Soundbites

Here is a sampling of quotations from Cornell University faculty, students and staff that have appeared recently in the national and international news media:

"You risk social disapproval if you don't do what is expected."

--Michael Lynn, associate professor of consumer behavior in the School of Hotel Administration, arguing that restaurant patrons are conditioned to tipping the standard 15 to 20 percent because of societal pressure, regardless of the quality of service, in an article on tipping in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 21.

"This group is reinventing the way we grow old. And the baby boomers are only going to build on that."

--Phyllis Moen, the Ferris Family Professor of Life Course Studies in the College of Human Ecology, describing active senior citizens who retire in college towns, on ABC World News Tonight, Dec. 8.

"Baby Boomers! We have forced change upon every social institution our massive cohort has passed through. Now it's time to tackle Social Security reform... Retirement policy simply hasn't caught up to the reality of a longer life expectancy. Once we raise the retirement age appropriately, there will be no Social Security crisis."

--Richard Burkhauser, Sarah Gibson Blanding Professor of Policy Analysis and Chair, Department of Policy Analysis and Management, College of Human Ecology, discussing raising the retirement age in an op-ed in The Washington Post Dec. 8.

"[There is little evidence that cohabitation] is any more effective than traditional courtship methods in helping young couples evaluate their compatibility with marriage and thereby reduce their risk of divorce.... Realistically, marriage carries with it a lot more expectations -- a house, a car, all the matching silverware, the couch. Cohabitation is a way of getting out of all those expectations."

--Marin Clarkberg, assistant professor of sociology, discussing cohabitation in The Chicago Sun Times, Dec. 8.

"It's mostly served at the end of a meal with dessert or fairly strong cheeses. It's one of the only things that goes well with chocolate."

--Steven Mutkoski, the Banfi Vintners Professor of Wine Education in the School of Hotel Administration, discussing the growing popularity of port, in Investor's Business Daily, Dec. 2.

"I feel like I'm selling my soul for the next 20 years to the most interesting offer I get."

--Tamara C. Nedjar, a senior student, commenting on her feelings after leaving a career fair run by Wall Street firms, in The New York Times, Nov. 29.

"I've always been interested in what would happen if there were another crisis over Formosa and how the Japanese would really respond. Despite the renewal of the security treaty a year or so ago, my guess is [Japan] would not respond in nearly the way the United States would want them to respond."

--Walter LeFeber, professor of history, discusing the United States' Asian policy in the Houston Chronicle, Nov. 22.

"Downsizings often lead firms into downward spirals [because] your high performers seek out other jobs, and that eventually has an impact on the company's earnings."

--Theresa Welbourne, assistant professor of human resource studies in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, discussing layoffs in the Los Angeles Times, Nov. 22.