FIFTEEN MINUTES
Volume XXXVII, Issue IV
Harvard During World War II: A War Archivist’s Story of the University’s Bygone Era
Charged with documenting Harvard during World War II, Sterling Dow conducted laboratory visits, interviewed researchers, corresponded with faculty who had served in the war, and compiled extensive records detailing shifts in University policy and programming.
Editor's Note
Dear Reader, On this Housing-Day-less Spring Break Eve, we bring you a slate of stories to accompany you on your fast-approaching vacation. Whether you’ll be traipsing around the well-trod grounds of Harvard Yard or exploring new territory thousands of miles away, reading these stories is sure to be a trip in and of itself. So, all aboard! First, you’ll travel across familiar territory with MSA to the Science Center for a whimsical novelty. Then, AMS will walk you from the Quad to the EMR to deliver an archive of Latinx student organizations’ history. Rest your legs down on Mount Auburn Street as you join KAO for an interfaith “Lunchless Lunch.” Then, get some actual lunch alongside CJ and the students of Dudley House as they discuss what makes the Co-op unique. But don’t get too comfortable! With MAB, you’ll tour Harvard through the eyes of a war archivist, who documented troops on campus during World War II. Of course, no trip is complete without some beach reads tucked under your arm — or in this case, two inquiries that will challenge the way you think about modernity. WJM discusses how the internet itself has become desensitized to tragedy, and AWS questions whether artificial intelligence may disrupt Harvardians’ status as the cream of the crop. And as you transit to your Spring Break vacation by Amtrak, car, or plane, we hope you will uncover new things about yourself, too — just as TFB does in the endpaper that closes this issue. We’d like to thank our persistent writers, thoughtful editors, and keen-eyed photographers and designers for making this issue possible. We hope you’re all relaxing on a beach somewhere, and we’re excited to have you back in 14P soon. Happy trails, KJK+AJBS
In Transit
I grew up waiting for the weekend, for the days I could take that highway up to St. Louis or to Chicago, constantly itching for the next time I would travel to someplace I deemed exciting and different. I was always disappointed at the end of every trip, when I returned to Peoria.
Written in the Stars: Fasting Across Religions at Harvard
This year, a rare lunisolar convergence means several religious fasts overlap: the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the Christian season of Lent, the Jewish Fast of Esther, and the Bahá’i Nineteen-Day Fast.
Finding Home in Dudley House
Over dinner — chickpeas, sweet potato fries, hummus, and green goddess salad — students come in and out of the building. Most stop by with a greeting, and the experience feels as much as being at a family dinner table. They offer me a seat and ask if I’d like a plate of food. Any College student, they explain, is welcome to join the Co-op’s dinners each night.
As Student Groups Move Out of the SOCH, Latinx Organizations Work to Preserve Decades of History
Fatima C. Mendoza ’26 and Lucia C. Lopez ’28 were among the student leaders from Latinx organizations who made a joint effort to clear out their designated room of the SOCH. From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on March 6, they moved decades of student group history.
The Meme-ification of News
Humor as a coping mechanism is nothing new, but only now has this copium infiltrated our media ecosystem to such a radical extent.
The Great Leveling
Advanced AI models pose unprecedented challenges to Harvard’s meritocracy. What comes next?
Clowning Around with the Harvard Undergraduate Jugglers
I woke up bright and early on Saturday morning with the sole purpose of attending Harvard’s first pop-up juggling workshop.
In Transit
I grew up waiting for the weekend, for the days I could take that highway up to St. Louis or to Chicago, constantly itching for the next time I would travel to someplace I deemed exciting and different. I was always disappointed at the end of every trip, when I returned to Peoria.
Written in the Stars: Fasting Across Religions at Harvard
This year, a rare lunisolar convergence means several religious fasts overlap: the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the Christian season of Lent, the Jewish Fast of Esther, and the Bahá’i Nineteen-Day Fast.
Finding Home in Dudley House
Over dinner — chickpeas, sweet potato fries, hummus, and green goddess salad — students come in and out of the building. Most stop by with a greeting, and the experience feels as much as being at a family dinner table. They offer me a seat and ask if I’d like a plate of food. Any College student, they explain, is welcome to join the Co-op’s dinners each night.
As Student Groups Move Out of the SOCH, Latinx Organizations Work to Preserve Decades of History
Fatima C. Mendoza ’26 and Lucia C. Lopez ’28 were among the student leaders from Latinx organizations who made a joint effort to clear out their designated room of the SOCH. From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on March 6, they moved decades of student group history.
The Meme-ification of News
Humor as a coping mechanism is nothing new, but only now has this copium infiltrated our media ecosystem to such a radical extent.
The Great Leveling
Advanced AI models pose unprecedented challenges to Harvard’s meritocracy. What comes next?
Clowning Around with the Harvard Undergraduate Jugglers
I woke up bright and early on Saturday morning with the sole purpose of attending Harvard’s first pop-up juggling workshop.
