Character Vitae. New York Times columnist David Brooks — better known around these parts for teaching “Humility” — publishes his newest project today. Entitled “The Road to Character,” his book and seminar both attempt to define a life well-lived. So one can essentially learn the same material either way; it just depends whether you’d rather spend $20 on a book or pay the lifelong costs of therapy to recover from your classmates in Humility.
She has a nice personality. Paul Krugman ’74, Brooks’ colleague at the Times, couldn’t care less about personality when it comes to politics. In his Monday column, Krugman suggested that, as parties grow further and further apart, voters identify the candidate that they believe will stand most firmly for his or her policy views, rather than seeking the one they deem most pleasant.
Preps’ preferences. Yesterday, Bloomberg sat down with Prep for Prep CEO Aileen Hefferen to discuss the state of the program, which helps groom minority students hoping to attend top colleges. The piece included a graphic that broke down the eventual college choices of the program’s alumni: Wesleyan, Harvard, Yale and Columbia took the top four spots, in that order.
It is pretty. The Undergraduate Admissions Office continued its “Inside the 12 Residential Colleges” series on social media last night, electing to crown Branford “Yale’s most iconic.” The attached photo of Harkness in springtime makes a convincing case, we’ll admit.
Contender or pretender? The U.S. Universities Debating Championship has been taking place at the University of Alaska Anchorage over the past few days, and, last we heard, the Yale contingent made it to the final round against Brown, Harvard and Morehouse.
“Nothing matters.” That seems to be the logic behind Google’s hiring process, at least according to human resources executive Laszlo Bock, who was interviewed by Time Magazine yesterday. Though Bock acknowledged that Google once prioritized Ivy League candidates, he pointed out that the software giant isn’t so picky these days, even de-emphasizing the importance of college grades.
Drop the Hammer. Even though he’s a campus regular, English Department Chair Langdon Hammer ’80 GRD ’89, will receive guest of honor status at today’s J.E. master’s tea. He, like Brooks, is also promoting a book that comes out today.
THIS DAY IN YALE HISTORY 1977 The Yale Coproration prepares to vote on a $1,000 raise in all faculty salaries.
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Clarification: April 16
The News misconstrued rankings going into the U.S. Universities Debating Championship and falsely suggested, using the phrase “cinderella squad,” that Morehouse’s appearance in the USUDC’s championship round was unexpected.