Rutgers University, one of the oldest institutions in the country, is celebrating its 250th anniversary this year. In that span of time, Rutgers has made some revolutionary discoveries. Read on to learn about some of the ways that Rutgers has impacted all of our lives.
College Football
Rutgers University is quite literally the birthplace of college football. Back in 1869, Rutgers hosted the first college football game against Princeton, winning 6-4. Now, Rutgers is a member of the Big Ten athletic conference and draws huge crowds with an incredible amount of Scarlet Pride to High Point Solutions Stadium.
First College Newspaper
Rutgers' student-run newspaper, The Daily Targum, is one of the oldest in the nation. Founded in 1869 with a circulation of 12,000 daily, this newspaper serves as an outlet for students who want to write, edit, report and much more.
Fantastic Foods
Rutgers offers some of the best foods you can grow or buy! Scientists at the university have engineered the Rutgers Heirloom Tomato, which produces higher quality and higher yield crops that are also largely disease resistant.
If you enjoy oysters, you have Rutgers to thank. Biologists at Rutgers in 1901 pioneered oyster cultivation by studying bivalve larvae. A lot of work went into this little shellfish, so be grateful!
Of course, when talking about food at Rutgers, a Fat Sandwich cannot go without mentioning. Served at the RU Hungry Grease Trucks on College Avenue, these footlong sandwiches come piled high with chicken fingers, french fries, mozzarella sticks and almost any other junk food you can imagine! The Fat Sandwich challenge is to eat five of these monsters in 45 minutes. The Man vs. Food star could not even come close! How would you stack up?
Cure For Tuberculosis
Selman Waksman was a professor at Rutgers of biochemistry and microbiology for over 40 years and discovered more than 20 antibiotics (not to mention coining the name "antibiotics"). In 1952, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology for his discovery of streptomycin, the first known antibiotic active against tuberculosis.