Opinion Columns
Robert Hsu | Adding fuel to the fire
Our constant consumption on and multitasking across various technologies may actually be training our brains to focus for smaller increments of time, which further decreases our ability to efficiently complete our work.
Hayley Brooks & Ali Kokot | Disney, drugs and dubstep?
While these actresses use “Spring Breakers” as a catalyst for reinvention, we too use our own week of spring break to rebrand ourselves.Arielle Pardes | Not hooked on Penn Hookups
Penn Hookups lacks the good vibes of its sister pages. While the other pages mostly praise our peers, Penn Hookups solicits strange commentary about our sex lives — especially things that we wouldn’t say offline.Vinay Harpalani | Diversity and community upliftment
Unfortunately, the court could strike down race-conscious admissions policies in Fisher. And one reason is that elite, private universities like Penn do exactly what Justice Alito maligned: preferring minority students from privileged schools over those who are less privileged.
Anthony Liveris | A revolution without an army
For the short term, the American government needs to further open its borders to skilled scientists of multiple nationalities if it wishes to enable the Shale Revolution.
Divya Ramesh |The hyphenated American
The desire to embrace the hyphenated, non-white American — the Nigerian-American or Asian-American, for example — is not something all children have.Arielle Pardes | I kissed a girl
Within the LGB bundle, the B is often pushed to the margins or misunderstood as a stepping stone between “real” straightness and “real” gayness. But the space in between — middle sexuality — is very legitimate, and it encompasses our otherwise uncategorized sexual desires.
Nadine Zylberberg | When less is more
Last week, in an effort to suggest where this viewing trend could be heading, film distributor Oscilloscope Laboratories uploaded the entirety of its 88-minute film “It’s a Disaster” onto Vine before its theatrical release … six seconds at a time.
Morgan Jones | @UPenn, where is the #love?
What does the fact that we cannot enjoy such a show but rather must criticize it ruthlessly and endlessly say about our culture? #NothingGood.
Hayley Brooks & Ali Kokot | Searching for serendipity
Graph Search has taken the “making” out of friend-making, and this instant gratification can’t compete with the rewards of taking the time to really get to know someone. Will there come a day when we can no longer enjoy the process of unearthing our quirky common interests — like quinoa — because Facebook will have already detected them for us?
Rachel del Valle | A class for class' sake
Maybe we should just be more open. The fall 2013 courses are up on Penn In Touch, and as I scan over the hundreds of listings, I’m trying to temper my graduation requirements with my intellectual curiosity.
Xavier Flory | Secularism: A western conceit
Secularism as understood today, although a great idea in the West, isn’t always exportable. The problem is that secularism is not a neutral concept but has positive associations with modernity and democracy.
Divya Ramesh | Playing with fire
Stepping away from our compulsive need for action to adopt a version of the NRK’s digitized natural world might be a healthy choice. After all, with Norway recently ranked first on Forbes’ list of the happiest world nations, the country might have something to show beyond its magnificent fjords.
Jeff Nadel | Neighborly government
It is absurd to suggest that we consent, by virtue of our participation in a professedly democratic society, to whatever abuse the government may dole out.
Kurt Mitman | Spend away
There is little evidence that disparity in spending has a big impact on outcomes. Research into the effect has found a modest positive link between disparity in spending and vote outcome. However, one of the confounding problems is that popular and well-organized candidates are probably more likely to win.
Adam Silver | Size doesn't matter
But what sounds good in a political ad doesn’t necessarily make good policy sense. If we allow ourselves to continue to pursue big vs. little, we might forget the more important fight: smarter vs. dumber.
Morgan Jones | Don't keep walking
To many students, Locust Walk is just a means to get from one class to another. This, unfortunately, reflects an attitude found beyond the cobbled blocks of Locust: to many students, Penn is just a stepping stone between high school and the “real world.”
Hayley Brooks & Ali Kokot | Working to play
Penn has a pre-professional aura that radiates outward from Huntsman, enveloping the rest of campus. This internal pressure, coupled with the external pressure from career-minded parents, can discourage students from seeking other opportunities, even if those opportunities might be a better fit than finance. There should be more support for students who want to spend their summer incorporating their play — or better put, their passions — into their work.
