Harvard Today: October 21, 2014

Happy Tuesday, Harvard! We hope your Monday wasn’t too terrible, and that today won’t be either! This is about the point in the semester when we:

a) Realize just how many pages of reading we have yet to do (especially in advance of that midterm in a scarily few number of days)

b) Look over our pset from the start of the semester and don’t remember how to do any of it

c) Scroll through our unread emails and find a bunch that we should have answered a long time ago

d) All of the above. Whether you’re asking for extensions, hiring a BSC tutor (if any still exist), or just eating all the chocolate you can find, hopefully you’re finding some way to cope. And if you finished all your midterms and are on cruise control until finals, we simultaneously envy you and want to be you. One day, one day. Until then, we’ll keep trudging through the rain, procrastinating on everything, and drinking too many cups of HUDS hot chocolate. It’s just that time of the semester. And we’ll get through it together.

By Daniel N. Yue

IN THE ATMOSPHERE
Today's high is a crisp 61 degrees, with a low of 53. Unfortunately, there’s a 60% chance of rain all day, so don’t forget your umbrella! We’re still mourning the end of last week’s short-lived summer resurgence, but we guess that now that we’re officially a month into fall, we should be ready for the chill. Damn you flaky New England weather for giving us hope!

IN THE D-HALLS
Lunch
BBQ Chicken Sandwich with Bacon
BBQ Tofu Multigrain Pizza with Peppers and Onions (so much BBQ)
Margarita Pizza on Multigrain Crust

Dinner
Beef Shepherd’s Pie
Chicken Francais
Vegetarian Shepherd Pie with Cashew Cream Sauce

ON FLYBY
1) Dartmouth Dhall Bandits, Re-Inflated Grades at Princeton, and Columbia’s “Dicktation” Graffiti: Read up on happenings in the rest of the Ivy League, aka, Harvard’s frenemies.

2) Harvard: 4 Out of 5 Would Recommend: 4/5? That’s a B. Do better, Harvard.

IN THE NEWS
1) Harvard Likely To Offer Concentration in ‘Theater, Dance, and Media’: The Faculty of Arts and Sciences is likely to adopt a new concentration in “Theater, Dance, and Media” to begin enrolling undergraduates in fall 2015, University officials announced on Monday. The proposed concentration, which will require FAS approval following a curricular review, will launch thanks to $5 million of seed funding provided by University President Drew G. Faust from her discretionary funds.

2) Activists Kick Off Week-Long Fast for Divestment: Dozens of members of the Harvard community will not be swiping into dining halls this week as they participate in Divest Harvard’s week of fasting. The initiative, which lasts from Oct. 20 to Oct. 24, seeks to draw attention to Harvard’s continued investment of portions of its $36.4 billion endowment in fossil fuel companies and promote discussion about climate change.

3) FAS Office, Not ODR, Still Handling Faculty Misconduct Cases: The newly-formed Office for Sexual and Gender-Based Dispute Resolution, highlighted as one of the cornerstones of the University’s new sexual assault policy, will play no role in investigating cases of sexual misconduct by members of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, according to University leaders.

EVENTS
The Farmer’s Market is back today from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Science Center Plaza! Enjoy a respite from the rain while browsing through freshly baked bread, locally sourced produce, and unique arts and crafts.

Visit Piper Hall in Gund Auditorium (48 Quincy St) at 6:30 p.m. tonight to hear from Suketu Mehta, acclaimed writer, as he explores themes of migration, loneliness, and community in the world’s cities. This event is co-sponsored by the Harvard South Asia Institute.

Join the Harvard College Democrats and the Harvard Republican Club in L166 at the Institute of Politics tonight at 7 p.m. to watch the 2014 Massachusetts Governor’s Debate. Union Square Donuts will be served!

PHOTO OF THE DAY
Professor Lawrence Lessig video conferences Edward Snowden who leaked information from the National Security Agency in the summer of 2013, which was broadcast live in Ames Courtroom at Harvard Law School on Monday afternoon.