The following article ran in the Feb. 2, 1922 issue of the M.C.M. Lode. 

The dance and basketball game last Friday night was a great success from the dancer’s point of view. The music was the best that Mac-Nord ever gave us, and every one that was there hada fine time from all reports. The dance committee is pleased to find that there are at least thirty-five fellows in the three hundred in school that know a good thing when they see it. We give you a dance and charge you a dollar. Fifty fellows show up. We say, “maybe the price is too high,” so we give you a basketball game and let you dance for four hours with the best music in the country and thirty-five fellows come out. What is the answer? We pass. Some one was heard to say, “I have to study.” Good, that is what you are here for, keep it up. BUT, you dear hard working boys, there is going to be an extra day of leisure put in this short month of February, just because this country had a Father, and the dance committee is going to give you another chance to enjoy the gym floor on a night when there is no trip the next day. Get a girl for the night of Feb. 21. The 22nd is a holiday. We have a number of requests to have a stop put to the “cutting-in” at the dances and we may try it. Let us hear from you about it. Remember it is your dance, at your gym, so, have them as you like them, the committee has no mind readers on its present staff, make a noise: Tell it to Bill. 

The following article ran in the Jan. 21, 1922 issue of the M.C.M. Lode.

In student discussions relative to their class work how often is heard that pungent and virile phrase “get the dope.” It is a phrase we may well adopt as our watchword while in college and on the job. “GET THE DOPE.” The pity words carry with them the spirit of determination to master and overcome all difficulties. This spirit has been alive in all ages. It was this spirit that led Hannibal to scale the snow-clad peaks of the Alps amid the swirling snows and batter at the gates of Rome. It was this spirit that imbued Marshal Foch to hold out with bull-dog tenacity against the German onslaught to stem the tide of German invasion.

For fifteen years, Bernard Palissy, the Huguenot potter, labored to discover the process for glazing porcelain, and after he was reduced to such poverty that he was forced to burn his furniture to start his ovens he attained his goal. He “GOT the dope.” Columbus had the courage to sail the uncharted sea against the combined superstition of his age and he was rewarded by discovering a new continent. He also “Got the dope.” 

The following anecdote — current in Houghton some years ago — of a mining captain is illustrative: The mining captain accustomed to visit the mine every morning would call for the man in charge of the work and say, “Good morning, how is that drift going north of the shaft on the tenth level?” The reply to this query would be, “She’s lookin’ keenly, Cap’n. There’s a lot of copper in ‘er.” “Damme, what the bloody ‘ell is the use of copper down there. Send ‘er up, send ‘er up.” He was “AFTER the dope” and presumably he got it. 

The following article ran in the Jan. 21, 1922 issue of the M.C.M. Lode.

The men sent to the Michigan College of Mines by the Federal Board for Vocational Training have entirely justified the confidence placed in them by the government. The work of vocational training, particularly for those enrolled in the elementary courses, has been extremely gratifying. Of the fifty-six men who, since the end of the war, have been enrolled for instruction, one has left on account of physical condition, five have been removed for failure to meet the requirements of the college, one has entered the field of business, two have transferred to other schools. The five men removed for failure bring the percentage of failures to only ten per cent, a remarkable record considering the standard of M. C. M. scholarship and the heavy handicap under which many of the men were working.

In the upper peninsula of Michigan there are over two hundred ex-service men in training under Section II of the government’s rehabilitation plan. One hundred and nine of these men saw service overseas with the 32nd Division. This places the Red Arrow men far in the lead numerically. In addition there are men from almost every division and branch of the service by our war time forces. 

The latest acquisition to the Marquette office staff is a Copper Country product, Dr. Leo P. Schroeder of Calumet. Dr. Schoreder has been appointed sub-district medical officer in charge of the upper peninsula. His duties will consist of following up the medical attention of trainees and other men receiving compensation. The doctor will also have charge of hospitalization and inspection as well. This brings the office right to the door of the beneficiary and is the latest move of the government in its scheme of decentralization.

