This, I am afraid, can sometimes describe the Harvard community or the lack thereof. (The Undergraduate Council members who masterminded the so-called "Spirit Week" in the days before The Game will know what I am talking about.)

While individual achievement is undoubtedly a worthwhile goal of a university, it is not so at the expense of a social community. An excessive amount of individualism detracts from one's focus on the surrounding society. The self-drive with which a Harvard student is typically equipped is on a fine line with self-sufficiency. It strips one of the need and often the desire for a wholesome and fulfilling social life.

Harvard students cringe at the though of detour. They, or I should say we, have our set plans and goals and wish to take the most direct route. Often, with such determined direction in mind, we neglect to take time out for diversion or distraction. Because we sometimes choose to cast our social life into this category of a diversion, it pales in comparison to the Harvardesque level of excellence expected and attained in the scholastic sphere.

Despite our limited exposure to Yale life, The Game and its surrounding festivities convey striking differences between our two schools. Call it artsy, call it liberal, or call it just plain weird, there is a different air pervading the New Haven grounds than the more conservative, assertive and competitive atmosphere previously described.

Their weekend parties were of a much more laid-back feel than those I've frequented at Harvard. In almost every suite, a group of students were gathered, sitting around and just hanging out. The residential college seemed to nurture more closely-knit relationships among its inhabitants, a closeness which manifested itself at The Game as well in the form of tailgating parties for each college. We can't even field a decent mascot for the whole school, yet they rallied around their college flags as something more than mere living quarters.

Yes, we too have a housing system which tries to break down the over-whelmingly large college community into smaller, more amiable units, but it does not fuel the same intimacy among its residents as evident at Yale. There were no house tailgate parties on the Harvard side.

In addition, Harvard does not frequently host small social gatherings of which according to Yale students are so common for their school. This greater degree not of social interest, but of close social interaction left its impression on me. Former President Bush, himself a Yalie, might have been speaking about Yale when he looked for "a kinder, gentler nation."

Kindness and gentleness, however, are not sought after by all. We at Harvard pride ourselves on our aggressive nature and our ability to persevere without the protective measures of a maternal and nurturing educational upbringing. We are far too independent to rely on such guidance.

Nevertheless, we should learn a little something from our Ivy League rival and look towards a convergence of the two species, by combining Eli's greater social proclivity with our far greater academic intensity, and their more brightened communal awareness with our overdeveloped sense of independence. Perhaps then we would have a species that will be fit not only for survival, but for the emotional rewards we tend to do without.