Although most students consider the gender issue less a problem than a fact of life, Naddaff says that the upcoming change in housing policy to equalize the proportions is definitely in order.

"I think in general terms we'd like to see Mather as a place where all people can be comfortable, and in this case it speaks to the issue of gender," she says.

"I think it should change," says Pat C. Hoy 11, senior tutor. "I don't see it as a problem about sexism at all, I just see it as not the best balance in the house, in any house."

Naddaff also attributes the gender ratio to unpredictable circumstances. "As with in any house, these reputations develop on their own, almost accidentally. The house acquires a reputation for gender imbalance and as a place where women aren't at ease, and that becomes reality."

Regardless of stereotypes, many Mather residents praise the house for its lack of social cliques.

"If you're not a football player or a lacrosse player or something like that, sometimes you feel like you don't belong, but that wears off quickly," says Allen J. Baker '94.

Some divisions remain, however, according to Leonid M. Fridman '85, resident tutor and advisor to Harvard's Society of Nerds and Geeks.

"I think the general atmosphere is pretty good, but there are some tensions, and often tensions seem to center around athletes and non-athletes." Fridman says. "Nerds aren't really isolated from other people, but nerds don't interact so much with jocks, and vice versa."

Jobst says, however, that all kinds of residents can be seen at house activities, ranging from Mather's popular intramural teams to the upcoming computer-dating dance, "A Match Made in Mather."

For many students, though, the house's social life suffers from the layout of the tower: all single bedrooms and no common rooms.

"My roommate lived in the tower last year, and it was almost like living in exile," Baker says. "In the tower there's really no mingling. The most you'll do is say hi to someone in the elevator."

Kendra E. Nichols '95, who lives in DeWolte Street overflow housing says the whole house is fragthented in its design. Each section is so divided The tower is separate from the low rise, which is separate from DeWolte."

Many students, however, are more concerned with the aesthetics of the exterior of the house, built in the 1970s.

The house was definitely sold to the lowest bidder," says Oliver J. Rando '93. It's a teenage house. It has acne. If you look at the cement you can see all the pockmarks."

Still students say the house's attributes make up for the drawbacks.

When I say I live in Mather," says Jobst, "people always say, 'fun house.