The latest evidence that President Tilghman and former USG president Connor Diemand-Yauman '10 had a chummier relationship than Tilghman shared with previous student government leaders comes to us via Diemand-Yauman's profile picture on Facebook.com.
After working together hand-in-hand all year — even issuing a joint call for the eating club task force — the presidential pair reunited for a photo shoot before Tilghman awarded Diemand-Yauman the Pyne Prize, matching orange outfits and fake-fierce faces.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
CDY + SMT = BFF
An alternative to ‘higher’ education
It is unlikely that the six-week course at Med Grow Cannabis College ($475 tuition) or the series of weekend seminars offered at Oaksterdam University ($150 tuition) can be transferred to Princeton for University credit.
Students at these institutions, ‘high’-minded in several ways, are free from the stress of midterms and finals — what can be considered as an ‘extracurricular’ activity at colleges across the nation is now the main focus of curriculum at these institutions. Still, there is no smoking in class, per se.
At the moment, 14 states allow the use of medical marijuana: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
New Jersey’s Medical Marijuana Act, signed by Jon Corzine this past January, will officially take effect on July 18, 2010. If New Jersey follows in the footsteps of California and Michigan, it may not be too long before we see our own share of cannabis colleges here on the east coast.
http://chronicle.com/article/High-Minded-College-Offers-/64288/
By Wonpyo Yun, staff writer for News
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Orange and Apples: Stanford
What do a tree and a tiger have in common? Nothing. But orange and red are closely related colors. Which is the better metaphor? Yvon Wang '08, a history major at Princeton, compares Princeton and Stanford.
For me, deciding to attend Stanford for history graduate school was affected not merely by the department's outstanding faculty and good reputation, but also by the university's similarities, at least on paper, to Old Nassau. A suburban campus with architecture that drives tourists wild, close to a major city but remaining quietly suburban, I thought, would satisfy both my need to get actual work done and my occasional desire for liveliness.
Actually, the Cardinal bubble and its orange counterpart are more like cousins than twins. Yes, both student bodies have that private school attractiveness --- or bourgeois indolence, depending on how one looks at it --- and the prestigious names make some of their students worry about how to answer with aplomb the inevitable "So where do you go?" But, as I discovered when I arrived in Palo Alto last year and have come to appreciate increasingly since, Stanford offers a very different experience. Let me name the ways with conveniently bolded headings.
Student body
It became obvious that if, heaven forbid, a massive civil war between the undergrads and grads began on the Farm, the former wouldn't stand a chance. With well-known professional schools in law, business and medicine, the number of "shady" people (exempting present company, of course) on campus is pretty vast: about 2,000 more than baccalaureates. This is not to say that undergrads are totally disenfranchised; it's merely that they are outnumbered. By comparison, Princeton's focus on its undergrads is both numerical and substantive. Judging by the exuberance with which they cheer on the Cardinals, I'm sure that Stanfordites adore their alma mater, but I'm still convinced that Princeton delivers more opportunities for its undergraduates.
Disciplinary distributions
Speaking of statistics, in contrast to the decidedly liberal arts bent at Princeton, Stanford's strength, as is well-known, lies especially in its engineering. Some friends intimate that this perception may be a result of mostly hanging out with fellow grad students, but instead of a proudly masochistic minority making daily early-morning pilgrimages to the mythically distant E-Quad, Stanford engineers represent 25 percent of the total student population and are housed in relatively centrally located buildings.
Geography
Finally, the two campuses differ considerably in their, er, physiques. Stanford is unabashedly enormous, and a bicycle --- or a skateboard for those too cool to wear helmets, or a Segway for those who enjoy making others seethingly jealous --- is virtually mandatory. Additionally, Palo Alto is mild and almost disgustingly sunny year-round. Mind you, it's anything but searing-hot and sunny: It's perpetually between 60 and 75 degrees. The only relief from the horribly nice weather is provided by the so-called "rainy season," from December through March or so.
To be fair, I must note that Stanford doesn't do the "snow" thing. No hillsides to sled down on dining hall trays, no romantic evenings drinking cocoa and cozying up in a window seat, and definitely no chances to bring out the woolen scarves unless one had circulatory problems or were a humanities grad student. Precisely because of this lack of real seasons, Stanfordites display a shocking lack of gratitude for their luck. While Tigers rush outside in early spring to unfold their lawn chairs on the still-dormant lawns (and to catch nasty head colds), Stanford colleagues often shrug when I express horror at yet another day cooped up indoors, because "it'll be perfect again tomorrow."
