Cross Campus: 9.27.13

Tag Archive: XC

Cross Campus: 9.27.13
September 27, 2013 5:09 am Leave a Comment
Return of the Poopetrator. Some people never learn. According to a Thursday night email from Saybrook Master Paul Hudak describing “another incident in the laundry room,” it appears that the Saybrook defecator has struck again, doing the unspeakable to an untold number of innocent, hygiene-minding Yalies. Hudak urged students not to leave their laundry unattended and said he will follow up with Yale security to determine the appropriate response. See, this is why we can’t have nice things.

Calling out trouble. In the middle of Wednesday night’s production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” at the Yale Repertory Theatre, Joe Manganiello stopped during the third act — without breaking from his character, Stanley Kowalski — to yell at an audience member who had been taking photos throughout the show. “Can you stop with the camera?” Manganiello reportedly shouted. “You have no idea how distractin’ it is!” Earlier in the show and prior to the outburst, Manganiello had posted a message on Twitter asking the incessant photographer to stop, leave and never return.

E-I-E-I-O. The 94th running of the Durham Fair, Connecticut’s largest agricultural fair, began on Thursday and will run through Sunday. The attraction typically brings horses, large pumpkins, sheep and giant sandcastles, as well as eager families looking for an easy weekend getaway. Road trip?

STEM experts. The Yale College Council is launching a “STEM Sibs” program designed to help the STEM community by pairing prospective freshmen interested in the STEM fields with upperclassmen majoring in the sciences.

Returning to their roots. Twenty-eight retired Air Force personnel returned to campus on Wednesday afternoon, five decades after they helped pioneer Chinese language study at the University through the Institute of Far Eastern Languages. Welcome back!

Disaster control. Power was partially restored on the Metro-North line between Stamford and New York City following a Wednesday morning power cable failure affecting a 138,000-volt feeder line. Officials said the electrical problem could take several weeks to repair fully.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1961 Student group “Freedom Fund for Southern Students” decides to give its entire holdings of $700 to the “Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee” in Mississippi to help post bail for five high school students, who were jailed for particiating in sit-in demonstrations earlier this month.

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Cross Campus: 9.20.13
September 20, 2013 2:43 am Leave a Comment
The scarlet letter. In a move reminiscent of the email spam that takes place every year, an anonymous email from “Belle Bells” — and sent from an email address titled “ihateharknessbells” with the subject line “Stop the Harkness Bells”— reached out to a number of Yalies on Thursday evening with one message: “Reply all ‘m’ to mute the bells.” In response, a number of Yalies typed the letter “m” into their message box and replied to all recipients, expanding the chain and upsetting many students in the process.

For the record, typing in “m” into an email message box and sending it out does nothing. Doing this just sends an email with “m” in the body of the message to all recipients. Instead, students who wish to mute email threads must click “m” when reading the message — not email the letter “m” itself out. This is just one of several handy keyboard shortcuts that Gmail offers its users, but those wishing to take advantage of this function should go to their Gmail settings and elect to turn “keyboard shortcuts on.”

Game theory. Mathematics professor Nathan Kaplan appeared on “Million Second Quiz” — a trivia-based game show — on September 13, correctly answering questions about NFL teams, literature, pop songs and common baby names. Though Kaplan put up a good fight, he did not answer a question about Iowa’s postal service abbreviation quickly enough during the “sudden death” round.

A new generation. Georgetown University will now see its decades-long ambition of creating a school of public policy come to fruition after a $100 million donation from Frank H. McCourt, Jr., a former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. Named the McCourt School of Public Policy, the school will urge the use of modern technology to address public policy challenges. In particular, the McCourt School will include a “Massive Data Institute,” which is designed to bolster research efforts that rely on “Big Data” sets to tackle policy issues.

