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kateinparis
Column

Kate in Paris: In Bordeaux

This weekend, along with the rest of the Tufts-in-Paris program, I boarded an early-morning train from Paris’ Gare Montparnasse and set off toward Bordeaux, a city in the southwest of France and a part of the country’s Aquitaine region.


The Setonian
Column

Ethics of the Environment: The consequences of fast fashion

Perusing through stores like H&M and Forever 21, it’s difficult not to be struck by how affordable clothing has become and to wonder how clothing companies, especially those known as fast-fashion brands, can peddle clothing so cheaply. Most people are aware of the textile industry’s connections to child labor and worker exploitation in developing nations, but it is also important to address the industry’s heavy contribution to our worsening environmental crisis. 


Public-Cinemy
Columns

Public Cinemy No. 1: Narrative corruption within ‘The Dropout’

I will admit I love Hulu’s “The Dropout” (2022), a highly-anticipated miniseries on Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes. It’s beautifully written, beautifully shot and beautifully acted. Even teachers at my high school, Holmes’ alma mater, have commented on how well the miniseries captured Holmes’ eccentric character. But the show occasionally falls into the pothole of becoming what it means to analyze: America’s obsession with narrative smoke and mirrors.


Intangibles
Columns

The Intangibles: My NBA momentum winners losers

Momentum in basketball is everything. Teams that are playing their best basketball in the crunch months of March and April are often more likely to succeed than higher-seeded counterparts who did all their winning in November and December. This creates final standings that can mislead the casual or even seasoned fan when bracket-filling time comes. Ultimately, my favorite picks for the NBA Finals are the teams that win the most games after lineups have been tweaked, film has been analyzed and chemistry has been built.



Blue-Brown-and-Green
Column

Blue, Brown, & Green — Monkey see, monkey do

Boston and its surrounding cities are beautiful places. One thing decidedly not beautiful is the litter that mars the woods and streets throughout Greater Boston. Unfortunately, I have, at times, seen a similar scene on campus. Though Tufts facilities might clean up litter occasionally, the responsibility for keeping our campus beautiful is a community-wide one. Littering is a serious problem in the U.S.;in a national litter study done by Keep America Beautiful in 2020, it was determined that there were “nearly 50 billion pieces of litter along U.S. roadways and waterways” throughout the country. That equates to 152 items of litter for every person in the United States per year.



The Setonian
Column

Potty Talk: A celebrity in our bathrooms

This week, rumors flew around Tufts’ campus. Everyone could feel a disturbance in the plumbing as someone of great import was touring our bathrooms. Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, was hanging out in the Campus Center trying to make new friends. In that process, she probably ended up using at least one of the Campus Center’s many bathrooms. In the wake of this monumental occasion, I chose to take on what are likely to be some of the most trafficked facilities at Tufts University — the Mayer Campus Center bathrooms. Specifically, I will attempt to tackle both the Hotung bathrooms and the all-gender bathroom.




KWeekly-04
Columns

K-Weekly: BTS gives a stellar Grammy performance, again

BTS once again showed the world why it’s on top on Sunday night with its performance on the Grammy Awards stage. The seven-member boy band has seen overwhelming amounts of success since it debuted back in 2013, breaking records with regularity in South Korea and abroad. The band members are known not just for their comedic timing, good looks and charisma but for their beautiful lyrics, lifting vocals and mind-blowing dance moves.


a_compendium_of_actors_graphic
Columns

A Compendium of Actors: The fate of female-led films at the Oscars

The 2022 Oscar nominees for best actress represented five separate films, none of which received nominations for best picture. This was for myriad reasons, whether it be film quality, intended audience or rampant commercial misogyny. Nonetheless, it represents a broader issue of equity in the film industry: Actresses are either given bad movies to make the best of or great movies that aren’t allowed to grow.


kateinparis
Columns

Kate in Paris: Visitors

Two weeks ago, thanks to several Tufts friends who came to visit Paris (and me), I had the chance to reexperience the city through their eyes and feel the excitement of Paris all over again.  


The Setonian
Column

Ethics of the Environment: The dark side of cannabis

As cannabis legalization continues its march across the country and investment in legal cannabis continues to grow, many previously veiled aspects of cannabis cultivation have come to light, including a surprisingly damaging environmental cost. High water and energy usage, pesticides and fertilizer poisoning, degradation of public lands and potential ozone effects have all been linked to cannabis cultivation.


artofgoodsoup-01
Columns

The Art of Good Soup: Oh, ginger!

This week we went home. A place that loves us and cares for us and sometimes does things to us like making us fall asleep in our friend’s bed across campus and walk home at five  in the morning because you swore you would just take a nap. No? Just Ellie? Anyways. 


The Setonian
Columns

Sports and Society: New York's problematic solutions to sports and pandemic

Vaccine mandates protect people. That has been the position of the New York City government since ex-Mayor Bill de Blasio began the private sector mandate in December. Last week, that position stayed the same in theory. Unless, apparently, you’re Kyrie Irving. Or Aaron Judge. Or Anthony Rizzo, Jacob deGrom or any rich and powerful New Yorker with enough pull to get an exemption.


Image-from-iOS-1
Columns

The Wraparound: Panthers, Rangers triumph on Deadline Day

Deadline Day in the NHL has come and gone, with some intriguing movement and surprises taking place. Now that general managers have put down their pencils, clubs will jockey for playoff positioning in the home stretch of the regular season. Let’s take a look at some of the winners and losers from last week’s trade deadline:


The Setonian
Column

Talking Transit: At the end of the day, everything is old and sucks

Last week had a lot of transit news, and a lot of it was pretty good even! Notably, we got the first branch of the Green Line Extension, and the MBTA released their brand spankin’ new five-year capital investment plan. The plan itself showed promise, even though it frustratingly still has no real concrete plan for converting the commuter rail into an electrified regional rail network.


The-Final-Whistle-Graphic
Columns

The Final Whistle: Italy fails to qualify for consecutive World Cups

When the playoff draw was announced for UEFA’s last three spots in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, many fans were disappointed as Portugal and Italy were drawn in the same bracket. Months of buildup set the stage for this crucial encounter filled with storylines. On one hand, the Ronaldo-led Portuguese team hoped to capitalize on its golden generation while on the other side stood Head Coach Roberto Mancini’s Italy, defending European champions. The prospect of either team missing out would be seen as a national disgrace. Before these heavyweights met, however, they would play their respective semi-finals against Turkey and North Macedonia.