• MIT's The Weather Oldest and Largest Today: Sunny, 39°F (4°C) Tonight: Clouding up, 27°F (-3°C) Newspaper Tomorrow: Snow, 36°F (2°C) Details, Page 2 Volume 116, Number 8 Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 Friday, March 1, 1996 AI Gore to Deliver Address At 130th Commencemen • By oral G. Bahcall a position that reflects the concerns and 1 brought those suggestions to a ASSOCIATE NEWS ED/TOR of so many of us at MIT," Vest closed meeting of the Commence- "VoicePresident Al Gore will be said. ment Committee where we created a the speaker at MIT's l30th Com- Former Chairman and CEO of short list of suggestions for the con- mencement ceremonies, President the Chrysler Corporation Lee Iacoc- sideration of President Vest," said t Charles M. Vest announced ca, former Secretary of Defense Les Barbara 1. Souter G, President of the Wednesday. Aspin PhD '66, and Germany Chan- Graduate Student Council and a "We are delighted that. .. Gore cellor Helmut Kohl are among the member of the committee. can be with us on this happy occa- people who have delivered com- "AI Gore was a popular sugges- sion," Vest said. "It is always excit- mencement addresses since 1982. tion, and we are extremely happy ing to have someone of his stature From 1964 to 1982, the Com- that he is coming," she said. "I'm with us. • mencement address traditionally glad that this year's graduating class "But his role as commencement was given by the president of MIT. will have' the opportunity to hear speaker is particularly appropriate at Last year's speaker was President Gore speak," Souter said. MIT because he has been a leader as Emeritus of the University of Chica- "I think maybe it would be cool- congressman, senator, and vice go Hannah H. Gray. er to get the Fonz" - Yale Univer- president in the areas of science, sity alum Henry Winkler, who will space; and technology policy," Vest Committee wanted Gore speak at Yale's commencement - said. Composed of students and mem- "but the vice president isn't some- "In addition, Al Gore's commit- bers of the faculty and administra- body off the street. I'm impressed," ment and leadership on environmen- tion, the Commencement Commit- said Heather M. Norton '96. tal issues is unparalleled. He has tee is in charge of the arrangement "It's at least somebody that TECH FlU PHOTO said repeatedly that the protection and conduct of commencement we've heard of," Glenn Koh '96. Vice President AI Gore, who sp-oke at an environmental confere ce and preservation of the earth's envi- exercises. "I'd never heard of the speaker for at MIT last October, will return In June as the keynote speaker for ronment is ope of the most impor- "We solicited suggestions commencement. tant issues facing this generation - through e-mail and our Tech ads, Gore, Page 13 Administrators, ~riends React to Student's Death By Ramy A. Arnaout Ronge fell from - had been bolted, said "As of right now, we are not looking at lains, he said. EDITOR IN CHIEF MacGregor Housemaster Munther •. A. making any major changes in any residential "There should always be a number of .~.The community is slowly coming, to Dahleh. "The safety lock was working," design based on" the incident, Jablonski ways people can access tbe sy'stem," Ran- • terms with news of the death of Melissa N. allowing the window to open only a few said. dolph said. Students should know what Ronge '98, four days after she fell to her inches, although "the opening even with the those resources are. death from.a MacGregor House tower lock was somewhat large," he said. Plans are Students should know where to get help "This is very terribly, terribly painful," lounge early Monday morning. underway to make the opening smaller, he Ronge had been talking with friends, Randolph said. Any decision that comes out Campus Police have called the circum- said. • tutors, and other people on campus Sunday of the incident will involve the input of the stances of her death consistent with suicide. But no general changes are planned as night, said S~nior Associate Dean Robert M. larger community, he said. "We will really The mood is a mix of sorrow, resigna- yet, Jablonski said. "We did ask housing to Randolph. continue to think and look at this for tion, and disbelief as students and adminis- take a look at the windows again,t' she said. In general, the key to getting help is awhile." trators re~examin~ t'tIe physical and proce- "There was a concern expressed by some always asking, Randolph said. He encour- Th Undergraduate Association is work- dural aspects of the tragedy. But the students that this particular window opened aged students who need