Virgil Griffith has a lot of time on his hands. A lot. Where he finds the time is a mystery: he's a grad student in Computation and Neural Systems (uh huh) at CalTech by day, something that probably keeps him late at the lab while the rest of us are playing Wii. When he's not doing that, Griffith is, like the rest of us these days, fascinated by what gets thrown onto social networking sites,......

Written by DCist Contributor Sarah Stonesifer The Diamondback – University of Maryland: >> Hartwick Towers, an off-campus apartment building, was the scene of a fire on Friday, Oct. 12. The fire has come under scrutiny by both students and city officials, as the building is not equipped with sprinklers and fire alarms did not function during the fire. Students were left on their own to find alternative housing until they were let back into their......

Facebook isn't just for ridiculous photos of politicians' kids anymore. Now university presidents are getting into the act. We'd usually say that a college administrator having a profile on Facebook, the big social networking site that started with colleges but has since spread everywhere, sounds pretty neat — the administration is trying to be transparent and stay in touch with the students' internet fads. We can imagine a lot of good uses for the site......

Written by DCist Contributor Fredo Alvarez Campus Pride, the nation's largest non-profit student LGBT organization, this week launched its Campus Climate Index, an online report card that allows LGBT students from colleges across the country to rate their schools on their inclusiveness and support of LGBT students, employees and their allies. Schools are rated on a scale from one to five stars based on a voluntary survey. Of 80 public and private institutions that......

This is rich: apparently students living in on-campus housing at American University, and at other colleges around the country, are starting to get full-sized beds in their dorm rooms. The Post ran the story this morning as a trend piece, explaining that as universities continue to compete to attract top students, amenities like doing away with the standard, awkward twin-sized beds in college dorm rooms are becoming commonplace. DCist is here to say: this is......

With unseasonable weather descending upon much of North America, schools getting ready to reconvene, and sports seasons getting exciting, it's a busy time of year for us here in the Ist-a-verse. Luckily, even with all the things we have to do, we still managed to get together to let you know what we've all been up to. After cooling down from a hot weekend of many badass Sunset Junction Street Fair photo dispatches, LAist asked......

It's not exactly breaking news, but the City Paper's cover story this week is about the George Washington University and its high tuition, tops in the nation. The somewhat basic article (at least to a GW grad and basketball blogger) talks to a few University officials and a couple of students, but seems a little thin. The article does make a good point (and one that we made months ago) — is it worth it?......

There is a lot of great jazz coming up in the D.C. area throughout the next week, much of which is FREE, an important word here at DCist. Of course, the big news for jazz aficionados is the annual Big Band Jam, which began on April 20 and runs through April 29. We already told you about the service bands playing at Blues Alley, but there are many other shows to check out. Here are......

It's almost graduation time for colleges around the D.C. area, but many George Washington students aren't that thrilled about it. Why? The keynote speaker at their commencement is none other than... their outgoing university president. We guess that's what the highest tuition in the country gets you these days. Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, who has been president of the Foggy Bottom university for 19 years, always speaks at graduation, but he usually does so alongside folks......

There are a lot of rules when you visit Soho Tea and Coffee in Dupont. Customers must spend at least $5 to use the wireless Internet. No credit cards are taken. Non-customers are charged $3 to use the unisex bathroom, adorned with a helpful reminder than only one person is permitted in the single stall at a time. Two months ago, another rule went into effect: no cell phones at the front counter. Owner Helene......

MONDAY At Chapters, they’re mad for mystery writers on Mondays in March, and for alliteration at all other times. Today, they have a fine guest: Laura Lippman, who’ll be reading from her latest, What the Dead Know. 445 11th Street, NW, 1 p.m. TUESDAY Tom Bissell and his father, an ex-Marine who served in the Vietnam War, travel back to Vietnam on a journey that retraces both national and personal history. He’ll be in town......

Last week the Wizards signed former GW forward Mike Hall to a 10-day contract, making him the second Colonial from last year's team to make it to the NBA. The first was Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who scored the first points by a GW player in the NBA since Yinka "the Stinka" Dare in 1998. Neither look to play much this season, but it got us thinking - where are all the other players from local colleges?......

