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Cutting Edge

COMPUTER SCIENCE 50--Students flocking to Science Center C expected to hear Visiting Professor Brian W. Kernighan lecture on the "C" programming language.

After all, he helped write the program, and his textbook, which is required reading for the course, is affectionately referred to by computer science concentrators as "the Bible."

They didn't think he would shave his beard.

Kernighan asked students shopping CS 50: "Introduction to Computer Science" to shout out directions, which he then followed or ignored, depending on whether he could understand them.

"His beard was kind of long, and he needed a trim. So he pulled out all these cutting instruments, and had people call out instructions to him," said Susanna K. Mlynarczyk '97.

"No one could get him to do it right," she said. "He was acting pretty stupid, like computers. But he cut his beard at the end--just a little bit, just a small tuft."

Aside from filling every seat in the lecture hall, so many sweating students packed into the back of the room that small drops of condensation could be seen on the ceiling.

Selling Coolio

LITERATURE AND ARTS C-22--Professor of Medieval Latin and Comparative Literature Jan M. Ziolkowski came to class yesterday at noon seeking to make shoppers eager buyers of the Medieval European culture.

Those who left Boylston Auditorium early mainly headed towards the Coop to buy Dante's "Inferno."

The professor of Literature and Arts C-22: "European Culture in the Latin Middle Ages" wowed shoppers with slides of the Starbucks coffee logo, a video clip from "Pulp Fiction," and an audio clip from a Weird Al Yankovich spoof of Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise."

He rounded out the hour with the "Top Ten Reasons to Take This Course."

The list included the "fantastic readings" and the auditorium's "comfortable chairs."

Number one? "You can sleep until noon and still get up in time to fulfill a Literature and Arts requirement."

Ziolkowski called the course the most postmodern class on the Middle Ages ever offered.

Screaming TFs

HISTORICAL STUDIES B-61--The Warren Court was set to begin in Emerson 105 at 11:07.

Trouble was the registrar's office grossly underestimated the popularity of Warren Professor of American Legal History Morton Horwitz.

A few minutes past 11 a.m., the classroom was packed tightly.

No standing room. No breathing room.

Hundreds of other students flooded out into the Emerson Hall's hallway, standing in sweltering heat, trying desperately to even get a glimpse at Horwitz.

For a bit, the line extended outside the building.

Finally, it became clear that there was a problem. A TF screamed to get the attention of the students sardined outside.

There would be a lottery for the course. While some of the more patient fans eventually made their way into the class, a large number decided on an early lunch, hoping to return Wednesday.

And Harvard's drop in the U.S. News and World Report standings was due to class size?

Letterman, Not

ECONOMICS 1660--Professor of Law and Economics Steven Shavell wants you to take his class. He really, really, really wants you to take his class.

At the first meeting of the new Economics 1660: "Law and Economics," the professor tried his darndest to win over the audience. Shavell began the lecture by lamenting the fact that "I don't have the personality of David Letterman, one of my heroes," so he said he would have to use other incentives to convince the audience.

And he did. For example, Shavell began the lecture with a typical speech about good reasons and not-so-good reasons to take the class.

Among the good ones: interest in the subject matter, interest in going to law school and interest in taking a "lighter, less technical" economics class.

Shavell added that the course would look "really good on a transcript" for law school applicants, and the Law School faculty member offered to write recommendations for any of the 100-plus students, "which would also probably help."

Shavell admitted to a bit of naivete with respect to the College curriculum. His reference to Ec 10 drew chuckles from students, and he lamented how strictly the Faculty of Arts and Sciences complies with anti-photocopying copy-right laws.

"At the Law School, nobody cares about this stuff!" he said.

The professor's earnestness appeared to pay off. Emerson 210 was still nearly full by the end of the 90-minute lecture.

Union Protests

WILLIAM JAMES HALL--Members of Carpenters Local 40 chose yesterday morning to picket outside William James Hall, criticizing what they termed "unfair labor practices" by the University in the white monolith's renovations.

While hundreds of students headed up towards the Divinity School or Vanserg Building, three laid-off carpenters, wearing signs criticizing the project's general manager, C.E. Floyd Inc.

Steven Borkas, one of the picketers, said the union is upset with Harvard's use of subcontractors and its failure to pay prevailing union wages.

"[Harvard] is not meeting community standards for wages and benefits," Borkas said of the project, which has been ongoing the past several months.

Borkas added that several students had stopped by to ask questions, and "a couple cars honked horns in support."

Food Galore

LOKER COMMONS--When Baker Professor of Economics Martin S. Feldstein '61 concluded with his introductory Economics 10 lecture yesterday, approximately 1,000 students filed out of Sanders Theater.

Most of them headed for lunch--and Annenberg Hall couldn't hold them all.

A single-file line snaked from the first-year dining hall towards Emerson Gate at 1 p.m., with some students waiting more than 15 minutes for barbecue pork sandwiches and Chickwiches.

Many headed for the Greenhouse or the subterranean Loker Commons, using Crimson Cash for pizza, tacos, coffee and vegetable soup.

Angelo Dallasanta, customer service manager of Loker Commons, said business was brisk the entire day.

"We haven't stopped since 11 a.m.," he said.

Deliveries of food and raw ingredients have been increased from once to twice daily, in hopes of avoiding shortages, Dallasanta said.

Employees said tacos and pizza were the favorite foods yesterday, while cappuccino and cafe latte were the best-selling drinks.

Lines weren't limited to food courts, as students rushed to computer kiosks in Loker Commons and the Science Center during the 10-minute walking periods beginning at 11 a.m. and 12 noon., with waits of 10 minutes or more.

Moment of Silence

RELIGION 1489--Shopping period can be a rat race. Running from one class to the next, squeezing into over-crowded classrooms and searching desperately for the last syllabus.

Sometimes students need a moment to reflect--and that's what Thomas Professor of Divinity Harvey G. Cox Jr. offered at the beginning of his lecture yesterday.

In an unusual move--even in religious courses--Cox requested the 70 students shopping Religion 1489: "Contemporary Interpretations of Jesus" take about one minute for silent reflection.

Cox then read a short poem, written by Gerald Hopkins, to students.

"Sometimes we need to step back and take a moment," he said.

No Math, but Crane Beach

SCIENCE A-37--Hooper Professor of Geology Paul F. Hoffman tried assuring students taking "The Changing Surface of the Earth" that the course would not be painful in any way--and involved very little math.

Hoffman said that if any math problems did arise, he would slowly but surely guide the class through them.

Hoffman told students that the course was geared more toward gaining an appreciation of scientific methods rather than the pure study of science, and added that notes would be provided at the beginning of every class, because writing while the professor is speaking distracts from the learning experience.

One of the highlights of the class involves a full day trip to Crane Beach and Plum Island to measure erosion.

--Todd F. Braunstein, David L. Greene, Christopher R. McFadden, Flora Tartakovsky, and Geoffrey C. Upton contributed to the reporting and writing of this article.