Features

Features

New Faculty Profile: Sarah Corrigan explores lamenting and laughing in new special topics course

By Grace Nelson | November 7

When she was originally asked to teach Theories of Humor and Laughter at Emerson College, a course intended for aspiring comedians, Harvard Ph.D. candidate Sarah Corrigan felt more than out of place. While she was excited to teach the course, her research centered around modern forms of lament and lamentation; consequently, she wasn’t sure if she was the best fit for the role. 

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Features

Tufts’ Master of Philosophy program promotes philosophical passion, community

By Sam Berman | November 3

“If I could choose one book to bring with me to a desert island, … it would absolutely be Plato’s ‘Republic.’ … I teach it every year, and I still discover new and exciting things, it still makes me think; it is by far my favorite book ever,” said Christiana Olfert, associate professor and director of graduate studies in philosophy at Tufts, who oversees the the top-ranked terminal master’s in philosophy program in the nation according to The Philosophical Gourmet Report. 

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Columns

Liz in London: Sense of home — the little things

By Elizabeth Foster | November 3

Packing up every material good you will need for an entire semester into one large suitcase and a carry-on is stressful. To approach the problem, I made a color-coordinated spreadsheet that masterminded every outfit combination I could make with my given inputs. Needless to say, there was little room for room decorations. My“Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812” poster featuring Josh Groban had to be left behind in Medford. To fill my empty flat, I brought pictures of pets and friends. As I’ve traveled to different countries, postcards have been added to the collage.

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Features

58 years later, Tufts ExCollege continues to inspire higher education

By Flora Meng | November 2

In June 1994, Ian Pilarczyk had just finished his second year of law school and was celebrating his birthday at an Irish pub in Brookline, Mass. As he sat with his friends, they watched a surreal, slow-speed car chase take place in Los Angeles on television. This event would ultimately unfold as the O.J. Simpson trial.

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Features

Tufts offers first Southeast Asian history course in two decades

By Layla Kennington | November 1

While perusing SIS this fall, you’ll find HIST80: Introduction to the History of Southeast Asia. Taught by Professor Mesrob Vartavarian, the course examines the region’s geography and socio-political development, early European colonization, Western-led globalization and more. However, what the details do not reveal is that HIST80 is the first Southeast Asian history course offered at Tufts in approximately 25 years.

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Columns

Tales from the T: It’s Blue, the T Line I’ve got

By Kevin Zhang | October 28

There’s a fair chance you’ve never ridden the Blue Line. Linking the West End to Winthrop and Wonderland, it’s the shortest and least busy of the MBTA’s four subway lines. But even for its size, it’s got an interesting backstory that could teach us some lessons on the future of our transportation network.  

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Features

New ExCollege class investigates the changing rights to abortion in the US

By Madeleine Hudgins | October 27

This fall, Tufts’ Experimental College added a new course, The Right to Abortion, which dives into the history of abortion in the United States. Taught by reproductive rights activist Sarah Lee Day, the class aims to explore American society before and after the Roe v. Wade ruling and the future of reproductive justice in the nation. 

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Columns

Liz in London: Less study, more abroad

By Elizabeth Foster | October 27

So far this “study” abroad experience has looked like spending time abroad rather than spending time studying. Compared to Tufts and other U.S. universities, most coursework occurs in 2–3 assignments. On the module (class) registration portal, the weightings are explained: 25% learning log, 25% source analysis, 50% research essay; 20% weekly activities, 15% each midterm, 50% final; 30% prototype, 70% final project. And these are the better-weighted modules. Most of the physics modules were 20% coursework, 80% final. Suddenly the weighting of Sliwa’s final in Physics 11 looks far nicer.

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Features

The future of immigration policy and where universities fit in

By Katie Furey | October 26

As of Sept. 25, 2022, over 25,000 immigrants were being detained in the United States by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and 66.3% of those detained had no criminal record, according to Syracuse University’s TRAC database. Despite these high numbers, U.S. immigration law is an unpopular topic among national news outlets and within pop culture at large.

