[email protected] VOLUME CXIII, NUMBER 20 PASADENA , CALIFORNIA AP RIL 19, 2010 Caltech team takes Prefrosh Weekend Features nd 2 place to UCLA the First Student Life Saturday at Google Games Photos by Laainam Chaipornkaew By Edward Chen Google t-shirts. Overall, Caltech teams had the highest average STAFF WRIT E R score for other university. In her introductory remarks, Several years ago, Google Kim explained that this event was representatives took students “mostly for branding, in addition from the University of Illinois to recruitment purposes.” And re- Urbana-Champaign out to dinner cruit Google did: a total of $3,000 and asked how Google can more worth of prizes were prepared to effectively reach out to university go to the top four overall teams, students. Hanah Kim, one of many the top school, the most spirited University Programs Specialists team, and the highest scoring from Google, recounted a stu- team of each category. The high- dent’s suggestion that all Google est scoring team members all won had to do was to “hold an event Nexus One phones. Google em- that highlights Google’s culture, ployees even made sure to cater to and make it a competition!” the college demographic by pro- That suggestion inspired the viding bus transportation, break- first “Google Games” between fast, lunch, unlimited drinks and Berkeley and Stanford in 2007, even free official Google Games where teams of mostly computer t-shirts. science and engineering went Teams competed against one PREFROSH WEEKEND head to head on brain teasers, another in three events: “geek lego-building challenges, and trivia”, Google puzzles and Lego video games. building. This past Saturday morning, Google puzzles included for the first time ever, a Google standard crossword puzzles to Games was hosted at Google’s nonstandard riddles. All puzzles Santa Monica office between were designed by a group of fourteen teams, each with five Google engineers and then re- students, from University of checked by another group of en- California Los Angeles (UCLA), gineers. Caltech Junior Jeremy University of Southern Califor- Above, Grape-a-Don from the Pittsburg hip-hop duo Grand Buffet performing outside Red Door Cafe on Davis said that “the puzzles were Student Life Saturday. nia (USC) and Caltech. One of cool and appropriately challeng- Caltech’s two teams took second ing... or impossible,” in an email place behind one of UCLA’s ten By Tina Ding expected to leave on Saturday Pittsburg. teams, winning Google duffel EDITOR -IN -CHI E F morning. In previous years, PFW “It appeared that the events bags with Google “swag” and See CALTECH LOSES pg. 6 ran from Thursday to Saturday. were all well attended and en- IHC and Tom Mannion orga- joyed,” said Mannion. “It contin- From Thursday to Satur- nized an optional day of activities ued the great momentum created dayFrom Thursday to Saturday, on Student Life Saturday “to pre- by the prior two days of [Prefrosh over 250 accepted prospective serve and expand upon the great Weekend].” Plans for another students (prefrosh) roamed the atmosphere and tradition that Saturday’s dinner, a barbe- campus during Prefrosh Weekend accompany [Prefrosh Weekend] cue that featured grilled corn on (PFW), making their way through and to plan a weekend day for our a cob, grilled chicken, and corn party with Harvey the myriad of Prefrosh activities. students to further interact with break, was sponsored by the Activities ranged from House prefrosh and each other”, said Gnome Club, which is “basically events such as Ruddock Greens, Mannion. Approximately twenty the only fraternity at Caltech and Casino Night, Page Olympics, students signed up for Saturday one of the original living groups Mudd & Scripps and Blacker Deconstruction to in advanced, but there were about that preceded the South House, seminars about Caltech life and twenty-thirty walk-ins. whose goal is to support alumni By Rick Paul Caltech students attended the par- academics. The day also featured Student Life Saturday fea- and student life,” said Mannion. SPORT S EDITOR ty, well over the original estimate the traditional Club Fair and In- tured a scavenger hunt, free food, The Club, which inducts graduat- of only two hundred to three hun- N-Out burgers. and more House and club-spon- ing seniors and over 700 alumni Harvey Mudd, Scripps, and dred students. Although there was Unlike in previous years, the sored activities. The main cam- members, sent about twelve Caltech are once again joining a large turnout, student reactions official last day of Prefrosh week- pus-wide event with a concert by alumni to help with the dinner on forces to throw a party this term. to the party were