January 20, 1988 N

Continuous MIT I New~as Serv/ice I CambPridfge Since 1881 WMassachusetts Volume 107, Number 59 l 4 % Wednesday, January 20, 1988 n . .~~~~~~~~~qq1 Four in Latent City'f trial are not gulty By Thomas T. Huang a tenth protester arrested at Tent and Harold A. Stern City, is being tried separately. A Cambridge District Court The-trial will continue on Feb. judge last Friday found four de- 12 should the defendants fail to fendants in the Tent City trial not complete community work to be guilty - three for lack of evi- verified by a court-appointed pro- dence - and said she will dismiss bation' officer. Otherwise, their charges against the remaining five case will be dismissed without a defendants if they each complete verdict and without admission 16 hours of community service that there were sufficient facts to by mid-February. find the defendants guilty or not guilty. This continuance "is an unusu- al thing to do," said Judge Wen- The judge's "community ser- dy Gershengorn. ""But, hearing vice" proposal follo)wed two the facts of the case, [I deter- days' worth of testimony by MIT mined thatl the interests of MIT, Campus Police officers, adminis- the defendants and the communi- tration officials, and supporters ty would best be served this way." of the homeless. It cut short the Thomas T. Huang/The Tech Eight of the defendants had defense's case and, in essence, The Tent City defendants and their lawyers and supporters celebrate after a Cambridge been charged with trespass and came as a behind-the-scenes com- judge found four not guilty The judge will dismiss charges against the remaining five after one had been charged with disor- promise between the prosecution they each complete 16 hours of community work. derly conduct. Carlos Gonzalez, (Please turn to pag 2) 7 Faculty taMk d cutting frosl papalSail MIT statement on "Tent City" trial By Irene Kuo that second term pass/fail should fail would increase the "pace and (Editor'snote.- Walter L. Milne, assistant to the chairman of Several facultyrmembers on the remain in place. The present sys- pressure" of the first term, shrink released this statement to the mediafol- Committee on the Undergraduate tem gives students a chance to ex- the applicant pool and lend em-- the MIIT Corporation, lowing the verdict in the "xtent City" trial.) Program have been arguing plore subjects that they would phasis to grades rather than shares with the broader community a natural concern against second-term freshman not take on grades, and it ulti- learning. MIT for the plight of the homeless. That concern was also the stated pass/fail, according to statements mately gives freshmen a clear op- - "It should be considered that purpose of the defendants and others who trespassed on MIT's made at last Thursday's "Fix the portunity to explore potential MIT students are assured and Freshman Year" discussion. majors, the group felt. should be assumed to be inteli- property. MIT regrets that the defendants failed to leave the premises Undergraduate Association The two semesters of pass/fail gent and responsible -' they the others when they and the others were given the oppor- Vice President Alan B. Davidson also serve as an adjustment peri- must be trusted to use pass/fail with tunity to do so, and tiat, as a result, arrests were necessary to of the faculty at an od for students with poorer high wisely, said Elliot Schwartz '89. '89 said some maintain order. unspecified "meeting" had ex- school backgrounds, and they Students at the meeting con- provide a chance for students to cluded that the two-term pass/ While MIT did not and cannot condone the illegal occupation I pressed a-desire to limit pass/fail of its property, it believes Judge lWendyl Gershengorn's disposi- " extrac~curular activities fail system is an easy scapegoat to fhe first term. Seth Brown '88,_ ~~~~explore~ tion was a fair resolution of the matter. that they were too busy to ex- for faculty b-ut is, overall, a vice chairman of the Student - -- - Committee on Educaticnal Poli- plore in the first term. strong point of the MIT fresh- L I- -- cy, later confirmed that this was The students admitted that two man year. last Wednesday's CUP meeting. terms of pass/fail has weak- UA President Manuel Rodri- nesses: it allows freshmen to ne- SCEP talks analyze freshlmanr year guez '89 acknowledged that a glect their academic responsibil- By Irene Kuo to improve the freshman year. At ly led by a graduate student - "large proportion" of the faculty ities, particularly in the core Presenting freshmen with dif- the end of their deliberations, per week. As an alternative, a opposes second-term pass/fail. classes, and it fosters bad study ferent "flavors" of core classes they will compile a report to dis- few participants suggested having As a result, students used the habits. from which they can choose was tribute