<p>Yes, the Rabi’s have to do summer research, and get free housing plus guaranteed research support (ie no need to apply for it). In addition the Rabi’s get their own “clubhouse,” have montlly dinners, sometimes with invited faculty, and can get summer housing on the same floor. I think they have extra advisors too, and they generally they seem to have great to the faculty.
I don’t know anything about astrophysics teaching there, but both Brian Greene (Elegant Universe) and Philp Kim (whose work on graphene was recently in the NYT) are both teaching full-year undergraduate classes this year.
Everyone else on this board probably knows more about Caltech physics and astrohysics than I do so I won’t try to make any comparisons.</p>