This week during Monday’s class we discussed the fall of SVB Securities. Sam went in depth on the WSJ story that he read and Professor Gupta broke down how the bank failed in simple terms. I have been keeping up with this story so it was interesting to me to hear about the bank in a classroom setting. After this, we broke up into our groups and we went over thought provoking questions on the film A Civil Action. We discussed who should be responsible for paying for the prosecuting team’s research against the defending company. Some students thought that the EPA or other government agencies should help subsidize the research, but I disagree. In the eyes of the law I feel as though this would give the prosecution an unfair advantage over the defendant. I believe that the prosecuting law firm should bear the initial costs of research.

During my internship this week I worked on a number of market research projects. I also worked with a team to analyze potential candidates for a job opening for a company that we consult for. This was a very interesting project as it allowed me to look through hundreds of people and choose the candidates that I thought would fit the job description best. Again this week all of the interns went to our bosses house and he cooked us lunch. This week we had three different types of ravioli. This was a very good meal and we talked about my boss’s upcoming trip to the United States. This led us to a conversation about the cultural differences between the US and Italy.

This past weekend I visited Florence with Bryan, Jon and Sylvia. This was an unbelievable trip and Florence was by far the best city that I have visited on this trip. We visited iconic locations such as the Uffizi Gallery, Basilica of Santa Maria del Fiore and the Baptistry of St. John, the Bell Tower, the Duomo Museum and the Boboli Gardens. These were all breathtaking experiences and provided unmatched views. We also went to dinner with Professor Gupta at a steakhouse. Dinner was great and we talked about the class, social topics and about our future careers. Florence was much different than Milan as it felt like a small town rather than a city. Milan on the other hand is a large city with very industrial and residential areas, as well as skyscrapers. The tallest buildings in Florence were churches. 

The Florence Duomo

The beautiful sunset from Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence

The view of Florence from the top of the Bell Tower after climbing 414 Steps. Lehigh prepared me well!