For three days last week, the University played host to a symposium hoping to reshape the future of city construction. The conference, entitled "Re-Imagining Cities: Urban Design After the Age of Oil," was organized in the same vein as the historic "Conference on Urban Design Criticism" that took place 50 years ago.

Shaky economic times and a tumultuous housing market have not prevented new properties from springing up throughout University City in recent years. Since 2006, a number of mixed-use, luxury apartment complexes have come to call West Philadelphia home. With more construction on the way, it may seem like the area isn't feeling the pinch of the global financial crisis.

After squeaking out a five-set comeback win on the road against Harvard, Penn's volleyball team once again found itself trailing in the critical first-to-15 fifth set, 6-3, at Dartmouth, knowing that a loss would put it out of contention for the Ivy League title.

Al Bagnoli had, for two seasons, been at a loss for words. He had his well of go-to phrases that were used all too often: "snakebitten," "due for some luck" and "disappointed" - a thousand times, disappointed. Three consecutive overtime losses and what seemed like an endless series of unfortunate events made the Penn coach sound like Lemony Snicket during every press conference.

When Marge Simpson calls someone "the bestest architect in the world," you know they've made it. That's what she said of famously flamboyant architect Frank Gehry in an episode of The Simpsons in 2005. On Friday night, the Collab Foundation echoed Marge's sentiment by awarding Gehry its 2008 Excellence in Design Award.

Cold, rainy weather getting you down? Then imagine this: the salty air of the Mediterranean Sea, with the smooth sounds of a classical guitar and a robust voice in the background. Add in some of the world's most renowned works of art, and opa! You have the Philadelphia Museum of Art's Friday affair.

Goalkeeper Drew Healy recorded his tenth shutout of the season, tying a program record, but the Penn men's soccer couldn't manage anything against Princeton's stingy defense. The two squads played to a scoreless tie in Princeton, N.J., on Saturday afternoon, meaning that the Quakers (10-2-4, 4-1-1 Ivy) can secure the conference crown with a win over Harvard next weekend.

Despite being already eliminated from Ivy League title contention, the women's soccer team was determined to upset rival Princeton in both teams' final game of the year. But while the Quakers were able to push the match to two overtimes, a header by Princeton senior Taylor Numann off a corner in the 106th minute gave the Tigers a 2-1 win.

Just before first-year Med student David Fajgenbaum's mother died of brain cancer in October 2004, he promised to do something in her memory. Three months later, he founded Ailing Mothers and Fathers, a support group for students "coping with the illness or death of a loved one," at Georgetown University, where he was an undergraduate at the time, Fajgenbaum said.

Coming into this season, Princeton senior Sarah Peteraf had scored only four career goals, two each in her freshman and sophomore campaigns. But this year, Peteraf has transitioned from a full-time midfielder to a hybrid midfielder-forward, and the results speak for themselves.

Out of touch with reality at Penn To the Editor: With my daughter being a junior at Penn and loving it, and while also knowing the general disposition of those attending an Ivy League school, it doesn't surprise me that 80 percent of students support a committed leftist ("Support for Obama stays high in DP poll" 11/3/08).

Penn goalkeeper Drew Healy has accomplished a lot in his time at Rhodes Field. He recorded a program-best seven consecutive shutouts, and he has nine on the year, one shy of that school mark. But he has never won an Ivy League title. On Saturday, the senior can get one step closer to achieving that when the Quakers face off against archrival Princeton.

If you have ever visited the McDonald's at 40th and Walnut streets late on a Saturday night, you may have encountered a scene of drunken chaos. But while some students complain that the store's management is "ridiculously absurd" and its customer service "a joke," members of the store's overnight staff say that students play a part in the mayhem as well.

Send your condolences to loyal magazine readers. This October, publication corporations laid some of our favorite and most famous publications to rest and significantly cut back on the shelf lives of those magazines that have managed to survive. Magazine publishers have lifted their dark veils to lay off workers, cut the number of issues put out or close shop completely.

More youth turned out to vote on Tuesday than in any other recent election, but the number still underwhelmed some experts. Only half of all eligible voters under age 30 voted Tuesday, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

With her team out of contention for the Ivy League championship, Harvard volleyball coach Jen Weiss has the group ready to play spoiler. "We want to cause havoc up there for that first place," she said. The Crimson have a perfect chance to do so with second-place Princeton and third-place Penn (10-11, 6-3 Ivy) visiting Cambridge, Mass.

The only thing standing between Brown and its first Ivy League championship since 2005 is Yale. Sure, there's a pesky road trip to Dartmouth next weekend and then a home date with Columbia on Nov. 22, but those two teams are a combined 1-7 in Ivy play (1-13 overall).