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Bwog’s inbox just got word that the Columbia College valedictorian has been named: Maxim Pinkovskiy, majoring in economics-mathematics, a Soros Fellow, and bound for a Ph. D. at MIT. Maxim, from St. Petersburg by way of Brooklyn, has won several prestigious essay contests and took an internship at the Federal Reserve. But did he give to the Senior Fund?
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28 Comments
@a fan - cont bad things to say about him!
@a fan Congratulations Maxim!
Also, to people in the comments, stop being being bitter and picking on his social skills – would you comment on his awkwardness if you couldn’t do it anonymously? It’s not like this somehow devalues him as a person.
I know Maxim and think he’s extremely personable and kind. I’m just surprised anyone would have
@ronald sutherland I don’t know, I slept with max freshman year and he was a real jerk the next morning. He told me to “just get my things and go.”
@awesome Maxim is the man – super brilliant and an awesome dude. Congrats man!
@McFister Maxim is simply on another level. In spite (or perhaps because) of his prodigious intellect, he’s articulate and personable. He’s quirky, but he’s also completely original, meaning his quirks are very much his own.
I’ve had a few discussions with him regarding his work and I would be surprised if he didn’t do something absolutely groundbreaking in the field of economics.
@anon He is one of the nicest people I know. There really could not be a more deserving candidate.
On the humble-brilliant chart, he is the farthest northeast I have ever seen.
@interesting you are the first person I have ever heard describe the first quadrant as “northeast”. But it makes sense, I guess.
@nah washington, dc has been doing it for awhile.
@Neither... Can #15…who is the salutatorian this year?
@Do you know who the saludictorian is?
@444444444444 No you. You can’t even spell the word.
@Not you either. You said “No you”.
@Very impressive Seems like a great choice. I like smart people.
@Yes He is extremely smart and well-deserving. The only knock is that he sadly has absolutely no social skills.
@... that’s not the case at all! he’s a charming fellow and totally deserving of his success
@Anonymous That’s not true. Max is outgoing enough, you just have to run into him. I’ve had extensive conversations with Max and he is certainly the most broadly intelligent person I’ve met her, well-versed in both humanities and sciences.
As for best papers, your professor has to suggest you. He was in my Seidel section for Lit Hum, so that presumably carried a lot of weight. But he was also the one who consistently knew every answer in class, and expressed it in a brief, eloquent fashion.
But even more than all of that, he’s just a quiet, nice guy. Not sure how great his speech will be, but I have a feeling it will shock a lot of people who don’t think it will be good.
@the valedictorian doesn’t give the speech, the salutorian does
@well outgoing does not equal having social skills. I am sure that he is a nice enough guy if you are friends with him, and clearly he is brilliant. In my experience however, he seems awkwardly outgoing, which is worse than quietly awkward.
@... Maxim is extremely nice and helpful to everyone, not just his friends. I think you may be confusing his super politeness and his articulated way of speech with awkwardness.
@Wow He sounds really smart.
@green Well, at least it’s not a Rabi scholar for once. Thank heavens!
@Impressed I’m really impressed with his background. This is one of those rare Columbia moments where I feel good about going to a school with people like this as my peers instead of feeling a twinge of jealousy at those more specialized than I am.
The Soros description said he won both the Lit Hum and CC best paper awards. I’ve always been curious how those are selected – does anyone know? I’d love to read his papers.
@Your Prof reads your paper and suggests you enter the best paper competition.
PS Economics & Mathematics is not the same thing as Economics-Mathematics, Bwog.
@ZvS Oops! Fixed.
@Xavier Yes, Maxim. BUT WHAT COLOR IS THE LINE????!?
Uh….green?
No. FUSCIA!
//
Mrs. Martin. Only I may call her grandma.
@mec I hope that was Macoeconomics from Fall 2006, but I know Chabs is keen on reusing jokes sometimes…
@Let's settle this... Maxim v. Hawkmadinejad for Columbia supremacy.
@dude is great Maxim is awesome. stylish, in his own dorky way. and super-smart and -articulate. used the word “verisimilitude” in our first Art Hum class.