Best Of 2008… The Best of Pitt

Student Organization: Pitt Program Council Pitt Program Council does some pretty cool stuff…. Student Organization: Pitt Program Council Pitt Program Council does some pretty cool stuff. Because of them, we get a homecoming bonfire, a week of sun, shenanigans, hot body contests and Geico cavemen in the pool in Panama City. A few of us even got to say hello to Hugh Hefner on the phone through Bridget Marquardt. ‘-Emily Steiner Place to Hang Out on Campus: Schenley Plaza Think Pittsburgh is too far inland to tan like a beach bum? Have you ever seen Schenley Plaza in the summer? When the thermometer reaches 70, Oakland’s most prominent patch of grass becomes speckled with shirtless guys with footballs and bikini-clad girls hoping to dodge their shadows. Luckily, the Plaza is multipurpose. It’s a haven for families with young children because of the carousel, and free wireless Internet, food options and benches secluded in real vegetation draw students there to study. ‘-Emily Steiner Editors’ Pick: Reed Student Lounge Best Way to Confuse Freshmen: Send Them to the Corner of Forbes and Fifth She yields a backpack overflowing with unnecessary book purchases. Her steps stagger as her eyes wander left to right and back again. She holds a paper with all of Oakland’s buildings so oddly coordinated by numbers and letters. She looks up, sees you. Then all of the sudden, words begin to stumble from her mouth. You listen intently before you realize what she is ‘- a lost freshman. Your first instinct is to be polite and help her, but then the thought runs through your head about when you were lost in that first year. It’s time for revenge. You smile, point down Forbes Avenue and kindly reply with, ‘You should go to the corner of Forbes and Fifth, and it’ll be right there.’ You’ve done it. You have found the best way to confuse a freshman. ‘-Nick LaMantia’ ‘ ‘ Editors’ Pick: Courseweb’ ‘ Best Pitt Tradition: Homecoming Celebrated with current students, alumni and friends, Pitt’s homecoming is regarded as the best tradition on campus. Marked by the voting of king and queen, homecoming is best celebrated with a Panther football game. Following the game, fireworks can be seen high above the city on this autumn eve of get-togethers. ‘-Nick LaMantia Editors’ Pick: Oakland Zoo Student organization with Pitt spirit: Pitt Pathfinders Ever wonder how many windows are in the Cathedral of Learning? Next time you see someone in a bumblebee Pitt shirt walking backwards and giving a tour, you should ask one. ‘ ‘ ‘ The person is most likely one of the 147 Pitt Pathfinders we have here on campus. If you ever visited Pitt before coming here for school, you probably went on a Pathfinder tour on which you were told there are 2,529 windows in the Cathedral. Pitt Pathfinders are a vital part of the admissions process, and they can almost always be found sporting some combination of our beloved blue and gold. ‘-Jasmine Hawkins Student Advocacy Group: Rainbow Alliance What’s the best way to raise money for the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force? Put on an annual drag show. Rainbow Alliance, a political and advocacy organization, raised $1,170 for the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force at its drag show last year. More recently, Rainbow succeeded in having the non-discrimination policy changed to include gender identity and expression. Rainbow’s mission is to educate, support and promote visibility regarding issues of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders, transvestites and transsexuals. So if you’re looking for a fun group that likes to get things done, stop by room 611 at the William Pitt Union. ‘-Jasmine Hawkins Best Fraternity: Zeta Beta Tau Located on University Drive, Zeta Beta Tau was the nation’s first Jewish fraternity. It currently has more than 4,000 members on more than 80 campuses throughout the United States and Canada. More than 150,000 men have been initiated since the fraternity’s beginning in 1889. For the third successive year, Zeta Beta Tau sponsored the ‘Get on the Ball!’ charity event. If you signed a huge, inflatable ball on campus, it was courtesy of ZBT’s effort to raise money for the UPMC Cancer Center. The event was put in to place with the help of local businesses. -Lauren Kirschman Best Sorority: Delta Phi Epsilon Delta Phi Epsilon was founded in 1917 at New York University Law School. Delta Phi Episilon’s sisters strive to represent the five S’s of Self, Sisterhood, Scholarship, Service and Social. The Pittsburgh chapter became the seventh chapter upon its founding in 1925. The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, the National Cystic Fibrosis Research Foundation and the Delta Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation make up the sorority’s three national philanthropies. The Pittsburgh chapter hosts the male beauty contest known as Deepher Dude to raise money for cystic fibrosis and ANAD week to support eating disorder awareness. The sisters are located in Amos Hall. -Lauren Kirschman Best Reason to Skip Class: Sleep The unequivocal, indisputable champion of reasons to skip class is to sleep in. No college experience would be complete without hitting the snooze button at least a couple times per semester. It just feels so good. So are naps, but nothing beats sleeping when you know you should be in class ‘mdash; it’s absolutely euphoric. However, if you feel guilty or can’t afford the absence, remember, you can always post up in the back row of class and catch some zzzzz’s, too. ‘-Tony Ferraiolo Editors’ Pick: Sex Best Thing Pitt Offers: T-Shirts I guess everybody needs clothes, right? At The Pitt Shop, you can outfit yourself in a $2.99 Pitt football tee ‘mdash; a good investment, I’d say, considering