Lowell House News Volume 32, Issue 8 Monday 3 November Calendar Monday, November 3 * CIAO! Italian Language Table, 6:00-7:00pm, Dining Hall Wednesday, November 5 * UHS counselor drop-in hours, 5:00-7:00pm, N-14 * Chinese Table, 5:30-6:30pm, Dining Hall * Lowell Chemistry Tables, 8:00-10:00pm, Dining Hall * Physics table, 9:30-10:30pm, Dining Hall Thursday, November 6 ***TRIVIA NIGHT*** SCR v. JCR, taking place in the JCR at 8:15pm Sunday, November 9 * Operation Dishstorm, all day, return DHall dishes to plastic tubs in your entryway * Lewin Musicale, 10:00pm, Library Monday, November 10 * CIAO! Italian Language Table, 6:00-7:00pm, Dining Hall Tuesday, November 11 *Veteran's Day, House Office closed Wednesday, November 12 * UHS counselor drop-in hours, 5:00-7:00pm, N-14 * Chinese Table, 5:30-6:30pm, Dining Hall * Dessert Reception with Nick Daniloff '56 (Journalism and International Relations) JCR, 7:25-8:15pm --See listing in 'Events and Announcements' section below for more details-- * Lowell Chemistry Tables, 8:00-10:00pm, Dining Hall * Physics table, 9:00-10:00pm, Dining Hall Friday, November 14 * SAMC Charity Dance, Dining Hall, 10:00pm-2:00am *********************************************************** FROM THE RESIDENT DEAN * Ryan Spoering, Allston Burr Resident Dean Room A-22, 5-2283 (lo-abrd@fas.harvard.edu) As your Resident Dean, I am here to help you with all kinds of academic matters, and to help connect you with Harvard's many resources. Please come to me with questions and concerns of any kind--in addition to my advising and administrative roles, I also help Lowell House students manage personal struggles, illness and anything else you may encounter on your way to your degree. - HOUSE RENEWAL. Please fill out the important House Renewal survey at https://survey.fas.harvard.edu/. This is a chance to provide feedback on all aspects of your residential academic experience and to inform the renewal of the House system for the next century. - BUREAU PEER TUTORING. Feeling a little daunted by a class? Consider hiring a peer tutor through the Bureau of Study Counsel. Tutors are paid with a subsidy and the cost is very reasonable. Interested in tutoring other students in a class that you loved? Sign up as a tutor! For more information, see the Bureau website: http://bsc.harvard.edu/tutor.html - OFFICE HOURS THIS WEEK. I will have walk-in office hours this week MWF 10:00am-noon. For other times, please contact me or Kit in the House Office (5-2283, lowell@fas) to set up an appointment with me. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ASK BETH, the HOUSE ADMINISTRATOR * Beth Terry, A-22, 5-2283 (lo-admin@fas.harvard.edu) Dear Beth, My midterms are finishing up and I feel a tinge of boredom. In what way could I put my intellect to good use this week? Signed, Uber-Geek Dear Uber, Funny you should ask. You should use your primed mind this Thursday, November 6th at our TRIVIA NIGHT contest beginning at about 8:15pm in the JCR. Background: the Senior Common Room members brutalized their Junior Common Room counterparts in Trivia Night in the Fall of 2003, and frankly, the JCR never got over it. There was howling, gnashing of teeth and spitting of tacks. With renewed vigor the undergrads went on to beat the SCR members to a pulp in the following TWO contests of 2004 (much to our chagrin). In Spring 2005, however, in a VERY exciting twist of fortune, the most thrilling TRIVIA NIGHT ever witnessed in recorded history took place with a come-from-behind victory for the SCR in sudden-death overtime. All earlier defeats were avenged!! In the following Fall 2005 Trivia battle, Madame Victory enjoyed a second welcome in the SCR. Tutor feathers were dangerously fluffed by the warm zephyr of hubris and sagacity. Of course, as fate would have it, the SCR went on to be blindsided by a sophomore ambush in the Spring of 2006 and succumbed to the humbling force of a new aggressor. The next Trivia Night contest, the Fall of 2006, was close. The reigning student champions prevailed again--but only by a *single* point (leaving all parties trembling with nerves and in need of a very stiff drink). By Spring 2007 a revitalized SCR had regrown their ambition and managed a very skillful defense. They triumphed by the skin of their collective teeth, yet again by a single point. The vengeance was very sweet. Perhaps TOO sweet because in the Fall of 2007 and the Spring of 2008 the students rebounded with back-to-back victories (leading many to question the wisdom of having an undergraduate emcee....but I digress...) As we approach Fall 2008 and our much-anticipated TRIVIA NIGHT, I implore any bored minds out