In conclusion, choosing between these delightful places must be like all things: to each his own. Wherever I am in the future, though, my own soul will always have stripes.
If you're a former Tiger who is now pursuing graduate studies elsewhere or a Princeton grad student who attended undergrad outside the Orange Bubble and would like to contribute a comparison send an email to blog@dailyprincetonian.com.
I've got the Krugman Blues
Professor of Economics and International Affairs Paul Krugman was the subject of a recent jam called “The Krugman Blues.” The song is written and performed by Loudon Wainwright III, an American singer and actor. In the tune, he bemoans that “Paul Krugman’s on the op-ed page. That’s where I get the blues.”
Princeton gets a shout out in the song when Wainwright sings, “Sometimes when he’s on the TV, in the background you can spot his school logo. Paul teaches at Princeton U, so Krugman ought to know.”
In case you want to catch more of the blues, Wainwright has an entire album of economy-related pieces called “10 Songs for the New Depression,” which includes “The Krugman Blues.”
By Sara Connolly, staff writer for News.
From these United States
The United States Constitution mandates that only native-born U.S. citizens, including those born abroad to parents who are both also U.S. citizens, may become the president of the United States.
Barack Obama is no exception to the rule. In fact, he was born at Kapi'olani Maternity & Gynecological Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii. But Dr. Eric Wargotz, one of Maryland’s Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate, who describes himself as the presumptive GOP nominee, disagrees.
Wargotz is a graduate of Rutgers University, and he received his M.D. from Ohio State University College of Medicine. He completed his post graduate medical training at the Veterans Administration Medical Center of Washington D.C. and the George Washington University Medical Center, even receiving the Frank N. Miller, M.D. Award for Excellence in Medical Student Teaching.
In an interview about Obama, however, Wargotz noted, “I do not believe he was born in the United States.”
Since when did Hawaii no longer count as part of the United States?
By Annie Khoa, staff writer for News.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Diggin' In The Mudd: Princeton Circa 1900 In Images
Princeton was a different place in 1900. It inspired the following book of images and memories, published in 1898. These images show a side of Princeton most of us have never seen (Full length-dresses and hats on the street?) and are a great look into Princeton's past!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Orange and Apples: Cornell
Cornell may have beaten Princeton in Men's Basketball, but how do the two differ as educational institutions? Rob Berger '05, a chemistry graduate student at Cornell, offers a comparison.
I was a chemistry major in the Class of 2005, and recently finished graduate school at Cornell. I love both schools, and if you're trying to decide between the two, I don't think you'd go wrong with either. But they are different places in certain ways, and overall, I'd say I'm glad I went to the two schools when I did.
The most significant differences between the two schools are related to the fact that Cornell has about three times as many students as Princeton. Academically, both schools are great, and once you get to independent research and the higher-level courses in your major, the size difference doesn't matter too much. In some of the big introductory courses, though, the size difference allows the professors at Princeton to be more accessible to students. If you're someone who wants to have a running dialogue with your professors and wants them all to know you by name, that's something to keep in mind.
Socially, the size difference between Princeton and Cornell means the students at Cornell are a bit more spread out. At Princeton, all of the undergrads live on campus, and quite honestly, there isn't often a good reason to leave campus (though if you're a city kind of person, New York is an easy trip). I personally liked having all of my friends living in neighboring buildings --- it brings about a nice sense of community on the Princeton campus. At Cornell, most undergrads live on campus only for the first year or two, and then live in off-campus apartments around Ithaca. Ithaca is a cool town, albeit in the middle of nowhere, so this isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's largely a question of which setup sounds more appealing to you.
In my opinion, those are the most noticeable differences between the two schools. As with all schools, there are plenty of other little quirks that distinguish them --- eating clubs vs. fraternities and sororities, lousy weather vs. lousier weather, etc. --- which you won't have a problem adjusting to regardless of which school you choose. If I seem to be steering you toward Princeton, it's partly because it's the school I went to first, and I hope a Cornell undergrad would do the same for Cornell. They're both great. Best of luck.
Oh, and one more thing. Not that this should influence your decision, but Princeton puts on a much better show at Reunions. Can't wait for my Fifth this spring.
If you're a former Tiger who is now pursuing graduate studies elsewhere or a Princeton grad student who attended undergrad outside the Orange Bubble and would like to contribute a comparison send an email to blog@dailyprincetonian.com.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Naps and all-nighters
The nap culture at Princeton may be one of the "saving graces" of Princetonians after all.
