On Monday, September 21, President Barack Obama visited Hudson Valley Community College to deliver a speech on his administration’s strategy to foster new jobs and promote innovation during the ongoing economic downturn. Read more...

Every year, students will inevitably hear about a few robberies and assaults that plague the area around the Rensselaer campus; however, this year has brought about significantly more incidents that involve RPI students. The street leading from the Union to BARH—Sherry Road—alone has seen at least two robberies since the beginning of classes. Read more...

Muse is a band that gained notoriety with its second studio album, Origin of Symmetry, and then solidified it with their third offering, Absolution. Muse is often referred to as an alternative rock band, a moniker I dislike, as it has no particular meaning other than rock from the ’80s, ’90s, and 2000s. Music enthusiasts: feel free to contact me to let me know why I should not have disdain for it. I would classify Muse as a band with progressive rock, symphonic rock, space rock, and a little pop-rock influences. Read more...

In the second game of the season, the Engineers found themselves in a grueling matchup on Saturday against the Utica College Pioneers at the East Campus Stadium of the East Campus Athletic Village. After falling behind early by a score of 14-3, the Engineers came back to defeat the Pioneers, thanks in large part to the Engineers’ defense and special team units. Read more...

In a recent change to the study abroad program, students will no longer be able to study with universities not affiliated with RPI. Administrators were having concerns about the academic quality and consistency of non-affiliated programs, which prompted the policy change. Read more...

Rensselaer had its first case of confirmed “influenza-like illness,” according to an e-mail from Medical Director of the Health Center Leslie Lawrence. The illness is believed to be the H1N1 influenza, more commonly known as swine flu. Read more...

1. Life is shallow. I should get plastic surgery. Read more...

Among the various events that make up the “first year experience,” only one of them makes me want to avoid it like it was swine flu. Read more...

I have received a lot of e-mails from students since my e-mail on September 18 asking me, “What’s the big deal? Isn’t this just the flu?” I can’t possibly answer all the e-mails personally, but I did answer a few, and felt it might make sense to write to The Polytechnic so I could reach all the students who have similar questions. Read more...

It has been four weeks since classes have started for the fall, and the RPI pace is starting to return to normal; freshmen now know where the Darrin Communications Center is and the football team is on an undefeated streak again after an amazing game last Saturday against Utica College. We’re one week away from Reunion and Homecoming weekend, the first time alumni and alumnae come back to campus during the Fall while we’re in school, one week from the East Campus Athletic Village opening and the first Hockey game, and it looks like a good year for RPI. Read more...

“There’s nothing to do in Troy,” and, “There’s nothing to do at RPI other than go to class, study, and stare at my TV and laptop screens all day,” are a couple of phrases I hear quite a bit. There are many around here who will claim that the region is dull. With nothing to do but study, study, study, “it’s no wonder,” they’ll say, “that this school generates such top-notch engineers and industry professionals.” Of course, this isn’t true; it’s just another misnomer, and I’m going to take a stab at convincing you otherwise. Read more...

My very first experience at RPI was with Habitat for Humanity. In the fall of 2007, I participated in the Habitat overnight trip for Navigating Rensselaer & Beyond, and it was everything I hoped for. I signed up because I always had an interest in community service, and this seemed like a good fit (not to mention the fact that I was looking for a cool way to meet some other freshmen). It did end up being a cool way to meet people, but I also found much more. Read more...

“Chesapeake Bay! Mike Tyson! NAAARRRWWAALL!” Dozens of audience members screamed in unison. To the untrained ear, this haphazard mix of utterances would seem like a trio of misled nouns, but to an Idiot, these could all be simple synonyms. Sheer Idiocy never fails to please, harvesting sounds like wild cotton and threading every syllable onto a loom to imbue meaning into plain nonsense. The renowned comedic troupe lured in a full house on Friday, September 18 and proved yet again that the best things in life are free. Read more...

Admit it, you’ve been reading The Poly for the past three weeks anxiously anticipating an update from the Student Sustainability Task Force. Well, your wait is over. Here we are, back again with our weekly column. Expect us to bring you an article every week about what is going on here on campus or abroad as it relates to sustainability. I can assure you that this will be an exciting year; with plenty of projects set to soon be completed as well as word from the administration that we may soon have a sustainability professional on campus, we have a lot to be inspired by. The SSTF is doing some good work. Read more...

This past Saturday night, Revolution Hall lent itself to charity and hosted Songs for Freedom, a benefit for the abolition of child sex slavery. The concert featured Basement Band, a Brooklyn folk-rock group, and local folk musician Sean Rowe. While the turnout was less than ideal, the concert hall was sparsely littered with attendees lucky enough to see a pretty decent show for only $10, and simultaneously help out a charity. Read more...

The first game for the men’s and women’s hockey team wasn’t what one would normally expect. Members of both squads traded in their normal ice skates and pads for the night in favor of something different—a sled. Last Friday, the Engineers were challenged by a new, local team—the Capital District Sled Warriors—in an exhibition match. Although RPI lost the game, 4-3, the players and coaches walked away with a new appreciation for the game, and the challenges some people face to share in the joy of the sport they love. Read more...

With Saturday’s 2-0 win over the Ithaca College Bombers, the men’s soccer team has claimed its sixth-straight shutout, and remains undefeated this season. Rensselaer, which scored a goal in each of the halves, is now 5-0-1 on the year, while Ithaca, a team RPI has struggled to defeat in the past, is now 2-2-2. Read more...

With seven competitions in the past two weeks, RPI’s women’s soccer team has been busy on and off the field. With Liberty League Conference matches starting this week, the women have been busily preparing for the more challenging competitors that they are guaranteed to face. Read more...

During the first few weeks of classes, H1N1, also known as swine flu, has been a recurrent topic on campus. Professors were asked to discuss the flu with their classes, and consequently, many went over some basic hygiene suggestions to help prevent the spread of the flu. In addition, some professors have announced contingency plans for lectures and grade determination in the event that many students or the professors themselves are unable to attend classes. Signs have appeared around campus reinforcing basic hygiene practices, while some professors are passing around hand sanitizer or Clorox wipes in classes. Medical Director of the Student Health Center Leslie Lawrence states that these health guidelines are an attempt to slow any potential spread of H1N1, which would assure that an outbreak could be more thoroughly handled by the Institute’s resources. He felt that professors would be one of the best ways to reach students about the virus. Read more...

The face of media has been constantly changing over the years; print media is becoming secondary to more immediate methods of getting information via sources like the Internet. News stories are moving towards more of a tabloid feel, and our generation is becoming steadily more interested in Kanye West’s behavior at the VMAs than policy decisions about the economy that students will eventually have to enter after graduation. While The Poly will not be turning our national news page into a detailed report of the latest celebrity entering rehab, we will be trying to keep up with the times in terms of technology as well as keeping our readers interested in our content. Read more...