Of over two hundred men receiving maintenance pay while taking vocational training in the upper peninsula, one hundred and six are in northern Michigan schools, while the remainder are largely taking replacement instruction in trades and business.

The following article ran in the Dec. 1, 1921 issue of the M.C.M. Lode.

At the last Student meeting November 21 Dr. McNair appeared before the body to explain certain rules governing absences and the attitude of the faculty concerning absences.

As the Dr. explained, the absences this year have not assumed alarming proportions but seeking to forestall a condition which has arisen in years past. This opportunity was taken to call to mind the necessity for the regular attendance and the ultimate consequence of attendance to suit the individual taste.

We witnessed only a year ago the result of incessant absences, the loss of unity and breaking of the morale which was bound to ensue, this year increased burdens and responsibilities in every department is fair to assume that such a condition would prove a calamity. 

It is true that very few pedagogical restrictions are placed upon the students at M. C. M. They are free to follow their own instructions and all trust is placed on them as gentlemen and men who can be depended upon. Such an attitude between fellow students and the faculty is one of our fundamentals upon which we have built with great pride since our very inceptions. It is the spirit, we are determined to inculcate in the heart of every new man in our midst and a spirit antagonistic to this, we are just as determined, shall we prosper among those who are not new to our traditions. 

The following article ran in the Nov. 19, 1921 issue of the M.C.M. Lode.

Mr. K. Yoshizawa, chief engineer of the Mitsui Mining Co., Ltd., of Tokyo, visited the college last week in company with Jonathan A. Noyes, Duluth district manager for the Sullivan Machinery Co. The trip to the college was made principally to inspect the mine models in the Mining building, and to observe American methods of technical instruction.

While in the Copper Country, Mr. Noyes and Mr. Yoshizawa visited the John A. Roebling’s Sons wire mill, the Quincy stamp mill, the Quincy smelter, and the Quincy No. 2 surface plant, with special attention to the big hoist.

Mr. Yoshizawa, who in addition to his work with the Mitsui company, is a lecturer in the mining School of the Japanese Imperial University, expressed himself as highly pleased with the course and methods of instruction at M.C.M. He stated that in his trip through the United States he had not found another mining school which combined the practical and the theoretical in such a satisfactory proportion. 

The Mitsui Mining company operates eight coal mines, three metal mines carrying a wide variety of rich sulphide ores, a sulphur mine, a general metal refinery, a by-product coke and gas power plant and dye manufactory. Their production in 1918 included 3,700,000 tons coal, 31,000 oz. gold, 637,000 oz. silver, 41,000 lbs. copper, 5,750 tons lead, 10,400 tons zinc, 15,700 lbs. arsenic, 1888,000 lbs. tungsten, 7,000 tons sulphur, 114,000 tons coke, 1,300 tons ammonium sulphate, and a variety of oils, intermediates, dye-stuffs and chemicals.

The following article ran in the Nov. 19, 1921 issue of the M.C.M. Lode.

An enthusiastic meeting of the New York section of the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America was held Friday evening, Oct. 28, at the Harvard Club, following the regular section dinner. In the absence of C. M. Weld, chairman, Sydney H. Ball, vice-chairman, presided and announced that the discussion would cover the report made by the Committee on Technical Education.

Dr. F. W. McNair, president of the Michigan College of Mines, said that he wished to correct the impression that seemed to be made by the report that the course at Houghton is shorter than the four-year courses at other institutions. He stated that the Michigan College of Mines has an all-year session on the four term plan, and that time equivalent to that given at other colleges in four years is by this means put with the limits of three calendar years.

He emphasized the point that “reaching” the student is more important than the content of the course, and pointed out that specialization in professional life is determined chiefly by the opportunities which come to the graduate, and that in the great majority of cases neither the college student nor his teachers can correctly predict what opportunities he is afterward to meet.

Lectures, he said, are justified in three cases — for the announcement of new developments, for purposes of demonstration, and when the lecturer has the power to arouse in his listeners an interest in and enthusiasm for the subject which can not be expected to come from reading cold print.