advice on serious ing with MacGregor residents to plan an . consensus is that it was not preventable. too far. matters to approach friends, tutors, and infonnal on-campus memonal service for "An incident Ii e this does cause us to "We're aJways trying to make sure our housemasters first. "Those are the people late next week, said Stephanie M. Zielenski reconsider 'what we're doing, but we have residences are safe for people, but we have they know best," he said. '98, one of the service's planners. , [no reason] to believe what w.e w~re doing to balance" that with concern for students as Next to ask are medical center staff and The planners hope it will help provide was inappropriate," aid Associate Dean for a' whole, Jablonski said. the consulting deans, although students some sense of closure to the tragedy, Zielen- Residence and Campus Activities Margaret The incident Sh9Uld not, for example, be should talk with whomever they feel com- ski said. A. Jablonski. taken as a cue to close down all tall dormito- fortable with, Randolph said. Those people All of the windows - including the one ries or roof decks, Jablonski said. might include advisers, coaches, or chap- Ronge, Page 12 IS Survey WIll Gauge Student Usage of Athena Clusters By Jennifer Lane take the time to complete the inter- CONTRIBUTING EDITOR view will get Toscanini's gift cer- A team of staff and students tificates. from Infonnation Systems will be interviewing students in Athena Athena usage changes with time clusters starting this Monday. The current data that IS has on The surveys will help IS get a Athena usage is severely outdated, better idea of what students use the which shocked both IS staff and clusters for and whether the clusters Moses, who is responsible for fund- are meeting student needs, said Naomi B. Schmidt, manager of edu- Survey, Page 11 cational planning and support for Academic Computing Services. "It is my hope that information about the way in which Athena INSIDE clusters are being used will be of value to the Council on Technology and Education," said Provost Joel • Information Sys~ems Moses PhD '67. Dean of the School unveils a new electronic of Architecture and Planning William J. Mitchell will chair the mail system. Page 11 council. "One of the council's goals will • Short'Th.kes Page 13 be to review the use of computer and communications technology in :: • Techiya celebrates our educational programs, both on and off campus," Moses said. Jewish music. Page 6 The decision to conduct a survey was made by the Academic Com- • Jose's Mexican food puting Management Group at IS, a comes pretty close to INDRANATH NEOGY-THE TECH policy-making group involved with Information Systems' Naomi Schmidt, Bruce R. lewis '90, (center) and Tim McGovern model the cap Athena and academic computing. the real thing. Page 7 to be worn by people Interviewing students In Athena clusters. As an incentive, students who Page 2 THE TECH . March.} -19 6< 4 O.RLD & ATIO Many Say Yeltsin Can Still Wm THE WASHINGTON POST Cuba Says Reports 'of Air MOSCOW President Boris Yeltsin, whose approval ratings have been stuck in single digits for more than a year, is lagging badly in all the polls - third place in one recent survey, tied for fifth in another. It is no Space Breach Were Ignored exaggeration to say that he is among the most despised men in Rus- sia. ~ By Juanita Darling Cuban actions in shooting down the the Cuban weekly newspaper,Work- • Yet many analysts and ordinary Russians - and not only his par- LOS ANGELES TIMES planes has given Castro's regime a .ers reported that the-{:uban govern- tisans - say he remains the man to beat in presidential elections this HAVANA new rallying point. During a well- ment sent a formal diplomatic note summer, even if the resurgent Communists are currently more than In the '20 months, before Cuban orchestrated demonstration at the to the United States on Jan. 16 twice as popular as the president in the polls. Some say flatly that jet fighters shot down two airplanes military academy Wednesday,' protesting the flights. Yeltsin, 65, will win. pilo~ed by members of an exile cadets and instructors recited poetry Brothers to the Rescue pUms to Their confidence in him is rooted partly in the power of the Russ- group, officials of Fidel Castro's and gave speeches comparing 'the drop memorial flowers Saturday on ian presidency and partly in his own nearly mythic political instincts, government had formally com- current situation to the 1961 Cuban the'area where the planes were shot which in the past have kicked into high gear precise~ywhen he most plained four times to their U.S.