there to join the battle and test your mettle. There will be snacks. And perhaps the SCR will regain their title as the most trivial body in Lowell House!! ~Beth ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ FROM THE FELLOWSHIPS TUTORS * Josh Goldman (jdgoldm@fas.harvard.edu) * Courtney Peterson (cmpeters@fas.harvard.edu) * Susanna Mierau (susanna_mierau@post.harvard.edu) NEW LOWELL HOUSE FELLOWSHIPS WEBSITE We've redesigned the Fellowships section of the Lowell House website, featuring an all-new list of common fellowships designed to make it easy to find fellowships that will fund whatever it is that you're hoping to do. Check it out at http://lowell.harvard.edu/fellowships LOWELL FELLOWSHIPS MAILING LIST Want to know what fellowships are out there? Want to know about them before the deadlines appear in the newsletter? Want more information on the fellowships listed below? Subscribe to the fellowships mailing list to get notices about once every week or two of upcoming deadlines and things to think about (relevant for sophomores, juniors, and seniors). To subscribe, go to http://lists.hcs.harvard.edu/mailman/listinfo/lowell-fellowships . OFFICE HOURS We hold office hours on Sunday evenings in the dining hall, during which we'd be happy to discuss your plans and look over your application essays. To visit us during office hours, you need to sign up at least one day in advance on the sign-up sheet next to the fellowships bulletin board, right next to the entrance to the JCR. If you have specific questions, please email us at any time. UPCOMING INFOSESSIONS - 04 Nov, 6 PM, CGIS South, S354: Sakharov Human Rights Internships - Weissman International Internship Program (for underclassmen) * 03 November, 6:30-8:00 PM, Maxwell-Dworkin 119 * 04 November, 7:00-8:30 PM, PBHA Parlor Room - 06 Nov, 3 PM: Fellowship Budget Preparation Workshop - 12 Nov, 3 PM: Evaluating Fellowship Applications: A Conversation with Selection Committee Members - Kawamura Fellowship (for a summer in Japan and a week Thailand; no Japanese language skills necessary) * 12 November, 4:30-5:30 PM, OCS * 02 December, 4:30-5:30 PM, OCS * * * UPCOMING FELLOWSHIPS * * * FOR GRADUATE STUDY ABROAD: - 03 November: Ecole Normale Superieure Fellowship, Tower Fellowship, Williams-Lodge Scholarship to the Sorbonne. Funds one year of study in France. ENS and Williams-Lodge fellowships fund study at ENS and the Sorbonne, respectively; the Tower Fellowship is for any university in France. You can get the common application by emailing cgs@fas. - 13 November: Paul Williams Scholarship to Emmanuel College. Funds one year at Cambridge University in international government and public affairs (very broadly construed). - 17 November: Eben Fiske Studentship at Trinity College Cambridge. Funds multi-year advanced degrees. - 02 December: Harvard-Cambridge Scholarships. Funds one year at Cambridge University. - 05 December: Mackenzie King Harvard Scholarship. Partial support for study in Canada. - 08 December: Knox/Henry/von Clemm Scholarships (common application). Funds one year of study at various universities in the U.K. - 08 December: Harvard-China Scholarship. Funds a year of study or research in China. - 16 December: Herchel Smith Harvard Scholarship. Funds one year at Emmanuel College, Cambridge University in experimental natural sciences, computer science, or mathematics. FOR PURPOSEFUL TRAVEL (seniors only): - 06 December: Gardner, Shaw, Sheldon, Trustman traveling fellowships. Funds a year-long project of your choice in a foreign country. This is a Lowell House deadline, and you must have Lowell House nomination in order to apply. Application at http://lowell.harvard.edu/fellowships/nomination.php FOR GRADUATE STUDY AND/OR OTHER POSTGRADUATE ACTIVITIES: - 03-12 November (depending on field): NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Funds 3 years of graduate study in any field of science or engineering, including economics, psychology, and history of science. - 05 November: Carnegie Fellowship. Provides a one-year fellowship at the Carnegie Institute for International Peace. - 14 November: Ford Foundation Pre-doctoral Fellowships. Funds 3-5 years of study toward a Ph.D. or Sc.D., particularly for members of underrepresented minorities. - 15 November: GEM Awards. Funds graduate study in engineering for black, Latino, other Hispanic, American Indian, or Puerto Rican students. FOR UNDERCLASSMEN: - 04 December: Thouron Prize. Funds a summer of study at Cambridge University. - 11 December: Beinecke Scholarship. $2,000 for senior year and $30,000 for graduate study in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. FOR MORE INFORMATION: See the Lowell House fellowships website. