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Author Archives: Ellen Shakespear

There are, I hear, still quite a few people in the basement of Firestone. For all you woeful souls out (down?) there still churnin’ out a thesis, we’ve dug through nearly 60,000 records to present you with a list of our favorite senior theses titles. We’ll throw up a few of these “witty,” strange, and/or totally preposterous gems every few days to keep ya’ll inspired (or just totally incredulous).

It's the home stretch

“Eat This Thesis: Food Imagery in Pop Art,” 87 pages

“The Fish Meets the Tiger: Frank Gehry Builds at Princeton,” 104 pages

“Why Bad Sex is Like Torture: The Ethics and Metaphysics of Embodiment,” 89 pages

“Life’s a Bitch and Then You Die, Slowly, Painfully, and Alone: Suicide in Modern and Contemporary Drama,” 91 pages

“Me & Myself: A Study of Fragmentation and Fulfillment in Sex and the City,” 117 pages

Hat tip to Sarah Schiff ‘10 and her “East Pyne family”

Apr 2, 2010

Thesis Roundup, Part 1

By Ellen Shakespear

New Jersey State Apiarist Tim Shuler chats it up with a student after a beekeeping class

Evidence of spring on campus usually takes the form of boat shoes and madras print shorts, but this year watch out for buzzing bees. Lots of them. But we can’t tell you exactly where they’ll be.

The BEE Team, a new campus organization that was started last fall by Michael Smith ‘10, offered free beekeeping classes this winter and will begin maintaining an active bee yard on campus this spring.

Where are the hives? Hard to say:

“We’ve placed them strategically so that you won’t run into them if you don’t want to and so that the administration won’t freak out about them being too close to residences,” the club says.

For the full story, visit centraljersey.com

image source: centraljersey.com

Mar 21, 2010

IN PRINT: The Secret Lives of Bees on Campus

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in In Print Leave a comment

If you’re not already in love with the women’s basketball team, you really should be now – they’re the 2010 Ivy League Champions!

The Tigers are going to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. The team boasts a 25-2 overall record and chalked up a perfect 13-0 record in the Ivy League. Oh, and they haven’t lost in 20 games. Talk about a streak.

You can still catch the team serving it up this Tuesday when the Tigers face Penn at Jadwin @ 5 p.m. If they win (which seems to be the trend) the ladies will complete the first perfect Ivy League season since Harvard’s in 2002-03.

(image and statistics courtesy of goprincetontigers.com)

Mar 7, 2010

Love & Princeton Women’s Basketball

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in In the news Tagged Air Bud, NCAA Tournament, women's basketball Leave a comment

This Spring, the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library chronicles the history of student publications at Princeton in an exhibit “Princetonians in Print: 175 Years of Student Publications at Princeton.” Drawing on the holdings of the University Archives housed at the Mudd Library, the exhibit includes original newspapers, artwork, photographs, letters, silkscreens, and artifacts.

Here are some photographs from the from the exhibit. Pine away for yesteryear! Just gloss over the whole anti-female, anti-minority part… Click for full-size images.

(image source: http://blogs.princeton.edu/mudd)

Feb 28, 2010

At Mudd Now: Super Trendy Old School Publications

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in Goings On, Nostalgia Tagged Mudd Library, old school, student publications Leave a comment

Way over on east campus, basically on Route 1, Princeton is putting the finishing touches on The. Biggest. Campus. Building. Ever. The 265,000 square foot steel and glass giant will be the new home for the university’s chemistry department. Last friday, Senior Project Manager James Wallace estimated that the chemistry facility is about 80 percent complete.

Slated to open next fall, the new alchemy abode is the latest addition to Princeton’s new “Natural Sciences Neighborhood.” Quiet, with an ultra-low crime rate, this new hamlet is home to the Biology, Geosciences, Mathematics, Physics, and Astrophysics departments. These departments will soon be joined by Chemistry, Neuroscience, and Psychology. Too much fun for main campus, Princeton has moved the neighborhood totally off campus and across Washington Street. But, don’t worry! They’re going to be connected by this sick bridge.

