While the curators of the hallowed Metropolitan Museum of Art felt pretty confident when they dropped $45 million on a Renaissance Masterpiece, CU art history professor James Beck just called them suckers: he’s convinced that this painting’s a fake. Read the full story in the Times.

Still winding down from that CC exam? Check out this mix, graciously relayed by a student of CC teacher Dermot Albert Ryan. Plato – “Quiet” – The Beta Band Aristotle – “We’re Going To Be Friends” – The White Stripes Hebrew Bible – “Israelites” – Desmond Dekker New Testament – “Jesus” – The Velvet Underground […]

John Klopfer reports: Gulati drew up this diagram for us in class today. Note the big smudges where Florida and Louisiana should be… He told us to stop making fun of his drawing, added Florida, changed his mind, erased it (“Who needs Florida, anyway?”), looked closer, smeared the crap out of the Gulf coast, and […]

Econ prof Jagdish Bhagwati on the Fall of Man: “If there had been trade in the Garden of Eden, Adam would have traded the apple for a kiwi fruit, and the entire history of humanity would be much more benign.” –Ana Ortiz

In today’s New York Times, everyone’s favorite Principles prof, Sunil Gulati, explains why you’re better off at Columbia than pursuing your dreams of soccer stardom. As if our Major League Soccer dreams needed any more dashing.

Professor Wm. Theodore de Bary, C ’41, beloved octogenarian professor, in Nobility & Civility class: “My ancestors fought in the Crusades, along with Richard the Lionhearted. *pause* As you can see, some of them survived.” His grandfather.

Jim Williams reports: A recent event in Noha Radwan’s Contemporary Islamic Civilization lecture causes this Blue and White correspondent to wonder whether certain students are making a feeble attempt to revive Prangstgrüp or whether said students are merely assholes. About 20 minutes into class, a college-aged male who may or may not attend Columbia University […]

It turns out that high school kids aren’t the only ones who have infiltrated the once sanctified realm of Facebook. Professors may not be able to work projectors, but they can post mildly amusing Facebook profiles! Samuel Moyn, History. -Political Views: Apathetic. -Job: Foot soldier at Columbia University. -Job Title: Assistant Professor. -Description: I teach […]

Conscious of spring’s glorious birth today, David Helfand, resident nutty professor of Astronomy, posed a curious question at the beginning of his Beyond the Solar System class: “Would you rather hear my prepared lecture or take a walk?” One hundred sorrowful humanities majors awoke, and Helfand led them on an impromptu adventure in Riverside Park […]

Can you lead a perfectly successful and happy life even if you’ve never read about Leopold Bloom masturbating on a Dublin beach? Everyone has that book (or those books) that they probably should have read by now, but have not. Professors, we hypothesized, are no different. So we asked them to name the book they […]

“So colonial America’s two greatest exports were sugar, which destroys your teeth, and tobacco, which kills you. Thanks.” –Trademark Eric Foner digression in lecture today. Just don’t get him started on The Great Boston Molasses Massacre.

The Blue and White’s Rob Wile sat down with English Professor Michael Rosenthal to discuss his new book recounting the exploits of the man who built Columbia, or at least served as its president from 1902-1945.. In Nicholas Miraculous: The Amazing Story of the Redoubtable Nicholas Murray Butler, Rosenthal documents the evolution of a man […]

Sunil Gulati on exchange rates: “Stay away from the health club, you want pounds.” Lag from the class. Laughter. – Ana Ortiz

Professor Alfred MacAdams on the translation of Latin American texts: “All of this is like trying to learn sex from a manual and using a blow up doll. There are some things you just can’t learn from books.” –Ana Ortiz

The following picture and caption ran on the front page of today’s Spec next to the article “Professors Scoff at CULPA”: Well, we know Prof. Moyn. Prof. Moyn is a friend of ours. And that, sir, is no Prof. Moyn. This is Prof. Moyn’s picture on the History Department website: So who is the man […]