Answering questions at Boston College O’Neill Library
Faculty are evaluated on research, teaching, and contributions to the university and the scholarly community. Student feedback and evaluations are part of that. bit.ly/bc-faculty-bylaws. Tenure was designed to protect faculty from being fired for not being popular with donors or governments, so whether students “like” a professor seems potentially like a similar issue. More info on tenure and why it’s useful: bit.ly/bc-tenure.
As you grow and mature as your own, independent person, you will begin to find that “home” feels less like home. Your home is here, or maybe somewhere else that you feel most comfortable. That doesn’t make you a bad person – it means that you’re gaining an independent sense of self and that’s a good thing. BUT, home is also where your family will be and that can be a double-sided coin: it’s common to love your family, but also get tired of them after a while (and not to look forward to being with them). We’re excited to have you back in January, fam!
!["You might call me a..." [series of three emoticons showing a face putting on a pair of sunglasses] "Know-it-wall"](https://library.bc.edu/answerwall/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/know-it-wall.png)
Sometimes, as with President Bush recently, it’s a federal law. But each state and commonwealth makes its own decisions, and my helpers who have lived elsewhere say the flags are at half staff more often here. Right now it honors President Bush, and a Massachusetts firefighter, Christopher Roy, who died over the weekend. If you’re ever curious, the state has a web page which will tell you why: bit.ly/bc-flag
I want my baby back, baby back, baby back…. Chiliiii’s baby back RIBS!
The best plan is to not sit for too long at one time. Get up and stretch and walk around at least every hour. And make sure you strengthen and stretch the muscles that get out of balance from too much sitting. The trainers at the Plex can probably help set up a program. But enough preventive solutions; you need immediate solutions, right? Try one of these if you’ve stiffened up. When you stand up, first do a few stretches–a quad stretch, a hip flexor stretch. Or try some bouncing and shaking: stand up (shoulder width stance), starting from the bottom of your feet, gently shake up and down for a minute or so, then make your motions smaller and smaller until you are still again. Good luck with finals!
Fr. Leahy usually asks other BC administrators speak on issues such as racism, and the BC administration has not been silent. After the most recent incident, the Provost, the VP for Student Affairs, and school Deans have all made public statements condemning racism and offering support to anyone affected by it.
You can squish bacteria, but it’s not easy. Bacteria are tiny (about 2 micrometers long, or 2×10−6 meters), which means if you stepped on one even on a smooth floor, the microgrooves in the floor would be plenty big to protect them. If scientists aren’t careful, they do squish them with microscope slide glass or by stirring too long & vigorously with a glass rod in a petri dish. Sturdy little guys, though: they populate the bottom of the Marianas Trench at pressures that would crush us instantly: bit.ly/bacteria-marianas. I don’t know if they make a sound when they fall, but bacteria apparently do make noises: bit.ly/bacteria-sounds.
The appropriate thing to do would be to contact campus police and leave the area. You can also inform a library staff member, and they will call campus police. As to the post-it response, that’s quite common, and nothing to be embarrassed about.
You’re leaving me? I will miss you. I hope you will be able to return for a visit at some point. All the best to you; may you have many adventures and much success! <3
My helpers have asked about cats, small rodents, lizards… a whole menagerie! We were led to understand that the university prefers we stick to dogs. I know it’s not quite like actually having a purr-machine in your lap, but here are some kittens:
Dope is in the eye of the beholder. Some things at BC that are totally dope: the Mods, therapy dog visits, the ALC showdown, the Chocolate Bar, BC Bigs, Mudstock, Ignite retreats… so hard to choose!
While DazQuest is fun, I gotta say that it’s probably Madden. Addazio’s out there looking like an NFL head coach.
Alas! I am sorry to report they have come and gone this semester; they were at the Brain Break just after Thanksgiving. Watch for the Brain Break in the week after Patriot’s Day in the Spring semester. Perhaps in the meantime, you can enlist the help of a friend.
Everyone has a role at BC, and Fr. Leahy is ultimately responsible for everyone doing their jobs well. I can’t be certain why Fr. Leahy speaks about some issues and not about others, but I am certain that he makes sure the Provost addresses academic issues, the VP for Student Affairs addresses student issues, the VP for Human Resources addresses staff issues, and so on.
Well, no wonder with all the work you’ve been doing. Each person is different, but there are a few things you can try to alleviate the hurt. Make sure you’re well nourished. Get up and walk around at least once an hour, or stare into the distance for about five minutes each hour. Go visit the therapy dogs. If you’re totally non-productive, you might need a longer break and some sleep and/or exercise. I’m sure you’re getting the picture … do something totally different for a little while and then go back to your writing. All the best; I know you can get through this! <3
It is sad when the people you count on for support leave you to go it alone. But I don’t think skipping your finals would be a good idea at all. Maybe let her know you miss her and make plans to travel with her on in the future? If you could use some unconditional love, our therapy dogs are coming in through Finals – see the schedule: bit.ly/PuppersBC
IAAWNAD, but lupus is notoriously difficult to diagnose. Try not to lose too much peace of mind on the possibility. (I assume you’re seeing doctors about your symptoms? Please don’t attempt to self-diagnose.) You may find it is something much simpler to treat than lupus. If the DDX is lupus, there are lots of resources to help you – I like the National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus, which takes you from the basics all the way through the latest in clinical trials: bit.ly/NLMLupus. And University Counseling (bit.ly/BC-counseling) if you need help processing it. Best wishes for future good health!
It’s not uncommon for Universities to restrict housing to members of the same sex in a given domicile. This prevents a number of tricky issues that would be likely to crop up otherwise (couple breaks up – who gets the room? parents of a student don’t approve of a living situation – how does the University handle that since most students here are legal adults? domestic violence problems could be exacerbated, etc.). Yes, it mostly assumes that everyone has “traditional” views on relationships, but it is successful in handling most of these potential problems.
Ehhh…he’s not really a video game character originally and seems kind of out of place. I know a lot of other characters are the same (looking at you pokemon characters), but it just seems forced. I know this version of Joker is from a video game, but it still doesn’t fit right. Even as a video game character, he’s not a classic Nintendo character – most of the Persona games are on PlayStation. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
