MIT’s The Weather Oldest and Largest Today: Cold, 25°F (–4°C) Tonight: Mostly cloudy, 16°F (–9°C) Newspaper Tomorrow: Some sun, 30°F (–1°C) Details, Page 2 Volume 125, Number 8 Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 Friday, February 25, 2005 IFC Presidents Vote Athena For Removal of SAE Computers By Kathy Lin party held at an Allston house where EDITOR IN CHIEF four SAE members resided, during Hacked The Sigma Alpha Epsilon frater- which several SAE members were nity was expelled from the Interfra- arrested. The expulsion “was in no By Beckett W. Sterner ternity Council on Wednesday. Since way a punishment for any of that,” NEWS EDITOR “MIT only recognizes fraternities Child said. The “presidents were About 90 Athena machines were that are members of the IFC,… SAE aware that there was an investiga- compromised in clusters early Tues- is no longer recognized by MIT,” tion,” but it had not yet concluded by day morning with software intended according to an IFC statement pro- Wednesday, so there “wasn’t any- to capture users’ passwords. vided by IFC President Christopher thing for them to find out,” he said. Between 2:20 a.m. and 4 a.m., P. Child ’06. It has not yet been decided “someone installed a password log- Because SAE was an associate whether the IFC’s investigation into ger on approximately 90” machines, member, rather than a full member, the party will continue now that SAE said Athena Systems Programmer the Presidents’ Council had the right is not a member of the IFC, Child Jonathon Weiss ’93, who was to vote to remove them from the IFC said. involved with the response effort. at any time. SAE was previously de- Not a virus, which is self-propa- recognized by the IFC in January SAE to reapply for membership gating, the software functioned as a 2000 after an underage drinking inci- SAE can petition the IFC for Trojan horse, Weiss said, duplicat- dent and re-recognized as an associ- readmission after three months, ing the login screen for Athena ate member at the end of last spring. Child wrote. “If they are readmitted, machines but then saving the user’s “The outcome of [Wednesday] they will begin the associate member password and username to a file in night’s vote was disappointing,” program as a new member,” he the system. wrote SAE President Neil J. Kelly wrote. A fraternity must be an asso- He said that Information Services ’06 in a statement from the fraternity. ciate member for at least one year, and Technology had neutralized the then a probationary member for six program’s storage mechanism by Expulsion not disciplinary months, before it can be a full mem- 8:15 a.m. As of 8:45 a.m., he said all The motion for expulsion was ber. 19 passwords had been randomized passed by the IFC Presidents’ Coun- “We will continue to work close- by IS&T and their users notified. cil with a majority, although the ly with our alumni, the MIT admin- Only one account showed suspi- actual vote could not be disclosed, istration, and the IFC with the intent cious activity, he said, when some- Child said. The reason for expulsion of reapplying for membership in one who was not the account holder was that “some of the presidents felt three months,” Kelly wrote. “We DAVID GANDY—THE TECH logged in and changed the password. that SAE hadn’t lived up to the stan- are excited about several upcoming Praveen Pamidimukkala ’08 blocks the ball against 11th The account showed no further sus- dard of being an associate member,” public service projects which will ranked Endicott College last Tuesday. The ninth ranked Engi- picious activity to Weiss’s knowl- Child said. help to strengthen our application neers suffered their first defeat of the season, falling to 16-1. edge. The IFC’s Judicial Committee and show that we are an asset to the By 11 a.m., the software had had been investigating a December Greek community,” he wrote. been removed from each of the affected computers, returning the Mass. Ave. Construction system to normal, he said. Investigation underway Weiss said that IS&T is currently Begins amid Complaints working to identify who might have By Beckett W. Sterner cism from MIT and Cambridge been involved in the attack. NEWS EDITOR community members at a forum “From the timings we saw [of the Massachusetts Avenue between held yesterday for failure to address software being installed], it is cer- Memorial Drive and Lafayette bicycle path safety, pedestrian tainly possible for it to have been Square will undergo construction crossing safety, and the elimination one person,” Weiss said. starting this March to improve the of 30 unmetered parking spots on The person or persons installed pavement and sidewalks, as well as the western side of Mass. Ave. the software by logging in with the to redesign the intersection of Main The construction will run from root password for the Linux systems, Street, Columbia Street and Mass. March, 2005 through September, which is available for all MIT com- Ave. munity members. Parts of the project drew criti- Construction, Page 12 Weiss said that root access is typ- ically used by students to broken fix computers or for other non-harmful GSC Presents Survey Data, projects. “Making [the root pass- word] available to the community is something that MIT has historically Ideas on Grad Student Life done,” he said, and it has not led to By Kathy Dobson students. many problems in the past. ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR The recommendations are based Besides, “once you have physical Graduate Student Council mem- on an analysis of questions from the access to the machine,” Weiss said, bers presented recommendations for 2004 Graduate Student Life Survey there are multiple ways to break in ways to improve graduate advising and suggestions from a series of without root access. to about 150 students, faculty mem- focus groups that met last Novem- He said that “this is only the sec- bers, and administrators on Tues- ber. ond event of this scale that I can day. The recommendations include About a third of respondents think of that has happened in the last increasing communication among wanted more contact with their ten years.” Some possible changes to students, faculty, departments, and advisor, the survey found, and while the system have been discussed, he the Institute, and providing said, but that nothing has been resources that are more accessible to GSC, Page 16 decided so far. Candidates for Undergraduate Association President and Vice President Elections John M. Cloutier ’06 and Jessica H. Lowell ’07 Calvin G. Sizer ’06 and Bryan D. Owens ’07 B. D. COLEN—THE TECH Students with cardboard “Free Hugs” signs offer to hug See page 12 for a list of candidates for Class Council positions. passersby in Lobby 7 on Tuesday morning. Source: Tiffany L. Seto ’06. UA Elections Commissioner The Tech Comics NEWS predicts MIT does well in poorly designed World & Nation . 2 Academy postdoc survey Opinion . 4 Award win- Page 14 Arts . 9 ners Summers to improve leadership Sports . .20 Page 10 Page 7 Page 15 Page 2 THE TECH February 25, 2005 WORLD & NATION Kansas Attorney General Putin Unyielding While Bush Seeks Abortion Records By Jodi Wilgoren THE NEW YORK TIMES TOPEKA, KAN. Critiques Russian Democracy Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline, a Republican who has made fighting abortion a staple of his two years in the post, is demanding By Elisabeth Bumiller their summit meeting at the shoulder-fired missiles and some the complete medical files of scores of women and girls who had late- and David E. Sanger medieval Bratislava Castle over- other deals already committed to on term abortions, saying Thursday that he needs the information to THE NEW YORK TIMES looking the Danube was designed to trade and energy. prosecute criminal cases. BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA portray unity, and the two leaders On an important issue of tension Kline emphasized statutory rape at a news conference here, but he President Bush expressed con- used the occasion to emphasize — Russia’s continued sale of equip- also spoke obliquely of other crimes that court documents suggest cern on Thursday night about Rus- common ground. But it also offered ment to Iran for its nuclear program could include doctors’ providing illegal late-term abortions and sia’s commitment to democracy in a unusual moments of heat as Bush — there appeared to be little health professionals failing to heed a state law that requires the sometimes tense and awkward continued to press a campaign for progress, though a senior adminis- reporting of suspected child sexual abuse. encounter with President Vladimir democracy and liberty that has tration official said the president “When a 10-, 11- or 12-year-old child is pregnant, under Kansas V. Putin. Putin, at times visibly received mixed reviews during his was “satisfied” that Putin had reiter- law that child has been raped, and as the state’s chief law enforce- uncomfortable, refused to yield. four-day European tour. It appeared ated his pledge not to sell nuclear ment official, it is my obligation to investigate child rape, in order to “Democracies have certain to have struck one of its more dis- fuel to Iran without an agreement protect Kansas children,” Kline said. things in common — a rule of law cordant notes with Putin. that the spent fuel would be returned and protection of minorities and a The exchanges stood in contrast to Russia. free press and a viable political to the reception Bush received hours That has been important to the Palestinian Cabinet Approved, opposition,” Bush said after a meet- earlier during his speech to thou- United States because spent fuel can ing that lasted more than an hour, sands of enthusiastic Slovaks in be converted to weapons-grade plu- With Few Arafat Allies chiding Putin gently, though more Bratislava’s main Hviezdoslavovo tonium.