His ideal institution, he said, would be one bounteously endowed, independent of political conditions, in which it would be possible to make a careful study of each student, and a classification of students based on the results of such study. 

Furthermore, since the engineer’s life is mainly spent in solving problems, students of this institution would find their chief business as students to consist of solving problems of various kinds under all sorts of conditions. He emphasized that among the problems the student would meet at different stages of his program a number involving human relations.

Many other prominent educators of mining engineers voiced their opinion and gave lectures on the various ways of educating a mining engineer. 

Dear readers of the Michigan Tech Lode, 

We regret to inform you that The Lode will not be publishing for the rest of the spring semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of our staff members have been displaced and our office on the MTU campus is inaccessible. 

We look forward to serving you again in August.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to lodesubmit@mtu.edu.

Round One

Side 1: 

While having a wider, or unlimited, variety of classes available online would be convenient in some ways, some problems keep this from being a reality. For example, certain science classes can’t just let their students run lab experiments in their bedroom or kitchen just because the student is taking their online course. They need a lab, they need special equipment and they probably need supervision, at least at the beginning. That does not work at home. The same thing applies to things like electrical work, woodworking, hairdressing and other such hands-on topics. That’s the reason they’re called hands-on. They need to be done in the physical presence of an instructor, at least part of the time. Does this mean that they can’t be partially online classes? Not necessarily. However, if we tried to make all classes at every university online ones, we risk leaving our students without necessary experience for their careers and possibly risk their own or others’ health in the process.

Side 2: 

Obviously, it is unfortunate to need to host all classes online, however, there are many cases in which this is the most accessible way to attend a class. If a student has a compromised immune system, should they have to give up halfway through their semester? That is obviously unfair to that student. I’m not saying every class needs to have a binary version that is online-only, but a contingency plan should be available for those who need it. Obviously, the current situation sheds new light on the subject. In the event of an emergency, shouldn’t at least some form of online curriculum be available, and easy to switch to? Rather than have a situation in which professors must hurry to change formats, create Canvas modules and edit homework policy, wouldn’t it make more sense to have an online curriculum pre-made that could easily be substituted in?

Round 2

Side 1:

Yes, having online options would be very nice and convenient if some sort of problem came up, even if it were a relatively mild one rather than something as drastic as we have going on with the virus right now. It would allow for the chance to make up or keep up with hard-to-access classes or labs and allow people with difficult circumstances a better chance at starting or continuing studies. However, it lacks a little when it comes to teaching. As mentioned earlier, online classes lack a hands-on approach. Maybe some don’t need that. However, videos and discussion boards can’t completely replace face-to-face conversation. Since roughly sixty percent of human communication comes from body language and tone is hard to interpret via the written word, things might get lost in translation between teacher and students, or between fellow students. What happens if a student has a very difficult issue to discuss with the teacher or the class. Live videos would capture all communication facets in a conversation the best, but, if it needed the whole group of students, it would be difficult to broadcast to an entire class without potentially causing more confusion. Online classes might be convenient, but they’re not necessarily more useful.

Side 2:

The point that lab classes and certain lectures are better understood in person is valid. Obviously, a student has no access to an academic lab, and mail-order kits are often way overpriced and provide only a rudimentary version of a lab. However, with the internet, it is possible to have pre-filmed lab exercises, interactive programs and even live lab meetings where students can ask questions about the lab in real-time. This is obviously not ideal, but would still provide a facsimile to a student in a compromised situation. This would also provide students an opportunity to catch up on a lab they may miss for a valid reason. In most cases, a missed lab means an automatic zero for the grade. I think it is unreasonable to give someone a zero for missing a lab when they could have had a reasonable reason to be absent. In this case, an online option would help lessen the stress on a student already under pressure from other circumstances. 

Dear Winter,

Even though you’ve been kind of finicky lately and have been giving us the cold shoulder, I still want to thank you. This year has been pretty nice compared to your past versions. You’ve given us many warm, mild days, even when you’d typically freeze us over, so even the soggy socks I’m getting has been a welcome experience.

