Dear Blast From the Past,

Steve Worona, one of the creators of Dear Uncle Ezra, writes to fill you in on the dark ages at Cornell.

"Technology at Cornell has come a long way, indeed, in the 25 years since Uncle Ezra was born. Back then computers were huge, expensive, complex machines housed in specially air-conditioned rooms and tended by technicians wearing lab coats. Punch-card input and wide-form paper output were still common. Engineering students and a few select others were the only ones who could run programs or otherwise come in contact with these machines.

"Electronic mail was just starting. Personal computers were a novelty. But in 1982 Cornell led the country in creating the first CWIS, a Campus-Wide Information System, where everyone was invited to access the mainframe to get things like the library schedule and bus stops. We called the system CUINFO, and access points -- called CUINFO terminals -- were placed in high-traffic locations around campus. These access points were wired directly to the mainframe and looked like a small television set with a keyboard.

"The screens could only display text with no color and no graphics.  Primitive! Well, we could go on, but those interested in more details will find everything you want to know, and much more, in John Rudan's "History of Computing at Cornell" , which includes personal reminiscences from many of Cornell's technology pioneers, including those who started CUInfo and Uncle Ezra."

And I welcome those who want a window into the past at Cornell to read through some of those old entries in Dear Uncle Ezra's archives...very interesting!  No one had their own computer then.  No one had a cell phone. In fact, just a few years earlier, there was one telephone per hall in the residences. There were no co-ed dorms and a strict curfew was in place.

UNCLE EZRA IS ON VACATION!  This will be my last post for the semester.  If you have questions, please don't give up!  Look in my archives, figure out which office at Cornell might have your answer, ask a friend or relative, check on the internet or consult an advisor or counselor.  I'll be back to ansser questions on August 16th with the first posting of the fall on August 18th.

In the meantime, do something adventurous, something fun, something outdoors!  Remember to appreciate all that you have and take some time to follow your passion. Thank those who have been helpful to you and give generously to those who may benefit from your gifts.  And smile!

Uncle Ezra   

Dear One of the Lucky Ones,

You are quite right in guessing that the divorce rate for Cornell students is likely to be lower than the national average. With regard to the statistics, there are a couple of interesting things to know. First is that the actual national divorce rate has never reached the 50% mark. There is some variation in how and when divorce rates are calculated, but the highest rate of divorce in a large 2001 survey of men and women between the ages if 50-59 was 41% for men and 39% for women.

National averages also mask the fact that rates of divorce are really different for people with and without college degrees; with women without college degrees approximately twice as likely to divorce (depending on when they were married) than their college educated counterparts. In keeping with this, Cornell-specific rates are tough to come by, but a 2006 study of Cornell students that included a question about who students lived with primarily in high school showed that 80% indicated living with both biological parents (the survey did not, however, ask if both biological parents lived in the same household – a key question in a time when fully joint custody after divorce is the norm). Overall, however, divorce rates for everyone have been decreasing in the past decade rather than increasing.

It is also true, however, that alongside the number of young people living in the common conception of the nuclear family (which is really an historical anomaly) come an increasing number of youth in non-traditional family forms. For example, children raised between two households or in families with gay or lesbian parents has increased significantly in the past several decades. The increasing complexity of family forms has opened up opportunities to more deeply understand what about family arrangements and relationships confers protection or risk to children. These typically show that divorce is hard for kids because of the drop in financial status of a parent (typically a mother) and because of the negative feelings parents about each other. When these factors are ameliorated children from divorced parents are just as likely to thrive as adults as those whose parents never divorced.

And, recent study on the effect of adverse experiences and life course trajectories suggest that risk free childhood and adolescence may inadvertently increase risk for later vulnerabilities by reduced opportunities to develop resilience. So, in sum, while you are lucky, it may be naïve to assume that individuals living in other family forms are unlucky. There are gifts in every life experience.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Beaming Parent,

Congratulations on your daughter’s graduation, and please make sure the nieces/nephew take advantage  of all the campus tours and other open-house  opportunities going on above ground.

As for a tour of the Wilson Synchrotron Lab during Commencement Weekend, there is a slight chance, according to the lab’s educational programs director, Lora Hine, who invites you to check with her (607-255-2319,  lkh24@cornell.edu).  It’s a very busy place when  beams are zipping around the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR) and a fascinating place to visit, whenever.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Distracted by History,

Good catch on the numbering discrepancy! Alonzo B. Cornell was indeed the 25th individual to be *elected* the Governor of New York. However, both John Tayler and Nathaniel Pitcher served as *acting* governor since both were lieutenant governors under individuals who were either promoted to federal positions or passed away.

