In his first known public appearance on campus since his abrupt resignation at the beginning of the semester, former Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson was seen at the Palestra last night cheering on the Quakers in their loss against UNC.

When approached by a DP reporter at halftime, he would say only that he usually comes to several games a year and that he didn’t think it unusual that he was attending a sporting event on campus after his mysterious resignation.

Former Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson (right) watches Penn play UNC in the Palestra.
Ryan Townsend/DP

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The new vaccine for the human papilloma virus has been heavily advertised by the mass media and remains a hot topic in women’s health discussion. But you couldn’t tell by looking at the number of vaccine recipients here on campus. Student Health Services reports only having given out 150 vaccinations against cervical cancer. The low number is somewhat disconcerting considering that undergraduates are at the outer edge of the age brackets of those eligible to receive it.

“All places administering the vaccine, following the approved licensing, offer it to females between the ages of 11-26, including females 26 years old,” said Evelyn Wiener, Director of Student Health Services. “It does not matter whether they are sexually active.”

The vaccine comes in three doses given over a six month span. Unfortunately, insurance does not cover the price of $130 per injection. Another impediment may be that even those medical providers that support the vaccine do so with hesitation since it is a new therapy.

“The vaccine offers a lot of promise in preventing the two strands most commonly linked to cervical cancer. But we have to balance the excitement with the concerns,” said Wiener. “It does not protect against other strains that could cause cervical cancer. We’ll only better know potential side affects after millions of doses have been administered.”

But precautions are associated with almost every type of medical therapy from the most minor of surgical procedures to over-the-counter medications. Thriftiness, trepidation nor laziness should stand as reasons preventing female students to at least inquire about the HPV vaccine. Remember if you wait too long, you are no longer eligible. To learn more, check out SHS’s site.

Passing notes in grade school was always fun until the teacher intercepted them. But technology has provided us with a newer more sophisticated technique: text messaging.

Diverted eyes and twiddling fingers underneath desks is a dead giveaway for students, but what seems blatantly obvious to us consistently slides by professors.

“Text messaging is a good way to communicate without interrupting the class,” said College sophomore Amr Refaat. “But I think it’s underutilized in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world, especially Europe.

“During those long lectures, I do it occasionally,” said College sophomore Victoria Wilbur. “Whether it’s about meeting a friend for lunch after class or other things that come up, it provides for distraction.”

Texting is the AIM of the classroom- a nice breather between note-taking and raising your hand for those coveted participation points.

But it’s not all fun and games. Text messaging has fostered sophisticated cheating schemes. In response, administers of standardized tests have increased monitoring efforts to ensure cell phones are not used.

It’s a double-edged sword. Cell phones have a fun side and another that poses an array of ways to thwart honest academic achievement.

Check back later today for more from The Spin, including Amruta Godbole on money buying joy and Caroline Pearsall on the virtues of the family portrait.

The inaugural issue of The Walk

Everybody loves fashion or at least admires its beauty.

The proof lies in the high circulation of Vogue, Elle and Glamour as well as the massive popularity of shows like Project Runway, What Not To Wear and America’s Next Top Model.

Recently, Penn students have put a collegiate spin on the industry that has become a kind of leisure sport for Americans. Dzine2Show, Penn’s fashion society, has ventured into the world of journalism with The Walk, Penn’s first publication dedicated to fashion.

“As a fashion society, it seemed the next logical step to start a fashion magazine,” Wharton senior and editor of The Walk Stephanie Williams said.

The publication serves not only as resource for those interested in fashion and style on campus, but as a pre-requisite for those interested in pursuing careers in communications, retail, journalism and marketing.

“it’s not just about fashion,” Williams said. “We want to give people a background in media and the opportunity to gain experience in photography, graphics, design and to just express yourself in fashion.”

The organization was started by Penn alums Charlene Ong and Ebele Mora.

“When we founded the organization in our sophomore year, our aspiration was to fill the void we saw in the Penn curriculum for those students wanting to express a creativity in fashion design,” Ong said. “Even in its initial phases, Dzine2Show has always had an applicable business side, well in tandem with the motto Penn has about the importance of vocational learning.”

If their magazine launch party downtown this past weekend is any indication, Dzine2Show has their business down solid. The magazine will be distributed on a quarterly basis and the premier issue “Walk This Way” will be available on campus after Thanksgiving break.

(Wikipedia.org)

When Dartmouth sophomore Rembert Browne cited Wikipedia in a research paper last year, his professor requested that he replace it with a more permissible scholarly source. Despite the site’s immense popularity, the question of Wikipedia’s validity as an academic resource goes beyond the Dartmouth faculty.

There is a great danger in relying too heavily upon a source in which anyone can write as an authority on any subject. However, Wikipedia entries and other online resources, such as Google, can make college classes more interactive.

The internet allows for more spontaneous academic conversation, which is a healthy digression away from rigid curriculums. If a topic or historical figure arises in class discussion, a professor can easily jog his or her memory via the Web. These servers become the Genies of the classroom. But they are only academically useful and reliable as a main resource in the presence of knowledgeable professors, who can serve as filters and discern the accurate information posed.

I have been in many classes at Penn where professors have resorted to the Web to show a visual or familiarize students with a subject. The result is that classes feel more personal as students can direct the course of the conversation. For this reason, Web sites that may be inappropriate to cite in an academic paper can be valuable resources in the actual classroom.

Last night, a number Penn student groups collaborated in hosting the annual Hunger Banquet to address the global problem of starvation.

By the literal luck of the draw, students were divided into groups that represented three segments of the world population: 15 percent privileged enough to eat fully-balanced meals, 25 percent able to provide themselves with staples such as rice and soup and 60 percent whose destitution leaves them with only rice and water.