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FROM THE PRE-LAW COMMITTEE Website: http://lowell.harvard.edu/advising/pre-lawPre-Law Committee (LoHoLaw@fas.harvard.edu) * Jean Han (jeanhan@fas.harvard.edu) * Sandy Alexander (sandy_alexander@post.harvard.edu) * Karl Procaccini (karlprocaccini@gmail.com) I. Important Dates for Applicants * November 4, 2008 (Tuesday): Regular Registration Deadline for the December LSAT If you are planning to take the December LSAT, register by this date. Late registration is available for an additional fee. See www.lsac.org for further details. II. Lowell House Pre-Law Events: * November 2, 2008 (Sunday): Pre-Law Dinner with Chuck Schilke: Washington Legal Careers Grab some dinner and join us for a discussion with Lowell House Pre-Law committee affiliate Chuck Schilke. He will discuss and answer questions about private firm, corporation, nonprofit, government agency, and academic careers, as well as options for those not going to law school immediately. Ask questions about the practice of law, and brainstorm with us about summer legal internships. Small Dining Room, 6:00-7:30pm. III. Other Events of Interest * November 7, 2008 (Friday): Law School Visit: USC Small group one-hour information session. OCS Conference Room, 12:00- 1:00pm. * November 13, 2008 (Thu): Movie & Panel: The Grey Zone and Supreme Court Case Negusie v. Mukasey, Austin North, Harvard Law School 5:30pm Movie: Between "war criminal" and "victim" lies The Grey Zone: The true story of the Sonderkommandos--the Jewish internees in Nazi death camps who were forced to assist in the systematic murder of other Jews. To what terrible lengths are we willing to go to save our own lives, and what in turn would we sacrifice to save the lives of others? 7:00pm Panel: Followed by a panel discussion on Negusie v. Mukasey (being heard by the Supreme Court on Nov. 5), refugee protection, and international justice. Panelists will be Anwen Hughes (Human Rights First), Alex Whiting (HLS Professor and former war crimes prosecutor in the Hague), and Sharan Parmar (HLS lecturer and human rights lawyer).. FOR MORE INFORMATION: See the Lowell House Pre-Law website. ------------------------------------------------------------------- FROM THE LOWELL GREEN TEAM * Susan De Wolf (Eco-Rep), Cassie Bowe with tutors Russell Miles, Patty Villarreal, Jenny Fisher Lowell's Green Team: On a Mission to take back the Green Cup * Green Tip of the Week Take the sustainability pledge to earn Green Cup points for Lowell www.greencampus.harvard.edu/pledge * Operation Dishstorm II ALL DAY Sunday November 9th Return dining hall dishware to bins at the bottom of each entryway. Questions, comments, ideas? E-mail sedewolf@fas.harvard.edu ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FROM YOUR CAREER AND PRE-BUSINESS ADVISING TUTORS * Russell Miles - Resident Tutor (rmiles@oxfamamerica.org, 3-2990) * Christopher Laconi - Non-Resident Tutor (claconi@mba2009.hbs.edu) Thinking about what you will do after Harvard? It's never too early or too late to start!! Who can help you with this? One great place to look for resources and information is the Office of Career Services http://www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu/students.htm. The website is fabulous with a lot of great information. The OCS office is just around the corner from Lowell House at 54 Dunster Street and there are many people there who are available to help with all of your specific needs. OCS also has a very full program of events throughout the year - from career fairs to resume clinics, interview workshops and meet-the-recruiter nights. Check out the website regularly for the latest event calendar. The General Career Adviser at Lowell, Russell Miles, is here to help you think through that decision and work out what you really want out of life and your career! There are so many interesting and valuable options available to you which are worth exploring. Russell can be contacted on rmiles@oxfamamerica.org or call 617-493-2990 to make an appointment. Or you can find in him J-11. Drop in times are: Weekdays 6:00pm - 10:00pm and Weekends 10:00am - 10:00pm. Christopher Laconi is a Non-Resident Tutor from the Harvard Business School and he can specifically help on Pre-Business discussions and exploring careers in banking and consulting. He may be reached at claconi@mba2009.hbs.edu or call 207-344-8923 for appointments. In addition to helping you think through your career decisions, Chris and Russell can also help get you on the path to further resources and can also help you finalize your resume and prepare for interviews. Russell is creating an e-mail list in order to send out messages about key dates and events. Please contact him if you are interested to have your name on this mailing list - rmiles@oxfamamerica.org *** Russell will be traveling to Oxford, Sri Lanka and India from 30 October to 15 November so he will not be available for meetings. Russell will, however, try to answer any e-mail enquiries. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FROM YOUR RESIDENT INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT / INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS ADVISER * Russell Miles (rmiles@oxfamamerica.org, 3-2990) Interested in international relations, international aid and development? Want to discuss international issues raised in class? Need help thinking about research paper topics? Want to meet and talk with people working in the development or humanitarian sector? Interested in an international career in public service, government or private sector, or simply wanting to travel to other regions of the world? E-mail me or come and talk with me about all these questions. If you would like to make an appointment to talk for a longer period, I am available for meetings on Saturday afternoons from 2.00pm-5.00pm. We will meet in the SCR. I am creating an e-mail list in order to send out messages about key dates and events related to international development and international relations. Please contact me if you are interested to have your name on this mailing list - rmiles@oxfamamerica.org *** I will be traveling to Oxford, Sri Lanka and India from 30 October to 15 November so I will not be available for meetings. I will, however, try to answer any e-mail enquiries. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS * PROFESSOR NICK DANILOFF VISITS LOWELL HOUSE Lowell House alumni Nick Daniloff '56 will be coming for dinner with his classmates followed by a dessert reception on WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12th in the Lowell JCR. It is open to all students. Professor Daniloff is a Northeastern professor and an American journalist who served as a foreign correspondent for United Press International and U.S. News & World Report in London, Paris, Moscow and Washington D.C. He was most prominent in the 1980s for his reporting on the USSR. He came to wider international attention in 1986 when he was arrested in Moscow by the KGB and accused of espionage. He has written three books since, The Kremlin and the Cosmos (1972) and Two Lives One Russia (1988), Of Spies and Spokesman: My Life as a Cold War Correspondent (2008). Come hear his story. This is a chance for students interested in Government, Journalism and International Relations to meet Nick Daniloff and have a Q&A session over desserts in the JCR, 7:15 - 8:15pm, 11/12/08. * AWARD FOR BOOK COLLECTING Do you collect books of a certain type, on a particular topic or theme, or for a special reason? If so, you should consider entering this year's Undergraduate Book Collecting Prize Competition. First Prize is $1500; Second Prize is $1000; and Third Prize is $750. Winning collections in past years have centered on the Berlin subway system, ocean liner books and memorabilia, antique cookbooks, autographed books, and "labyrinthine" literature. Last year's winning collections are displayed in exhibit cases on the second and third floors in Lamont. If you're interested in entering the Competition, you should notify Martin Schreiner (schrein@fas.harvard.edu), the Interim Librarian of the Lamont Library, of your intention to apply. You should do so IN WRITING by 5 PM on FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2008. (The deadline for submitting an essay and annotated bibliography describing your collection is 5 PM on FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2009.) * DROP IN FOR A HELPFUL CHAT UHS Mental Health Services is excited to pilot a new program in Lowell House. Each Wednesday from 5:00-7:00pm, Jennifer Strong will be available for consultation in room N-14. Stop by to introduce yourself when the door is open. Speaking with a counselor can help provide insight, workable solutions and information about resources. You are welcome to consult with Jennifer about challenges you are facing, or bring a friend you believe could use some support. * MASTER CLASS WITH BAROQUE OPERA SOPRANO ELLEN HARGIS Mon, Nov 3, 3:00pm, New College Rehearsal Studio Hargis, who specializes in 17th and 18th century music performance will present a brief lecture and conduct a master class with the student cast of Cavalli's 1644 opera, L'Ormindo. Free, no tickets required.