Calculating the cost of college. A new calculator unveiled this week by Wellesley College aims to give students a better sense of the real cost of tuition, taking into account available scholarships rather than just the sticker prices. Called “My inTuition,” the calculator technically applies only to Wellesley, but analysts argue the financial aid policies are similar enough across top universities that the estimates could apply to multiple schools.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1960 Students are now required to carry identification cards at all times, which can also be used to gain entrance to libraries and dining halls.

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Cross Campus: 9.19.13
September 19, 2013 7:33 pm Leave a Comment
BREAKING NEWS. Today is chicken tenders day. Yeah, that’s right. Chicken tenders, delicious and ready to be eaten.

Asking the right questions. Never missing a beat in the pop culture world, members of the Yale Precision Marching Band uploaded their own version of Norweigan band Ylvis’ viral hit “What Does the Fox Say?” to YouTube on Wednesday night. In the video, the YPMB sings the popular lyrics with a special twist, searching not for what the fox says, but instead, for the answer to the age-old question: “What does the glock say?” The video features creative choreography and takes place in various locations across campus, including the courtyards of Branford and Davenport and the entrance to Morse College. As of Wednesday night, the video garnered more than 300 views.

Fill in the blanks. A mysterious sheet of paper attached by neon green tape has appeared on the construction site at Elm and York Streets, entirely blank except for the words “I wish this was:” scrawled in all caps at the top, inviting passersby to fill in the blanks with their thoughts. No telling how many people considered writing “Hogwarts” or “the Bahamas” in the empty space.

Celebrating culture. In collaboration with the Slifka Center and Chabad at Yale, several Yalies have set up tents called “sukkahs” in the Calhoun, Davenport and Branford courtyards. The tents — which offer a space for students to eat, hang out and shake a bundle of plants called a “lulav” — are meant to commemorate Sukkot, a Jewish holiday celebrating well-being and peace. The sukkahs will be up until Wednesday evening, and will house study breaks on Sunday and Monday.

The Postal Service. In a Wednesday email to the Yale community, Associate Dean for Student Organizations and Physical Resources John Meeske updated students on new, temporary hours for the Yale Station post office. According to Meeske, the parcel window will be open until 6:30 p.m. every day this week to help accommodate the “unprecedented volume of packages” the office has received.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1942 Following Yale’s inaugural summer sessaion, University administrators announce they will accept an additional 150 freshmen into the Class of 1946. According to Yale College Dean William DeVane, the successful summer term encouraged the Admissions Department to extend acceptance offers to more students. On the flip side, the announcement prompted rumors that to offset the larger class size, administrators would also expel 200 current freshmen.

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Cross Campus: 9.16.13
September 16, 2013 2:07 am Leave a Comment
Hangin’ with the Crew. Roughly 100 Yalies showed up to the Whaling Crew’s first event of the year last Friday: a parking lot party for the first men’s soccer home game of the year. Members of the Whaling Crew, a student-led organization that aims to foster participation in Yale athletic events and promote school spirit, kept themselves busy grilling up food and playing cornhole in the parking lot by Reese Stadium.

Rest in peace. The founder of the University’s graphic design program, Alvin Eisenman, passed away at 92 in his home on Martha’s Vineyard. Eisenman spearheaded the establishment of Yale’s program in 1951 and served as its director for the next 40 years, recruiting design experts and counting “Doonesbury” cartoonist Garry Trudeau as one of his students. He is survived by his wife, three children, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Let the money flow. The Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History will receive two grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, one of which will fund an educational program while the other will help support the Peabody’s mineralogy collection. Collectively totaling $30,000,000, the two awards are among a total of 244 that will be bequeathed to museums across the country through the Institute’s “Museums for America” program.

Can emotional intelligence be taught? That was the central question in a recent New York Times article about current efforts to teach children “social-emotional learning,” a strategy based on the idea that good emotional skills are linked to strong academic performance. The article cited research from a number of Yale professors and faculty, including University President Peter Salovey and Marc Brackett, director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.

