U of Chicago Scavenger Hunt List - 2004

nightsweat writes "The list of items and tasks for the 2004 version of the infamous University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt (or scavhunt for short) is up as a PDF. As a veteran of the first hunt in 1985, I'm glad to see the youngsters carrying on the madness. Some of the highlight items - the URLs of the blogs of the judges, five pages of Queer Eye for Doctor Doom, A McDonald's Sad Meal, Mrs Potatohead giving Mr. Potato head, Eudaemonia (300 points!), and a permanent tattoo that says 'Sorry about the syphilis, can we still be cousins?'"

Comments

a couple years ago...

[dijjnn]

Some of the kids successfully built a working breeder reactor...

the last time the reactor was seen, it was in the back of one of the "idiot twins" cars. The idiot twins were genius physics students, one of which went on to work at los alamos...

makes you think.

Re:a couple years ago...

[Cyclotron_Boy]

Actually, no. I wish I had known that was the list item. Justin and I have always wanted to have a triumphant alumni rematch with the Scav Hunt. I wasn't involved in 2k2. AJ was a great supporter of ours back then. When it was first /.-ed, and the rumors started spreading on campus, seemingly thousands of people disputed the story and several people complained to the Housing office at the U of C. In the end, Sherry Gutman already knew us and what we were all about, so the university complaints ended at her desk. He and a few others really helped fend off ridiculous claims and rumors during those first few days.
-F

Re:Eudaemonia means

[reverseengineer]

The term comes from Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics (at least, I know of no earlier discussion), and while often translated as "happiness," it's not happiness in the sense of "bliss" or "joy," but rather is the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment obtained by striving for excellence and through perfect use of one's capacities- in fact, Aristotle is careful to differentiate the concept from happiness obtained through idle amusement. In Aristotelian philosophy, it is held as the highest good of all, a perfect and complete end.

As a side note, I'm pretty sure I first encountered the term a few years ago, prior to reading any serious philosophy, while playing Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri- it's on the tech tree, as a matter of fact, and comes complete with a quote from the Nicomachean Ethics. You could even designate that your society act in accordance with the aims of achieving eudaimonia, though cruel and unjust leader that I am, I generally preferred the Cybernetic or Thought Control options.