Exercising the brain, not for credit

Three years into his Princeton career, nearly finished with his second physics junior paper, Zack Glennie '07 decided to pursue a certificate in linguistics. He had taken only one class on the subject.

A member of the dinner discussion group Paideia, Glennie attended a lecture in April by linguistics professor Adele Goldberg, who focused on the theory of construction grammar. He was impressed enough to transform his academic career.

"The meeting served to remind me that I could pursue linguistics," Glennie said.

While his story is not the norm, it is certainly not the only example of extracurricular activities that draw students' attention by focusing on intellectual pursuits. Paideia, along with the humanities and science discussion group Fusion and the magazine Discourse, were all founded in recent years to broaden students' interests by stimulating the exchange of ideas.

Lisa Glukhovsky '08, the president of Fusion, explained that her club aims to "extend what we've learned in class and [accustom ourselves to applying] our knowledge ... in the world."

Members of these groups stressed the importance of exposing students to new concepts outside of class. Glukhovsky, who is also a staff photographer for The Daily Princetonian, described the lectures Fusion organizes as "one hour mini-course[s] ... A sampling of all the academic opportunities on campus."

Each group billed itself as a supplement to the classroom experience. Their events offer a forum for free exchange that they say is less constrained than the typical lecture or precept. Moreover, the format of open discussion allows students to learn for the sake of learning without the pressures of grading.

"It's an academic break from what you've been focusing on to focus on something else that is also academic," Paideia officer George Azarias '07 said.

Having distanced themselves from formal class schedules, however, the students acknowledged the importance of structured debate. Without someone who has full knowledge of the topic, they said, the discussions can get waylaid by disputes over basic facts.

How Princeton stands

Despite the existence of groups devoted to intellectual exchange, some students bemoan a relative lack of academic discussion outside of class in comparison to other campuses.

"Other places, [intellectualism] is much more visible," Discourse president Peter Varela '08 said.

Classics professor and Forbes fellow Joshua Katz added, "I wouldn't say that [intellectualism] is as strong as many members of at least the faculty would like, but [that's] not to say it's weak."

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Most attribute the deficiency to a busy pace of life, where so much is crammed into the day that students don't have time to sit and engage in discussion.

"People are running from one event to the next," Paideia officer Lester Mackey '07 said.

"The people here are so amazing, they think [about] these topics all the time," Mackey added. "They just don't have the opportunity to discuss."

With busy schedules and "deep engagement in intellectual work for credit," Vice President for Campus Life Janet Dickerson said that "time for conversation is relatively limited."

"I think that as a society, we are all much more engaged in conversation [via] email, blogs, etc. which further limits our time for more open, public conversations across ideological or affinity group lines," she added in an email.

But when given a time and place — and sometimes, free food — students will engage in such discussions.

"Sometimes, I feel you have to prompt people to get intellectual," Varela said.

Last night at the weekly Paideia meeting, 13 students met with music professor Simon Morrison to discuss the connection between politics and music, particularly the relationship between Prokofiev and Stalinist Russia. The students, few of whom had taken a music class at Princeton, discussed whether music was inherently political and whether music carrying dangerous messages should be played.

"It's fostering this mindset of intellectual curiosity," Azarias explained. People think, " 'Gee, I've never thought about this particular topic in this way. I wonder what else I can discover.' "