Don't type the root password over a network connection from outside of Brown CS unless you really need to . If you do use the root password, change it immediately on your return. It is much safer to enter a password via modem connection than via Internet connection. You can do lots of damage as root. You can also go to jail for just using root to gain access to private data.
Some actions are, in fact, felonious.
Use the root password to manage the system, but not to access user data you couldn't access with your own user-id. In an emergency you may access user data local to your systems, but only with that user's permission.