In fact, both of the departing governors in question had their own local connections! Tayler succeeded Daniel D. Tompkins, our county's namesake, who left office to become Vice President of the United States. And Pitcher succeeded DeWitt Clinton, cousin of Simeon DeWitt. Locals might know that Simeon was the Surveyor General of New York who is considered to be the founder of Ithaca and namesake of Dewitt Park and Dewitt Mall. And the Clinton House in Ithaca is named after DeWitt Clinton. It's a small world (or state)!

Thanks to Corey Earle for setting us straight!

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Student,

It is too late to do anything for this year's exams, but for the future, check out the Learning Strategies Center.  They can help you learn how to de-stress before an exam so you walk in with less anxiety.  They may also be able to help you manage your time so that you have more time to prepare, http://lsc.sas.cornell.edu/.

If you are actually panicking and need to find ways to calm yourself down so you can show your true abilities, you may want to invest some time this summer in learning meditation, Tai Chi or other form of relaxation.  You will be able to call on these techniques to prevent panic before and during exams.

And, you will be happy to hear that the Faculty Senate is reviewing academic policies with the health and well-being of students in mind, so you may be seeing some changes that ensure academic excelence while decreasing student stress.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Nephew,

It's true! Providing all of the world-class opportunities and experiences to students on a daily basis costs more than most people realize. Cornell depends on three primary sources of funding: government (appropriations, grants, research contracts), personal (user fees, tuition), and university (endowment income, private donations). Full tuition is estimated to cover around 60% of the cost of education, meaning that ALL students are heavily subsidized by the university, even those who receive no financial aid. Even though tuition may seem quite high, generations of generous alumni have played a crucial role in keeping tuition lower than it might otherwise be.

In fact, you may have heard about the Senior Class Campaign, which plays an important role in raising awareness about this fact and rallying seniors to give back to the university and "pay it forward" for all that Cornell gave them. If you're a senior, it's not too late to contribute to the Campaign online here: http://www.alumni.cornell.edu/seniorclass/give/ .

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Need a Job,

That’s a top-ranked question for Assistant Dean Jim Finlay in the College of Arts and Sciences, who says:

“No, the University does not rank undergraduates and neither does the College of Arts & Sciences. I’m sure that no college ranks its students, though I can’t say with 100% certainty.”

Thanks, Dean Jim, for that.  Might be best to write “n/a” in the blank for ranking, and let your Cornell GPA impress the lucky employer who will hire you. 

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Angry Nephew,

How very disappointing!  I can see how difficult it must be to find out the program has been canceled after all of that work.

I shared your letter with Alan Mathios, the Dean of the Human Ecology School.  In response, I received a letter from John Cawley, Director of Graduate Studies in Human Ecology.  He strongly urges you to contact him to talk about your situation.  His contacts are, Email: johncawley@cornell.edu and
Office phone: 607-255-0952

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Curious Panda,

It all depends on the club.  Some are limited to undergrads and some are open to graduate students and undergrads.  The separation seems to be driven by the fact that some clubs are funded by the Student Activity Fee (for undergrads) and then there is the GPSA for Graduate Students.  These days there has been a lot of discussion about grads and undergrads working together to benefit both groups, so my guess is that what might have been hard and fast rules in the past may be lightening up a bit.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear New Transfer,

So glad that you will be coming to Cornell!  When you arrive, during the first few days of Orientation, all of the local banks will have booths set up on Ho Plaza, in front of the Straight Student Union.  You will be able to sit with any or all of them to discuss their services and open an account right then and there.

If you would like a preview, this site lists the banks on campus and those locally, http://www.cornell.edu/search/index.cfm?id=871&q=&tab=facts.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Transfer,

Sounds like it isn't feasible to stay where you are, but let's look at all of the options. 

Could you stay where you are for another year, but do it differently; different major, group of friends, living situation, etc.  This might be feasible knowing that it is only one more year with the goal of Cornell the year after.

Is the transfer based on completing another year of college?  If not, maybe you could take a gap year and explore some far off place in the world that corresponds to your field of interest or a yearlong internship getting practical experience in your field.  Or if the transfer is dependent on completing a year of college, could you apply for a year abroad at a distant university or Semester at Sea, to fulfill your requirements to get the guaranteed transfer.

