What wasn't it on? Science, politics, diplomacy, you name it.
What was your central focus?
The International Geophysical Year, an 18-month period from 1957 to 1958 when nearly 70 countries, including the U.S. and the Soviet Union, cooperated on scientific research centered on Antarctica. The program advanced a broad range of scientific disciplines, led to the signing of the Antarctic Treaty and left a more entrenched science bureaucracy in Washington. Many other attempts at mixing these three elements (science, politics and diplomacy), from the Kyoto Protocol to the International Space Station, have been far less successful.
Now that it's done, what have you been doing with your free time?
What free time?
If you had free time, how would you spend it?
Writing for pleasure.
What do you want to make sure to do before you graduate?
File the proper forms with the registrar. People forget how important that is.
Any fun plans for senior week?
What are you offering?
If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would it be?
Right here, with my friends. Or maybe in Washington, close to my family and the seat of world power.
Any nicknames? What's the story behind them?
Linky. I got the nickname when I was 17 or 18, but my family only uses it when they think I'm getting too serious, hence it's not oft employed.
What meal at Val are you going to miss the most?
Eating with my friends.
But if you had to pick one meal, which would it be?
Since you've forced my hand, I suppose I would have to say Thai chicken curry. I feel like I've been transported to Thailand every time I try it.
What's the most embarrassing moment you've ever had at Amherst?
I guess the least embarrassing moment I ever had at Amherst was filing forms with the registrar. It went just like clockwork.
Are there any classes that you regret not having taken these past
four years?
Interdisciplinary Studies 42: Actualizing Your Self-Concept. I think I really missed out.
What do you think could be improved about Amherst?
The weather. Also, no more sunsets at 4:30.
What are your plans for the first year after college?
More school. Either as an English teacher or a law student.
Did you get an Alpha Delta Phi grant to visit Antarctica to conduct primary research?
No. That would have probably been a $6,000 or $7,000 recreational cruise. But I did get $22 from the Gillette Fund to pay for making photocopies in Washington, D.C., which is in many ways a more exotic locale.
And what do you see yourself doing 10 years from now?
Practicing law or politics.
What's one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
I'm not selling out, I'm buying in.
-Justine Chae & Marisa Maleck