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Columns

Lex Eat!: Don’t read this if you are gluten-free

By Alexa Amorosino | October 26

I can’t write a food column in Italy without giving pasta its moment — so let's talk about it.  

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Features

Tufts biking culture attracts commuters, hobbyists, mechanics and athletes

By Vedant Modi | October 20

Bikes and American university campuses seem to be entangled with each other. Biking is a special mode of transportation with an emphasis on sustainability. At Tufts, the same is true, with the addition of a budding culture of adventure, craftsmanship and sport. 

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Columns

Liz in London: On food and art

By Elizabeth Foster | October 20

While living in Medford this summer, my friends and I excitedly discussed studying and traveling abroad: who knew who in which countries, what airlines were the cheapest to fly across the pond and, most importantly, the food.

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Features

Tufts community celebrates the fall season through various social events, activities

By Kasey Afshani | October 19

With temperatures dropping, leaves changing and pumpkin-flavored treats all around, autumn has kicked into full gear. For people native to New England, that’s no big deal, but for students experiencing fall up north for the first time, it’s a stark change. 

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Columns

Sustainability at Tufts: The Eco Reps program

By Becca Pinto | October 19

When I first visited Tufts as a senior in high school, I remember running into a group of students who were selling some of their old clothes on the President's Lawn. Not only were the clothes super cool, the prices were also very low. As they explained, this was because all they wanted was to make sure the clothes were going to get reused. They didn’t care about making money or anything. As we walked away, my mother whispered to me that the students here are really weird, and I shouldn’t apply. Obviously, I ignored her and applied anyway.

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Features

Students emerge with new perspectives after immersive Tufts With Rwanda Fellowship

By Isabelle Kaminsky | October 18

Hidden in the spring semester course selections is an Experimental College class called “Tufts With Rwanda Fellowship.” However, it is much more than the average three-hour ExCollege class. 

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Columns

Community Table: Working with Kids

By Gwendolyn Brown | October 18

Zach Woods and I had been planning to have this cheese date for weeks. Little did I know that his hometown has a surplus of it. When I brought two pieces of goat cheese, he exclaimed, “I love goat cheese! I’m from the middle of nowhere Texas, but it’s like lots of goat farms and stuff.” 

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Features

Tufts community members reflect on the escalating tension around Taiwan

By Layla Kennington | October 17

In the aftermath of China’s August military exercises near Taiwan, Beijing’s message to the world was clear: China will not shy away from challenging the United States, and its military will continue to uphold China's claim to Taiwan. The message suggests that tensions in the region will remain high, with an increasing risk of confrontation between the United States and China.

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Features

Tufts Senior Mindy Duggan shares her passion and advocacy work for disability rights and accessibility 

By Maya Katz | October 14

The Tufts community is home to a wide variety of upstanding community members, including senior Mindy Duggan, who has taken her interest in disability advocacy to her studies, extracurriculars and work life. Duggan crafted her major in child study and human development to concentrate in developmental diversity and deaf studies. 

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Local

Tales from the T: What’s in a name?

By Kevin Zhang | October 14

Today, we’ll be looking at some of the more interesting station names on the T. While most stations are named for streets, local landmarks or influential figures (i.e. dead white men), many stations have rather unique names that reveal some history of the city around us. 

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Features

New study abroad winter program starting this year in Aix-en-Provence

By Owen Bonk | October 13

Studying abroad is a widely popular opportunity at Tufts University, a school well-known for its internationally minded student body. Every year, 40–45% of Tufts undergraduates participate in a year- or semester-long program in a foreign country. As impressive as this statistic is, Tufts Global Education is seeking to bring even more students abroad with a newly minted program that will take place over this academic year’s winter break. Taught by Bruce Hitchner, professor and chair of the classics department, the Greeks, Romans, and Celts in France program will take a group of students to significant archaeological sites in and around the city of Aix-en-Provence in southern France.

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