A study conducted by scientists at Berkeley has shown that an hour of sleep in the afternoon boosts the brain's ability to absorb new facts.
The scientists discovered that a memory-refreshing process occurs during sleep when fact-based information is filed and cleared from the brain's short term memory storage and "sent to the brain's prefrontal cortex, the filing cabinet of the mind".
Matthew Walker, a professor at Berkeley, explained, "It's as though the e-mail inbox in your hippocampus is full and, until you sleep and clear out those fact e-mails, you're not going to receive any more mail. It's just going to bounce until you sleep and move it into another folder."
The results of the study also support previous research that found that "all nighters" can reduce one's ability to learn new facts by 40 percent. The short term memory, which is usually filed and emptied during sleep, fills up during such periods of sleep deprivation.
The message is clear for Princetonians: indulge in "afternoon siestas" and maybe you won't need the "all nighters" after all.
By Lavanya Jose, staff writer for News.
GWU admissions blunder
Last Wednesday, George Washington University (GWU) accidentally sent out acceptance e-mails to some of its Early Decision II applicants - applicants who had been rejected from the university just two weeks before.
After experiencing a heavy snowstorm that caused delays in delivering acceptance packets, GWU admission officers decided to send e-mails to accepted students notifying them of their admission to the university. These e-mails, however, were sent to around 200 students who were not admitted, and the university later had to send another e-mail apologizing for its mistake.
Many students were devastated and confused after receiving the e-mail, not knowing whether they were accepted, rejected, or deferred.
This isn’t the first time a university has mistakenly informed rejected applicants that they had been accepted. Last year, Cornell University’s Financial Aid Office sent 25 rejected applicants congratulatory letters, and the University of California at San Diego mistakenly sent all of its applicants, roughly half of which were rejected, acceptance letters.
By Grace Kim, contributor for News.
Foraging in Firestone: Money, Money, Money
Did you know that before 1909, there were no images of people on American coins? In fact, there was a bit of a scandal when Lincoln was placed on the first coin in 1909. Did you know that the dime does not display its value? You have to know intuitively that a dime is worth ten cents. I learned both these facts and much more when I visited the Princeton Numismatic Collection.
Princeton is one of three universities that has a comprehensive numismatic or coin collection. Located within Firestone Library, the collection consists of over 100,000 coins, the oldest of which is a Lydian coin from the 7th century BCE. The collection is taken care of by specialist, Alan Stahl, who — although an expert on medieval period — possesses a vast knowledge of the history of currency. During our discussion, he answered my questions about Ancient Greece, Elizabethan England, and the American Confederacy.
Image: This paper money was made according to a process designed by Benjamin Franklin to transfer the veining pattern of a leaf to a printing plate as an anti-countefeiting device.
The Princeton collection dates from the 19th century and was founded by a gift of an alum. Although Stahl does have a limited budget for acquisitions, most of the collection consists of bequests. An additional 40,000 coins come from an archeological dig Princeton conducted in Antioch in the 1930s.
While often overlooked, coins can serve as an important historical source. The average peasant in the Roman Empire never saw the splendors of the “Eternal City.” Instead, his conception of imperial power was based on the image of the emperor on the coin.
One of the collection’s most recent acquisitions, a Byzantine coin from the 7th century, is an important source for studying the debate over iconoclasm in the Byzantine Empire. This coin has an image of Jesus Christ on the obverse (see right), where traditionally the Byzantine emperors had chosen to represent themselves. This coin is the first instance of Christ appearing on currency. As a result, the emperor, Justinian, has moved himself to the back. As Stahl informed me, the Islamic caliph responded to the emperor’s bold statement by removing all human images from the coins. Thus, the coin allows scholars to study the conflicts over the depiction of humans in both religions from the point of view of a contemporary source. In contrast, most written records of these struggles date from a later period.
Amazingly, the numismatic collection is very accessible to undergraduates. Stahl does presentations for classes, one of which I recently attended. Along with my classmates, I had the chance to handle gold and silver coins from the 7th century. Stahl also employs students as catalogers and makes an effort to give them work within their academic interests. If you’d like to see a part of the collection for yourself, there will also be an exhibit on paper money from August through the fall which will incorporate Princeton’s large collection of American paper currency with an alum’s collection of international currency.
Image credits: Princeton University Numismatic Collection
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
