At some schools like the University of Southern California and New York University, rush occurs within days of arriving on campus freshman year.

Burglary Feb. 19 - Jermaine Harris-Stevens, 27, of the 5400 block of Osage Ave., was arrested by Penn Police after he was observed allegedly removing metal scaffolding from inside a construction site at the Center for Advanced Medicine, located at 3401 Riverview Dr., at about 11:50 p.m.

Two Thursdays ago, tragedy struck the campus of Northern Illinois University. A disgruntled former student burst into a lecture hall and opened fire, killing five students before taking his own life. Within hours, camera crews swarmed the scene, and the media quickly spread the devastating news.

With the pending stress of Fall Course Registration on the horizon, the School of Arts and Sciences is doing its best to make students happy. For some students, that happiness comes with more night-class options in the College of General Studies.

Paper as a medium is dying. Thanks to the Library's subscriptions to numerous online journal archives, students seldom spend time paging through books for exactly the right article or pay for accessing online resources. But many other scholars aren't as lucky.

Penn wrestling coach Zeke Jones got more than he expected when sophomore transfer wrestler Phil Boyer showed up. Boyer was recruited at 125 pounds; he came to the team weighing 133. He was expected to be just another lightweight addition to an already strong team.

"I've never tried this before" is the last thing you want a doctor to say to you. However, there is a first time for everything, and medical procedures are no exception. Fortunately, Penn's School of Medicine uses advanced technology to enable students to practice procedures on mannequins that can simulate complex surgical procedures.

Alicia Puglionesi is a College junior from Havertown, Pa. Her e-mail address is puglionesi@dailypennsylvanian.com.

If you think stress has to be a normal part of your Penn life, think again. Last night, several student organizations on campus hosted leaders from various groups for the campus' first Mental Health Camp. The initiative was started to provide students with practical mental-health techniques and strategies they can apply in their everyday lives.

Cora Daniels, the author of Ghetto Nation: A Journey Into the Land of Bling and the Home of the Shameless, which calls 'ghetto-ness' a "mind set which embraces the worst," came to the Penn Bookstore yesterday to promote and discuss her book.

Two weeks ago, Angela Davis gave the keynote address of PENN's Women's Week. I think that Angela Davis' career, including her invitation to this University, is a sign of something wrong on many American college campuses. I believe in freedom of speech. I believe that all people have the right to express their ideas, even if I find them offensive.

Madonna. Cher. Prince. Quaker. So famous he needs no last name, the Quaker, Penn's famous mascot, holds a special place in the hearts of students and alumni. When not relaxing in his memorabilia-laden dorm in the Palestra, "Penn Athletic's #1 Fan" can be found cheering on his beloved football and basketball teams, encouraging the fans and meeting past and future Quakers alike.

When Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) visited Penn's campus in November, he wasn't met with the welcome you might expect for the Republican Party's nominee for President. Kiley Austin-Young, a College junior and a now-devoted McCain supporter, didn't even consider attending the event.

It's been quite the two months for Cornell basketball. Despite unspectacular numbers from individual players - junior forward Jeomi Maduka's 14.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per game aside - the Big Red continue to stifle Ivy League competition. They pummelled Yale and Brown by an average of 17 points this weekend, setting several school records.

Gong Xi Fa Cai! That's Happy Chinese New Year, to you. The Year of the Rat - also known as the Chinese year 4706 - began on Feb. 7, and residents of Chinatown in Philadelphia spent two weeks ringing in the new year in style. Chinese New Year is the most important of traditional Chinese holidays and is accompanied by parades, feasts and family reunions.

This summer, many Penn students will pay hundreds - even thousands - of dollars to work for free. Companies have long used college students as a source of free labor by offering unpaid internships. Still, employers are often wary of violating labor laws in the process, so they want to compensate students with academic credit.