Whether you’re still half-asleep from a week-long hibernation or still hung over from those crazy nights in Cabo, that 9:30 a.m. class still isn’t going away. One peek at those syllabi is sure to slap you awake, anyway. Midterm? Paper? Quizzes? Isn’t this Spring Quarter? It looks like this week, NU, you’re anxiously wondering when the birds will start singing.
The outdoor emergency alarm test helpfully jolted those sleeping in class Tuesday morning. Though it was reported that the alarm wouldn’t generally be audible indoors, we all simultaneously learned that is not remotely true.
With everyone talking about the dazzling and numerous new acceptees of the Class of 2012, most of us were sneaking a peek at their Facebook group to see just how ridiculous they are this time. And yes, they’ve already started talking about sororities. Surprised?
But our ego suffered a blow, too: even though more applicants were accepted this year, the administration says the class size will be about the same. Why don’t the freshmen want us?
Luckily, we can comfort ourselves with the fact that four NU schools moved up in the U.S. News & World Report academic rankings. Law, Kellogg, Feinberg, and McCormick can all dust their shoulders off for making Northwestern a little more brag-worthy. Just don’t mention that SESP fell in the rankings.
This approving nod to Feinberg was especially well deserved, since on Wednesday, new nanotechnology findings for spinal cord injuries engineered by Northwestern researchers were published in the Journal of Neuroscience. A certain spinal-cord injection has helped laboratory mice (and may, someday, help humans) walk independently after sustaining spinal-cord injuries. No word yet on how the mice sustained the injuries in the first place.
To add to Northwestern’s scholarly (and less gruesome) achievements, a recent study has brought about a new angle to racial tension. Researchers have found that whites have a tendency to avoid interaction with blacks for fear of offending or appearing racist. Editor’s note: Original joke was removed for fear of offending or appearing racist.
In completely inoffensive news, the School of Continuing Studies is celebrating its 75th birthday. An event will be held on April 11 at Wieboldt Hall to commemorate the milestone. Now we just have to figure out exactly what the School of Continuing Studies does. And where Wieboldt Hall is.
And to everyone’s surprise, A&O’s Counting Crows tickets did not sell out within two seconds. Maybe the camping out and scalping craze is over, but maybe it’s because we’re tired of hearing “Accidentally in Love” (and let’s face it, that’s the only Counting Crows song anyone really knows).
All this week, workers were seen hoeing, mulching, planting and gardening to make our winter-worn campus livelier. Take this as a sign that spring is finally on its way. And try not to think about the fact that those lilacs by the Arch probably aren’t there for you, but for the imminent slew of prospies and concerned parents.