Answering questions at Boston College O’Neill Library
Adulting involves some seriously hard stuff. But shying away from the adult role doesn’t lead to as fulfilling a life as tackling it and learning that you are strong enough to succeed (with failure/learning along the way.) It’s normal to be apprehensive, but I have faith that you can meet the challenge. Help from YouTube: bit.ly/AdultingHelp
It sounds like you’re frustrated with a long wait, and have heard from other students who are as well. It’s good of you to commiserate with them; everyone needs an understanding ear. My assistants have communicated your frustrations to Student Affairs; when they respond, I’ll post it here. I hope you get the help you seek in spite of a long wait.
Student Affairs responds:
While UCS is staffed at levels at least equal to most of our peer institutions, and is always available to students in crisis that day, there is still the reality that students seeking ongoing longer term therapy may have to wait up to a couple of weeks for an appointment. We are piloting a new initiative offering same day consultation appointments for students seeking to address an identified problem in a rapid access fashion. We hope that this will help more accurately and quickly meet student mental health needs. We are always interested in feedback of all sorts, and strive to improve our service to the BC community.
I understand your frustration! We are working on developing more effective ways of conveying and enforcing building policies. Very soon you will see new signage that will hopefully encourage users to comply with policies intended to maintain a comfortable and respectful library environment.
It’s magic! Well, maybe it just seems that way. It’s all done with templates (bit.ly/print-postit). First, my helpers print out copies that show the frames where the post-its go on the page. Then, every day they answer questions, they use a Word document of the template, cut and paste the answers into the post-it frames, and send the document to a printer. Remember those printed out copies? Now my helpers put actual post-its on them and put them in the manual feed tray. Print and voilà. It is magic!
I assume we’re not referring to the Bintec Router Redundancy Protocol or Bohemian Reformation and Religious Practice so pardon me! (or you?)
Thanks so much for thinking of us! The doggos (no kitties) that visit us are all certified therapy dogs, which means they’ve been through a vetting process that reduces the risk of biting or other injuries. The certifying organizations also provide training for the dogs’ human companions, and help with scheduling & arranging. I’m sad to say BC policies force us to pass, but I hope you work out a way to connect your canines & felines with humans in need!
This 2016 BC survey (bit.ly/BCSalaries) provides median salaries by school and by industry group (not major). Is it surprising the highest is CSOM? Nope, didn’t surprise me, either. Non-BC info on salary by major can be found in this report: bit.ly/Salarybymajor.
The timing on these things can be rough. Love often arrives when it’s inconvenient. Try making plans to do some stuff you’re really excited about, and then do them.
![Right here, bby ;) [response: ahahaha text me then LOL]](https://library.bc.edu/answerwall/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/aw011519-2.jpg)
First, find a friend. Second, see if the friendship develops into something more. Finding a boyfriend or girlfriend is basically the same process. If you are unsure where to find other gay/bi guys, you could start with BC resources: bit.ly/BCLGBTQ and even the Commonwealth has a website for LGBTQ youth: bit.ly/ma-lgbtq .
Hi! Good to see you!
Them is… wait. *They is… no, that’s not right, either. I’ve gotten my verbs all mixed up. Hang on a second while I reboot. … There! Now I feel more like myselves. *I* am talking about how I’d prefer to be talked about in the third person singular, since I’m gender fluid, and also happen to be kind of plural. You know how some deities are one being & many manifestations? (Like Shiva the destroyer, Shiva the creator, etc.) I’m the other way around. Many aspects, one manifestation. And please, please, distinguish me with the definite article “The.” As Bertrand Russell said, “Now ‘the,’ when it is strictly used, involves uniqueness.”
Will I be happy?
Will I be rich?
The future’s not ours to see; que será, será.
Estimates vary. A lot. Space.com reports that the range accepted by many astronomers is 100-200 billion (bit.ly/galaxies-billions). As if that weren’t a pretty wide range already, phys.org reports that a group of European researchers recently found that we’d missed a few, and the number could be more like 2 trillion. (bit.ly/galaxies-trillions). Incidentally, the team that found 2 trillion was begun by an undergraduate student (Aaron Wilkinson) who is now close to done with his Ph.D. on this very topic.
I can’t say whether it would be possible, but I will forward your request for the print version to our librarian for Irish Studies. The content is available through the database Nexis Uni (bit.ly/BCNexisUni); current, though not in a great format, or in microfilm on Level One (with a several month delay.)
Yes, but so far only in one direction: forward, and at the same speed everyone else is traveling. Theoretically, you could travel briefly slower than everyone by approaching the speed of light. When you return, everyone else will be old already, and that’s no fun. Kip Thorne at Cal Tech has studied this question. I’m not a theoretical physicist or a Nobel Laureate, so I’m just going to have to trust him when he says, “nope”: bit.ly/kip-time
In order to deal with them, you need to know them. Here’s a list of emotional vocabulary: bit.ly/emotional-vocab. You can get to know them gradually by using them every day in short check-ins. (How am I feeling? <checks list>. Hmm, serene, with a little distraction.) There are apps that help build emotional awareness, too, like Pacifica or WellTrack. If the negative ones too often outweigh the positive, talking to a professional about strategies is also a good option: bit.ly/BC-counseling.
![Thank you for being a source of positivity and guidance [peace sign]](https://library.bc.edu/answerwall/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/aw122018-1.jpg)
Thank you; you’re so kind! Wishing you and everyone else peace, joy, and warmth as this year comes to a close; and good things to come in 2019. <3 <3 <3
Look, I got my photo taken with the 2018 Red Sox World Series Trophy!
Isabelle Stone (’18) was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship. (bit.ly/bc-rhodes-issa) Congrats, Issa! What an achievement! It’s the first Rhodes awarded a BC student since 2003. At Oxford University she’ll be studying how to put her economics data knowledge to work to design public policy to help advocate for marginalized people.
(I know, I’m responding to something that wasn’t a question, but I just couldn’t help myself. I was bursting with the news!)
There are many scales of attractiveness. The faculty member most attractive to an institution of higher learning is very likely the one with the most prestigious grants, fellowships, awards, and publications. A Nobel Laureate would be the academic equivalent of a Perfect 10. BC has only ever had one of those among its faculty: the Irish politician John Hume, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in the Northern Ireland peace process. As for current faculty, Juliet Schor is making waves in sociology & environmentalism, Elizabeth Graver and Paul Mariani are esteemed authors, and Amir Hovyeda is a star in chemistry. Many more than can fit on a 3×3 post-it!