Upward trend. MIT saw an 11.1 percent return on its endowment for the fiscal year that ended June 30, bringing the school’s total endowment up to $11 billion, including pledges. Though Yale and its peer schools in the Ivy League have yet to release their most recent endowment figures, Provost Benjamin Polak said the school’s target endowment return is above 7 percent.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1964 Students and faculty returning to campus after summer vacation are horrified to find that University dormitories had become the target of widespread vandalism and theft, one of the worst in recent history. Apparently, intruders had entered dormitory rooms and ripped open storage boxes and footlockers, strewing the contents across the floor.

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Cross Campus: 9.13.13
September 13, 2013 2:15 am Leave a Comment
Watch your back. Today is Friday the 13th, so, according to popular lore, any number of unlucky things may strike or fall upon you. Be careful. You never know what’s waiting around the corner.

Around the world. Scores of Yalies descended upon the Greenberg Center on Thursday night to meet the 18 members of the 2013 class of World Fellows, mid-career professionals who will be on campus this semester and hail from around the globe. This year’s fellows include a human rights lawyer from Israel, a managing editor of The Economist Group, an Egyptian diplomat to the Syrian Opposition and the vice president of a Chinese nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting poverty, among many others.

Election news, continued. Two days after accepting that he will not be the next mayor of New Haven, Hillhouse High School Principle Kermit Carolina is preparing to endorse one of the two remaining candidates from Tuesday’s primary: Toni Harp ARC ’78 or Justin Elicker FES ’10 SOM ’10. Carolina won 8.1 percent of the vote on Tuesday.

No scruff September? True Blood star Joe Manganiello shaved his signature beard last week in preparation for his upcoming role in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” which begins previews at the Yale Repertory Theatre on September 20. The production runs through October 20, so you have about one month to spot him around campus and catch a glimpse of his smooth face yourself. Just try not to faint.

Discounts galore. Textbook shopping have you running low on money? The annual “College Night on Broadway” event will take place tonight along the shopping strip on Broadway. There will be free giveaways, T-shirts, a photobooth, palm readings and fortune telling.

Evaluating HBS. A recent New York Times article examined the effects of targeted “gender makeover” efforts at Harvard Business School to promote female success and attract women professors, including attempts to “close the grade gap” — the grade differences between male and female students.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1946 Today marks the first day that University maids will no longer make students’ dormitory beds in the morning. According to a Yale official, the “crisis” started after the University installed new bunk beds that were too high for the maids to reach. Still, maids will continue to dust and clean students’ rooms every day.
Cross Campus: 9.12.13
September 12, 2013 2:37 am Leave a Comment
Weekly digest. Your friendly neighborhood newspaper would like to inform you that chicken tenders will be served for lunch today in both the colleges and in Commons. Eat up.

It wasn’t Yale. After confusion about missing campus squirrels spiraled into national accusations of a mass squirrel extermination, University spokesman Tom Conroy told the News that Yale has not engaged with the local gray squirrel species and “has not made any effort to reduce or manage the squirrel population.” Conroy’s statements followed rumors published on Gawker that the University had surreptitiously massacred the squirrels over the summer. As of 10:45 a.m. Wednesday morning, though, one squirrel — very much alive — was spotted on Old Campus scurrying across the grass.

And “it wasn’t me.” Those immortal words from Shaggy’s hit single may soon be coming to the Elm City. According to the Toad’s Place schedule, Shaggy will be performing at Toad’s on September 27. Get ready.

Stranger than fiction. In a string of mysterious events that have hit campus over the past week, orange lettering instructing passersby to “look up” has appeared at the intersection of York and Elm Streets. It remains unclear whether the text is part of an art project or simply the work of some students with too much time on their hands.

Power pair. In partnership with venture capital fund Connecticut Innovations, the University has allocated $2.5 million for the Yale Entrepreneurial Institute (YEI) Innovation Fund, which will help finance student ventures emerging from YEI programs. The fund aims to provide certain companies with up to $100,000 to improve their chances of success and help them attract clients.

