I think they might have to normalize closing campuses and dorms every flu season (All of winter semester). I don’t know why we tolerate the lackadaisical attitude towards a theoretically preventable or slow downable communicable disease.
MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
351–360 of 605 posts
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#352Earlier quoted context omitted.
Actually, I think it's likely going to be seen as an overreaction in hindsight by the general public (even though it may not be). If these actions are successful in curbing the virus' spread, most people won't appreciate how bad things could have really gotten.
Yeah, I've been thinking something similar. In the American context, a successful response would be seen by the uninformed as an overreaction. The administration responsible (federal or state) would be blamed for the economic damage and voted out. It would take a very strong leader who was willing to act without thought to reelection to really meet the crisis head on. That would be ... rare.
>a successful response would be seen by the uninformed as an overreaction.
Seems likely. Since solving the problem would make it look like there was no problem in which case what was the point of all the work.
This is also one of those cases where you have to overreact to begin with because once you have an actual problem its too late.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#353Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not an epidemiologist, but a Boston resident. Generally, people under 30 completely ignore anything about the coronavirus here. You have people hitting a different nightclub each night, going to parties, and that sort of thing. A college town full of students who see their risk as 0.1% is not what you want right now. Now, a more sensible thing might be to close the nightclubs, bars, and parties. But the city hasn't d…
So you have tens of thousands of people, who all have been in close proximity, now exposing their risk to their family. And if these college students have any elderly family members, that could pose a serious risk. By forcing people to go home, rather than shelter in place, everyone has increased contact with others and public infrastructure where the virus could be.
This sounds like it is happening before anyone has been infected yet to prevent a future problem.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#354> Undergraduates who live in an MIT residence or fraternity, sorority or independent living group (FSILG) must begin packing and departing this Saturday, March 14. We are requiring undergraduates to depart from campus residences no later than noon on Tuesday, March 17. This is strange. Isn't the travel they are forcing quite possibly a cure worse than the disease? And are they really expecting students (many of them…
>In what way are dorms worse than personal homes for diseases anyway? Are they not trusting their students to prepare their own food? Why don't they just close the dining halls instead? The dorms have shared bathrooms, often shared rooms with doubles, triples, and quads, and shared living spaces (lounges, study rooms, laundry, etc.) in addition to the dining halls. Moreover, in our dorms, we have effectively no way t…
Many decades ago, the health department should have shut down the shared bathrooms and shared bedrooms. We knew it wasn't OK as soon as we agreed upon the germ theory of disease.
It would be great if this disease would finally put a stop to the madness of typical dorm living conditions.
An extra benefit would be a huge reduction in conflict. Roommate conflict is stressful and often leads to violence.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#355Earlier quoted context omitted.
How could the students or the university trust restaurants stay open? They can't just let the students fight for themselves. I am sure this is the 'least bad option' out of many.
I’m confused. Are the students not mostly adults? Why can’t they be trusted to find their own food in a large city, like any other adult would have to?
Generally when you’re moving to a new city as a non-student, you’re expecting to have to figure all of that out, plus the apartment you’re moving into will generally have a fridge and stove at a minimum. I don’t know how many students we’re talking about here, but at my university there was a small public-use kitchen in each dorm, but it would be madness to try to feed the whole dorm out of it. It was handy for making late night macaroni after coming home from the bar, but... not so much for everyone eating 3 meals a day.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#356Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Most of the value of an elite education is signaling Not in my case (Caltech). It was clear when I got an industry job that a BS from Caltech was at about the same level as an MS from other institutions. But if the institution is large enough, one can get an elite education by careful selection of the classes and professors, and doing the maximum in those classes rather than just getting by. For example, take honor…
> If you don't find yourself studying 6 hours a day, you're not getting an elite education. Seems like an unhealthy attitude to me. I really dislike the perspective that education is at its best when the learning is most difficult. The best teachers are the ones that make things as clear and digestible as possible. Bad teachers are the ones that want to see you sweat.
It isn't about wanting to torture students. I never learned so much so fast before or since - and there was a lot to learn. I prefer teachers that expect a lot from their students.
It's not fundamentally different from athletics. If you want to be a good athlete, you're going to have to work your tail off. If you want to be an incredible engineer like Kelly Johnson, that ain't going to happen if you party through school. Nor would you have any chance of working with an engineer like him.
So ask yourself - do you want to design rocket engines? or cup holders?
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BTW, as for health, I came out of Caltech a far more confident person than when I entered. I knew what I could do, and was happy about it.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#357Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are plenty of fast food places/corner stores/restaurants/groceries in Cambridge within walking distance of MIT dorms. So the "no way to eat" part is a bit dramatic.
The closest grocery is Target in Central square, which is extremely limited or maybe Trader Joe's, which also isn't the same. The Star Market that was right behind campus closed a couple years ago. It's not so easy, in my opinion.
MIT is within walking distance of the Prudential tower, which has a supermarket at the base.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#358Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do you mean less privileged MIT students? I though MIT is pretty good about giving scholarships and grants to those who are admitted. If your family income is below some threshold they fully cover the costs.
Flights may be reimbursed to go home for low-income students, but not all students have a safe home to go back to. A common issue could be homophobia or transphobia. Some students are also highly reliant on on-campus jobs for income that makes gives them a living wage. This whiplash relocation may make finding new sources of income really hard for certain geographies/students. The list of complications just goes on..…
For accuracy and transparency (since I can't edit the original): all exams and homework in the CS department are postponed until after Spring Break as of five minutes ago (March 28th).
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#359Earlier quoted context omitted.
>In what way are dorms worse than personal homes for diseases anyway? Are they not trusting their students to prepare their own food? Why don't they just close the dining halls instead? The dorms have shared bathrooms, often shared rooms with doubles, triples, and quads, and shared living spaces (lounges, study rooms, laundry, etc.) in addition to the dining halls. Moreover, in our dorms, we have effectively no way t…
Ok, so a population that is majority not at-risk and extraordinarily self-contained is going to be instead distributed into the wider population en masse? Seems insane.
What would instead happen is that students would go on spring break, quite a number of them traveling of town. Some of them would pick up the virus and then it would spread among the student body over the remainder of the semester. That's a plausible scenario that no university would want. Better to have them go home and stay there.
Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester
#360I can see why the university is taking the actions that it is doing, but on the other hand, if I were still and undergrad, and suddenly told that I had to pack up all my stuff and move within the next 3 days, I can only imagine the chaos that entails. Every student on campus now has to suddenly not only find a place to stay, but also a way to move everything on short notice.
They’re providing packing materials and helping with the move. Financially, they say: > We understand that being asked to leave campus may pose a serious financial hardship for certain individuals. Students will receive a follow up communication on this matter. It’s unclear what their solution is, but they seem to have thought about it...
I think this was added later under that paragraph.
> Please note: Any student who is permitted to stay may be required to relocate to another building on campus.