Or maybe you can find another college to go to next year, try it out while waiting for Cornell and find that it is exactly what you were looking for and then you won't have to transfer again. The most important thing, whatever you do, is to check out your plan with the correct offices at Cornell to be sure that what you choose is acceptable to their policies.

Three colleges don't necessarily look bad, in fact, it might actually show your determination to get where you really want to go!

Uncle Ezra   

Dear CUINFO-deprived,

Well, thanks for including Dear Uncle Ezra in your  fastest “All the Important Stuff” list — much of which is at CUINFO http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/. 

CUINFO, for those not familiar, is  an information-dense “front page” for the University, featuring  the current weather and safety alerts, news of the university, and links to  zillions of useful things.   Whereas, the University’s official homepage http://www.cornell.edu/  is a prettier version of much the same info— assuming you don’t mistake the dreamlike banner picture of campus scenes for the real-time  current weather around here.

With that distinction clarified, let’s ask  the Office of Web Communications’ Lisa Cameron-Norfleet, who says:

“The CUInfo link was removed from the left column of the homepage to make room for other content.  However, it remains in the footer, which appears on every page of the site.  And, of course, you could always bookmark it.”

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Purchaser,

Your newly acquired specimens span a rocky epoch in the history of Cornell Geology. As early as 1870, the University’s first professor of geology, Charles Frederick Hartt, was organizing expeditions to Brazil and hauling back geological and paleontological samples for the Cornell collection.  The so-called “intellectual patron of Cornell Geology,” Louis Agassiz, was actually on loan from Harvard when he collected fossilized marine organisms and advanced the “Fixity of Species” theory – as an alternative to Darwinian evolution.  

Hartt and Agassiz sparred over whether curious boulders strewn around Brazil were “glacial erratics” from some hypothesized Southern Hemisphere ice age (Agassiz called glaciers “God’s great plough” to wipe out old species and make room for new ones) but the big rocks apparently never came to Ithaca. 

Gilbert D. Harris peered through microscopes (that’s petrography) for tiny fossils that might help oil-well drillers get rich (that’s economic geology) and led Cornell students on collecting trips (up Cayuga Lake, through the Erie Canal, down the Hudson River and the Eastern Seaboard) in boats named after his favorite fossils.  All the collectors made sure their names were on their rocks, before giving them to the University, but Harris wasn’t satisfied.  He feared our McGraw Hall, (home of the University’s natural history museum and the Geology Department) would burn down at any time.  So he packed up his specimens, built a fireproof concrete   museum off campus, and founded the Paleontological Research Institution there.

PRI and Cornell did reconcile a few years ago, and the University is proud of its affiliation with the Museum of the Earth— and all its collections and educational programs. But in the 1960s and ‘70s Cornell Geology nearly went extinct.  Much of the faculty departed and undergrads stopped majoring in geology. (Although when an unexploded firebomb was found in McGraw Hall’s basement, students volunteered to stand overnight watch and protected the collections.)

Then the Arts College relinquished Geology to the College of Engineering— where it became Geological Sciences and developed an internationally respected program in seismology, plate tectonics and geophysics. (Now it’s part of the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences department, with one foot in the Ag College and the other still in Engineering).

What’s left of the Cornell Geology collection is housed in Snee Hall (except for some really big chunks outdoors in the Engineering Quad) and Your Uncle guesses the specimens you bought were deaccessioned during one of those rocky periods of the 1960s-70s.  Or they might have been left in the dust when Gilbert Harris left in a snit.

It’s too late to ask a Cornell geologist who would know— because Jack E. Oliver (the geophysicist credited proving continental drift, and longtime department chair) died earlier this year.  Jack left his delightful, insightful limericks, including this one:

The youth wondered what he should be. His prof said, “You’re missing the key. Life’s not to be, but to do. Pick a task, follow through.

And your task, dear purchaser, is to contact the Paleontological Research Institution (http://www.museumoftheearth.org/) to see if they know anything about your rocks.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Lovestruck,

Of course, go for it!

Uncle Ezra   

Dear BRB Shopper,

Looks like you can use them up intil graduation, May 21st, but to be sure, check with the establishment where you shop to find out the exact date for that site. During Senior Week and graduation weekend many Cornell Dining areas have different hours to adjust to the change in need during that time.

Uncle Ezra   

Dear Crafty,

You might check with Student Activites.  They have one, but it might be resprticted to student organizations.

Uncle Ezra