<p>Well, the really big difficulty with a triple major isn’t finishing the requirements for three departments. The problem is that you have to finish more electives to get extra degrees – you have to have 180 units outside the General Institute Requirements for a single major, and 270 units outside the GIRs for a double major. I presume you would need 360 units outside the GIRs for a triple major – given the freshman credit limit, that means you’d have to average more than 6 classes per term. That’s a lot.</p>
<p>As for undergraduate research, it really depends on what department you are. As a science undergraduate, I don’t exactly investigate <em>my own</em> ideas – that’s not how academic science works for anyone. But I am given a lot of freedom to determine the direction of my project. I guess generally you’re always going to be investigating somebody else’s project, but that’s because they’re paying you from their precious grant money. I definitely don’t just do the grunge work, like making solutions or washing dishes, like some of my friends at other schools who have “research positions” do.</p>
<p>I would note that there’s not really such a thing as “just” putting your name on a paper. If your name is on a paper, it’s because you contributed a significant amount of work to the project. People don’t get their names on papers for doing grudge work.</p>