Conversations
5 Questions With Dario Guerrero-Meneses
Dario Guerrero-Meneses ’15-’16, who came to the United States from Mexico when he was two and a half, recently wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post titled: “I told Harvard I was an undocumented immigrant. They gave me a full scholarship.” FM had the opportunity to chat with Guerrero-Meneses about his story, the article, and the response.
Hey Professor!
The Minerva School, an ambitious education project whose founder Ben Nelson described as “the first elite American university to be launched in a century,” opened to students this fall. With an advisory board that includes former Harvard University president Lawrence H. Summers, the school live-streams immersive seminars to students—capped at 19 per class—for $10,000 a year. Instructional methods are based on cognitive learning research conducted by former Harvard Psychology professor Stephen M. Kosslyn, who joins Minerva as Founding Dean. Students live in San Francisco during their first year, then move together to different cities around the world for each of the following six semesters. FM sat down with the Kennedy School’s Paul E. Peterson, Director of the Program on Education Policy and Governance, who analyzed the Minerva program.
A Day in the Life: Mark Mauriello
It’s a typical Saturday night for Mauriello, one of the stars of Diane Paulus’s “The Donkey Show.” It starts at the American Repertory Theater’s Oberon stage and ends, like Saturday nights at Harvard often do, with a Felipe's run.
You're Researching What?
With so many academics and researchers around Harvard, eclectic topics are bound to emerge. Here are some of FM’s favorites.
Reel Talk: VES Edition
Harvard’s Department of Visual and Environmental Studies is home to some of the most creative minds in film, fine arts, and environmental studies. FM caught up with two VES faculty members—Dan J. Rowe, a teaching assistant, and Ruth S. Lingford, director of undergraduate studies in the department—to hear about their favorite films.
Scoped: Eric Q. Doyle
We got a tip that the nut guy at the farmer's market was hot. So we had to see for ourselves. Mostly, we imagine, people ask him, "What's the price of your nuts?" We rose above and asked the serious questions. We even (reluctantly) rejected the free samples.
Quiz the Quizmaster
FM interviews Raynor J. Kuang '17, a Harvard quizbowler about trivia and his personal life.
Falik's Restroom Streak
Up at the Law School, in the recently constructed Wasserstein Hall, there’s a restroom with a curious moniker. A plaque outside the sleek facilities proclaims, to any and all, that they are in the presence of the “Falik Men’s Room.”
Ph.D. Playlist
You have an Avicii fixation. Your hipster friends only listen to the latest in Albanian folk metal. Who should be repenting and who should be rocking out? FM spoke to three professors to settle the score: John T. Hamilton, creator of “Frameworks: The Art of Listening,” Vijay Iyer, a jazz composer, pianist, and 2013 MacArthur Genius Grant recipient, and Hans Tutschku, an electro-acoustic composer.
Chatting over Cheddar: Inside Harvard's Wisconsin Club
I had originally planned to attend a Wisconsin Club meeting, but the group does not schedule organized gatherings, per se—more on that later. I needed another Wisconsin-related venue for the interview, and with an understanding of the state based mostly on “That 70’s Show,” only cheddar cheese and cow-tipping came to mind. Cheese was the more legal option, so I chose the deli for our venue.
Two Generations of Tutor Babies
Jack puts his frosted mini-wheats one by one into his bowl, an American flag bib protecting him from small splashes of milk. Across the table, his sister Kate, in an understated red rose headband, lets her eyes wander over the Kirkland House dining hall.
5Q: William Deresiewicz
William Deresiewicz stirred up a frenzy last July with his New Republic article, “Don’t Send Your Kids to the Ivy League.” Before appearing on a panel moderated by Professor Homi K. Bhabha, Deresiewicz entertained FM’s questions.
Hey, Professor!: Copyright Law
In order to share assigned readings with their students, many Harvard professors post materials on their course websites. Are these professors violating copyright laws? Kyle K. Courtney, a copyright advisor and program manager in Harvard’s Office for Scholarly Communication, works in conjunction with Harvard libraries on copyright matters. He shared his thoughts on this sticky issue with Fifteen Minutes.
5 Questions with Pankaj Pradhan
Enjoying the improved dining hall menu this year? You can thank Pankaj Pradhan, the culinary artist behind The Red Lentil, a vegan and vegetarian restaurant in Watertown, Mass. This Summer, he shared his talents with Harvard University Dining Services to bring more flavor and variety to the dining halls. FM sat down with Pradhan for five questions about the collaboration.
Interview With David Mitchell, Author
On Sept. 18th, David Mitchell, acclaimed author of such works as “Cloud Atlas” and “The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet,” visited Cambridge to talk about his new book, “The Bone Clocks.” After more than an hour of book-signing and joking with fans, Fifteen Minutes sat down to a late-night dinner with the English author. .
10Q: Christian T. Rudder ’97 OkCupid Co-Founder
Christian T. Rudder ’97 is not a statistician by trade, but the 39-year-old founder of OkCupid just so happens to be a pioneer in a certain branch of data analytics—the data behind love and romance.
Office Hours With Katherine K. Merseth
“We don’t have a fundamental agreement across the populace about why we have schools.”
A Talk With the Polyglot
“It sounds like a thyroid condition,” says Doner. “Oddly enough, it’s not.”
Out of the Army, Back to School
Israelis are not the only students at Harvard who have to factor in mandatory service to their education and career plans. Fifteen Minutes also spoke to students from South Korea—who typically take time off in the middle of college in order to complete their mandatory two years—and from Singapore about their transitions between service and scholarship.