Columns

Columns

Lay of the Leagues: The sports analytics machine

By Brian Becker | March 31

Expected goals, player efficiency, ERA, slugging percentage, exit velocity, exit velo, exit velo. All these terms are very familiar to the sports analytics community and are terms that a small portion of fans within this community obsess over. Sports analytics have optimized and homogenized all major leagues in this country, especially the MLB. The rise of the information era has been synonymous with the rise of sports analytics. Billy Beane’s “Moneyball” tactics amazed baseball organizations by using statistics to build a cost-efficient organization after typing a few queries from a computer.

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Columns

The Daily Drip: Hot Karl

By Dylan Fee | March 31

Need a distraction this week? I know I do. Take a break for a sweet treat with me as I review this week’s Sink-nature drink: the Hot Karl. The name “Hot Karl” brings to mind a small-time rapper who recorded an album titled “Your Housekeeper Hates You.” The rapper only kept the stage name Hot Karl for so long, which makes sense, as the other euphemism that comes to mind with this drink title is something I’d rather not have published with my name attached (If you know, you know, and if you don’t know, you don’t have to know).

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Columns

Confessions of a College Shopaholic: Influenced

By Ryan Fairfield | March 31

No one likes to admit they’ve fallen for influencer marketing, but let’s be honest — we all have. We see a product pop up on our feeds enough times, hear a celebrity talk about it in just the right way — and suddenly, we’re buying it. While some of these purchases end up being forgettable disappointments, every now and then, something actually delivers. As someone who is shamefully very easily influenced, here are a few things I was “influenced” to buy and thankfully do not regret.

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Columns

The Intangibles: Distortions of March Madness

By Jonah Cowan | March 31

March Madness asks each and every player: In the most important games you will ever play, who are you? What are you made of when your name and future are on the line? Often, the tournament is an indicator of success at the next level, and the bright lights singularly reveal the deepest psychology of these talented players.

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Columns

Full Court Press: Alexander Ovechkin and the weight of greatness

By Noah Goldstein | March 28

Mikhail Gorbachev was elected as the eighth general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union on March 11, 1985. This was a pivotal moment for the USSR, as the new leader set his sights on reform and strengthening ties with the United States. In just six years, the Soviet Union collapsed. But perhaps just as significant is what happened on Sept. 17, 1985. Somewhere in Moscow, Alexander “Ovi” Ovechkin was born. Nobody knew it yet, but he would go on to become one of hockey’s all-time greats.

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Columns

Boston Book Crawl: Seven Stars

By Emily Sullivan | March 27

Spring break is over. A new moon is approaching. Mercury is in retrograde. All signs that a new cycle is about to begin again — and it won’t be a good one. I think. Maybe? I’m a novice when it comes to spirituality and astrology. I enjoy a good tarot reading, and I can be extremely superstitious at times. Yet, I’ve never read up on any of these topics — or even realized I could purchase a book to explain why you can’t trust a Gemini rising — until I wandered into Seven Stars in Central Square. The store is just a short walk from the MBTA stop; it offers books, crystals and everything one could ever want to know about New Age movements.

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Columns

Extra Innings: MLB preseason power rankings

By Henry Blickenstaff | March 27

The Red Sox had one of the most productive offseasons in the league, as they traded for ace Garrett Crochet to boost their rotation and added veteran third baseman Alex Bregman to the lineup. Boston is also expecting three blue-chip prospects — Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer — to make their big-league debuts in 2025.

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Columns

Perú Publicado: Taquile Island, St. Patrick’s Day

By Chrystal Coleman | March 26

¡Punchao! Esa es otra manera de decir ‘hola’ en quechua que aprendí recientemente. Como ya saben, he estado aprendiendo quechua en mi programa de intercambio al extranjero, y para ponernos a prueba final, nos enviaron a un viaje académico a la isla de Taquile donde la mayoría de la población sólo habla quechua. Surgieron dos problemas: yo solo sabía como decir hola, adiós y los números cero a 10, y eso era todo en quechua cuzqueño, no quechua taquileño.

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Column

The Conversation: To paint or not to paint

By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | March 26

Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Heya Evan! How was your spring break? Evan Wang: Hey Sadie! Mine was good, I went to D.C. and saw a major protest on the National Mall. Sadie: Wow, a protest? In D.C.? Never heard of that happening. Wonder what they’re all riled up over. Evan: I ...