Last night’s Hunger Banquet (Antoniette Costa)

“The main goal is for people to actually experience hunger and recognize the world’s food distribution disparities,” said Raina Wallace, event organizer and Engineering junior. “It works even better for those who haven’t eaten yet.”

The event served as an epiphany to many attendees by exposing the dire problem of world hunger. Facts and figures were intertwined with this interactive dining simulation. Those sitting on the floor atop newspapers eating bland rice experienced a sense of injustice and frustration as the aroma of a three course meal made them envy those entitled to sit at the privileged table.

To learn more about becoming involved locally check out the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger website.

One cannot help but be sad to hear that Judy Wicks, the original founder of the internationally-known White Dog Cafe, will be leaving the establishment. Although Wicks’ exit will be a gradual process over 10 years, there is already a cloud of nostalgia forming as people anticipate the inevitable changes that will follow with new ownership.

From her emphasis on fostering a sense of community to serving up organic and farm-raised entrees, Wicks was never profit motivated. Rather, the essence of dining reflected an altruistic fusion of cuisine with social ethics. This was best illustrated by the restaurant’s motto: “Food, fun and social activism.”

(WhiteDog.com)

Sansom Street exudes the charm and quaintness often thought to only be found in Old City. White Dog is the heart of this tiny block and embellishes its aura with its unique culinary and visual experience. The interior has a hominess reminiscent of Grandma’s house. The old fashioned doors with chipping paint, the creaky wooden floors, the warm drapery and dim lamp light make it so no matter what your background, you feel a sense of belonging.

White Dog is a gem in a nation where chains are taking over. We can only hope that the essence of this institution, in the heart of Penn, will be passed down so that generations to come can experience the magic of this authentic eatery.

Though saddened, after over 20 years of dedication, Philadelphians don’t question Wicks decision to move on. As College sophomore Lauren Yokomizo put it, “No matter what the profession, there comes a time when you need to move on and onto new projects.”

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Wick plans to pursue many different interests. Next fall she will be honored as one of Bryn Mawr’s first Katharine Hepburn Teaching Fellows. She is also in the midst of writing a book. I wish her the best of luck in whatever she chooses to pursue!

Penn is not the only university getting negative press coverage this week thanks to the poor judgment of some students. At 2 a.m. Sunday morning, Carnegie Mellon University senior Sudeep Paul and junior Anand Durvasula were arrested for breaking into Heinz field in Pittsburgh.

They claim that they are film students and were seeking night shots for a video. But they initially told police that they were CMU students with tickets to the game and wanted to see where they had to go beforehand. It appears that the students had no malicious intent and were actually involved in a prank or fraternity-type dare.

Regardless of intent, the incident was handled as a terrorist threat. Their vehicle and apartment were searched for explosives. Both students have been criminally charged with conspiracy and trespassing. Each is being held on a $1 million bond.

Paul, Durvasula and Penn’s own Saad Saadi have learned the hard way that terrorism has changed what is socially and legally permissible. Fraternity type stunts or acts for the sake of attention are no longer regarded leniently. Such pranks have serious consequences. Our generation will have to bear such ramifications of post-September 11 security concerns. Sadly those with foreign sounding names will often face deeper scrutiny for such lapses in judgment.

The other day I was talking with a friend about his medical school applications. He voiced some concern about recently finding out that he had addressed a thank you letter to the wrong interviewer. He was pretty freaked-out due to the general consensus that writing thank you notes is a necessity.

Many graduate school policies concerning thank you notes suggest that writing them is indeed more than just a kind gesture–it’s pretty much a requirement.

At the University of Michigan Medical School “we both record whether or not we receive thank you communication and that material is then appended to the applicant’s electronic file,” says Robert Ruiz, Director of Admissions.

In other words, your thank you notes to individuals may be read by an entire admissions committee.

Other schools give a bit less official weight to thank you letters. “We accept them and they are put in the committee’s folder for the applicant,” noted Gaye Sheffler, the Director of Admissions at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. “But it’s not a requirement and it’s not going to boost your chances of acceptance.”

While this policy appears to be less strict, it still means that an entire committee can read your thank you letters and not sending one could make you stand out in a bad way. Pressuring applicants to write letters of thanks is “like requiring people to hold the door for others, it’s kind of ridiculous,” says College sophomore Eddie Maiwald. Another College sophomore, Sara Cleto thinks that “it’s not necessary but a good idea.”

If applying to graduate school, you should definitely write thank-you notes after interviews and you should put a decent amount of effort into them.

Like it or not, it appears that the competition in the world of admissions has made thank you letters more than just a polite thing to do.

Students living in Rodin College House are getting in the habit of setting their alarm clocks 15 minutes earlier. With two of the building’s four elevators out of service, Rodin’s 800+ residents are paying for Halloween revelry that got out of hand.

Notices in the lobby posted by House Dean Ken Grcich read:

Two elevators are out of order due to vandalism. All of the light fixtures in both elevators were smashed.

Vandalized elevator in Rodin (Antoniette Costa)

Oddly enough, the incident was not reported as an act of vandalism.

The incident was classified as “damaged property” in the police report according to Karima Zedan, Division of Public Safety spokesperson. Rodin security guards were informed about the occurrence by second hand sources. There was no police investigation because of the way the damage was documented.

Not reporting this vandalism sets a bad precedent for future acts of recklessness on campus. In the meantime, regardless of what happened, it’s been a few too many times up and down twenty floors in overcrowded elevators. How long does it take to repair broken lights?