mixed. Many end was Friday; students were Grand Buffet, a hip-pop duo from Student Life Saturday. The most noticeable difference students complained about the between last year’s party and unconventional layout. Instead this year’s will be the change of of being confined to the vari- venue. ous courtyards like most Caltech The event will be held on parties, the event was spread out the Caltech campus, with the fo- over a large open space. The lay- Caltech Selected to Compete cus being on the dance area in out will likely be improved this the RF courtyard. One or two of year as it will follow the tried and the houses will also be planning tested Caltech party layout. their own activities to add more When asked for the reasons in the 2011 Solar Decathlon diversity. In similar fashion to last behind bringing back the party By Richard Wang powered house. The contest will tainability and the future.” year’s party, there will be no con- this year, ASCIT president Adam CONTRIBUTOR pit Caltech against nineteen other The 2011 Solar Decathlon, Khan replied, “We decided to administered by the National Re- struction. The U.S. Department of En- teams in October 2011 on the Na- have the party again because newable Energy Laboratory, is a The planning for the party ergy has selected Caltech to com- tional Mall in Washington, D.C. many students from Caltech, rare opportunity for students to is still in its preliminary stages. pete in the prestigious 2011 So- “The Solar Decathlon gives Harvey Mudd, and Scripps en- apply knowledge learned in the According to ASCIT secretary lar Decathlon. The competition, us a direct way to use our skills joyed the party last year. Harvey classroom to a variety of real- Prakriti Gaba, “The date is ten- which is sponsored by the DoE, in a real-life situation,” said Fei Mudd’s student government was world situations. Caltech students tatively set for the first or second challenges collegiate teams to de- Yang (junior ME), one of the very excited to help us put this to- week of May.” sign and build the most efficient, lead engineering students on the gether again this year.” Last year over four hundred attractive, and affordable solar- Caltech team. “This is not just a See SOLAR DECATHLON competition but a vision of sus- on pg. 6 In This Issue MegaDeth’s Prefrosh Pics Neo-Nazi Encounters Brutal Violence page 2 Epic Performance page 4 Read Past the First Page page 2 page 5 Meet Professor Atwater page 4 2 AP RIL 19, 2010 OPINI O N /ASCIT THE CALIFORNIA TE C H Neo Nazi Rally Results in Violence Opinions, by Counter Demonstrators By James Wu carrying a confusing sign about ity, and yet proceed to beat down Where art CONTRIBUTOR religion and the swastika. The those among them who offend crowd ran after him as he tried to their morals. This incident gave get away and pummeled him with the neo-Nazis exactly what they thou? Last Saturday, a Neo Nazi punches and kicks as he lay on wanted: the appearance of a vic- rally was held across from Los the ground, before police could timized minority, and a recruiting Angeles’s City Hall. Two people get him to safety. By Tina Ding It was the topic everyone has tool. to say something about, whether were severely beaten by counter This incident reveals some of Those that presume to hold EDITOR -IN -CHI E F they were correct or not. demonstrators. One of them was the uglier parts of our society. On the moral high ground should not Remember the sexism up- a neo-Nazi, who was pulled away one hand we have the racists, the be so eager to rush down to where Wow. Take a close look at heaval sparked by a student by police bleeding from his neck supremacists, the neo-Nazis. On their enemies stand. this page. In fact, you don’t have PNGed from Ricketts for sending after being hit with a protestor’s the other hand, we have the pro- to look very close to see that ex- offending emails? Remember the sign. The other was simply a man testors who claim moral superior- cept for James’ piece on Neo Nazi amout of outcries in the Tech? Demonstration, there is actually This year, there will be two no opinion. In fact, at 4:59pm of the greatest changes I have Sunday, there was really nothing. seen here and Caltech have expe- Caltech Students, Read Past the When I started being the rienced in the last decade. Core is editor of the Tech, opinion was about to be revamped like never something that was lacking ev- before, and eco-rotation seeks to First Page to Get All Your News ery week. However, with the change a system that has gov- news release of Eco-rotation two erned student 4-year college af- of the Week weeks ago, I thought my weekly filiation for decades By Tina Ding and make a strong plea.