On Wednesday, April 4, President Shirley Ann Jackson hosted the Spring 2012 Town Hall Meeting, entitled “Dream Big: Taking on the Grand Challenges,” in the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center. The semesterly meeting involves a presentation on the state of RPI and its future, as well as a question and answer session during which all attendees may ask Jackson questions on issues that concern them. Read more...

Grand Marshal Week 2012 starts this Friday, and as usual, it’ll be filled with fun activities like a restaurant showcase, a mini-carnival, and Dancing with the RPI Stars. Amid the festivities, however, don’t forget the event that actually matters: the elections. Read more...

Last Thursday, April 5, the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center’s Studio 2 hosted a series of three solo concerts by artists playing widely different instruments. Though I’m not much of a concert-goer myself, this performance intrigued me, piquing my interest enough for me to go see it. I definitely do not regret my decision. Read more...

RPI women’s lacrosse remains perfect on its season after earning a come-from-behind victory over Clarkson University on Friday, and a narrow 12-10 win over the St. Lawrence University Saints on Saturday. The two triumphs put the Engineers 9-0 overall on the season, including a 4-0 mark in the Liberty League. Read more...

Last week, the Rensselaer Community Advocates hosted Human Rights Week, which involves a series of events that bring awareness to “discrimination based on race, sex, religion, physical ability, or sexual orientation,” as well as other issues such as homelessness. Read more...

Groups need to make decisions. You and your friends need to pick where to eat dinner; a country needs to choose its leaders. When the right choice isn’t obvious and we want to be fair, we often turn to voting. The problem is, voting isn’t always fair. There are many causes for bad outcomes in elections, of course, but an often-neglected issue lies in the method of voting itself. Read more...

James Cameron has made a name for himself over the years. First, it was as a master of science fiction action, with his first two Terminator films and Aliens becoming genre classics. However, Terminator II showcased his keen eye for film technology. This is something that he would continue to utilize in his future films to great effect. By great effect, I of course mean box office numbers. With the release of Titanic in 1997, Cameron gained a new nickname: “King of the World”—a reference to the ecstatic declaration he made when he received the Oscar for Best Director for Titanic. Titanic became the number one box office hit in history, topped 12 years later by Cameron’s next film Avatar. With Avatar, Cameron once again solidified himself as a master film technologist. Filming the largely-computer generated movie in 3D was considered a gimmick before everyone saw the film and how excellently Cameron had executed the technique to increase the audience’s level of immersion in the Na’vi homeworld. Now, with this 3D re-release of Titanic, Cameron hopes to put post-conversion 3D on the map. Post-conversion 3D has been a hot Hollywood gimmick since Avatar’s release, and involves converting a film into 3D despite the fact that it was not filmed in 3D. Post-conversion 3D is widely considered inferior to films actually shot in 3D, and simply a lazy way to bolster ticket sales. Cameron wouldn’t be denied, however, and Titanic 3D exists solely to prove to the naysayers that the technique can be done well, even on a film that’s fifteen years old. Read more...

After falling in both its contests last week, the men’s lacrosse team came back to sweep both Skidmore College and the nationally-ranked Rochester Institute of Technology. The No. 20 Engineers defeated the Skidmore Thoroughbreds by a 11-8 margin on Wednesday, and took down the No. 4 RIT Tigers 10-7 at the East Campus Stadium on Saturday. The two wins put RPI at 9-2 overall on the season with a 3-1 conference record. Read more...

Hello RPI! As you may know, I am the 146th Grand Marshal. The position of Grand Marshal (more commonly known as GM) is the highest elected office for RPI students. Created in 1865 with the election of Albert M. Harper from the Class of 1867, the position of GM is a key element of RPI’s history. Initially intended to promote unity and represent the study body, the duties of the GM have come to include chairing the Student Senate and acting as chief liaison between students and the administration. Read more...

So, when I showed up to the performance of Fluid Hug Hug’s (glowing), I’ll be honest with you guys; I wasn’t sure what I would get. I knew it was supposed to be in the Japanese tradition of dancing and that its name seemed to me like something you would call a video of a rave. Read more...

For the past week and a half, George Plopper’s highly acclaimed class entitled Introduction to Cell Biology has been taught by guest lecturer Blanca Barquera. Plopper introduced Barquera as an expert in the field of cellular metabolism and energy storage. Furthermore, he said she could have written the bioenergetics chapter of our book just as well, if not better, than him. Read more...

Hello RPI! As this is my second-to-last article, I would like to begin my thanks to everybody for making this year so great. Everybody I have interacted with, from members of student government (especially the members of the Union Executive Board), to the Rensselaer Union and Institute administration, the experience has been great, and I believe that the progress has been tangible. Read more...

Have you ever had to sit through a lecture in a classroom that was at least 10 degrees hotter than it should have been in the middle of winter or walked by rooms with all the lights on but nobody there? Doesn’t it seem like a waste? It was this same question that led to the creation of the Building Advocates Initiative, a group of students and staff members dedicated to reducing waste and improving efficiency of buildings throughout campus. Currently, the advocates are making incremental changes at Blitman Residence Hall, the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center, the East Campus Athletic Village, the Mueller Center, the Jonsson Engineering Center, and the Rensselaer Union. This is through a range of actions from simply making sure lights are turned off in unused rooms, to installing more energy-efficient light bulbs, to using more sustainable paper products, to reducing paper waste. Furthermore, a set of energy usage measurements is sent to each of the advocates so they can track the progress being made in their building week by week. Read more...

RPI split and swept consecutive doubleheaders against the University of Rochester over the weekend as it improved its record above .500. However, the weekend did not start well with the Engineers’ first game against the Yellowjackets. Read more...

“When strangers start acting like neighbors ... communities are reinvigorated.” —Ralph Nader Read more...

RPI opened its Liberty League campaign with four straight wins in a pair of doubleheaders against St. Lawrence University and Skidmore College. Throughout both games, the Engineers showed their ability to pitch effectively and get runs often—either early or at key moments. Read more...

At noon on Monday, a group of students in RPI’s chapter of Habitat for Humanity set up outside the Rensselaer Union for Habitat Goes Homeless. The event lasted through the night until noon on Tuesday, with people taking shifts the entire time. Read more...

RPI is finally completing support for WPA2—a bit late, considering WPA2 became a standard in 2004 and all devices since 2006 are required to support it, but better late than never. For those who don’t know, the main difference between WPA2 and our current 802.1x is that the former is better supported by devices (like Android phones and tablets) and uses significantly stronger encryption. New wireless access points are also being installed around campus to combat complaints of spotty coverage, which is great. Read more...