Recap of other news last week
Want more out of Course 7? You’re in luck! At the faculty meeting last week, a Masters of Engineering Program (MEng) in Course 6-7 (Computer Science and Molecular Biology) was approved as well as two new classes — 7.015 and 7.016 — that fulfill the Biology General Institute Requirement. 7.015 is a more advanced introductory class for those who come in with a substantial background in biology, while 7.016 specializes in biochemistry. For more information, check out The Tech’s prior coverage last week at http://tech.mit.edu/V133/N19/biology.html.
Haitian Prime Minister visits MIT
On Wednesday, the Prime Minister of Haiti, Laurent Lamothe, came to MIT to sign a letter of agreement with the Institute regarding a collaboration to develop STEM teaching materials in Creole, the language spoken by a majority of Haiti’s citizens.
Criminal complaint sheds light on violence last week
The surviving suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings was charged Monday with using a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death and malicious destruction of property by means of an explosive device resulting in death. According to a press release from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder’s office, the criminal complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and the charges carry a maximum penalty of death.
Faculty Newsletter focuses on education
With MIT’s involvement in the online education sphere, it is no surprise that the role of MIT in the future of education has yet again taken the spotlight in a faculty newsletter. The March/April issue, published April 12, opens with an editorial on MITx: “One happy consequence [of MITx] is unquestionable: we discuss how we teach more now than ever before.”
IN SHORT
There will be a memorial service for Officer Sean Collier on Wednesday at noon on Briggs Field. It is open to law enforcement and the MIT community. The following streets will be closed: Mass. Ave. between Albany and Beacon St. starting at 7 a.m., Vassar between Audrey and Mass. Ave. at 6 a.m., and Memorial Drive between Mass. Ave. and the BU Bridge at 12 a.m.
MIT remembers Officer Sean Collier
At 2:50 p.m. Monday afternoon, the state of Massachusetts paused in silence in honor of fallen MIT Police Officer Sean Collier. At the same time, hundreds of people linked hands and formed a human chain on Vassar Street from the MIT Police Station to the memorial where Officer Collier was slain, outside the MIT Stata Center. Those attending formed a continuous chain stretching more than eight-tenths of a mile, blocking traffic at the busy intersection with Massachusetts Avenue.
Shorts (right)
KABUL, Afghanistan — An emergency landing by a helicopter ferrying foreign engineers in eastern Afghanistan turned into a mass abduction by the Taliban, officials said on Monday, offering a stark reminder of the insurgents’ continuing hold on large parts of the countryside.
Syrian war spilling into Lebanon, rights group says
BEIRUT — A Human Rights Watch report released Monday accused both the Syrian government and the insurgency of striking residential areas in neighboring Lebanon on several occasions and killing a number of its citizens. The cross-border attacks appeared to be largely indiscriminate and threatened to further destabilize the Syrian-Lebanese frontier, Human Rights Watch said.
Rain today, dry and seasonable rest of week
The below average temperatures of the last two days will continue today, with a coastal storm set to deliver a damp and chilly day. With high temperatures probably not making it out of the 40s°F, rain likely throughout the day and evening, and a cold northeast wind, it will not be a particularly pleasant spring day. However, it looks like the situation will improve for the rest of the week. Tomorrow is our best chance for some above average temperatures, with a southwesterly wind advecting warmer air into our region ahead of an approaching cold front. Some rain showers are possible with this cold front tomorrow evening and Thursday morning. Thursday and Friday, building high pressure will keep the weather mainly dry with seasonable temperatures near 60°F.
Flights delayed amid budget-cut furloughs of air controllers
WASHINGTON — Flights were delayed by up to two hours across the country Monday, the first weekday that the nation’s air traffic control system operated with 10 percent fewer controllers. Pilots, gate agents and others were quick to blame furloughs caused by mandatory across-the-board budget cuts, but the Federal Aviation Administration said it was too soon to assign blame.
Two accused in Canada of plotting derailment
OTTAWA, Ontario — The Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Monday announced the arrest of two men who are accused of planning to derail a passenger train in an al-Qaida linked plot.
Shorts (left)
President Barack Obama will attend a memorial service this week for the victims of the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, in what will be his latest foray as the country’s comforter in chief.
US and China put focus on cybersecurity
BEIJING — The United States and China held their highest-level military talks in nearly two years Monday, with a senior Chinese general pledging to work with the United States on cybersecurity because the consequences of a major cyberattack “may be as serious as a nuclear bomb.”
Recovering as a community
Last week was a truly trying one for the MIT community, from the Boston Marathon bombing on Monday to the death of our own Officer Sean Collier on campus Thursday night. In the ensuing near-24-hour manhunt for the suspects, MIT campus and Boston went on lockdown as we waited anxiously for their capture.
Heat expected to sweep the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings predicted that his team would defeat LeBron James and the Heat in six games. Jennings may be a little too optimistic, however. I would be incredibly surprised, as would many NBA fans, if the Bucks even prove to be more than a slight bump on the Heat’s road to the Finals. Milwaukee doesn’t have anyone to guard Dwyane Wade or LeBron, and they will thoroughly dominate the entire series. Although Larry Sanders has been playing outstandingly for the Bucks this season, he, Jennings, and Monta Ellis will not be able to keep up with the speed and quickness of Miami. Among all the potentially great match-ups in the first round, this is definitely not one. The Heat should win easily.
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!”
