In today’s column I’m going to stretch the limits of what can be considered Boston transit by talking about intercity trains. That’s right. Today we’re talking about the national passenger rail operator, Amtrak.
Editor’s note: Abigail Sommers is a video journalist at The Tufts Daily. Sommers was not involved in the writing or editing of this article.
During a four-hour road trip with my boss this summer, I was asked if I liked beer. He meant the question in a millenialized-Boston-craft-brewery type of way, and I awkwardly responded that no, I did not like the few sips I have had (none of which would count as beer to him). My 23-year-old housemate attempted to share his love of beer with me, but it went in one ear and out the other. Hence, while being fully integrated into the UK’s pub culture, I’ve been devoted to learning about beer and finding one I actually enjoy. In honor of my 21st birthday, I will be sharing my hard-earned knowledge with the Tufts community.
Tufts Emergency Medical Services is known as TEMS on Tufts’ Medford/Somerville campus. TEMS works to help provide medical care for Tufts students. It is completely student-run, with oversight and supervision from Captain Mark Roche of Tufts University Police Department and Dr. Stacey Sperling of Tufts University Health Service.
The COVID-19 pandemic has left enduring effects on the mental health of college students across the country, with one in five young Americans reporting that the pandemic has had a significant negative impact on their overall mental health. In response to the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tufts looks to student organizations and peer educators to help promote student mental health on campus and to aid students in their transition back to in-person activities and classes.
When I told my friends I was planning to take a 19-hour train to Indiana over the weekend, their first question was why. They were more understanding when I added that the flights cost between $800 and $1,400. I don’t have a grand to drop on a weekend trip to Indiana. Amtrak tickets were $55 each way.
Although a sense of normalcy has returned to Tufts following semesters of mask-wearing, virtual classes and physical isolation, some health officials have declared the arrival of a second pandemic: a mental health crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in mental health illnesses worldwide. As waitlists for psychotherapy sessions increase and mental health professionals experience burnout, the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of students has become apparent.
I’m usually not huge on sweets — I’d take a bag of chips over a piece of cake any day — but when it comes to tiramisu, I’m in. When it’s done right, it has all the components of a great dessert: light, creamy and not too sweet.
After a year of adjusting to life on the Hill, Tufts undergraduates return to campus as sophomores with a greater sense of familiarity — and obligations. As they settle into a new dorm, it’s not long before they are confronted with the task of planning where to live the following academic year.
Just steps away from the heart of Tufts campus lies Tasty Cafe & Kitchen, a hub of community, social interaction and good food, which are not to be missed as a Tufts student. Upon entering, your eyes will immediately be drawn to the beautiful white marble counters and then to the coffee bar, where delectable espresso drinks are brought to fruition. The menu’s promise of fresh avocado toast or sweet acai bowls flirt with the appetite, and the quaint setting facilitates the development of friendships, both new and old.
In London, my phone is used for Google Maps, music and sudoku. My preferred no-service-friendly app to use on flights, on the Tube, in a queue, sudoku is conducive to zoning out and reflecting while I absent-mindedly fill in the dependencies. And, dear reader, I have played a lot of sudoku in the last two months.
It’s no secret that food unites college students together. Whether it be that microwaved cup of oatmeal before your 8 a.m. lab, that post-stats exam instant ramen or your favorite flavor of Lays potato chips as you plow through the 200 pages for your history class, the presence of all sorts of foods keeps college kids going.
What is a midterm assessment at Tufts? Is it the paper we are given a week to write? Is it the blue book exam we take in the middle of the semester? Is it the online assessments given periodically throughout the course?
This week, I got to sit down with Bitsy Sharon, the Tufts Mountain Club’s Stewardship Director, who told me about how the club practices sustainability. We talked a lot about what goes down in terms of sustainability at the Loj, TMC’s cabin in Woodstock, N.H.
Situated between Goddard Chapel and Ballou Hall is the Tufts Cannon, a reigning symbol of the Tufts community and its deeply rooted traditions. The cannon dates back to 1956 when it was gifted to the university by the city of Medford and the Medford Historical Society. The cannon is a replica of “Old Ironsides,” an original cannon from the USS Constitution.
Two weeks ago, the MBTA released a revised draft of its Bus Network Redesign, an ambitious plan to design a better bus network for Boston with improved coverage, frequency, equity and connectivity. The T’s end goal is to run more buses, more frequently, serving more people (particularly low-income populations most reliant on transit) and serving more destinations that riders want.
About a year ago, in the depths of the computer science internship application season, Ming Chow, patron saint of the Tufts CS Jobs Piazza, spoke to the Introduction to Security class about the steps to finding an internship or job. The first thing he mentioned was choosing a city.
At Tufts, we run on The Sink. Our favorite student-run coffee shop serves the campus caffeine day to night. The Sink space is eclectic from its distinct playlists to its famous special lattes — there’s no wonder why the line fills the Mayer Campus Center. The magic behind both the drinks and the background playlists are the baristas.
“Bistecca alla Fiorentina,” aka the best steak you’ll ever eat.
Midterms are upon us, and while most Tufts students — and most Americans — come from solidly Democratic or Republican states, the swing state voters on campus will have a disproportionate impact this Tuesday. Out of the 6,676 undergraduates at Tufts in fall of 2021, 524 were from states where the margin of victory was less than 5% in the 2020 presidential election — about 8% of the student population.
