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<p>So don't weed the data - take the PURE data <<</p>
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<p>If you wanted the truly pure data you'd leave in the "tech schools", since those are certainly legitimate math schools. But it appears you had to weed those out for St. Olaf to come out on top.</p>
<p>Like I said, define the question narrowly enough and any school can win: Take the percentage of green-eyed, left-handed, Finnish-Americans who who didn't go to tech schools and graduated from high schools located below the Mason-Dixon Line and earned both B.A.s in Classics and Ph.D.s in math, correct for the average number of sororities found at the nine top LACs and the current price of crude oil, and I'm sure you'll find that Wassamatta U. is the top math college in the solar system.</p>
<p>I don't suppose we could award multiple blues ribbons to top math schools ... no, probably not.</p>
<p>Anyway, just a note on the school and the student fitting well together. The best math school for one kid may not suit another at all well - this has been mentioned before in this thread but I just want to underline it one more time. Fabulous teaching faculty are spread all over the map - no one league has a lock on them.</p>
<p>Although if we're going to talk about the "best" school in any subject, especially in math or science, let's not forget that where you go for undergraduate in the end matters little; as long as you do well and get a decent education you should be able to make it into grad school, and that matters much more in finding a job in the end. I've found studies showing this for people in astronomy research and I would imagine the same is true for many other fields...</p>
<p>And Ellen, I never denigrated public universities. I was actually talking about how good some of them are and how disappointing it is that others are not. You seem to have misinterpreted my post a bit...</p>
<p>Coueur: Isn't Wassamatta U. located in Frostbite Falls? If so, they'd have an intense dedication to mathematics, at least up to temperature scales. But not necessarily those students of Finnish decent, I'm a thinking.</p>
<p>Frostbite Falls is, I believe, well north of St. Olaf's. Lots of bars, if its at all like the towns on the Mesabi Iron Range. The Finns up there are pretty tough.</p>
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<p>Coueur: Isn't Wassamatta U. located in Frostbite Falls?<<</p>
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<p>Correct. Their excellence in mathematics is part of the same tend as the other strong Minnesota math schools that tokenadult was telling us about.</p>
<p>And Swedes and Norwegians are the main Nordic ethnicities common in the Gopher State, but the Finns have a decent contingent as well, which of course accounts for Wassamatta U's strong math reputation.</p>
<p>As an honorary admissions officer for WU, I can tell you that your chances of being accepted to our prestigious university will go up dramatically if you spell our school name correctly: Wossamotta U</p>
<p>Will WU accept a kid with no EC's, except making snow angels in Texas? If so, Wossamotta U sounds like a great fit for DS. (I think I know the adrep, Urin Ifurich.)</p>
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<p>...if you spell our school name correctly: Wossamotta U<<</p>
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<p>The correct spelling is not entirely clear. The Straight Dope info column spells it Wassamatta. The Wikipedia entry spells it Whatsamatta. Some others go with Wottsamotta. I couldn't find the college website to settle the question.</p>
<p>WU runs a very aggressive afirmative action program and has a very high proportion of native american students. The predominant tribe of course is the Fakawi Indians. Best known for running around in circles proclaiming, "We're (sic) the Fakawi!?"</p>
<p>Hmmph. I'll name drop. At one time I could have settled this definitively. TheMom knew Bill Scott, to the point where he came to a couple of our parties. When I shook his hand, I said, "With moose muscle!" and he replied, in an appropriate voice, "Oh dern, there goes another one!"</p>
<p>Still, I'll see if I can get on this. Come to think of it, TheMom also knows June Foray, who is in remarkably energetic health. I was seriously bummed when Bill died suddenly. But his memorial service was one of the most uplifiting--and funny--memorial services I've ever had the honor to attend. His son absolutely nailed the "celebration of a life well lived" thing when speaking from the pulpit.</p>
<p>According to the most authoritative fan website I could find, under the "Seldom Asked Questions" section, "Bullwinkle played football for Wossamotta U, not Whatsamatta U or Wossamata U or Wassamotto U". So there.</p>
<p>Just discovered that Bill Scott was born here in my town: Pittsburgh, PA.</p>
<p>Interesting what you can learn from the liner notes to Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends: the complete season 1 four DVD set. What I did NOT find in there is the official spelling of WU.</p>
<p>Scott's partner Jay Ward receieved an MBA from Harvard and also originated the Captain Crunch character for Quaker Oats.</p>
<p>More liner note fun: Bullwinkle graduated from M.I.T.</p>
<p>In this case, Moose Instiute of Toe-dancing.</p>
<p>Liner notes also say: There's nothing Bullwinkle enjoys more than curling up in front of a fire with a pile of good books. "They burn so nice and slow," he says...</p>