to the facralty. a professor or seasoned graduate discussion period to take a hard Marya Lieberman '89, howev- one of several ideas proposed at The topics participants have student teach all five sessions per look at what MIT would be like er, asserted that people are not "Fix the Freshman Year," an on- addressed and will address in- week. without second-term freshman abusing pass/fail; they are just going IAP activity. clude the core classes, quality of This plan drew criticism from pass-fail and examine reasons for using it for classes they are more Participants at the activity, instruction, choosing a major, other participants. "You're talk- and against the current system. interested in. sponsored by the Student Com- quality of student life, the pass/ ing about a logistical nightmare. The students participating in On the whole, the group felt mittee on Educational Policy, are fail system, faculty-student inter- I'm not convinced that there are the discussion generally agreed elimination of second term pass/ researching and discussing ways action and the advising program. enough professors, let alone good Core classes professors, at this institute," said SACC: criticizes defensea reeaarCh Alan Davidson '89, vice president By Morlie Waxng scientists to build on each other's funding based on their qualifica- Flavors in the physics core of the Undergraduate Associ- Academia's dependence on the work, according to SACC. tions, Farber said. would -ange from project-orient- ation. military for research funding is If weapons-related research is MIT has been successful in at- ed to theoretical classes. Making Seth N. Brown '88 lamented excessive and affects universities' allowed to hurt the funding of tracting defense dollars to its re- such a variety available would en- that few students realize that they academic and institutional free- other types of research, SACC search programs. In part, this is able, students to learn in smaller are not required to fulfill the core dom, according to material col- members fear that graduate stu- as a result of MLT officials using lectures, according to proponents classes in their freshman year. In lected by the Science Action Co- dents will "follow the money," their close ties to government of the idea. fact, according to Brown, some ordinating Committee. SACC emptying the talent pool for oth- agencies in order to attract M/arya Lieberman '89 present- students may even benefit from presented its findings at a talk on er fields like medicine or non- weapons-related research to the ed several proposals for changing spreading their core classes over Jan. 12 entitled "Overview: How military computer science. Institute, according to Cowan. the core classes in her report to more than two semesters. Cowan said that Provost John the group, entitled 'The Core Referring to statistics compiled does the Pentagon affect Univer- MIT defense research M. Deutch '61 has been on a Classes I: Size, Selection, Struc- by the Admissions Office that in- sities? " is substantial "Engineering research on cam- number of Department of De- ture." dicate many students who do well puses now receives an average of Under the current funding pro- fense panels, including the De- Among the other ideas was do- in Physics 1 (8.01) had calculus in 37 percent of its federal support cess, federal agencies ask for fense Science Board Panel on the ing away with -the current class high school, Brown recommend- students attend from the Pentagon; in specialized fairly specific research projects. Small Intercontinental Ballistic format in which ed that students with no calculus fields such as astronautical engi- Researchers submit proposals for Missile ("Midgetman Panel") and three lectures'taught-by a profes- background take Calculus I neering, electrical engineering the research and are then granted sor, and two recitations - usual- and aeronautical engineering the percentages are substantially Republican candidates skirmish in N H debate higher, at 82 percent, 56 percent, ground in By Thomas T. Huang Iowa polls and gaining and 54 percent, respectively," ac- aggres- HANOVER, NH - Half-way New Hampshire, took an cording to a pamphlet distributed sive tack - involving acerbic wit at the discussion, which was led through the, Republican primary election and, at times, passionate exhor- Rich Cowan debate last, Saturday here at Dart- by S4CC members tations - in targeting the front- Noam Chomsky, and Steven A. Farber G. mouth College, the slightly tus- G runner. He claimed he had as Martin Diskin analyze sled but amused moderator, John Two major concerns of critics chairman of the -Senate Finance Chancellor of NBC, gazed, like a the US' role in Central of weapons-related research are the social boxing referee wary of the next Committee helped save American policy.

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