What have London-based Hopkins Architects stuffed inside these humongous headquarters? A description of facilities that would make Marie Curie tear up– after the jump:

It’s a Beautiful day in the (Science) Neighborhood

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in Goings On, In the news Tagged Architecture, Chemistry Building, James Wallace, Science Neighborhood, Town Topics Leave a comment

One of those Princeton couples you see taking professional photos while you trudge to Firestone

One of those Princeton couples you see taking professional wedding photos while you trudge to Firestone

It’s Valentine’s Day in the 08544. Having, well, zero holiday-related commitments of my own today, I headed for Nassau Street. An hour later I had been to every card shop, every flower shop, and any food place that advertised a “Special Valentine’s Day Menu” featuring food “made with love.” (Weird.) Here are some conversation gems and ridiculously awkward responses to my questions on life and love in Princeton (from complete strangers).

Hey spiffy looking male greeter at Mediterra. Can you still get a reservation for tonight? No. Have you worked on Valentine’s Day before? Yes. Any funny stories? Haha. Well, sometimes a lady will say no — you know, to a proposal. That’s like, happened here before. But it’s good for us, because — you know — no need to bring the dessert menu, right?

Hey only male Princeton student to shop at Paper Source paperie. Ever. Are you picking out a card for Valentine’s Day? Yeah, for my little sister. But she just likes Disney Princesses. This place is too artsy. Oh no! Who’s your favorite Disney Princess? Uh. Cinderella? That’s like the only one I know. She’s the best. Yeah, I’m just gonna go to CVS.

Overheard at “Flower Station”: “Tulips and roses. They’re not the same?”

Hey lady behind the register at Jardiniere Florals. Is it hard having three flower shops within 500 feet of one another? We cater to different crowds, I would say. Jardiniere’s clientele is a little older than those that go to Flower Station three doors down. We’re willing to really sit down and talk to our customers about what they’re looking for and plan from there. Here it’s about dialogue and service. (Wait, what?)

And for those of you who spent the holiday inside, here’s what Nassau Street looks like in pink and red.

(above image source: princetontourcompany.com)

Feb 14, 2010

Nassau Street Gets Its Valentine On

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in Goings On Tagged Flower Station, holidays, Jardiniere, love, Mediterra, Nassau Street, Paper Source, pink and red, Valentine's Day Leave a comment

There’s nothing like coming back to Princeton: a fresh blanket of snow on ivy gates, final exams, and roaring fireplaces.

But for some, homecoming looks more like this.

Sadness

This is the wall behind my bed in the Forbes Addition. Home, sweet home. It turns out no amount of sticky tack can actually cling to cinder block walls. So, cool White Album poster.

But at least the Forbes Addition provides architecture grad students with a first project. Every September, armed with T-squares, first year students in the graduate program hunch over their desks (in the equally miserable architecture building) and redesign the Forbes Addition

Here are some of their design ideas (click on the pictures for full sized images):

Christine Chang (above)

Kuan Tsu (above)

More photos and thoughts from the designers after the jump….

Extreme Makeover: Forbes Edition

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in Goings On, Musings Tagged Architecture, Forbes, Forbesians, the Addition 3 Comments

source: backstreets.com

By now it’s obvious that Princeton professors have a big old crush on Bruce Springsteen. First there was this fall’s course on the sociological implications of the Boss. Next up: AMS401: At Home in New Jersey, a spring seminar that promises to investigate Bruce’s first studio album Greetings From Asbury Park “at a more sophisticated and advanced level.”

But elsewhere, (less sophisticated?) Bruce-watchers seem to have grown weary of the Jersey Shore troubadour. Hipster collective Pitchfork Media gave Springsteen’s latest effort, Working on a Dream, a lackluster 5.8 out of 10 and called the track Queen of the Supermarket “Maybe the worst thing he’s ever written.” (Ouch.) They also named the album’s cover art the absolute Worst of 2009. (Ouch again. Also: true.)

So who wins–Indies or Eggheads?

Of Bruce and Men

By Ellen Shakespear

Posted in In the news, Musings, Politics Tagged American Studies, Bruce Springsteen, Chris Christie, Course Offerings, Jon Corzine, New Jersey One comment

The most visited posts inthe past two weeks:

Author Archives: Ellen Shakespear

The most visited posts in
the past two weeks: