The Essentials

Catch some of Cornell’s brightest science and engineering students at BOOM (Bits On Our Minds) April 3.

The 16th annual student research showcase features projects ranging from a Wikipedia-based “6 Degrees of Bacon” game to software that reads human emotion.

Also: a light bulb that emulates the changing intensity of the sun over the course of the day and year; robot planes, robot submarines and more pedestrian robots; a smartphone app to help you keep track of the time spent on tasks; and lots of games and grown-up toys.

Starting today, you can vote for the image you think best represents Cornell. Go to the College of Arts and Sciences’ Facebook page, Instagram, Tumblr or Twitter to participate in “battles” as photos move through brackets in four categories: events, buildings, icons and nature.

At least 60 Cornell students have committed to leave their phones at home, ignore social media, engage in face-to-face interaction and reevaluate their relationship with technology, April 10-12.

They are taking part in CU [dis]connect, a student-run “social experiment” intended to combat the detachment from others technology use can foster. Student groups will host events in collaboration with CU [dis]connect, enabling students to gather as a community.

“I was frustrated with some of the behavior I observed in my peers,” said Rudy Gerson ’15, a College Scholar in the College of Arts and Sciences who organized the event. “I would be mid-conversation with a friend, and he’d check his phone. At a bar, it was strange to see people checking Facebook or texting, when there were so many new faces to engage with right there around them. In class too, I even felt the urge to check my phone, which essentially tuned me out completely from the professor and the material. I hope people will come to realize that they can be happier and liberated without constant connectivity.”

Early this semester, Cornell launched the Sexual Harassment and Assault Response and Education (SHARE) website. It’s an information resource for all members of the Cornell community about issues related to sexual violence and other sexual misconduct. The SHARE site was developed to provide a one-stop access to services that offer support for victims and survivors, facilitate reporting, increase awareness, promote safety, and highlight prevention, compliance and advocacy initiatives. A collaboration between the divisions of Human Resources and Safety Services, Student and Academic Services and University Communications, the site reflects input from individuals and organizations who stepped forward to address issues raised by campus events during 2012.

Sound and performance artist Ellen Fullman will be in residence at Cornell with her Long String Instrument for a series of events Feb. 18-24 in Milstein Hall.

Developed by Fullman in 1981, the Long String Instrument is an installation of dozens of wires, 50 feet or longer, played by fingers coated with rosin to produce organ-like overtones. Her work demonstrates the physical and mathematical roots of musical intervals.

Fullman begins the instrument’s installation Feb. 14 in the Milstein Hall dome.

Fiber Science & Apparel Design students Megan Rodrigues ‘15 and Lily Wolens ‘15 are among finalists in the national City Bag Challenge by Stitch Collective. A New York City-based luxury accessory line founded by Loni Edwards ‘06, Stitch Collective accepts sketches from up-and-coming designers, chooses finalists for public voting, and produces the winning bag.

Students in FSAD 2660: Product Development, taught by Susan Ashdown, the Helen G. Canoyer Professor, sketched handbags and entered them into Stitch Collective’s national competition for an accessory practical enough for city adventures and stylish enough for the cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Voting runs until Feb. 28.

- Dani Corona ‘15

High in an out-of-the-way nook at the top of McGraw Tower, two identical brass plaques that were part of the original Seth Thomas clockworks have been reinstalled in their original locations.

The plaques went missing years ago, presumably as a prank.

Recently Marisa LaFalce, Cornell Chimes program coordinator, received a package containing the missing plaques. They had been sent in by an Andrew D. White of Florida, who wrote:

Cornell Chimemasters:

The enclosed were liberated about half a century ago at a time when the tower was closed to visitors and the old works were no longer on display. The entrance to the tower was provided by a chimemaster, and the inspiration, and the screwdriver, by a professor of engineering.
They are returned to you in the hope that they can find an appropriate home.

If you know the story behind the missing plaques, please email The Essentials.

One of the most popular study spaces in Mann Library has gotten a technology upgrade and a major makeover.

The Bissett Collaborative Center, on the library’s second floor, has been updated to include four high-end collaborative work stations with space for eight people. Beanbag chairs, mobile white boards and more make the space ideal for group work, and students can reserve spaces online.

The transformation of the Bissett center emerged from the work of librarians, information technology staff and AV specialists who chose the best ideas and technological products to include in the suite of study tools and services students can find at the library. Design and environmental analysis students Gilad Meron ’12 and Sara Lesage ’12 provided consulting services, documenting how the space was used and recommending improvements that would best fit student needs and preferences.

The Bissett center was established in memory of Kenneth J. Bissett ’89, a CALS student killed in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the bombing.

Imagine Arnim Meyburg’s surprise earlier this month when he received a call that his wallet had been found. He looked at his wallet beside him, puzzled.

Then a distant memory came to him.

The emeritus professor of transportation engineering and planning’s wallet had been stolen from his briefcase in his Hollister Hall office in 1985. Construction workers at the Law School, across the street from Hollister, found the wallet while tearing down an interior wall and ceiling.

“Needless to say, I was astounded about the find and its location …” Meyburg wrote to contractors Welliver and McGuire to commend their workers Brian and Kevin Knapp, who sleuthed Meyburg on the Internet. “But I was even more impressed that these two gentlemen cared enough to contact me.”