Don’t be afraid to ask
The Internet is littered with quotes about how it’s the great questions and not the great answers that are important and shape history, science, and the universe as a whole. It’s not as if I had never thought about it; really, I had. I had just assumed this was talking about my research questions, the big important questions I could spend a lot of time crafting. I assumed those were the questions I was being judged on.
Events Apr 30-May 6
Events apr. 30 – may 6 Tuesday (12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) 11th annual Prokopoff violin music concert — 14E-109 (5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Entrepreneurship in an Emerging Economy: The CWG Illustration — E62-262 Wednesday (5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) One Democracy’s Gains and Pains: the US-Mexico Drug Entrapment, pizza provided — 32-141 (6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) A Crisis in Civics?, talk by Director of MIT Center for Civic Media Ethan Zuckerman — NW-86 Thursday (6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) Sacrificing Freedom of Mind: How We Fall Prey to Cults and Controllers — 32-155 (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Urban Films: Revolution ‘67 (2007) — 66-110 Friday (12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.) Media in Transformation 8 conference panel: Oversharing of private information using social media — E15-070 (6:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) LSC shows Les Miserables — 26-100 Saturday (11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.) Media in Transformation 8 conference panel: Surveillance by digital technologies — E51-115 (1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.) MIT Anime Karaoke — Student Center Coffee House Sunday (4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Tang Hall Egg Drop contest — Tang Hall, W84-24 (8:00 p.m. – 9:30) Techiya Spring Concert: The Hobbit – an unexpected Bar Mitzvah — 6-120 Monday (1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.) The Sequester: The Future of Science Funding and its Impact on MIT – Students, Faculty, Postdocs, and Research — 56-114 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
50 minutes of anxiety
Sitting in class, 50 minutes always seemed like a lifetime. I never thought it could feel longer after leaving undergrad.
Events apr. 23 – apr. 29
Events apr. 23 – apr. 29 Tuesday (5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) Screening of Emerging Thailand: The Spirit of Small Enterprise and discussion with MIT economics professor Robert M. Townsend — E25-111 Wednesday (11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) MIT Parking and Transportation and Cambridge Bikes presents free bike repairs in conjunction with Earth Day — W20 (5:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) Screening of Pandora’s Promise and discussion with filmmaker Robert Stone — 34-101 Thursday (11:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) Choose to Reuse — 32 first floor (7:15 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.) MISTI Foreign Film Night: Volver — 1-277 Friday (12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) 100 Years of Service: Snapshots of the MIT Women’s League (refreshments provided) — 10-340 (4:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Earth Week film screening: Chasing Ice (refreshments provided) — 6-120 Saturday (8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.) Reverend Freakchild performs live on WMBR’s Lost Highway program — 88.1 FM (7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Songkran Festival hosted by Thai Students at MIT (TSMIT), $1 per food ticket — W20-306 Sunday (7:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Skydiving trip hosted by MIT Skydiving Club — Skydive Pepperell (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Ohms Spring Concert: COhmmencement — 10-250 Monday (5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) MIT Fashion Event sponsored by the Martin Trust Center, featuring fashion startups and industry experts (free tickets on eventbrite) — E51-115 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
The importance of adaptations
“Did you know,” I said to the eight-year-old boy in a Red Sox cap, “that about 50 percent of the oxygen in our atmosphere comes from the ocean by way of the tiny, drifting marine animals and plants called phytoplankton? So for every second breath you take, thank the plankton!”
IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME: Leaping into the unknown
“JUST DO IT!” rang the screeches from far off in the distance. As I teetered over the edge of the stone cliff and peered out at the water below, I could see the jagged outlines of the sharp rocks lurking below the surface. I wasn’t very keen on getting too friendly with those rocks, and their closeness did little to appease the nervous, bubbling feeling in my stomach.
Chasing salt
Gripping the desk as waves rock the ship back and forth, it is occasionally hard to sit upright at sea, let alone walk about the ship. I have strapped my chair to my desk with a bungee cord to keep me from sliding across the lab. A few minutes ago a large wave washed across the stern of the ship and sent salt water into the lab. Some of our equipment got wet, but nothing too bad.
