Once upon a time, in a small village nestled deep in the heart of a dense forest, there lived a cunning and mischievous thief. This thief, known to be magical, had the ability to disappear into thin air and reappear in the blink of an eye. No one had ever seen him, but they could feel his presence in their homes when their valuables mysteriously vanished. Rumors of the magic thief quickly spread throughout the village, and people became fearful of leaving their homes unattended. Even the bravest souls were wary of his apparent ability to outsmart anyone who tried to catch him. One day, a brave young girl named Lily decided she had enough of living in fear.
No, Harvey Mudd is part of the Claremont Colleges , which includes five undergraduate liberal arts colleges:
Located on contiguous campuses in the Southern California city of Claremont, each institution has its own student body, faculty, governance, curricular emphasis, culture, and mission. For those who decide to continue their studies, a staggering 30 of graduates go on to PhD programs, the highest rate of any school in the country, according to IvyWise.
One day, a brave young girl named Lily decided she had enough of living in fear. Determined to catch the magic thief, she set out on a mission to protect her village. She spent days and nights researching ancient spells and charms that could potentially counter the thief’s magic.
Gotta Love Mudd, Warts And All
Hi everyone, this is Hannah Larson with another blog post for you!
Hannah Larson, HMC ’20
We love warts here at Mudd. No, not those warts you find on the bottoms of your feet after walking barefoot outside (although there are definitely people at Mudd who walk around outside without wearing shoes). No, we love those concrete square prisms that are placed systematically throughout all of our buildings.
Left: Sprague has long lines of windows bordered by warts running up the building. Right: The overhang outside of Kingston is held up by supports which are decorated with warts
Left: An Outer Dorm (Linde Dorm) has warts on the edge of the roof. Right: The overhang, support pillars, and roof edge of the Platt Campus Center are all covered in warts.
In fact, we love these warts so much that they became our unofficial mascot. In addition to our official mascots, the CMS (Claremont-Mudd-Scripps) Athenas and Stags, Harvey Mudd has Wally the Wart, our friendly anthropomorphic square prism mascot who can be seen in various line drawings, waving Harvey Mudd flags or unicycling around. One prospective student for the class of 2021 even crafted a clay version of Wally for the admissions office!
Polymer clay Wally the Wart, crafted by prospective Mudd student
These warts are inspiration for lots of our interesting architectural spots on campus. The story goes that when the Shanahan Center was designed, the architects took color samples of the warts around campus and used those to create the multi-colored tiles that cover the building.
One wall in the Shanahan Center for Teaching and Learning shows the multi-colored tiles representative of Mudd Warts
The Shanahan also has a pathway on the northern side that is lined with old warts from Thomas Garrett, the building that used to be where the Shan is now. This pathway is a cool way to preserve the school’s history and reuse building materials, but many people walking by aren’t aware of the warty implications.
Left: The pathway behind the Shanahan, leading towards the Founding Class Room and Admissions Office. Right: A close-up of some of the old warts, which also have plaques on them dedicated to different donors.
Our newest dorm on campus, Drinkward Dorm, also has a neat wart-themed architectural design! There are warts arranged on the sides of the building which, rumor has it, spell out a phrase in braille. Looking at one panel of Drinkward and using a newly downloaded Braille app, I determined that the warts and indented squares on the building spell out “MUDD WART”, an homage to our love for warts on campus. If you go in blocks of 2×3 rectangles, starting by looking at the raised warts and then inverted warts, you can see that the raised warts spell MUDD and inverted warts spell WART in braille.
Left: One side of Drinkward Dorm is covered in bumps and indents reminiscent of Harvey Mudd’s Warts. Right: A zoomed in photo of one panel of warts. Looking at first the indented squares and then protruding warts in braille will read “MUDD WART.”
The braille text underneath the English translation of “MUDD WART.”
Although I am personally a big fan of all of the warts and wart references we have on campus, there are definitely some people who don’t pay as much attention to it. If you’re one of those people, don’t worry about it; after all, we wouldn’t you to be a worry wart! 😉
Harvey Mudd College was ranked among the top undergraduate engineering programs in the country and is particularly known for its small class sizes, personalized attention from faculty, and hands-on approach to learning.
Armed with her newfound knowledge, Lily set a trap for the magic thief. She carefully placed a golden necklace laced with powerful enchantments in the center of her home. She then created a boundary of magical runes to prevent the thief from escaping. Days turned into weeks, and as Lily patiently waited, her heart filled with hope. Little did she know, the magic thief had been watching her every move. He was growing curious of the young girl who dared to challenge him. The night finally arrived when the thief decided to take the bait. As he sneaked into Lily’s home, he was immediately surrounded by a shimmering light. The runes hummed with magical energy, trapping him within their grasp. Lily emerged from the shadows, her eyes filled with determination. She had prepared herself for this moment, ready to face the thief. With her voice steady and confident, she demanded to know why he had chosen her village. To her surprise, the thief hesitated for a moment before replying. He explained that he was not an evil thief, but rather a displaced spirit searching for his lost home. The village had been built on the remnants of an ancient magical portal that had brought him to this realm. He had been stealing valuables to gather the necessary magical energy to reopen the portal. Touched by the thief’s tale, Lily extended a hand of understanding. She vowed to help him find a new home, one where he wouldn't need to resort to stealing. Together, they embarked on a quest to find the lost magical portal and bring an end to the thief’s mischievous ways. As they journeyed through treacherous forests and mystical lands, Lily and the thief formed an unlikely friendship. Through their adventures, they discovered the true power of empathy and compassion. In the end, the magic thief found a new home in a realm where he could exist in harmony. He bid farewell to Lily, forever grateful for her compassion and understanding. The village, too, was transformed, no longer living in fear but united by their shared experience. And so, the legend of the magical thief lived on, a tale of unlikely alliances and the transformative power of compassion..
Reviews for "The Great Escape: How Magic Thieves Evade Capture"
1. Sarah - 2 out of 5 stars - I couldn't get into "The Magic Thief" at all. The story felt slow and lacking in excitement. The characters were not well-developed and I found it hard to connect with any of them. Additionally, the world-building was weak and it was difficult for me to envision the setting. Overall, I was disappointed and struggled to finish this book.
2. Michael - 2 out of 5 stars - "The Magic Thief" is not my cup of tea. The plot was predictable and didn't offer any surprises or twists. I found the writing style to be uninspiring and it didn't engage me. The protagonist, Conn, was an annoying character that I couldn't relate to or root for. The magic system in the book also felt underdeveloped and lacked coherence. I was expecting more from this book and unfortunately, it failed to deliver.
3. Emily - 1 out of 5 stars - I couldn't stand "The Magic Thief". The writing was juvenile and there was a lack of depth in the story. The dialogue between characters felt forced and unrealistic. It seemed like the author was trying too hard to make the story magical and it fell flat. I found myself skimming through the pages just to finish it. I do not recommend this book to anyone looking for a captivating fantasy novel.
4. Jason - 3 out of 5 stars - Although I appreciate the concept behind "The Magic Thief", I was disappointed with its execution. The pacing of the story was uneven and it dragged in some parts. The world-building was confusing and inconsistent, making it difficult to fully immerse myself in the story. The characters were interesting, but their development felt rushed and lacked depth. Overall, this book had potential but it didn't live up to my expectations.