Why do science majors change?
Last fall, President Barack Obama threw what was billed as the first White House Science Fair, a photo-op in the gilt-mirrored State Dining Room. He tested a steering wheel designed by middle schoolers to detect distracted driving and peeked inside a robot that plays soccer. It was meant as an inspirational moment: children, science is fun; work harder.
More than $600 million missing from MF Global
A few days before MF Global’s collapse, regulators stationed at the firm were assured its books were in order.
Zuckerberg press conference
Before speaking to an assembly of students in 26-100 yesterday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg held a brief press conference outside Lobby 10. Much of the discussion referred to his comments at a Stanford University event last Saturday, when he said that he may have kept Facebook in Boston if he had the chance to start over.
MIT and Russia to build research university
On Oct 26, MIT signed an agreement with Russia’s Skolkovo Foundation, marking the beginning of a three-year endeavor to develop a graduate research university, the Skolkovo Institute of Technology (SkTech, pronounced S-K-Tech). SkTech is located in Skolkovo, a region near Moscow that has been described as Russia’s future Silicon Valley. The agreement was signed by MIT President Susan J. Hockfield, Skolkovo Foundation President Viktor Vekselberg, and SkTech founding President Edward F. Crawley ’76, a Course 16 Professor.
Facebook, Zuckerberg “like” MIT
Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg swung by MIT yesterday to tell a packed 26-100 about Facebook’s corporate culture, what it’s like working in Silicon Valley, and — not surprisingly — why MIT students would make good Facebook engineers.
Political turmoil further sinks Greece and Italy
ROME — With political turmoil still plaguing Greece and descending upon the much larger economy of Italy on Monday, the fate of the euro and market stability worldwide hinged on whether two of Europe’s most tangled and unresponsive political cultures could deal with their tightening fiscal gridlock.
Shorts (left)
WASHINGTON — Republican members of a congressional panel seeking ways to cut the federal budget deficit indicated Monday that they might allow some additional tax revenue as part of a deal with Democrats.
Syria unleashes assault to take an unbowed city
BEIRUT — The Syrian government has launched a bloody assault to retake Homs, the country’s third-largest city, facing armed defectors who have prevented the government’s forces from seizing it as they did other restive locales this summer, in what may stand as one of the most violent episodes in an eight-month uprising.
Shorts (right)
WASHINGTON — The State Department’s inspector general will conduct a special investigation of the handling of the pending decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline in response to reports of improper pressure on policy makers and possible conflicts of interest, according to documents released Monday.
Wall Street bonuses are projected to drop up to 30%
Wall Street bonuses are set to fall by an average of 20 to 30 percent this year from a year ago, according to a closely watched compensation survey — the weakest bonus season since the financial crisis and a reflection of the leaner times confronting the industry.
Unseasonably warm in first half of week
A high pressure system is in control for the first half of the week, bringing beautiful weather conditions to the Boston area. Similar to yesterday, today and tomorrow should be sunny with unseasonably warm temperatures. Normal high temperatures for this time of year are around 55°F, but we may experience temperatures over 10°F higher than that. Enjoy the nice weather while at lasts, because a coastal low will approach the region on Thursday. With plenty of moisture associated with that system, there is a potential for heavy rain Thursday afternoon and evening. The low will exit Friday morning, with clouds dissipating as a high pressure moves in from the southwest. The temperatures on Friday will be more seasonal, as northwest winds behind the exiting low advect colder air into the region.
Republicans should not ignore Occupy Wall Street
The Occupy Wall Street movement has been lambasted by Republicans nearly since its inception. This is not entirely unreasonable — interviews with some of the protesters have demonstrated an extensive lack of knowledge regarding what they’re protesting and why they’re protesting it. One college student said that he thought the government should pay for his college tuition simply because he wants them to. Others, even if they are able to clearly enunciate problems, have no ideas about the solution. As such, it has been only too easy for Republicans to trivialize the movement, portraying it as a group of people too lazy to look for work, individuals who simply want everything handed to them, or people who are looking for something to do and figure that Occupy Wall Street — being the latest fad — would be fun.
CORRECTIONS
An opinion article published last Friday on the state of nuclear energy in the United States incorrectly referenced the “Electrical Power Research Institute.” It is the “Electric Power Research Institute.”