Changing the face of the nuclear engineer
Students of nuclear science and technology learned from experts in the field, presented their unique research, and captured on video what it means to be a nuclear scientist or nuclear engineer last week at the 2013 American Nuclear Society Student Conference. The first ever “I’m a Nuke” videos will be featuring nuclear science and technology students from across the world who participated in the conference hosted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Student Section of the American Nuclear Society.
Why claim one religious authority?
Ask A-theist is a column by Aaron Scheinberg G, an atheist, and Stephanie Lam G, a Christian, which uses contrasting worldviews to explore questions and misconceptions about philosophy and religion. This week, Aaron chose the question. Send us the burning questions you have always wanted answered by an atheist or Christian (or both), and we’ll tackle them!
Events Apr 16- Apr 22
Events apr. 16 – apr. 22 Tuesday (4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) MISTI Foreign Film Night: Jiro Dreams of Sushi — E25-111 (9:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.) Video Game Tournament with Bubble Tea — Sidney-Pacific Wednesday (4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.) SSRC Seminar: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America — E25-111 (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) What High School Science Should Have Been — MIT Museum (7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) The Future of Print in the Digital Age — 6-120 Thursday (5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) CMS Colloquium Series: Size Is Only Half the Story: Valuing the Dimensionality of BIG DATA — 4-231 (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Non-Monosexuality: Beyond the Basics, dinner provided — 5-134 Friday (8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Piano Recital by Alan Feinberg, Guest Pianist in Residence and American music specialist — Kresge Auditorium (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) The Wedding Singer, opening night — Kresge Little Theater Saturday (7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) The Festival of Bad Ad-Hoc Hypotheses (BAH!), hosted by Zach Weinersmith of SMBC, the SMBC and xkcd publishers, and the LSC — 26-100 Sunday (4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.) MITHAS presents Leela Samson and Bragha Bessell, Bharatanatyam Dance — 14W-111 Monday (4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.) A Tale of Three Laboratories: Rabies Vaccination and the Pasteurization of New York City, 1885-1920 — E51-095 (8:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.) For the Bible Tells Me So Screening — 4-145 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Events Apr. 09 - Apr. 15
Events apr. 09 – Apr. 15 Tuesday (4:15 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.) Oil Dependence, “Oilpacity,” and U.S. Foreign Policy in Africa — 66-110 (7:30 p.m.) Screening of Spanish movie Blancanieves — 10-250 Wednesday (12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.) CAST Music and Technology Seminar Series presents Tristan Perich — 14W-111 (5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) IMES Distinguished Speaker Series: Is the Genome Useful in Medicine — NE30, Broad Institute Auditorium (6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.) The Neuroscience of Musical Improvisation — NW-86 Thursday (5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) News or Entertainment? The Press in Modern Political Campaigns — E14-633 (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Urban Films: Up the Yangtze (2008) — 66-110 Friday (4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Starr Forum: On the Rocks: China and Japan in the East China Sea — E15-070 (8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Roadkill Buffet Presents: The “Mandatory Class of 2017 Welcome Meeting” — 6-120 Saturday (1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.) Marvelous Molecules in Play — Cambridge Public Library Lecture Hall, 449 Broadway, Cambridge (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Music and Technology Bleep Blop Performance — 14W-111 Sunday (7:00 p.m.) LSC presents The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey — 26-100 (8:45 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Game of Thrones Viewing Party, 21+ — Thirsty Ear Pub Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Multiple moods
For a couple of years, I could never be sure how I would feel during any given day. Some days were really good: I felt elated for no particular reason and enjoyed everything I did. Some days, though, were fairly bad: I struggled to care enough to even do anything like get out of bed. Though most days were somewhere in between, and though the bad days outnumbered the good, I thought that this was just everyday life, that a lot of people were experiencing the same thing.
Do science and religion conflict?
