Neuroscience

So, I've been pretty out of the neuroscience loop since graduating four years ago, but this nonsense really got my blood boiling. I stewed about it for a few days, before finally sending Dario Maestripieri this email:

Dear Professor Maestripieri,

My name is Caroline Rubin, and I have a BS in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from MIT. MIT doesn't award honors, but I graduated with a perfect GPA and departmental awards for both outstanding research and outstanding academic record. I was hoping you could help me with a question that has been nagging at me since I began my career in science - am I physically attractive enough? I became interested in science, as all young girls do, out of a desire to aesthetically please male scientists, and I am concerned that I may not be doing the job well enough. My current colleagues insist on evaluating me based solely on the quality of my work instead of my sex appeal; it's very frustrating and degrading. I have attached some data to assist in your assessment; I am hoping your finely tuned eye and vast research experience can finally put this question to rest for me.

Best,
Caroline

Here is the data I attached:

Ben said this is me being a sarcastic asshole at its finest, which I am taking as a compliment. I am very curious to see if he writes me back!

Oh, and for all my lady scientist friends, his email address is dario@uchicago.edu. Have fun!

That was fast

It has been less than a week since our flood, and today we had this letter waiting for us (presumably everyone in the building got one):

Dear Homeowner/Resident,

Due to the unfortunate circumstances to your condo building, we are sincerely sorry for any loss you have occurred. While there is nothing we can do to make the situation easier, we can offer you a FREE estimate to have repairs made in a professional and timely manner so you can go on living in a comfortable environment again.

We are a licensed and insured Home Improvement Company that deals with water claims, removal and disposal, home remodeling and restorations. Please check out our website at ___. If interested in a Free estimate please do not hesitate to contact me at ___.

Again, we are very sorry for your loss and hope we can help improve your living arrangements in the near future.

I know they are just trying to make a living, but... yeesh.  Even if it had been well written, it still feels icky.

Home Sweet Home

While out doing some last-minute shopping today, I spotted this charming shirt on the guy in front of me in line:

If you can't tell, the fabric is a camo print.

It's great to be home in the only red county in Maryland!

Dollar Pledge for MIT

This will mostly only be interesting to my MIT friends, but I thought I would post the letter I sent to the Alumni Association and assorted others when I made my dollar pledge (which all you MIT people better do if you haven't already!).

Dear MIT,

I am disappointed to learn of this year's decision to limit the Residence Exploration period to a single day of freshmen orientation. My residence hall formed the core of my MIT experience, and after I graduated and joined Teach For America, it was my residence hall that for two years in a row banded together to help me raise the money to bring my students from the Bronx to MIT for a day to experience college life. It was students at my residence hall that offered up their time to take my students on tours of the campus and of their laboratories, to do experiments with them, and to cook them a delicious barbecue dinner with liquid nitrogen ice cream for dessert. These two visits were absolutely life-changing for my students, and are what I am proudest of as an MIT alum. They would not have happened without support from my residence hall, including from students I never even lived with while I was an undergraduate. That support would not have existed without the strong emphasis on residential community and culture that was in place when I was an undergraduate, and it saddens me to learn that this vital component of MIT is being deprioritized for future generations of students.

I still care about MIT and its mission, but I cannot support the way that decisions are being made, or the way that student life policy is being set. I have donated $1 to the MIT Marching Band fund, and the rest of my donation, $60, is being given to StudentsFirst instead.

Sincerely,

Caroline Rubin '08

Updated: I got this form letter response from Julie Norman, Director of the Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming:

Dear Ms. Rubin,

Thank you for your feedback. Though we are looking at orientation, as a
whole, no decision have been made on the final schedule. While we are
reviewing our options, there is no plan to shorten the REX period in the
coming year.

We appreciate your support of MIT and hope that, with the correct
information in hand, you will continue your commitment to the Institute.

My best,

Julie

Basically, what she said is not actually true, so I replied with:

Hi Julie,

Thank you for your response. My understanding is that while REX will not technically be shortened, it will overlap significantly with FPOP's and ASE's, and that students who are not participating in an FPOP will not be able to arrive on campus early (when REX officially begins). These changes do in effect shorten REX, even if on paper it appears to be the same length.

I cannot continue to support the Institute until I know that fully participating in the entirety of REX is possible for all incoming freshman, and that it remains that way not just "in the coming year," but in all the coming years.

Caroline

So if you did the pledge and got the auto-reply, I definitely encourage you to reply back and call her on trying to fudge the truth!