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The University of Texas at Austin (UT or Texas for short), is the flagship campus of the University of Texas System. The University of Texas was conceived in 1839, when the Republic of Texas set aside land for a university in the new capital, Austin. The University of Texas actually began operations in 1883.
The campus of the university was originally a forty-acre tract. The main campus is still called "The Forty Acres", although it is roughly 350 acres today. The University's colors are burnt orange and white, and its official song is "The Eyes of Texas". The mascot is a Texas longhorn named Bevo.
Academically, UT consistently ranks among the top public schools in the United States. It has a student population of more than 50,000; the largest student body at a single campus in the nation.
The school is a member of the Big 12 athletic conference. Its sports teams are perennial powerhouses and the school has won 43 national championships in various sports including baseball, basketball, football, golf, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. Texas athletes have won a total of 82 Olympic medals.
Famous alumni include; Lloyd Bentsen, Jr. (US Senator), Earl Campbell (NFL running back), J.M. Coetzee (Nobel Laureate for Literature), Ben Crenshaw (professional golfer), Walter Cronkite (news anchor), Kay Bailey Hutchison (U.S. Senator), Lady Bird Johnson (first lady), Alan Lomax (musicologist and folklorist), Bill Moyers (news anchor), Bruce Sterling (science fiction author), and Renée Zellweger (actress).
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