A guy from my capstone group and I had a little competition in the Union this past week. We were trying to determine who had the better vision by reading various clubs’ signs posted around the third floor. He ended up winning. The difference between us was that I had LASIK surgery this past summer, while he has his natural eyes, no contacts or glasses.  Read more...

Talent or hard work: which leads to success? According to Google, talent is “a natural aptitude or skill.” To me, the word “natural” implies that talent is something people are born with—it can’t be developed over time. Now that we have a definition for talent, do we believe everyone has it? From a quick Google search, I found arguments for both “yes” and “no,” but nothing concrete. Since this is completely based on personal perception, I will assume worst case scenario and answer “no.” For the purpose of this article, I will refer to this definition and interpretation; however, I understand it may be translated in other ways.  Read more...

Hi everyone! With the semester quickly coming to a close, and the weather finally starting to warm up, it’s time to have a productive few weeks and end the year strong! I ran for grand marshal on a platform that stressed a few short-term goals which I fully intend to complete within the last push of the semester. Some of these goals include improving the availability of Senate officer applications, and the implementation of preferred names. Read more...

This summer, and for the next eight months, I will basically be taking a leave of absence from society. My “ship date” is May 29, and I will be flying to Fort Sill, Oklahoma to begin my military training. Contrary to what I have been feeling the past six months, today I’m actually really excited for this new beginning. Read more...

Hi RPI! My name is Stef Warner, and I am humbled to be serving you as your 153rd grand marshal! First and foremost, a big thank you to everyone who got out and voted last week. As the GM Week festivities come to an end, we are eager and ready to kick off the new term of Student Government! Read more...

A few weeks ago I stumbled across an article by Haley Nahman called, “I Think I Figured Out Why My Brain Always Feels Fried” and for whatever reason I haven’t been able to get it out of my head. It talks about the ways that people nowadays consume information. Some people will fully follow artists or authors, becoming familiar with their work overtime. They, on a daily basis, read and listen with an “intentionality.” Others, like the author of this particular article, listen and absorb passively, taking what comes to them—content suggested by friends, algorithms, or publications. On the musical side of things, this was something that stuck with me. Read more...

Hello, RPI!

My name is Justin Etzine, and I’m excited to be serving you as the 129th president of the Union! For those of you I have not yet been able to meet, I am a coterminal MBA student in the Lally School, where I am concentrating in Corporate Technological Entrepreneurship. For my undergraduate degree, I studied Computer Science and Information Technology and Web Science. I grew up in Hollywood, Florida, and I chose to attend RPI because of the quirky and remarkable peers I knew I would meet. I have been involved in Student Government since I arrived at RPI four years ago, and student interests have always been of paramount importance to me. I am very excited for the year ahead of us. Read more...