrectly reported a team member’s name and class year: Glenn Geesman is a member of the Class of 2009, not 2010, and his first name is spelled “Glenn,” not “Glen.”
Letters to the Editor
This past Friday, I came up to Cambridge from New York City to visit the MIT Museum, which I had read about some years ago. It was quite interesting to see your University’s process of founding laboratories to focus on new scientific themes, answer challenging questions and develop new technologies (as described by some of the exhibits).
Who Does Capitalism Really Work For?
In an October 27 column in <i>The Tech</i>, Ryan Normandin argues that “state capitalism” is right for America. Capitalism works, but for whom? Let’s us look at some numbers. The top 1 percent richest people own approximately 25 percent of all wealth in the US as of 2004 and that number has likely gone up. The bottom 80 percent of people own less than 20 percent of the wealth (Economic Policy Institute’s “State of Working America” 2009). So whether the current system works depends on whom you ask. Does the system work for the millions of uninsured, unemployed, and homeless? How about for the millions of hard working people that barely make ends meet?
UA Update
Senate met on Monday, November 2. Steve Baker 84, Association of Independent Living Groups (AILG) Board Member, discussed the current work of the AILG as a Senate guest before the regular proceedings. The AILG is currently working to improve their communications with current undergraduates and shift the focus of living groups from their houses to their chapters or organizations, their accreditation process, and their insurance program.
Corrections
An article last Friday about recent thefts on campus incorrectly framed a statement made by MIT Police Chief John DiFava that “We believe these two actions will directly impact the number of thefts on campus.” “These two actions,” actually refers to one arrest and one instance of charges planning to be pressed for criminal activity, not two arrests, as the article suggests.