Ask A-theist is a column by Aaron L. Scheinberg G, an atheist, and Stephanie S. Lam G, a Christian, which uses contrasting worldviews to explore questions and misconceptions about philosophy and religion. This week, Aaron chose the question. Send us the burning questions you have always wanted answered by an atheist or Christian (or both), and we’ll tackle them!
Events Mar. 2 – Mar. 8
Events Mar. 2 – Mar. 8 Tuesday (6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Mass CPR: free heartsaver CPR certification hosted by MIT EMS — W20, La Sala Wednesday (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.) How to Find a UROP, hosted by UROP staff — 5-217 (8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.) Israeli dancing, kosher snacks provided — W20, La Sala Thursday (11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) MIT Spring Career Fair — W20, La Sala (5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Can Incubators Really Work in Emerging Markets? First 15 attendeeds receive a free copy of “Winning in Emerging Markets” — E51-345 (Tang) Friday (7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) CAST (Center for Art, Science & Technology) Marathon Concert featuring Hauschka, Pamela Z, and Dewa Alit with MIT’s Gamelan Galak Tika — W16 (Kresge) Saturday (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) LSC shows The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey — 26-100 (7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.) Alpha Chi Omega LipSync and Talent Show: Fame! — Johnson Ice Arena Sunday (8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.) Folk Dancing with Live Electric Balkan Music by Rakiya— W20, La Sala (8:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.) Dhoom, The Bollywood Dance Night (free for MIT students before 9:30 p.m., $2 after — W20, Lobdell Monday (6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Climber Yoga hosted by MIT Outing Club and the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education — 50-258 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME: Walking for a cause at Relay
On March 9, the Johnson track filled with participants in the third Relay For Life held on MIT’s campus. Relay For Life is a 12-hour overnight event, where teams raise money and then come to support the fight against cancer by walking around the track throughout the night. The night consists of ceremonies, such as the luminaria ceremony, to honor survivors, caregivers, and all those who have battled cancer, in addition to performances by MIT dance and a cappella groups, workshops like zumba, and other games that get participants involved throughout the night.
Whale watching in New Zealand
It’s 12:30 a.m. My PhD advisor is at my bunk-side. “Julie,” he says, “we got one of the tags, and we can hear the other. You’re up.”
With tenure but not without troubles
As chair of the Undergraduate Association Student Support Committee and as part of continuing efforts to have open discussions about mental health on campus, I approached Professor Belcher about sharing his story in a public forum. He graciously obliged with this moving account. For me, Professor Belcher’s piece is a reminder that mental health challenges do not discriminate — they can strike any person at any stage of life, but they need not be debilitating.
Without a “higher power,” how did life start?
Ask A-theist is a new column by Aaron Scheinberg, an atheist, and Stephanie Lam, a Christian, which uses contrasting worldviews to explore questions and misconceptions about philosophy and religion. This week, Aaron chose a question from your submissions. Send us the burning questions you have always wanted answered by an atheist or Christian (or both), and we’ll tackle them!
Events Mar 19 - Mar 25
Events mar. 19 – mar. 25 Tuesday (5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Due Diligence: An Impertinent Inquiry into Microfinance book presented by author David Roodman — E25-111 Wednesday (5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Staging Shakespeare from Kabul to the Globe, Corinne Jabert Lecture — 14E-304 (6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) TalkBack 360: Science on Trial, community discussion — MIT Museum Thursday (7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Women Take the Reel presents First Person Plural — 4-163 (8:30 p.m.) Technology Policy Students Society Canadian Culture Night — NW30 Friday (7:00 p.m.) MIT Anime Club Bring Your Own Anime showing — 3-133 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME: Counting my blessings
Did you know that faculty at some schools believe Greek life can be life-threatening? At the Northeast Greek Leadership Association (NGLA) conference in Hartford, Connecticut, which I attended a few weeks ago, I heard a fellow Greek from another university talk about meeting with a student life administrator at his school. This administrator opened their conversations by citing stories about men and women on other campuses who were injured or died at fraternity events, and made very clear her mindset that Greek life was dangerous to students with her introductory anecdotes.