The Science of Toga Parties

I'm about to dash off to my first day of winter semester at school, but I thought I'd comment on this morning's news in small bits.

Obama Costs Irish Bookie $75,000

What?! They are betting on our next president in the same way that we gamble on sports and horse races! I was shocked at the principle of doing this, at first. Then, it became quite humorous. I would suppose that if you can't vote, you might as well have money on it anyway.


Both individual behavior and the environment matter when it comes to student-drinking behavior. At the individual level, playing drinking games and having a history of binge drinking predicted higher BrACs. At the environmental level, having a lot of intoxicated people at a party and themed events predicted higher BrACs. One of the more interesting findings was that young women drank more heavily than males at themed events. It is rare to find any situation where women drink more than men, and these events tended to have sexualized themes and costumes.
{read the rest of the article at The New York Times}

Finally, ladies. It's about time that we started outdrinking those men! Wait--that means that we're increasing the likelihood that many more of us will be raped, "taken advantage of", and do stupid shit (like drive). While the article seemed humorous, college students being raped did not. A big huge road apple (courtesy of the Midwest's own) to the New York Times for making light of a very dangerous trend.


In the competitive scramble for prestige and rankings, numerous colleges already try to lure some top students away from the Ivy League by showering them with “merit aid” even if they are well off and can afford full tuition. The practice is controversial, with some college administrators scorning it as a way of “buying” a better incoming class, sometimes at the expense of lower-income students.

Some administrators say there will now be pressure to provide more merit aid to relatively wealthy high achievers, reducing the amount available to poorer students.

“It could lead to schools’ doing this sort of thing because they want to be part of the top group,” David W. Oxtoby, president of Pomona College in California, said of Harvard’s move. If that meant those colleges had to reduce the number of their low-income students, Dr. Oxtoby said, “that would be terrible, exactly the wrong outcome.” (Pomona itself, where full costs are more than $45,000, does not provide merit aid.)
{read the rest of the article from The New York Times}

I'm torn on this concept of merit aid. On one hand, I see where the article is coming from. Giving aid to wealthy students is just not practical, when so many students wouldn't be able to go without the plain-old hand-up. With college now readily available to students from all backgrounds, it is the students from working- and middle-class families (today's question: define middle-class) that need the most help.

On the other hand, I still believe that hard work should be rewarded. After spending years studying, cramming, working, volunteering, and playing sports, it'd be nice to know that a college recognizes one's achievements.

Why not a combination? Why not set income limits for merit aid, then? That would defy the purpose of merit-based aid.

Jonathan Burdick, dean of admissions and financial aid at the University of Rochester, where costs are nearly $45,000, said: “Harvard has made it harder for everybody. They’ve given fuel to the argument that colleges are charging more than they should.”

The problem is that they ARE charging more than they should. Does Mr. Burdick realize that I actually have to repay all of this debt? That I may spend the rest of my life doing so? And this isn't uncommon. In fact, it's to be expected.

Harvard may be fueling that argument (and it's a valid argument!), but kudos to them for taking it upon themselves to recruit from a wider student base. People outside of the top 2% of incomes have skillz, too.