Goin’ places. The University of Connecticut has signed an agreement with developers that marks the first step in redeveloping the former Hartford Times building and creating a regional UConn campus in downtown Hartford, Conn, according to The Hartford Courant. The college campus is slated to be about 220,000 square feet and indicates UConn’s intention to move into West Hartford.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1984 The Yale Alumni Fund reports $21,314,503 in gifts for the 1983-’84 fund drive, a record amount for the Fund’s 94-year history. The majority of the funding will go to the Yale Alumni Fund Endowment and the general fund endowment. More than 44,250 University alumni and friends made donations to this campaign.
Cross Campus: 9.10.13
September 10, 2013 3:49 am Leave a Comment
But where have all the squirrels gone? New Haven’s particularly aggressive breed of squirrels are typically a common sighting during the first few weeks of school. But this year, it appears that far fewer of these furry creatures have been spotted scurrying across Old Campus — and Yalies have noticed. According to Gawker, students are “in uproar over missing campus squirrels,” and one student expressed concerns that administrators may be responsible for the squirrel “genocide.” When contacted, University Spokesman Tom Conroy said he had not heard about the incident and would ask around.

Maybe they’re in Bass? A petting zoo spontaneously sprang up in the Bass Media Center on Monday night. But unlike most petting zoos, this one didn’t feature friendly goats, baby kittens or even tiny lambs. Instead, it offered small, new pieces of media equipment that students could try out on the spot. Not quite the same thing.

Frankly, that’s disgusting. In an email to Saybrugians on Monday night, Saybrook Master Paul Hudak warned students of “weird, creepy and (frankly) disgusting things” that had been happening in Saybrook’s laundry room. Though Hudak did not specify what those things were, he said it must “stop immediately.” “I can’t imagine why someone would do those things, but it has got to stop,” Hudak added at the end of his email.

Society of scholars. Yale College Dean Mary Miller reminded students of the importance of academic integrity in a Monday email to the Yale community. Miller outlined general guidelines for ensuring compliance with the University’s undergraduate regulations — such as citing all sources for papers, even when paraphrasing — and encouraged students to peruse the Writing Center website for more information about the proper use of sources.

Wenzel in the making. Many Yalies have heard of the “Wenzel,” a legendary late-night sandwich for partygoing Yalies. But few know about “Smithy’s Sub,” named after Ward 2 aldermanic candidate Greg Smith. The sandwich, known more colloquially as “Smithy’s,” is reportedly composed of grilled chicken, cheese, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise on garlic bread. Maybe it’s time to add some variety to that Saturday night diet.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1979 Police report that a female Yale undergraduate was attacked and raped four days earlier while jogging inside Grove Street cemetery on a Thursday afternoon. The incident marked the second time in less than a week that a Yale student had reported being rape.
Cross Campus: 9.9.13
September 9, 2013 3:14 am Leave a Comment
Don’t forget. If you’re a member of the Class of 2017, your course schedules are due by 5 p.m. today. On the dot. Get those papers ready.

Smile! You’re on TV. Eric Stern ’15 appeared on Fox News’ “The Hannity Show” on Friday to participate in Hannity’s “College Forum,” a special episode with seven college Republicans and Democrats from across the country. Stern, a member of the Yale Dems, discussed the Affordable Care Act, budget deficit and taxes with the other 13 guests as Hannity moderated — and occasionally cut short — the discussion. At one point, when Hannity mentioned a study by The Cato Institute, Stern rolled his eyes, prompting Hannity to respond, “It’s a libertarian think tank!”

