Weather Takes a Dip

Recently, it's seemed the Mother Nature just can't make up her mind.

Over the past week, residents of Cambridge and most of the northeastern United States have experienced a broad range of temperatures, as the highs skyrocketed up to near 60 degrees over last weekend and then plummeted as low as the teens on Wednesday.

According to the National Weather Service at Logan Airport, the cold pattern that has developed will remain in the Boston area for a while.

"We're still in winter for at least another week," a spokesperson said.

Breaks in the cold weather, like the one that occurred last weekend, are not unusual for New England winters, according to the weather service.

The fluctuation results from changes in the atmosphere. For example, the dramatic temperature drop early this week followed a cold front moving south form Canada.

The sudden changes in the weather have not gone unnoticed by Harvard students.

"It's like the entire year has been crammed into one week," said Nancy M.Dammann '97.

"I was wearing shorts on Saturday, long underwear this morning and now I have to wear a raincoat " she said yesterday afternoon.

Others like Luke D. Moland '97 had stronger reactions to the weather fluctuations.

"It's like the worst of all worlds," Moland said. "We have frigid wind along with rain and slush. it's just not fair!"

The drastic weather changes have especially inconvenienced those who jog on campus.

"There is no consistency in the trails around the river," said Laura A. Jones '95. "You never know when you can gorunning or skiing."

The temperature fluctuations have caught somestudents by surprise making the weather extremelyunpredictable.

"I wake up for a nine o'clock class and I don'tknow how to dress," said Elana M. Oberstein '97.

"That's my theory on why everyone's gettingsick now; people walk out in a thin shirt thinkingit's warm, but then they realize it's not enough,"she said.

The weather has also created heating problemsin the dorms, students said.

"When it gets very hot outside the heat goesoff, but when it gets cold two seconds later, wedon't get the heat back immediately," Obersteinsaid.

Another student also blamed the weather andheating for student illness.

"It's not very healthy for us to live in roomswhere it's 90 degrees with the heat and we have toopen our windows to below freezing temperatures,"said Michelle N. Lipkowitz '97.

According to the Harvard Yard Superintendent'soffice, the heating in the dorms is maintained onan automatic cycle.

A spokesperson said the Control Center hadreceived no student complaints

The temperature fluctuations have caught somestudents by surprise making the weather extremelyunpredictable.

"I wake up for a nine o'clock class and I don'tknow how to dress," said Elana M. Oberstein '97.

"That's my theory on why everyone's gettingsick now; people walk out in a thin shirt thinkingit's warm, but then they realize it's not enough,"she said.

The weather has also created heating problemsin the dorms, students said.

"When it gets very hot outside the heat goesoff, but when it gets cold two seconds later, wedon't get the heat back immediately," Obersteinsaid.

Another student also blamed the weather andheating for student illness.

"It's not very healthy for us to live in roomswhere it's 90 degrees with the heat and we have toopen our windows to below freezing temperatures,"said Michelle N. Lipkowitz '97.

According to the Harvard Yard Superintendent'soffice, the heating in the dorms is maintained onan automatic cycle.

A spokesperson said the Control Center hadreceived no student complaints