So much to do, so little time

So much to do, so little time So, my wife just popped by my office; it turns out she and a friend are on campus to see a lecture upstairs by Nobel Prize winner Ted Hänsch on optical frequency combs, which she describes as so cool. Sadly, I cant join in, because I really need to be reading applications. As I write this, there are a whole bunch of really cool things going on at MIT: The physics lecture by Ted Hänsch, the Nobel Laureate. The Undergraduate Economics Association (UEA) is hosting a lecture by Frederic Mishkin 73 PhD 76, one of the seven members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (of course, chaired by Ben Bernanke PhD 79). Hell be speaking on the role of the Fed and recent economic conditions, followed by what Im sure will be a nice reception with the students. Ian Condry, an MIT Professor in Japanese Cultural Studies, is giving a talk entitled Explaining Animes Global Power. The talk precedes the opening night of Live Action Anime 2007: Madness at Mokuba. Yes, you read that correctly: live action anime. It is being put on by the MIT Dance Theater Ensemble and is directed by MIT Theater Arts Professor Tommy DeFrantz. (Luckily, there are more nights of this performance, so I may still get a chance to see it) The MIT International Science Engineering Initiative, better known as MISTI, is launching its ninth country program: the MIT-Israel Program. This will join the already very popular MISTI programs in China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, and Spain. Yes, all of this is going on right this very minute. It would be hard for me to choose which to attend, if I didnt have to be working on applications right now! (If youre interested, later tonight on campus events include home games for both the mens and womens varsity basketball teams, the Brain Cognitive Sciences Student-Faculty Holiday Dinner, an architecture lecture entitled Warm and Cool Architecture: India and the West, a meditative yoga session, a meeting of the MIT Student Anti-Genocide Coalition (MIT-STAND), a poetry reading by award-winning poet Tyehimba Jess, a workout with MIT Kung Fu) [Finally, to answer a couple FAQ: No, we havent admitted anyone yet. And no, we have not yet announced a decision date yet. I ask you to please be patient!]