Around the country in 457 days. Yale alumnus Ethan Rodriguez-Torrent ’13 completed his 4,000-mile cross-country bike trip on Friday, pedaling up to the Golden Gate Bridge and finishing a journey he started more than a year ago from Virginia Beach, Va. that took him to Aurora, Colo. in July 2012 for the Dark Knight Rises premiere. Rodriguez-Torrent, one of the survivors of the Aurora shooting, decided to finish the final leg of his bike trip where he left off: at the Century Aurora multiplex. Rodriguez-Torrent told the News that he rode for the dual purpose of completing the trip and raising money for victims with serious lifelong injuries. He plans to become a New Haven police officer.

Democracy in action. Campaigning for Yale College Council and Class Council elections begin today at 5 p.m. Candidates interested in running for office are allowed to solicit votes and upload promotional material during this time period. Elections will be held online from Sept. 11-12.

Tragedy in Milford. Thirteen children were injured in a carnival ride accident during the Norwalk Oyster Festival on Sunday. According to police reports, the swing ride lost power while children were airborne in the swings, and the machine continued to spin during the breakdown, dragging some chairs and their riders along the ground. Though all carnival rides during the festival were shut down after the accident, the three-day event remained open to the public.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1991 The University agrees to stop charging the government for a number of luxury items deemed inappropriate and unrelated to research activities, including hotel room expenses, flowers and salaries for fundraisers. The move comes after a federal audit of Stanford University found a number of fiscal abuses. Yale officials expect the University’s current 68 percent overhead reimbursement rate to be reduced significantly.
Cross Campus: 9.6.13
September 6, 2013 3:38 am Leave a Comment
Red Bull gives you wings. At least, it did for Graham Landy ’15 and his team, who qualified for and competed in the prestigious Red Bull Youth America’s Cup on Sept. 1-4. The international regatta, which was held this year in San Francisco, Calif., brought sailors from around the world for four days of intense racing. Landy and his team finished in tenth place against an international crew of elite athletes.

Tea time. Honest Tea cofounders School of Management Professor Barry Nalebuff and Yale alumnus Seth Goldman SOM ’95 recently appeared on NPR to discuss their tea products. Goldman, the company’s “TeaEO,” described the pair’s journey persuading distributors to deliver their products, which were less sweet than the teas typically being sold at the time. Nalebuff discussed their “social responsibility” corporate model before making a plug for his latest product: KomBrewCha, a mildly alcohol Kombucha. KomBrewCha’s motto? “Get tickled. Not pickled.”

Financing education. According to a recent article from CBS News, Yale is among the top 10 colleges for providing the highest average financial aid award to international students — collectively, the 10 schools averaged $48,000 in financial aid. Other schools on the list included Harvard, Amherst, the University of Chicago and Dartmouth.

Presidential put. Yale alumnus and former U.S. President George W. Bush ’68 became an honorary member of the team representing the United States in this year’s Walker Cup, a golf competition for leading amateaur golfers. The Cup was named in honor of George Herbert Walker, great-grandfather to Bush and former president of the U.S. Golf Association.

Free speech doesn’t come cheap. Connecticut State policy have issued new policies governing body tattoos and social media for department employees. Though the department has banned additional tattoos, it has issued a “grandfather waiver” for body art visible while in uniform. In addition, employees are prohibited from using social media while on duty.

A popular pizza place. More than 600 people applied for just 45 positions at the newly-opened Little Caesars Pizza on Whalley Avenue. That puts the acceptance rate for jobs there at 7.5 percent — roughly the same as Yale’s for the Class of 2014.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1974 Administrators open up a protected garage, the Pierson-Sage Garage, on Science Hill to reduce student parking issues.
Cross Campus: 9.5.13
September 5, 2013 2:11 am Leave a Comment
Is it chicken tenders day? Yes, yes it is. There will also be sliced bacon in Commons for breakfast, in case you were wondering.

Traveling wanderer, or wandering traveler? New Haven’s favorite street artist, known only as “Believe in People,” has apparently moved his work across the globe. The graffiti artist — who once painted a portrait in Linsly-Chittenden Hall of a young man writing “I will only work finance 1 year” before changing tone and saying he will only work finance for two years — recently posted photos on Twitter of his work on the streets of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Still, it looks like this wanderer misses the Elm City: He wrote that he craves Pepe’s Pizzeria and could use a walk around Wooster Square.

