Thursday, August 23, 2007

Thursday Thirteen

Today is the first day back at school at Cornell University, where my momma goes to get her Ph.D. Now, I have never actually been to Cornell because, well, I'm a cat and I don't need no stinkin' degree to prove that I'm clever. But I thought I would share thirteen facts about Cornell just out of interest. I hope you like them:

1) Cornell University was founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and his buddy Andrew Dickson White. Ezra is a funny name.

2) Cornell is both a private and a public university: some colleges are Ivy League while some are state colleges. It is also the only Ivy League Land Grant university.

3) Forty Nobel laureates have been affiliated with Cornell as faculty or students (whoop-dee-doo. none of them were cats)

4) Ezra wrote to A.D. White in 1868 as they were creating the university, making this pledge: "I would found an institution where any person could find instruction in any study.” People make a big deal out of his inclusiveness but note the discrimination: "where any person..." Beans always overlook this blatant speciesism.

5) Ezra made lots and lots of money in the telegraph business, inventing ways to dig telegraph lines and insulate them. Nobody uses telegraphs anymore. Can you imagine a Cat Telegraph-Sphere? Ha ha ha!

6) Cornell has 14 schools and colleges: seven undergraduate schools/colleges; four graduate colleges in Ithaca; two medical colleges in New York City; and a medical college in Qatar. That's really, really far away.

7) Cornell offered America's first university degree in veterinary medicine. Its College of Veterinary Medicine is one of the leading veterinary science research centers in the world.

8) The Vet College has a Feline Health Center. This makes Cornell my favorite school.

9) Cornell's mascot is the Big Red Bear. People just call Cornell "Big Red."

10) Cornell offers 70 different undergraduate majors.

11) Cornell's library system includes 20 different libraries and has nearly 8 million printed books.

12) The main campus of Cornell is in Ithaca, New York, and the campus is on a plateau east of Cayuga Lake (one of the Finger Lakes), with big gorges with creeks at the bottom serving as the north and south borders of the campus. This is why Ithaca's motto is "Ithaca is Gorges." It is also why the Cornell alma mater starts out "Far above Cayuga's waters..."

13) Cornell has over 100 "interdisciplinary research organizations," which means centers, institutes, and programs outside of academic departments. These are my favorites: Cornell Electron Storage Ring (in case you need somewhere to store your electrons for a while); Information Assurance Institute (this assures you that you have information); and, the best: Transgenic Mouse Facility. Building better mice instead of better mousetraps. I hear they are working on a Nano-Mouse.

17 comments:

Rosemary B❤️ said...

Cornell must be a huge university.
Sort of like the State of Cornell.

We have several bean friends that have gone to Cornell. I believe it is a school for super brains, so that is good that your mommie is there. :-)

Zippy, Sadie, Speedy and M'Gee said...

Our bean sisfur went der for a speshulty course! She loved it...She sed it was furry beyootiful and da beans der is nice.

Daisy said...

I liked learning more about Cornell. Your mom must be very smart!

ANGEL ABBYGRACE said...

Jimmy Joe

Your Momma is furry smart to be going to Cornell. It is a furry purrty area and we fink yu are furry lucky.

Purrs
Abby

LZ said...

That is a great school! All of the horses where the LL worked in college went to Cornell if they needed to go to the VET hospital. They took good care of them. The LL went to UMass so nothing fancy.

Kaze

Monty Q. Kat said...

MomBean's been to Ithyca before! But it was before she brought me home. She said it's a pretty town.

Skeezix the Cat said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Skeezix the Cat said...

Skeezix the Cat said...
Yoo fergot the most importunt thing abowt Cornell Yooniversity!!!!! My v-e-t, Dr Schuchman of Bulluvard Pet Hospitul grajooayted frum Cornell. Maybey yer mom knows him. He's vary old and big and duzn't have much hed furrs. He's hard to miss. And my Food Lady is a member of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. But I don't think she's bin to Ikkythu.

The Lee County Clowder said...

Well, with all the beans trying to build a better mouse trap, we guess it's only fair that there be someone out there trying to build a better mouse.

Wishing your momma luck with her studies.

Unknown said...

Your momma is a smart lady. You are a smart kitty for knowing so many things about Cornell!

The Meezers or Billy said...

Cornell is one of the most beautiful campuses, according to Mommy. AND, she readed a story where they use water from Cayuga Lake for their cooling system so that the water is always recycled.

MaoMao said...

What a really cool listie! My momma really likes Cornell becuz that's where one of her furry most fav'rit people in the world taught -- Carl Sagan!

Kittyhugs and purrs from MaoMao!

MaoMao said...

It's me again, buddy! Guess what -- I taggied you fur a meme! Come see!

Kittyhugs and purrs from MaoMao!

Tara said...

Wow, those were some really neat things about Cornell. My mom has a PhD from UC Davis. What is your mom studying, and in what college?

Tara

Dragonheart, Merlin, Devi, and Chloe said...

Your mom must be very smart, Jimmy Joe. :) My mom is working on her Masters degree (in Physiotherapy). Cornell sounds like a wonderful university.

Tink said...

Hi Jimmy Joe!
I took over Mommy Tink's blog yesterday to introduce myself with 13 pictures. Wanna meet me?
Love, Maia

Unknown said...

Wow, Cornell sounds very, very BIG. I hope your Mum doesn't get lost there. Wish her luck from me on her first day back at school.