Thursday, July 27, will see the culmination of the tenth Academic Olympics Competition. Masterites have been taking notes all week on the New York Times and under the guidance of the group leaders are reviewing all course work. Team spirit is high as everyone prepares to compete for "First Place" standing.

During the third round of the competition, there was much controversy over answers especially a current events answer regarding access to beaches in Greenwich (see "New York Times Editor Responds to Academic Olympics Controversy"). This was certainly an indication of the intense preparation and competitiveness exhibited by the teams. "But, throughout the competition, all four teams have exhibited respect for all," stated Ms. McCabe.

Editor Responds to Olympics Controversy

The E-mail cited below was received by Mr. Byrne in response to his challenge of the use of the word "public" in the New York Times quiz. Mr. Byrne’s challenge and Ms. McCabe’s decision in his favor is thus supported.

E-mail Cited:

Thank you for your note. It sounds like your summer enrichment program is a truly wonderful one that really challenges students. Congratulations on all of your work!

With regards to the phrasing of the quiz question debated by your students, "public" in this case was used to refer to non-residents of the beach – not a "true" definition of public, as you have pointed out. (As stated in the article, "For the time being, only residents and their guests can get past the guard at the front gate.") We at The Times take pride in our accuracy in all of our products, including the online quizzes, and we apologize for the confusion that this wording issue caused.

Best wishes for you and your students,
Alison Zimbalist, Education Editor
The New York Times on the Web’s Learning Network

Persons allergic to fish should also avoid breathing in the air around the fish. This means that fish markets are off limits because the air contains allergens that can cause a reaction.

Robin Padilla (2 times)
Keniel Ledgister
Deniece Nunez
Luis Irizarry
Arnold Mendez
Sharmin Rahman

MASTER ENGINEERS

Congratulations to the following students:

"Most Creative Mouse Dragster"-Arnold Mendez
"Dragster with the Most Mileage" -Adrian Martinez
"Most Efficient Bridge" - Colleen White

"The teachers were kind and supportive and with that we were able to accomplish much." Mohammed Ali - Group B
"I loved designing the web-site even though it was extremely difficult and we did not have enough time." Gerrylyn Williams - Group A
"Delicious!" Latasha Green - Group D
"Vibrant, stimulating program." Vu Tran - Group A
"The Olympics made the teams closer and made us study." Sandra Diaz - Group C