Academics at Reed are framed by Humanities 110—a year-long study of Greek and Roman civilization, required for all first-year students—and by the senior thesis—a research paper of personal interest, supervised by a faculty advisor. But between one's first day on campus and the day when one receives that diploma, much else happens in the life of a Reedie. There is Paideia, a week between semesters when students teach classes, and the curricular and extracurricular blend. There is Nitrogen Day, when we celebrate one of the universe's most abundant, and yet underappreciated, elements. And then there is Renn Fayre, when we recognize the seniors' completing their theses with a weekend-long celebration, beginning with a parade that runs through the library, up to the President's office, and beyond.

Reed teaches students how to learn, how to write, and how to think. It provides them with the solid knowledge base of a liberal arts education, coupled with the academic specialization of the senior thesis. And it encourages intellectual freedom by bidding students to constantly ask the hard questions, to challenge received opinions and norms, and to never forfeit a life-long love of learning.

Reed is not a place for everyone; but for those attracted to its unique quirk and fervent intellectualism, it can be the place that they have always dreamed of, and a place that changes them forever.

• Steve Jobs - Founder of Apple Computers

The reactor is used primarily on quantitative neutron activation analysis, a method of determining the elements present in a sample, but the reactor has been put to many other uses, such as investigating dark matter, studying lava flows in Oregon, and bone mass measurement for osteoporosis research.