The Polytechnic
The Polytechnic
Vol. CXLIII No. 16
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BREAKING: CBIS lab hallway ceiling falls through

MEHER RANDERIA·3 DAYS AGO

CBIS safe to re-enter. Avoid affected areas.

Troy Fire responding to the incident. Anthony Santiago/The Polytechnic

Editorial Notebook

Why you should continue to watch more Severance

RILEY SOBEL·5 DAYS AGO

That’s right, Managing Editor Riley Sobel ’27 isn’t finished with Lumon Industries.

The Little Pecks sign on Broadway. Moiz Steenhuis/The Polytechnic

Food Review

I can't put down the (coffee) cup!

ANISHA BISWAS & ELENI DOUGHNEY & FEE MACWHINNIE

The Poly wandered into downtown Troy and sipped on some of the most popular coffees to determine the favorites.

EMPAC

Interface: Immersive Audio

JACK CALLAHAN·5 DAYS AGO

Felix Deufel & Matthew Goodheart discuss the history of immersive audio and Felix Deufel’s project Lost in Liquid Noise.

Sadie Bellissimo guards her goal. Moiz Steenhuis/The Polytechnic

Women's Hockey

Engineers outpaced by the Colonials

MOIZ STEENHUIS & PAX YOUNG·5 DAYS AGO

Rensselaer dropped their first games in the Houston Field House to Robert Morris University 2-1 and 4-2.

Opinion

Dungeon Crawler Carl really is that good

AUDREY JOHNSON·5 DAYS AGO

Contributing Editor Audrey Johnson ’29 reviews Dungeon Crawler Carl, a LitRPG that has taken over the Science Fiction Fantasy genre.

RPI Academia

The Gaerttner Linear Accelerator: a hidden gem

RILEY SOBEL & DEMETRIOS SKORDAS & CONNOR GRANT·4 DAYS AGO

The nuclear engineering department at RPI centers much of its research within the Gaerttner Linear Accelerator facility in the study of interactions between subatomic particles. This research from this facility contributes to a vast array of fields, from global energy to medicine.

The puck drops. Fee MacWhinnie/The Polytechnic

Men's Hockey

RPI upsets Ohio State in season opener

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ & SHAH SHEIKH·5 DAYS AGO

The men’s hockey team defeated Ohio State University, with a masterclass 36-save performance by goaltender Nate Krawchuk.

A reflection of Folsom Library on the glass panels of EMPAC. Ronan Hevenor/The Polytechnic

Student Senate

Library administration cite budget concerns as hours decrease

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

Folsom Library Directors fielded questions about recent changes including a reduction in hours, the reorganization of library administration, and changes to the first floor study rooms.

Campus Security

Annual summary of crime and violations on campus

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

RPI Department of Public Safety released an annual report detailing its extensive security and fire-prevention measures, as well as the previous year's crime statistics.

Local News

Local communities rally for Troy family after fatal house fire

THE POLYTECHNIC EDITORIAL BOARD

After the recent tragedy, the Troy community rallied in support of the Rizzo-Ruelfe family.

Student Senate

Senate fails to fully rectify the unconstitutional UAR, freshman representatives confirmed to E-Board

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

The Student Senate failed to amend the UAR committee to coincide with the Constitution of the Union, and confirmed the appointment of the Executive Board’s Class of 2030 representative as well as two Club and Organization representatives.

On-Campus Event

Assembling Rally Week, a work in progress

RILEY SOBEL

The week-long Rally Week event was marketed as the premiere of the biggest spirit celebration on campus. Reviews were mixed, but it garnered much attention.

RPI Academia

School of Engineering introduces new Robotics Engineering Major

MATTHEW TREANOR

The Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering announced the approval of the new Robotics Engineering major by the New York State Education Department on August 26.

Academia Beyond

Navier-Stokes, Euler, and the AI priority question

MEHER RANDERIA

OpenAI announced on September 8 that an internal artificial intelligence model had resolved a version of the Navier–Stokes existence and smoothness problem, one of seven Clay Mathematics Institute Millennium Prize Problems. Mathematicians Dr. Tristan Buckmaster and Dr. Levent Alpöge had just solved a similar version of the problem and were in conversation with OpenAI.

Student Senate

Senate approves one motion and deadlocked on another in the first meeting of the fall semester

AUDREY JOHNSON & MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

At the first Student Senate meeting of the Fall 2026 semester, Griffin Oliver ’27 introduced two new amendments to the Senate bylaws, only one of which passed.

Interview

Transcript: Dr. Cameron Cogburn interview

MEHER RANDERIA & DEMETRIOS SKORDAS

The Poly recently sat down with Dr. Cameron Cogburn to discuss RPI's IBM Quantum System and the Nighthawk r1 chip. The following is a transcript of the interview.

Student dunks a plate of cool whip on Department of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy Senior Lecturer Julian Georg. Meher Randeria/The Polytechnic

Photo Short Story

Newton's Fourth Law: “Pie Your Physics Professors”

MEHER RANDERIA

RPI students were given the rare opportunity to pie their physics professors.

On-Campus Event

Rensselaer Games Showcase changes the game

ELENI DOUGHNEY

RPI’s Game Development Club hosts their 2025 Games Showcase, highlighting the achievements of student game developers.

