<p>What would you say are the "nerdiest" LACs? Not necessarily the ones with the absolutely most intelligent students, but the ones with students who are really passionate about what they're studying and want to share and discuss that passion with others? But beyond that, are also passionate about things outside of schoolwork (even things that the general population might consider pretty dorky or uncool)? Where intelligent discussion is very prevalent, but also where other pursuits are encouraged and supported, and people are just generally very passionate about what they're doing?</p>
<p>I know students like that can be found at any college, but I'm looking for colleges with the highest concentrations of them.</p>
<p>Cal Tech (kind of a LAC since it only has about 900 undergrads and 1000 grads)
Harvey Mudd
Reed
Macalaster
Carleton
Swarthmore
St. John’s College
Hampshire
Marlboro
Haverford
University of Dallas</p>
<p>[Shimer</a> College](<a href=“http://shimer.edu%5DShimer”>http://shimer.edu), which is both a Great Books college like St. John’s and an experimental self-governing school like Marlboro, definitely belongs on the list. Nobody ends up at Shimer by accident… Here’s a [video</a> portrait](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube) that does a remarkable job of summing the place up.</p>
<p>The difference? The letter “L” is pronounced “el” (technically spelled that way too) and therefore gets the vowel article just as it would if you were speaking…</p>
<p>I believe that’s wrong. The artcle ‘a’ remains an ‘a’ if it preceeds a consonant, irrespective of how that consonant is pronounced, although, I admit, it is tempting to add ‘n’ when the pronounciation begins with a vowel ‘sound’.</p>
<p>Nothing nerdier than arguing about articles. </p>
<p>“A” does not always precede a consonant: “A Universe From Nothing.” “A one track mind” Nor does “An” always precede a vowel: “An honest man.” The rule is not based on the letter but on the sound of the letter.</p>
<p>But, in speaking, how often do we refer to anything by spelling it? Even acronyms such as “LAC” are spoken out as a word rather than as letters, are they not? Or, better yet, they are fully enunciated, as in ‘liberal arts college’. And, in those cases the article is ‘a’.
Besides, I think ‘liberal arts college’ lends a grace to that very important notion (the liberal arts) that ‘L-A-C’ clearly lacks – unless, of course, one is a total techie (as in more machine than human – no offense, I mean wouldn’t we ALL like to be machines, sure looks like technology is doing its damnest to move us in that direction?!, you’ll pardon the digression --…humanity…humanities — voila - Liberal Arts College!)</p>
<p>Actually, I think we do a lot of spelling in conversation: MBA, RSVP, DMV, ATM, IQ, PDA, UFO, PCP, DNA, USA, JFK, IRS, LSD, LBJ, IRT, (channeling “Hair”). </p>
<p>I don’t know that using LAC instead of the fully spelled out version does a disservice to the liberal arts. After all, “What’s in a name. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”</p>
<p>Correct, again, qialah, however, I’ll continue to say ‘liberal arts college’…it just rolls of the tongue better, after all, aren’t we in the ‘age of individuality’? But, if you wish to stick to the happy, acronym-sputtering masses I wouldn’t dream of stopping you. After all, time is so precious, isn’t it, and we are constantly trying divide it up into smaller and smaller bits…hmm, perhaps that will make it last longer.</p>
<p>Most of these acronyms would not comprise easily pronounceable one-syllable words in English. “LAC”, on the other hand, is as easily pronounceable as “Mac” (as in “Big Mac”). “LAC” is as easily pronounceable as “PIN” (Personal Identification Number), which I don’t think too many people spell out in speech (“My P-I-N”). I hereby invoke the principle of least effort to justify my preference for “a LAC” over “an L-A-C”. The former requires one less letter in writing and two less syllables in speaking.</p>