Break Out the Fun

Wait, this is college? Just three days into Wellesley classes, the class of ’23 was introduced to the wonder that is Lake Day on Severance Green, with carnival rides, games, and even a booth doling out fried dough. Students spun and slid and relaxed in the sunshine, thanks to the Schneider Board of Governors, the student group that plans large events on campus. For those who missed the fun, the next day the Wellesley Recreation program sponsored “Grit ’n Wit: Where Brain Meets Brawn,” a large-scale obstacle and puzzle course in the same location. Nearly 190 students and a few brave staff members competed.

Did You Know?

• The College has a new data science major, an area of study at the intersection of mathematics, computer science, and statistics.
• Every fall, the Wellesley Students’ Aid Society provides $100 Amazon gift cards to every student who receives financial aid, to use for whatever is needed. This year, that meant gift cards for over 1,400 students.
• A bald eagle was sighted over Lake Waban this past summer, and a river otter also put in an appearance.
• Billings Hall (home of the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, the Office of Student Involvement, and the Albright Institute) is getting an elevator and a new kosher kitchen this fall.

Puzzle Me This

Tantan Dai ’22 didn’t turn up for class during the first week of October, but she had a pretty good excuse: She was in Germany representing China at the Sudoku and Puzzle World Championships. Dai is a keen competitor, entering between two to four competitions every month, both online and in person. For the last six years, she has been on China’s A-team for Sudoku (meaning she is one of the top four players in the country), and on the puzzle A-team for the last five. In Germany, Dai placed first in the Sudoku World Cup, second in the World Sudoku team category, third in the World Sudoku individual category, and fourth in the World Sudoku Grand Prix.

“The thing I enjoy the most about the competitions, apart from the solving part, is the connection among the participants from all parts of the world,” Dai says. “People of different ages, genders, colors, jobs gather together and speak the same language of Sudoku and puzzle. I always find it so charming, and it is one of the most important parts of my life.”