The start of the soury contest. Matthew Treanor/The Polytechnic

Photo Short Story

Sour showdown at Sage

MATTHEW TREANOR

For the third year in a row, students gathered outside of Russell Sage Dining Hall to see who could eat an entire lemon the quickest.

Paris Syndrome lead artist Miho Hatori lends her vocals to the performance. Maryam Farooqi/The Polytechnic

EMPAC

Percussive feedback, Strange Jazz, doom metal at EMPAC’s TOPOS festival

THE POLYTECHNIC

EMPAC's annual festival built itself off of experiment, cultural conversation, and stretching the boundaries of what a “music festival” can be.

Anthony Santiago/The Polytechnic

Features

Onstage and behind the scenes of the ordinary life of The Living Tombstone

RILEY SOBEL

UPAC Concerts brought out the "Five Nights at Freddy’s band” this April.

Sam Javanrouh/The Polytechnic

Opinion

On the precipice: six national teams that lie on the World Cup’s doorstep

MOIZ STEENHUIS

Six stories picked from the twenty-two teams that remain in the running for spots in this summer’s FIFA World Cup.

Boundary Conditions

Rare earths

MEHER RANDERIA

Editor in Chief Meher Randeria ’28 introduces: Boundary Conditions; a column that attempts to explore the science behind decisions that shape our world. First up: rare earth elements, and why the hard part is the chemistry, not the mining.

Book Review

Nevernight should be a classic fantasy novel

AUDREY JOHNSON

Contributing Editor Audrey Johnson ’29 reviews Nevernight, a novel that blends school fantasy with traditional fantasy into a coming-of-age revenge story.

Editorial Notebook

Curious creatures

MEHER RANDERIA

Editor in Chief Meher Randeria ’28 shares her experience with undergraduate research.

Editorial Notebook

The power of a protagonist as smart as you

ANISHA BISWAS

Managing Editor Anisha Biswas ’27 discusses the impact of a realistic and relatable horror protagonist as shown in the recently released Resident Evil.

Editorial Notebook

A review of The Stranger

KYLE PAN

Editorial/Opinion Editor Kyle Pan ’29 gives his thoughts on The Stranger (L'Étranger) by Albert Camus.

Letter to the Editor

Study the humanities to make the most of your STEM education

MITCH MURRAY

Dr. Mitch R. Murray is a scholar who teaches literature, culture, and media in the School of HASS at RPI. In this article, he shares his thoughts on the importance of the arts now, more than ever, in a STEM-focused society.

Letter to the Editor

Orion and Dr. Bae’s litigation continues as RPI’s own discovery documents refute it’s “good faith” defense

CHULSUNG BAE

Dr. Bae addresses his ongoing litigation against RPI, citing specific discovery documents and calling for transparency from the university's leadership, in this letter to the editor.

Staff Editorial

What is The Poly watching?

THE POLYTECHNIC STAFF

Not sure what to watch next? The Polytechnic staff shares their favorite shows worth streaming.

A decisive defeat. Kyle Kershaw/The Polytechnic

Football

Rensselaer football breaks record in game against Hilbert

MOIZ STEENHUIS & SHAH SHEIKH

Rensselaer delivered an 83-point beatdown against Hilbert College, the greatest margin of victory in program history.

Men's Soccer

Engineers face RIT in opener for Liberty League

SHAH SHEIKH

Rensselaer traded chances with RIT for 90 minutes but neither side managed to break the stalemate in their first Liberty League match of the season.

Men's Soccer

Engineers suffer a heartbreaking loss vs SUNY Oneonta

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

The Engineers concede a penalty kick in the 84th minute to lose 1-0 to SUNY Oneonta in devastating fashion.

Men's Soccer

Engineers defeat the Keene State Owls

MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

Engineers quell the Keene State Owls 3-1, with goals from Christoper McKinney, Justin Woodbine, and Harrison Brownlow, in a tense and chippy game.

Locked in a fierce tackle. Kyle Kershaw/The Polytechnic

Football

Hobart picked apart by Rensselaer

RILEY SOBEL

Rensselaer picked off Hobart twice in a 33-7 win, snapping a two-game losing skid.

Engineers rallying for a change in strategy. Kyle Kershaw/The Polytechnic

Football

Rensselaer gets clobbered by the Pioneers

MOIZ STEENHUIS

Rensselaer collapsed in the second half in a 38-14 drubbing to visiting Utica University.

The men's team celebrating their well-earned win. Kyle Kershaw/The Polytechnic

Men's Football

Roll red, roll white: Rensselaer rumbles over WPI for the Transit Trophy

SHAH SHEIKH & MOIZ STEENHUIS

Rensselaer stifled rivals Worcester Polytechnic Institute 35-7 to claim their sixth consecutive Transit Trophy.

Women's Soccer

Engineers undefeated at home

SHAH SHEIKH & MIGUEL VAZQUEZ

RPI Women’s Soccer brought home a resounding 5-0 win over VTSU Castleton and a dominating 6-1 over SUNY Potsdam to keep their undefeated streak alive.

Interview

Transcript: Eric Lang interview

MOIZ STEENHUIS

The Poly sat down with men's hockey coach Eric Lang last semester to get his thoughts on his first season with the team.