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Columns

Adventures of an A-Lister: Ticket sales are out of control

By Odessa Gaines | March 25

This past Sunday I had plans to finally see Ayo Edebiri in the new film “Opus” (2025) at my local AMC. In preparation for this venture, I made sure to stop by the convenience store to spend my last pennies on my favorite sour snacks, hop on the Green Line extra early and queue up a great playlist for the roughly half-hour journey. Half an hour later, my train was frozen between the East Somerville and Lechmere stops.

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Columns

Escape the Library: Sip Café Boston

By Olivia Bye | March 25

Spring has arrived! The days are longer, the grass is greener, the slush is slowly melting away. If you’re anything like me, you’ve been anxiously awaiting the sun’s arrival and the idea of studying while cooped up in a library seems less appealing than ever. My solution: Sip Cafe Boston!

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Column

Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Workaholism

By Linda Huang | March 25

“A workaholic will die before an alcoholic,” said Christina Maslach, professor emerita of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, whose research laid the foundation for the World Health Organization to declare burnout as an occupational phenomenon in 2019. While alcoholics endure a gradual, long-term deterioration of the liver, workaholics face the immediate risk of stress-induced blood clots or heart attacks — potentially striking just when life seems to be going well.

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Columns

The Oxford Comma: Lessons from a novice traveler

By Grace Nelson | March 25

Hi everyone! I hope you had a rejuvenating spring break! As you all return to your classes this week, I am beginning my six-week-long Easter vacation here in Oxford (or “Vac,” as they like to call it). Actually, ‘here in Oxford’ isn’t quite correct, because I’m coming to you live from Budapest, Hungary. As you can probably guess, I’m going to talk a little bit about traveling today!

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Columns

Full Court Press: Making bank on the Big Dance

By Noah Goldstein | March 14

Although buzzer-beaters and ads with Charles Barkley are great, my favorite aspect of March Madness is undoubtedly its ability to turn players into stars in the blink of an eye. While some of these sensations don’t end up succeeding at the next level (sorry, Sindarius Thornwell — I really thought you were the next big thing), others, like Steph Curry at Davidson, show their first flashes of greatness on the hardwood in March.

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Columns

Read, Write and Be Merry: ‘The Rose Code’ by Kate Quinn

By Merry Jiao | March 13

Okay, so remember when I said last semester that there are four authors I always zero in on? I’ve now reviewed books from two of them, and I cannot believe I’ve waited this long to review a book by the one and only Kate Quinn.

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Columns

Perú Publicado: Finding Paddington, Carnavales

By Chrystal Coleman | March 13

Editor’s note: This column is a special feature. It is published in Spanish in order to expand the Daily’s coverage but follows our standard journalistic practices. The English version can be found below. ¡Allianchu! Eso quiere decir ‘hola’ en quechua. Sólo quería enseñarles mis habilidades ...

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Columns

The 90-Minute Breakdown: Champions League ramps up, plus the Messi ticket controversy

By Antonia Toro | March 12

I’d like to start this week’s column by remembering FC Barcelona’s head club doctor, Carles Miñarro, who passed away suddenly this past Sunday, hours before Barcelona’s match against Osasuna. Barcelona president Joan Laporta paid tribute, stating, “A man very much loved by everyone passed away this afternoon during the team’s gathering at the hotel. As you can imagine, the players, coaching staff, the coach, everyone was very sad.” The match was postponed in his honor.

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Columns

The Daily Drip: Girl Grass

By Dylan Fee | March 12

We are breaching no jacket weather, the snow has melted and it’s finally getting dark later than 6 p.m. You know what that means? Getting a Sink drink and sitting on Prez Lawn for hours when you should be studying for midterms. At least that’s what I’m doing as I review this week’s Sink nature drink: Girl Grass.

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Columns

Adventures of an A-Lister: The ‘Queen of the Ring’ enters the mat

By Odessa Gaines | March 11

What do you know about women’s wrestling? Personally, if you asked me this I would have to simply answer: nothing. Nothing but the story of Mildred “Millie” Burke (Emily Bett Rickards), professional women’s wrestler. Millie, born in a small Midwestern town to a single mother, opens the door of the male-dominated sport to women after taking the championship and becoming the first woman athlete to become a millionaire.

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Column

Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Enhance our business education

By Linda Huang | March 11

With its highly educated workforce, business-friendly legal system, strong sense of interconnectedness between universities and government and businesses that drive continuous technological breakthroughs, the United States is arguably one of the best places for industries to succeed. However, none of this would be possible without a foundation of strong business education. Business literacy is essential in the private sector, where startups thrive and hands-on engagement with business ideas is key — it’s also an area where Tufts falls short.

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