<p>any thoughts or insights? chose a side. enjoy</p>
<p>Different schools, different personalities, different fits for different people.</p>
<p>Caltech is much smaller than MIT (total enrollments of 2,000 versus 10,000, undergraduate enrollments of 800 versus 4,000). The male-female ratio is much more balanced at MIT (44% female versus 28% female).</p>
<p>For me, the weather and campus are better at Caltech but the intensity level of MIT's student body is more forgiving (even before the male/female ratio became more balanced). Nobody I know who went to Caltech would wish their kids to go there, but friends who are MIT alums don't have that reservation. I think Caltech is the ultimate college bubble and if you pooled all students qualified for admission to both, fewer students would be happy at Caltech than at MIT.</p>
<p>To me, Caltech academics seem more intense. Look at the general core curriculum for example- Caltech requires 5 terms of calc/adv math and 5 terms of physics, while MIT only requires 2 of each.</p>
<p>I'm actually weighing the pros/cons of each and trying to decide where to go between the two right now...</p>
<p>Caltech is more rigorous and difficult. MIT has shifted to become slightly less tech focused in recent years...it's like Caltech is the new "old" MIT.</p>
<p>I would argue that Caltech has the strongest student body of any school in the country.</p>
<p>MIT is more well-rounded in the sense that it has a top business school as well. Also, MIT seems more highly regarded in engineering than Caltech. Caltech stands out in the physical and earth sciences.</p>
<p>Caltech's curriculum is EXTREMELY hard and rigorous. They require you to take Quantum Mechanics. MIT is much more relaxed. Also lvilleslacker, you are correct in stating that Caltech has the strongest student body of any school in the country.</p>
<p>Strongest student body in terms of science, nothing else.</p>
<p>the smartest students tend to be majors of math or hard science like physics (or engineering).</p>
<p>smart is a fuzzy term.</p>
<p>smart meaning you can read the facial expression of a person well?
smart meaning you understand the relationships between ambiguous seemingly unrelated events?
smart meaning you know how to function well in a group of peers?
smart meaning you can walk into a room and intuit the vibe?
smart meaning you can remember almost anything you read?
smart meaning you have well integrated your cognitive skill with emotional strength?
smart meaning you can solve problems others cannot?</p>
<p>exactly what do you mean by smart?</p>
<p>Without question the highest scoring students on the SAT are at Caltech, with second place far in the distance.</p>
<p>IMHO, CalTech seems to be a place for geeky uber-Asian nerds who memorized 500 digits of pi, e, and phi.</p>
<p>but thats just MHO</p>
<p>I just saw one of the most disgusting geeky uber-Asian nerds the other day. It looked like he hadn't shaved in possibly two years, except he only had about 30 hairs on his face. It actually looked more like he had gone face-first into a urinal and decided to not wash off the pubes that had stuck to his face.</p>
<p>On the positive side of things, I did see one (!) cute girl yesterday.</p>
<p>
[quote]
IMHO, CalTech seems to be a place for geeky uber-Asian nerds who memorized 500 digits of pi, e, and phi.</p>
<p>but thats just MHO
[/quote]
so humble, too... ;)</p>
<p>Have you seen the 60 Minutes report on the savant who could tell you the value of a specific digit of pi?</p>
<p>Brain</a> Man ...on 60 Minutes; Exclusive Video Only on Yahoo! News</p>
<p>This is the prototypical Caltech guy, if there ever was one. ;)</p>
<p>
[quote]
To me, Caltech academics seem more intense. Look at the general core curriculum for example- Caltech requires 5 terms of calc/adv math and 5 terms of physics, while MIT only requires 2 of each.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Intensity can be defined by things other than the number of math and physics courses you are required to take. My software engineering lab, for instance, was waaaay more intense than my math and physics requirements. So was my required chemistry class, for that matter.</p>
<p>Edited to add: They are both great schools. They are both intensely difficult schools. They are both very techie/science geek schools (it always bothers me when people imply that MIT isn't anymore). They cater to slightly different crowds.</p>
<p>UCBChemEGrad,</p>
<p>There is actually a professor of mathematics here at Mudd that specializes in those kinds of mental calculations; the date thing and the squaring numbers thing arent at all savant-like which surprises me, though they certainly do entertain crowds.</p>
<p>There is a simple method: for example 31^4:
31^2 = (30)(32) + 1^2 = 961
(961)^2 = (1000)(922) + 39^2 = 922000 + 1521 = 923521 </p>
<p>which can be done very quickly for people who are used to it (about 3 seconds for our prof). When he does 3 digit numbers to the 4th power is when it scares me.</p>
<p>But anyways, lets not attribute all those nerdy things just to one school shall we; spread the love.</p>
<p>Afterall, I 'cube.'</p>
<p>^ Yes, Harvey Mudd has its fair share of nerds. ;)</p>
<p>I was more impressed with his memorization of over 23,000 digits of pi. On the other video clip, he described numbers in his mind as landscapes. These visualizations of landscapes help him recollect minute details...239 is a very ugly number to him...333 is beautiful. Interesting to see how the guy thinks. :)</p>
<p>Here is a link of that professor on TED: TED</a> | Talks | Arthur Benjamin: Lightning calculation and other "Mathemagic" (video)</p>
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<p>Sorry for reviving an old thread and all, but why the he’ll you you think the fact that he was Asian was relevant? Do you think it would sit well with anyone if he was black? The amount of casual racism towards Asian people DISGUSTS me.</p>