March 29, 2011 - 8:11pm
In Other Ivory Towers: Massive snow storm shuts down classes
BY MELISSA MARCUS
As Washington, D.C. was bombarded with snow last week, many universities in the area closed, including Georgetown University, The Hoya reported.
According to a Feb. 9 article published in the Hoya, students began a mass exodus from the library after they learned their classes were canceled for the second day in a row.
Georgetown University freshman Julia Von Turk, who was studying in the library at the time, told the Hoya that “all the rules of the library were abolished.”
Georgetown University Provost James O’Donnell told the Hoya he believes there are pros and cons to canceling class.
“Our bias is always in favor of staying open and staying active, but we also feel strongly the responsibility to be prudent and to encourage all members of the community to put their health and safety and that of their families first,” O’Donnell wrote in an e-mail interview to The Hoya.
According to the article, staple items like bread and eggs flew off the shelves at campus grocery store Vital Vittles.
PATERNO LOSES ICONONIC THICK-FRAME GLASSES
Pennsylvania State University football coach Joe Paterno, known for his thick glasses, recently had eye surgery to correct his impaired vision. Despite the surgery, he will wear glasses that have thinner lenses, according to an article in The Daily Collegian.
Paterno decided to have the corrective surgery after struggling with reading during the last six months.
As reported in the article, some said they will mourn the loss of Paterno’s thick specs.
“He’s got to wear (the glasses) — he’s Joe Paterno,” Pennsylvania State University historian Lou Prato said in the article.
PROFESSORS DISCUSS THEIR PASSIONS AT HARVARD THINKS BIG
Ten Harvard University professors from various fields spoke at the first “Harvard Thinks Big” event at Harvard University last week and stood onstage like “rock stars,” according to The Harvard Crimson.
The professors spoke for 10 minutes each and led talks based on their expertise. Topics included the significance of cooking for human evolution, religious pluralism and humans’ inability to understand global warming.
The event attracted an estimated crowd of 1,166 people. Hundreds of students waited in line for two hours to attend the lecture — only to be turned away when the theater was filled to capacity.
