Complications at Berkeley

Inside Higher Ed carries a story about a Berkeley undergrad who made racist statements on a video. Exactly why the video was made is unclear. But, in any case, the student was quickly identified on social media. Yours truly has removed identifying info in the accounts below, but a quick web search would reveal the student's identity. What emerges is a profile of an Indian-American math genius who got into Berkeley at a particularly young age:

From Inside Higher Ed: A video quickly circulating on social media that depicts a University of California, Berkeley, student saying that African Americans, LGBTQ people and women don't deserve rights has caused outrage on the campus. The university condemned the video and said that while it couldn't discuss issues with a specific student, "appropriate actions" were being taken, reports The Mercury News.* Students quickly stepped up and reported the video to campus officials and residence life officers (the video appears to have been filmed in a dorm room). The young man in the video appears to have already been identified on Twitter, and an individual claiming to be him has apologized for the video in a post on Reddit. In the video he rants to his friends about how he doesn't like African Americans and how certain groups don't deserve rights.

Source: https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2019/12/09/uc-berkeley-condemns-racist-video
===========
*From the Mercury News: ...On Reddit, an individual claiming to be the student who filmed the video said it was recorded as a joke and the original copy was deleted after a few minutes, although copies were made of it before that. “This video was recorded when we aren’t at the clearest of minds, but he was just trying to be edgy and he was betting that it wouldn’t be posted,” the student, using an anonymous account, wrote. “This was a staged recording.” ...

Full article at https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/12/07/racist-video-sparks-outcry-at-uc-berkeley/
===========

The student's profile appeared in an article in a hometown newspaper a couple of years ago: [Again, identifying information is removed below, although a little bit of searching would reveal the source.]

At the age of 2, Student X created digital pictures on his home computer. By the time he was 6, the boy had the ability to design web pages. When he was 9, Student X earned the distinction of being the youngest person in the world at the time to become a Microsoft certified technology specialist. As a 10-year-old student at X Elementary School, Student X supplemented his studies with college courses at X College. So is it any wonder that Student X, now a 14-year-old freshman at X High School, earned perfect scores on two SAT subject tests? The teen aced both the physics and math level 2 tests and received a perfect 800 score on each.

“At the end of the math 2 subject test, I was very confident I did well,” Student X said. “The physics test was harder than the math test because it involved more memorization of formulas and also needed math without a calculator.” In May 2016, Student X became the youngest person to earn two associate degrees, in natural science and math, from X College. He graduated with honors. Student X didn’t go into the subject tests cold. He studied on his own and took numerous practice exams for several weeks before each test so he’d know what to expect. “Also, my college courses which I took at X College helped a lot,” he said.

Student X took the College Board math test in August and the physics test in October, learning his scores three weeks after completing each test. “I expected a perfect score in math II, so I was not very surprised,” he said. “However, the perfect score in physics was very surprising since I thought I got a 780/800.” He will take the full SAT in December.

Student X plans to capitalize on his achievements by attending college early. He will apply to Caltech in fall 2018, with the goal of studying computer science and applied physics at age 16. After earning a Ph.D., Student X hopes to land a job at NASA. But for now, he continues to be an active teen. He plays chess— and has won two titles—and soccer, is an avid reader, volunteers for various city events, and enjoys gardening and his many parakeets. Student X launched the X Math Circle, a student-run, nonprofit community service organization, about two years ago and is continuing with the program at X High. He said the free educational program focuses on problem-solving skills to help students become successful academically and in the real world...

===========
It's not clear how the Berkeley authorities have dealt or will deal with this situation. But it is a reminder that undergrads, no matter how bright, can be immature. In this case, we apparently have a particularly young individual. Dealing with this matter will be complicated. What would you do? What are the "appropriate actions"?