Water shortage. The main water supply line to Payne Whitney Gymnasium was shut off at 8 p.m. on Wednesday night because of emergency water repair issue. Until repairs are made, water supply will not be available in Payne-Whitney. As of Wednesday night, administrators planned to reopen the facility at 6 a.m. today.

They’re back. HackYale, the popular student-led series of hacking courses, is back for the 2013-’14 school year. This semester, HackYale is offering two weekly workshop-style courses: Web Development 101 and Intro to Front-end Development. Classes will have roughly one to two hours of homework per week.

More construction updates. University Librarian Susan Gibbons sent an email to the Yale community on Wednesday updating members of the progress of Sterling Memorial Library renovations. The restorations will include the full interior of the nave — including cleaning and repairing its stained glass windows, stonework and woodwork — new heating and air conditioning systems, and reconfiguring the circulation desk. In addition, new service desks and study areas will be added. The renovations were funded by a $20 million gift from Richard Gilder ’54 and his wife, Lois Chiles.

Awarding excellence. In March, the University announced the nine winners of the Sandy M. Campbell Literature Prizes, which awards an unrestricted grant of $150,000 to support their writing. President Peter Salovey will confer the awards on September 10 in a public ceremony — the same day as the start of the inaugural Windham Campbell Festival.

THIS DAY IN THE YALE HISTORY 1975 The Connecticut Company is selected as Yale’s company of choice to operate University shuttle buses. Passengers not carrying bus passes will be subject to a 35-cent fee.
Cross Campus: 9.4.13
September 4, 2013 2:41 am Leave a Comment
Animal kingdom. By now, most Yalies are used to New Haven’s particularly aggressive breed of squirrels, and, occasionally, the cockroach in the basement. But Stilesians were in for a treat on Tuesday when a skunk was spotted in the Crescent Underground Courtyard. According to an email from Stiles Master Stephen Pitti ’91, administrators were working to catch the “beautiful stinker” and planned to reopen the area as soon as possible.

Construction update. Provost Ben Polak updated Yalies on the progress and scheduled completion of three large construction projects happening around campus, helping to explain the large amount of blue tarp on major campus fixtures. In an email to the Yale community, Polak said the $30 million exterior renovation of Payne Whitney Gymnasium should be completed by August 2014, the Sterling Chemistry Laboratory renovations by fall 2016, and the upgrades to 43 Hillhouse Avenue — the “President’s house” — by fall 2014.

Not finance or banking. It looks like not all Yalies make a beeline for Wall Street after graduation. According to Teach for America’s (TFA) sixth annual ranking report, Yale ranks 12th among medium-sized universities for largest number of graduates — at 30 — working as teachers in TFA’s 2013 corps. Roughly 7 percent of the University’s graduating seniors applied for TFA, and throughout the program’s history, more than 525 Yale alumni have taught as corps members.

Choo choo. With the help of a $10 million federal grant, the New Haven State Street Station will build a second platform, intended to facilitate trains traveling along the planned New Haven-Hartford-Springfield rail line. U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro, Connecticut Senators Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy praised the initiative.

History buffs, rejoice. Sterling Memorial Library recently purchased the American Pamphlets Series 1, 1820-1922 database, a collection that contains pamphlets and short works from the Jacksonian era to the Jazz Age. Content will be added until December 2014.

THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1985 Hundreds of underage Yalies line up outside SSS 114 to receive “drinking cards,” part of the University’s response to a new state law that sets the drinking age at 21. Because of the new law, no alcohol will be permitted at parties on Old Campus, and on-campus parties thrown by college social committes with Yale funds will require paid bartenders and policemen. Parties with more than 20 guests will require the prior approval of college masters.