Tag Archives: non-wes

FEATURED
Breaking: Two Explosions, “Dozens” of Serious Injuries Reported at Finish Line of Boston Marathon

According to the New York Times, Boston Globe, and just about any other major media outlet, there has been a major explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon this afternoon. BloombergTV has a live feed of the scene. From the New York Times:

The Associated Press reported that the authorities were helping injured runners leave the scene and bloody spectators were being carried to a medical tent that was being used for runners.

The A.P. said that a loud explosion was heard on the north side of Boylston Street, near a photo bridge that marks the finish line. Another explosion was heard several seconds later.

Details are slowly emerging, but journalists and witnesses are reporting major injuries and possible casualties on social media. (Warning: Some of the images are graphic.) (Update: the Boston Police Department is reporting two deaths and 23 injuries from the blast. A third explosion was heard just before 4 p.m. President Obama is being briefed, and security is being increased at nearby hotels and “prominent locations in New York.”)

Continue reading →

FEATURED
“Peter Pan Meets the Man Cave”: New York Times on Astoria Bro-Pad

“I think the secret to our success is that we don’t think too much about the future.”

If, like me, you’re graduating in less than a year and, like me, you’re not entirely thrilled about the subsequent “growing up” trajectory, feast your cursor upon a new kingdom: “Fortress Astoria.”

Last week, the New York Times’ Hilary Howard devoted a fascinating and (I hate this word) charming feature piece to four best friends who are also roommates: Danaher Dempsey, Luke Crane, Rick Brown and Shyaporn Theerakulstit. They met as students at NYU. Through a role-playing group. (Not the same group that always steals my table at Think Coffee, I hope.) In 1991. Which means they’re all pushing 40.

Which means they’ve been living together, as bachelors—or “roommates,” if you will—for over 18 years. And while their story doesn’t pertain to Wesleyan in any direct way, it is a fascinating portrait that certainly pertains to college life in general, the transition into the Great Beyond, and why sociologists now say post-college life no longer has to suck.  Read on if you care.

Continue reading →

Responding to Japan Earthquake (UPDATE 3/14: more donation links)

An 8.9-magnitude earthquake—the strongest in recorded Japanese history—has hit the country’s eastern coast, leaving in its wake a devastating tsunami with reverberations (thankfully mostly harmless) as far as Hawaii and the California coast.

Thoughts go out to any Wesleyan students in Japan or with friends, family, or loved ones in Japan. Wesleyan presently has four approved study abroad programs in Japan; according to a recent study abroad spreadsheet, two juniors are currently at Kansai Gaidai University—located in Osaka, thankfully far from the center of current earthquake devastation. One of these students, SL ’12, has already updated her Facebook to assure friends that she is safe.

Following are some helpful links in the immediate response to the crisis. Comment with any updates, clarifications, links, or assurances.

UPDATE: Yushi Ohmori ’11 sends in this extremely helpful aggregation of links to donation and aid agencies involved in providing assistance to Japan.

American students get the heck out of Egypt

As you may or may not know (and by golly I hope that you do), something big’s afoot in Egypt.

Following an explosion of protests in the Arab World (which Wikipedia now has a nifty all-encompassing entry on), the people of Egypt have taken to the streets since last Tuesday in search of political revolution – leaving a significant amount of damage and instability in their wake. Since then, students with Middlebury College’s program in Alexandria have been evacuated to the airport and are currently awaiting the next flight back to the States, according to the Brown Daily Herald. Kids studying with the American University in Cairo have also been evacuated.

Details after the jump.

Continue reading →