That somewhat dubious distinction goes to local George Washington University. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education and as reported in Forbes magazine, GW has the highest tuition of any college in America. Incoming undergrads can not only expect to learn in the heart of the nation's capital, but they (or, more likely, their parents) can expect to pay a very, very pretty penny to do so. The financial snap shot isn't pretty:George Washington University......

Good morning, Washington. Got Halloween plans? Personally, I'm still trying to come up with a decent last-minute costume idea. My party deadline isn't until tomorrow, fortunately. For those who've got costume parties lined up for tonight, I hope you didn't make any part of your outfit from papier mache — it looks like it's going to be a soggy evening. Jemal Acquitted Of Most Charges: The verdict is in, and prominent District developer Douglas Jemal......

The George Washington University's most recognizable basketball player of the last four years, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, signed a two-year contract with the Dallas Mavericks yesterday. Known for his thunderous dunks and an affable personality, "The Mayor" played in the Las Vegas and Salt Lake City summer leagues. Though he was not initially expected to make the Mavericks' deep roster, Pops' play impressed team president Donnie Nelson enough that he cited Pops as "the most athletic......

With the USA's first World Cup match coming monday at noon, I decided to get a U.S. soccer jersey. It shouldn't be too hard, I thought, since the U.S. is ranked fifth in FIFA's rankings and the D.C. area has a relatively strong soccer tradition. After all, D.C. United is one of the most popular MLS teams and local colleges perform well nationally, with Maryland's men winning the NCAA title in 2005. However, I was......

Written by DCist contributor Erie Meyer. John Kerry will be speaking today at 1 p.m. on American University's main campus about patriotism and the right of dissent as part of a nationwide tour, according to an email sent to students by the university. After his speech on dissent, however, students will not be allowed to, you know, dissent. While signs and banners are forbidden, as is standard, the Massachusetts Senator and failed presidential candidate has......

Maryland entered this weekend the clear underdog against three opponents with Final Four pedigrees. They left with the trophy, proving that "experience isn't everything." Freshman point guard Kristi Toliver scored the team's final five points in regulation -- including a rainbow three-pointer from the right corner over 6-7 Alison Bales that tied the game with six seconds to play -- then made the go-ahead free throws in overtime in the Terps' 78-75 win in last......

Today's weather is being described by local weathermen as "blustery." So while it may be sunny and the world outside your office may look inviting, be forewarned -- temperatures will feel cooler than the mid 50s predicted as wind whips across the area. Mayoral Candidates Engage in Lively Debate: The District's five mayoral candidates engaged in lively debate last night at the University of the District of Columbia, defending their records and promoting their......

When we saw the headline on the BBC's homepage "Educating America: How the Christian Right is attempting to transform US culture" we clicked through, interested to find out precisely what our friends across the pond had discovered about America. We were even more interested when it turned out the story was a profile of a school just 50 miles from D.C., Patrick Henry College, founded in 2000 by a home school activist for primarily evangelical......

The opening of this year's school year at area colleges and universities hasn't been without its wrinkles. After minor fires at and Georgetown and Howard, a pesky blogger annoying the president of American U., it seemed things were calmly under way. Not so - now that move-in is complete, students seem to be moving on to other activities. Last weekend, a 23-year-old Virginia Tech student died from an alcohol overdose after his friends carried him......

With classes resuming soon at the area's colleges and universities, it means increased activity on campuses, where there have been a few minor fires recently. At Georgetown, 250 students were forced to evacuate the Village C dormitory early this morning when a candle caught curtains on fire. Meanwhile, over at Howard University, officials put out two suspicious fires in storage buildings last Sunday. The image is from Piet Niederhausen's exhaustive directory of images of Georgetown......

Kaplan and Newsweek's "America's Hottest Colleges" "Get into College" guide ranked George Washington University #1 for "political junkies" on its list of hottest colleges and universities earlier this month. "With a campus next door to the World Bank and down the street from the White House, GW is a poli-sci major's dream" raves Newsweek in this online article, and "[GW] has near limitless opportunities for those interested in politics and a real-life laboratory setting" boasts......