Kirby said the discussion was constructive in pointing out problems of the current system and suggesting alternatives.

Dean of Undergraduate Education Benedict H. Gross ’71 said he and Kirby expected intense criticism of the plan.

Indeed, criticism of the preregistration plan dominated the debate, as only one of 11 Faculty speakers came out in favor of the plan last night. Even Saltonstall Professor of History Charles S. Maier, who co-wrote a book with Kirby, spoke against the proposal.

The first speaker was Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics Howard Georgi ’68, who set the stage for the subsequent outpouring of dissent with a rousing denunciation of the plan.

“Shopping period is one of the great contributors to the strength of a Harvard undergraduate education,” said Maier Professor of Political Economy Benjamin M. Friedman, who spoke after Georgi. “The proposal as stated before us purports to preserve flexibility, but there will be a very clear reduction of shopping period to a vestigial remnant of what our students now enjoy.”

Friedman said he sympathized with the “administrative burdens of shopping period,” but asserted that preregistration would strip students of their ability to choose their courses.

Friedman then went on to compare the forum to the discussions of Iraq.

“Just like Iraq, this seems like a situation where nobody wants this to happen but we discuss it as if it were inevitable,” he said.

By far the most vociferous critic of the plan was Robinson Professor of Music Robert D. Levin ’68.

Levin said the proposal is “practically and aesthetically repugnant.”

“It does not serve the goals of education, it serves the goals of the administration,” he said.

Assistant Professor of Computer Science Michael D. Mitzenmacher spoke out on behalf of his department, listing four arguments against preregistration, including the damage it may do to shopping period and the perceived burdens it may place on Faculty members.

“We believe that accurate predictability can be achieved with currently available data,” Mitzenmacher said. “In fact, the current [preregistration] plan could reduce predictability.”

Jay M. Harris, Wolfson professor of Jewish studies, suggested an alternative plan.

He advised that students submit a tentative plan of study for the following semester, but still participate in a shopping period before submitting a formal study card.