Welcome

Dear Students of the Class of 2011:
Let me add my voice to many in welcoming you to Penn!  My colleagues and I have spent several months planning your New Student Orientation activities, and we certainly hope you’ll enjoy this exciting time.

One of your first academic activities is the Penn Reading Project (PRP to all of us here), which brings together the entire freshmen class, with members of Penn’s faculty, to discuss a single book.  This year’s book is Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma.  On Sunday, September 2nd, you will attend a presentation by some distinguished Penn experts.  On this same day, you will take part in a small group discussion with other students in your College House, led by a member of the Penn faculty.  PRP is an opportunity to meet a professor outside of the classroom setting, as well as a chance to share an intellectual experience with other members of your College House community.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma confronts what its author terms a “national eating disorder” – that we have so many food choices, and these choices can be so important to our health, and so emotionally fraught, that every meal can be a source of anxiety.  Michael Pollan addresses this anxiety by exploring the history of four different meals, from the origins of their ingredients through preparation and consumption.  The journey of these four meals takes us from farms to laboratories, from hunting grounds to fast food restaurants. 

Structurally, one might describe The Omnivore’s Dilemma as a book about economics and nutrition (Pollan often weighs the actual cost of food against the long-term costs, both financial and physical, of our health).  But it is equally a book about American history, agriculture, anthropological traditions, and psychology.  In fact, Penn Professor of Psychology Paul Rozin originally coined the phrase “the omnivore’s dilemma.”  The Omnivore’s Dilemma was one of the New York Times’ Best Books of 2006.  For more information about Pollan and The Omnivore’s Dilemma, see: www.michaelpollan.com/omnivore.php

Following the Penn Reading Project, we will continue to offer themed programming on the subject of food and related issues throughout the year. 

As you enjoy these last weeks of summer, I hope you’ll read and enjoy The Omnivore’s Dilemma.  It’s provocative and intriguing – as well as a good introduction to the world you are about to enter!  Books are being shipped to incoming students now and should arrive shortly. If you are in the U.S. and have not recieved your book by July 20, contact us at prp@pobox.upenn.edu. International students who have not recieved their book by August 1 can contact us at the same address.

Please also take the opportunity to learn more about PRP and Penn’s New Student Orientation (www.upenn.edu/nso), and to converse on Pennster (www.pennster.com), our online orientation network and discussion forum.  This will help us get to know you until we meet in person.

Best wishes,
 

David Fox
Director Penn Reading Project and New Student Orientation
University of Pennsylvania