BALLET REVIEW Elegance in anguish
The curtains rise and we see a young girl teasing her nurse, pushing her this way and that, pulling at her dress, running circles around her. The girl turns shy when her mother walks in, but then can barely contain her excitement when she is given a lovely new dress to wear to her first big party.
THEATRE REVIEW J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan takes on CGI
Since J.M. Barrie’s inaugural London stage production in 1905, countless iterations of Peter Pan have graced film and the stage. Each form has its charm; the intimacy of Wendy caring for the Lost Boys shines on the small stage, whereas the majesty of cavorting through the London Sky on the way to Neverland seems a feat best left to cinematography. All of these iterations form a collective memory of the Peter Pan story, but no one adaptation can stand alone.
INTERVIEW Sylvia Deaton
Sylvia Deaton, 20, has been dancing since she could walk, and knew she wanted to be a professional dancer from a very young age. At age six, she began taking ballet, jazz and tap classes, and was soon participating in dance competitions and winning regional and national titles. She was inspired by Broadway shows and local ballet performances her family would bring her to, and would practice the moves at home, using her sister as a male partner and rows of stuffed animals as her audience.
SPORTS SHORT
After a strong finish last week against WPI, the Engineers advanced to the NEWMAC semifinals. MIT lost in all three sets with final scores of 25-16, 25-10, and 25-15. MIT opened the first two sets taking the first two points, fighting throughout the matches for a lead over Springfield. The third match began with Springfield in the lead, and they kept ahead of MIT to eventually take the win, sweeping the Engineers in all three matches.
Women’s teams win NEWMACs
The MIT Field Hockey and Women’s Soccer teams won their NEWMAC championships this past Sunday — both in dramatic fashion, and both for the second time in the past three years.
Institute Double Take
Located at the stairwell of Building 3, Dis(Course)4 is a Festival of Art, Science, and Technology (FAST) installation created by graduate students Craig A. Boney G, James R. Coleman G, and Andrew J. Manto G in Course 4 in April 2011. The structure is composed of hundreds of aluminum pieces that are fastened by zip ties and supported by steel cables. This photo emphasizes the repetition of the elements through the use of point lighting and symmetry. A small aperture is chosen to ensure a large depth of field. The white balance is intentionally skewed to add warmth to the otherwise white installation.
QUARKINESS The big, red “J”
I may not remember as much as I would like from 3.091 (Introduction to Solid-State Chemistry), but I do remember the big, red “J”. And no, J here does not stand for joule.
PUBLIC SERVICE @ MIT In and out of the water
“Success in and out of the water.” That is the motto of Amphibious Achievement, an MIT service group established last January that aims to promote success for area high-schoolers through athletic training, specifically in crew and swimming, and academic instruction, with a focus on college prep in a way that is fun and innovative. The program runs on Sundays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. during the school year on campus.
Events: Nov. 8 - Nov. 14
Events Nov. 8 – Nov. 14 Tuesday (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Wall Street in Context: Strategies for restoring the dignity of the 99% — 32-123 (7:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.) Film Screening: Miguel and William — discussion with director Ines Paris follows — 32-141 Wednesday (5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Innovation Series Event: Changing the World: How Innovators are Using the Web for Social Action — 32-123 (6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) Life in the Universe: In the Beginning, MIT Museum talk — N51 Thursday (5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) MIT Communications Forum: Cities and the Future of Entertainment — E10-070 (6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) Energy Discussions: Desalination — 4-153 Friday (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Otto Piene Film/Video Screening — E15 (9:15 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Potluck Shorts: Art of Love (Boston Asian American Film Festival Shorts Program) Saturday (7:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Bang on a Can All-Stars — W16 Sunday (3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.) Origamido Workshop, seminar on handmade paper (4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MITHAS Concert — Wong Auditorium Monday (5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) Lecture: “Unlocking Energy Innovation” by Prof. Richard Lester PhD ’80 — 66-110 (7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Jeff Warner, Music from Appalachia — 14W-111 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
VIDEO INTERVIEW PhD movie cast and crew discuss film, tour
This is a transcript from an interview with Jorge Cham (creator of PhD comics), Margaret “Meg” A. Rosenburg ’07 (producer of the PhD movie), Evans T. Boney ’06 (actor playing Mike Slackenerny), and Scott Elmegreen (composer). The full transcript is at and the video is at .
