Latke vs Hamentaschen: The Great Debate 2005

Latke vs Hamentaschen: The Great Debate 2005

Six MIT luminaries burst forward to argue the merits of the latke and hametash at MIT Hillel's 2005 Latke-Hamentashen Debate. A human sized latke and hamentashen were seen wandering in 10-250 which contained an overflow, enthusiastic crowd. Keeping the raucous debate civil was moderator Sam Raymond '06.

For more news coverage on the 2005 Latke Hamentashen debate visit:

• MIT News Office: "Bright spot on the latke team"
• MIT's The Tech: "Potatoes, Cookies Disavow Harvard." [Choose March 15, 2005 (PDF) and scroll down to find the front-page article]

Passionate presentations for the "latke" were made by (left to right) Professor Walter Lewin (Physics), President Susan Hockfield, and Professor Stuart Licht (Chemistry)

Arguing for the hamentashen were (pictured left to right) Jeremy Wolfe (Brain and Cognitive Science), Donald Sadoway (Material Science and Engineering), and Marc Kastner (Physics).

Professor Walter Lewin demonstrated that latkes are capable of producing light and are therefore superior to hamentashen.

The packed audience voted for their favorite food - the latke or the hamentashen. Once again the vote was proclaimed a tie with the promise to reconvene in 2006 for yet another debate.

Debaters and audience members enjoyed a feast of hot latkes and fruity hamentashen following the inconclusive debate.