A little over 60 years old, Binghamton University is considered a young school, but it still has its fair share of urban myths and legends. Some stories, whether accurate or bogus, have become common knowledge among students and even the faculty. As an incoming freshman, you’ve probably heard some of these stories. We’re more than happy to debunk some of them.

Are there laxatives in the dining hall food?

FALSE

A chopped onion, a teaspoon of salt and a laxative? Many students believe that the food they are eating at the campus dining halls, whether it is the soup of the day or chocolate chip pancakes at breakfast, are loaded with laxatives. The reason for this, according to many students, is that if there is something wrong with the food a laxative will prevent it from remaining in your stomach long enough to harm the body. Bob Griffin, head of marketing for Sodexho, has heard this story one too many times. “I just can’t help but laugh every time I hear that,” Griffin said. “It’s one of the silliest things I’ve ever heard. Why would we do that?”

“For students to think that we would do such a thing,” he said, “Our chefs are offended.”

Is the bearcat a real animal?

TRUE

Baxter the Bearcat is present at most of Binghamton’s big events. But what some people may not know is that Baxter is a relatively new edition to BU. In 1981, the school adopted Colonial Bill as the school’s first official mascot. However, in 1989, a survey administered by the school reported that “there was not a lot of affinity towards the whole Colonial thing,” according to Joel Thirer, athletics director.

In response, the school formed a committee comprised of students, faculty and alumni in 1992 to revamp the mascot. It wasn’t until 1999 that the school officially adopted the bearcat, due to its alliteration and its ferocity. “The bearcat is a symbol of strength and power, and we hope this new athletics logo for Binghamton will bring excitement and a new spirit to our athletic competitions,” said President Lois B. DeFleur in an August 1999 issue of Inside BU.

The bearcat, formally known as the binturong, is native to “southern Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, India and most of Southeast Asia (mainland and islands),” according to the Ross Park Zoo (located in Binghamton) Web site. The bearcat is typically four- to six-feet long with a shaggy coat, and in appearance resembles a raccoon.

“In all honesty, they’re nothing like your mascot,” said Mike Janis, Ross Park’s executive director. “Their head is cat-like, the walk is bear-like, tail is monkey-like, and they smell like Fritos.” In fact, in some areas, the binturong are domesticated because of their ability to keep rodents away.

Is there a “theft fee” included on your meal plan?

Are housing communities divided by “type?”

TRUE

You’ve probably heard from assorted BU alumni or current students that each housing community at BU houses its own specific type of people. In fact, in a recent interview with Release, singer and BU alumna Ingrid Michealson broke down each of the communities.

“If you’re a party girl … you want to live in Newing. If you’re a bookworm and you like quiet, you want Dickinson,” Michaelson said. “If you don’t want to be around anybody and you like your solitude, go to Hinman. And if you’re like some normal kid who listens to Dave Matthews and plays hacky sack, and likes to chill out, you’re going to live in [College-in-the-Woods].”

However, according to Rene Coderre, who’s been assistant director of Residential Life for nearly the past two decades, “the stereotypes of different communities have changed over the years.” When Coderre started, Hinman was the “jock area, because that’s where co-rec football was invented. Dickinson was the quiet area because two of the buildings in the community were for grad students and therefore had 24-hour quiet hours, and CIW was the place to be if you wanted to be in a sorority or fraternity.”

However, now he says that things have moved around and “the jocks are now in Mountainview, because that’s where some of the athletes are, and Hinman is the student government or theater area.”

Ultimately, though, the community stereotypes simply feed off of each other as soon as the label is established.

“People feel the need to live up to the reputation,” Coderre said.