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Estelle Once Said to Me Cool Down, Down…Don’t Act a Fool Now, Now…
September 16th, 2009What do you get when you mix hip-hop’s biggest ego (and biggest sunglasses) with the daughter of pop-country music? The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. During Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech for Best Female Video for her single “You Belong With Me”, Kanye West stormed the stage, insisting that “Beyonce has one of the best videos of all time […] of all time”. Read More
Was Kanye Exercising His First Amendment Rights?
September 16th, 2009We all have the right to voice our opinions, don’t we? After watching Kanye West abruptly interrupt Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech at the Video Music Awards, it’s apparent that everyone feels the need to speak their mind from to time to time. While Kanye’s unexpected stage appearance gave viewers some bonus entertainment, did he have the right to cause such a spectacle? Read More
The Paradox of Packing
September 16th, 20096:00 p.m.: 30 minutes ‘til I depart for the ‘Dacks. I briefly survey the disaster that is my bedspread from behind my laptop screen, and decide that I should probably start packing. Reaching to grab the cord to plug in my MacBook, I realize with a start that I can barely see it over the volume of clothing, food and gear that litters my floor and bed. Read More
Voting Down the Malware, One Quorum at a Time
September 8th, 2009When I finally managed to pull myself out of bed after an epic battle with the flue, an article on CNET caught my eye: Symantec Corporation, the maker of Norton Antivirus, is pursuing a new form of malware prevention that turns the self-mutating abilities of certain malware against itself. The new product is called Quorum. Read More
"Forcible Touching Incident" in Collegetown
September 8th, 2009If you're a current member of Cornell's community, you probably received a CU Crime Alert Email Monday night regarding a "forcible touching incident." If not, I've pasted it below: "Cornell University Police has been advised that the Ithaca Police Department is investigating a reported forcible touching incident that occurred sometime this past weekend (Sept. 5-6) in the approximate area of the 300 block of College Avenue. The incident was reported to the Cornell University Police Monday afternoon, Sept. 7. The details of the incident are still being investigated, and suspect information is still being developed." Read More
Healthwatch: New Scientific Evidence in Support of an Ancient Herbal Hangover Cure
September 8th, 2009Like roommate disputes and the stress of the first round of prelims each semester, the hangover ranks among the most painful and prevalent college experiences. It seems to me that everyone has their own, unique morning-after cure when rest and water won’t do the trick. (How I Met Your Mother fans might recall Lily ordering a greasy tuna melt and Ted ordering gravy to ease their hangover woes.) But hold on to your greasy pizza and bagels, Cornellians, because researchers at the Institute of Medical Science and Jeju National University in South Korea have scientifically proven that one food reduces hangover symptoms and decreases liver damage – asparagus. Read More
It’s the End of the World As We Know It, And I Feel Swine…
September 8th, 2009This week, Cornell staff and students have been inundated with information, reported cases, and mass hysteria centered around the dreaded swine flu. Forget budget cuts and that there are now two salad lines at Statler - we’ve got the urge to oink. Read More
This Year, There's More to the State Fair than Grandma's Apple Pie
September 8th, 2009The stories seem familiar enough: Old Mr. McCurry’s eighty pound pumpkin, Grandma Leroy’s sweet apple pie, Jim-Ray’s home-made, hand-crafted, award-winning furnishings. These are the stories of ordinary Americans, seeking the extraordinary opportunity to advance to national competition. These are the stories rooted in American Tradition: the stories novelized by fellow Cornellian and Sunnie E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little. These are the stories of humble, ordinary Americans rising to greatness, if only for a day. But these humble stories are changing. At the most recent gathering of the Great New York State Fair in Syracuse, the Cornell University Solar Decathlon team demonstrated the fruits of their delicate labor: an eco-friendly, eye-catching, energy-efficient dream home. Read More
Back to School with President Obama
September 6th, 2009In a sign of the times, there is uproar over President Obama’s decision to speak to schoolchildren and convey a message of studying hard and staying in school. Parents have appeared on the cable news stations crying out in anger at the idea that President Obama would dare speak to the nation’s children. First and foremost, Barack Obama is the President of the United States, a fact that eludes many U.S. children. He is the leader of the free world and is held to a higher standard and in higher regard than other politicians. Second, that the President wishes to dedicate time towards reaching out to schoolchildren is mutually beneficial and exposes students to the idea of nation and community. Read More
Blueberries in Boston
September 6th, 2009I thought about The Sun once this summer. As I peeled a cantaloupe rind from the bottom of my favorite sandals and stared quizzically at the war scene in front of me, I thought maybe, just maybe, someone from Cornell with an aptitude for Boston culture could explain to me what on earth just threw down on Hanover street. Read More