After a year of research and gathering input, President Susan Hockfield announced the establishment of the Institute-wide MIT Energy Initiative in a message to the MIT community on Wednesday. The end result of the Initiative will be the establishment of “a new interdepartmental laboratory or center that will involve researchers from all five Schools,” Hockfield’s message states.

Following yesterday’s deadline for submitting applications to run for Undergraduate Association Senate, 10 students have been approved as candidates for the Senate elections. Currently, seven constituencies — Simmons Hall, Random Hall, Senior House, McCormick Hall, Living Group Council, Panhellenic Association, and Off-Campus — do not have candidates. Students will have until Monday’s late petition deadline to have their names added onto the ballot.

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The preferred dining plan increased to $300 this semester, a $50 increase from last year’s price. The extra money goes toward Baker Dining’s increased service and higher labor costs, according to Richard D. Berlin III, director of campus dining. Baker Dining is now open seven nights a week, up from five nights last year.

It is barely past 8:30 a.m. and everyone I see looks alert, alive, and ready to go. Not your typical MIT morning scene, but for the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program hosted by the Institute, such is the norm, if not actually a few hours later than usual.

The Freshman Essay Evaluation results for the Class of 2010 were comparable to those of the Class of 2009. Advanced Standing Exam results were also generally similar to those of last year, as are the percentages of AP credit received by the freshman class. (For statistics, see page.)

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President Bush’s announcement this month that the CIA has emptied out its secret prisons has raised new questions about what has happened to dozens of Al Qaeda suspects who were believed to have been in US custody.

At a news conference after his spirited address to the United Nations on Wednesday, President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela expressed one regret: not having met that icon of the American left, the linguist and MIT Institute Professor Noam Chomsky, before his death.

The following incidents were reported to the MIT or Cambridge Police between Sept. 7 and Sept. 17, 2006. This summary does not include incidents such as larcenies, false alarms, general service calls, or medical shuttles.

WORLD AND NATION

CDC Urges Widespread HIV Testing For Teens and Adults
Germany’s Merck Buying Swiss Pharmaceutical Maker Serono
Church in Calif. Challenges IRS Inquiry Into Political Activities
Senators and Bush Administration Reach Consensus on Detention Bill
Briefs (left)
Briefs (right)
Weather

OPINION

In Defense of HASS: A Humanist Responds
Letters to the Editor
Corrections

ARTS

Food review: So Much Gau, So Little Time: Students Choose Area’s Best General Gau’s Chicken at ABSK Event
TV Interview: “Numb3rs” Continues to Make Math Chic: Creator Examines the Success of the Show and Bemoans Loss of MIT Setting
Film Review ** : Island Paradise ‘Haven’ Takes No Human Sacrifice: Writer/Director’s First Offering Transcends Hollywood Unoriginality

SPORTS

Ruggerio TD Gives Football 21-14 Win
Engineers Defeat Bisons; Seniors Lead Scoring