It’s been especially nice to have the sunny days recently to cheer us up. But even when it’s snowing, it’s usually been nice, pretty, fluffy flakes that make me always think of Christmas and hot cocoa, even when it’s two months past the holidays. I desperately need that sort of comforting mental image during such a stressful time in the semester.

Now, if only you could get your cousin, Spring, to come and visit early.

Sincerely,

Anonymous

Round 1

Blue: Promoting your ideas and action plans is a necessary part of election campaigns and it does take a fair bit of money to achieve, but there comes a point when it becomes excessive. For example, in past campaign seasons, candidates have spent millions of dollars just to promote their ideas. A campaign season can cost billions when you total all the candidates’ spending together. Considering how little most people in this country earn, this is a wasteful amount to spend. Yes, they need to get the word out there, but they need to do it in ways that are more conscientious of wealth disparity. This is especially true when the fact that there are people who might be good choices for office that don’t have nearly as much money to run. There are government funding options for them, but those are limited. Should we allow people with good ideas to get drowned out by those with too much wealth and connections? No. By putting a cap on how much candidates can spend on their campaigns, it keeps the influence given by wealth more equal. And equality means that the people can truly pick who they believe is a good choice, not just the only name they recognize.

Red: The wage gap and income inequality in America are insane. I can’t really argue against that in good faith. However, if we were to try and limit campaign spending it might cause more problems than we realize. Many candidates raise their funds through their campaign supporters. In this way, it is at least a semi-useful metric in gaging how much support a candidate has. More importantly, however, the ultra-rich have a talent for finding loopholes and ways around laws. If we limit campaign spending there is a possibility the dishonest may get the upper hand. A slimy politician could find a way around the limit, while the honest will be at a huge advertising disadvantage. Obviously, it is speculation to assume a candidate would cheat, however looking at the kind of people who often run for president I wouldn’t bet a whole lot on most candidates’ honesty. On a different note, how likely is it that a bill like this would ever get passed? Something tells me a room full of career politicians wouldn’t like passing a bill that limits their own ability to campaign.

Round 2

Red: I think a common argument for the limiting of campaign spending is the obvious advantage the wealthy would get. However, while this has some merit, voters are getting savvier and savvier as to the background of candidates. If someone like Bloomberg can spend 500 million dollars on advertising his campaign, what does that say about his values? Would he be a candidate who understands the struggle of most Americans? Likely not. Meanwhile, other candidates can garner great public relations by fundraising their supporters. Someone like Bernie Sanders asking the public for support does way more to grow his following than a billionaire dropping a year’s worth of profits. The point of all this is that an unrestricted campaign budget can show more about a candidate than we might think. Also, to counterpoint the idea that money spent on campaigning is wasted or insulting to lower class Americans, I would probably say at least the money is getting spent in a way that might help more lower-class people. Travel expenses and dining might end up helping more people than just adding it to an investment portfolio.

Blue: Granted, the public seeing the disparity in the way different candidates handle campaigns might be helped by allowing limitless campaign spending, but savvy candidates will know how to work around that. Much like the earlier point that a dishonest candidate will find every single loophole to work around a capped budget, they would also be deceptive toward the public they’re trying to win over. If they’re smart, they’d use both their money and their public support to their advantage. Since usually, people go with the options they know, this means that a name that is most often repeated positively will get the most following. This only creates a snowball effect, where the richest candidates start with the most influence and keep gaining as they go, outpacing other candidates with lesser budgets since those candidates can’t gain as much public support because their voices were overshadowed by those with more money to spend on campaigning right out the gate. It doesn’t matter if the American people realize that the candidate is splurging on ads and such if they’re having difficulty hearing what the other candidates are saying. If the only people who get to say anything (outside of a debate where the questions are targeted and the answers are limited) are the richest candidates, we’ll only encourage the trend of the rich making the rules. Capping their spending might allow a different result.