the recent ascent of the football team. And let’s not forget about the famed Oakland Zoo. The rabid student section, and the shirts everyone wears, has become synonymous with Pitt basketball and the toughest place to play on the road in the country, the Petersen Events Center. ‘-Tony Ferraiolo Editors’ Pick: Student ID bus pass Best Club Sport: Women’s Volleyball Athletics are a huge part of Pitt life, and varsity sports aren’t the only ones that play a huge role in student life. While the varsity volleyball team’s recent success is well-documented, less is known about women’s club volleyball. And if you’re surprised that it wasn’t hockey or lacrosse, don’t be. These girls do what they do better than almost anyone. Good luck to anyone who has to make a play on a hit heading toward the back left corner. ‘-Ben Duignan Thing to do on a Friday night: Party For anybody who has received an illogical, oddly poetic text from an inebriated friend, this winner seems all too obvious. Ah yes, Friday night. The time when your next class is farthest away, the time to unwind from a long week of recitations and labs. The time to party. Homework? That’s for Sunday between the end of the Arizona-Seattle 4:15 game and the start of the Colts-Jaguars 8:15 game. Movies? Come on, South Side has $5 movies (plus free popcorn!) on Monday. And if you aren’t partying Friday night, I recommend you stake out Towers patio and watch the ‘funny drunks’ waddle back home. Do it with friends and make it a party, because, after all, Friday night is party night at Pitt. -Greg Trietley Editors’ Pick: Dance Way to Pay for Tuition: Parents Dear Ma, Hey, uh ‘hellip; thanks for paying my college tuition and room and board and all that. The private high school was cool, too, I guess. Maybe it was a little overkill ‘mdash; a free car would’ve been sick ‘mdash; but, hey, it’s your money. Oh yeah, and the basic needs like food and gas money were nice pluses back in the day. I have Dining Dollars now, so you don’t have to worry about food anymore, but you’re kind of paying for those within the room and board, so ‘hellip; sweet. And, no, Ma, I’m not taking out a loan. You’re just like a bank, except you’re safer, easier and without interest ‘mdash; or repayment in general.’ Don’t bother praying for a scholarship, either. By the way, can I have some spending money? -Greg Trietley Editors’ Pick: Research studies Best NCAA Sport: Men’s Basketball When you enter the Oakland Zoo, you find yourself in one of the best fan sections in college basketball. You’re in the middle of a sea of blue and gold, jumping up and down, sweating profusely and yelling obscenities at the top of your lungs, and it’s beautiful. The sight of DeJuan Blair’s gaping smile when he throws down a ridiculous dunk over Luke Harangody is priceless, and watching Levance Fields’ last-second heroics against Duke is unforgettable. Jamie Dixon has come to Pitt and established one of the most consistent college basketball programs in the country, and the fans have embraced this team with unparalleled enthusiasm. A preseason No. 5 ranking might get the Panther faithful buzzing a little bit, too. -Ben Duignan Best Spring Break Destination: Utah Sure, you could go somewhere warm, maybe near a beach or on an island. You could lounge around all day tanning, while simultaneously ogling your fellow coeds, who are surely walking around as close to naked as society allows. Or you can go to Utah. It might be a bit more active of a spring break, as you’re in for a week of skiing, snowboarding, tubing and any other way you can figure out how to fall down a hill. Plus, if that gets boring, you can get married. Multiple times. Adam Littman Editors’ Pick: Mexico Best Class To Sleep Through: Intro to Psychology You want to be studious, so you go to class. Unfortunately, so do about 400 other students, many of whom bring along a Sudoku or crossword puzzle. You don’t, and eventually you get an overwhelming feeling to plop your head down and sleep. Go right ahead. If an aspect of psychology is studying group dynamics and behavior, why not take a nap and see how the person next to you reacts when you start drooling all over his notes? It’s a social experiment. Who knows, bring a blanket and pillow, and you might even get extra credit. -Adam Littman Editors’ Pick: Take your pick Best Secret Organization: Druids While the Druids have remained out of sight as of late, they haven’t remained out of Pitt students’ minds. While their days of SGB allocations requests for Stonehenge replicas are in the past, the Druids remain active, announcing a scholarship for a seemingly random Pitt student as recently as this past spring. Although they haven’t been an official student organization for years, the Druids are still a presence at Pitt ‘mdash; or are they? ‘-Drew Singer Editors’ Pick: Freemasons Best Class at Pitt: Intro to Engineering Analysis So, you finally made it to Pitt, and you want to be an engineer. First thing’s first. You have to get through Intro to Engineering Analysis. And why not do it with 350 of your closest friends? From HTML to linear algebra, this class will prepare for the everyday life of an engineer. If the class doesn’t end up working out for you, you can still find rest in knowing that you made The Pitt News’ Best Of. ‘-Jay Huerbin Editors’ Pick: United States Since 1945 Best Classroom: 621 Benedum Eighty seats. Eighty computers. And you’re supposed to be paying attention to a lecture? Yeah, OK. How can you listen during class when you’re busy reading that wall-to-wall on Facebook or checking up on the latest CollegeHumor video? The computers might come in handy when you need to put together a new spreadsheet, but with so many distractions, it’s easy to see why this classroom is the best at Pitt. ‘-Jay Huerbin