If I had taken a writing class at some point in my life, I would have a good chance of knowing a witty or interesting way to start this notebook. However, I have not taken writing classes, and thus am not as skilled as I could be at coming up with intriguing introductions and captivating comments. I do plan on taking a writing class before I graduate though; I believe that it is a good idea to take classes outside of your major. There are many reasons taking classes outside your major is a good idea. Read more...

Gangster movies are a common staple in the diet that Hollywood feeds to moviegoers. Directors like Martin Scorsese have made the gangster film their bread and butter, and have achieved acclaim in the process. Classics like The Godfather trilogy, White Heat, Scarface, and the like have made way to modern classics like Goodfellas, Road to Perdition, and The Departed. This genre consists of some of the greatest films of all time, so any new additions to it face a tough, uphill battle towards approval and recognition. Scorsese and Tarantino make it look easy; they produce smash hit after hit working in this genre. So how does a relatively newer, Aussie director fare? Does Tom Hardy in the starring role warrant your money? Does Shia LaBeouf swing on vines with CGI monkeys in this one?! Read more...

Rensselaer’s Innovative Computational Materials Physics, headed by Professor Vincent Meunier, has been researching graphene for several years. Now, though, Tyler Cary ’13 is researching the electronic transport properties of 3TGNWs, three graphene “nanowiggles” which connect at a junction. Read more...

Now that we are in our fourth week of school, things are starting to get settled down on campus. The weather is getting slightly cooler, classes are starting to get a bit harder, clubs and organizations have held some events, and freshmen have started to take off their “freshmen lanyards” that all of us upperclassmen secretly make fun of (I’m just kidding if you still happen to wear it). These four weeks have gone by so fast, and with the current pace of how everything is going, this year looks very promising. Read more...

When I walked into Mother’s on Friday for a Sheer Idiocy show, I expected a good time. I’ve been to multiple shows and have never been disappointed to be there. And, at least until the next show, it appears that lack of disappointment will continue. Read more...

Hello RPI! Week four begins the onslaught of projects and first exams; best of luck to everyone. To highlight some upcoming events, make sure to stop by the National Society of Black Engineers/Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers Career Fair next weekend. Almost 200 companies will be making the journey to RPI in search of students to fill entry-level full-time positions as well as co-op and internship opportunities. Get those suits dry-cleaned and those resumés printed. And when you buy resumé paper, make sure to get it at the RPI Bookstore where your purchases go to support the Rensselaer Union budget! The Center for Career and Professional Development is hosting many different sessions to help prepare students for the fair, with topics varying from resumé preparation to interviewing skills to tips on navigating the floor and speaking with recruiters. Stop by their office on the second floor of the Darren Communications Center for more information! Read more...

As some of you may know, there has been a project going on for the last few years to do a full remake of the smash hit from many of our youths, Half-Life, bringing the 1998 hit up to today’s graphical standards. The first installment of the project, known alternately as Black Mesa and Black Mesa: Source, was finally released last week, and sweet fancy Moses is it good.
This mod basically re-validates all of my conclusions about the Half-Life series. It takes one of the most interesting sci-fi stories—certainly one of the most prolific—in the entire world of video games and brings it to a level that is actually playable by more modern gamers. I personally played through Half-Life, Half-Life: Opposing Force, and Half-Life: Blue Shift for the experience. I’m one of the historical types who does this to games that came out when I was seven, which isn’t for everyone, and even I had some trouble adjusting to the terrible graphical quality of the time. Playing through some of the classics can be hard because we get used to advances in graphics and gaming philosophy. This mod brings it up to snuff though, updating the graphics, including a lot of newer NPC dialogue, and little things like that. Read more...

As a technical institute, science fiction is a major part of our culture and spirit. It’s almost impossible to roam the hallowed (also read archaic) halls without catching some mention of the latest episode of Dr. Who or perhaps a discussion distinguishing the intricacies of religion in Star Wars and Stargate. Perhaps Battlestar Galactica is more to your tastes. Anyways, what is truly amusing is that all of these are classified under science fiction when really they should be placed under science fiction. In truth, very few of these have much to do with science. The scientific icon, Star Trek–with its stoic and logical science officers–even had to invent faster-than-light controls to explain away the buttons on the consoles activating before they were pressed. Read more...

Blood v. Electricity. Just the name of it inspires thoughts of some horrifyingly awesome dubstep/metal hybrid music. It sounds like a court case between hard rock and techno. The artist name, Unknown Component, fits this theme too, as does the album art—a distorted, rippling view of lightning electrocuting a dark pool of blood. Read more...

Many of you are probably expecting a review of Borderlands 2. Well too bad, mostly because most of the staff who writes game reviews for The Poly was too busy producing the paper you are currently reading to play the game. Instead, I will be reviewing an older game, a game in a genre that has all but disappeared from gaming: Tachyon: The Fringe. Read more...

Malea’s Take

I will be in no rush to spend another 70 minutes “actively listening” to another bassoon ensemble, at least not one that spans over 60 minutes in length. To be fair, before attending Michael Gordon’s Rushes on Saturday, September 15 at the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center, I had never had the misfortune to experience bassoons unaccompanied by any other classical instrument. My complaints are not directed at the musicians themselves, who seemed masterful artists in their own right and who certainly possessed extreme focus for the duration of the piece. On the other hand, the composer of the piece failed to engage and excite the audience for the duration of this piece, which one could succinctly label “long-winded.” The next phrase that comes to mind would be “cacophonous hypnosis.” Read more...

During the summer, the RPI chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World traveled to Haiti to install a patient ward, which had been designed and developed by students at the Institute. The project, which was sponsored by the Clifton Park-based non-profit organization To Love a Child, took place over several months, culminating in the final installation from August 7–14. The ward was created out of an old shipping container, which the students shaped into a habitable structure. Read more...

Due to the current state of the economy, many organizations on campus are facing reductions in funding. Groups are cutting back on expenses as budgets are decreasing, and program funding is being cut. Many students are feeling these effects; as the economy fails, so does a college student’s ability to earn. Read more...

Last Friday evening, I had the pleasure to experience a first taste of the ballroom dance scene at RPI. As both a new transfer student and a former professional ballet dancer, I was eager to participate in the social event designed to acquaint students of all experience levels to the various genres of social dance offered by RPI’s Ballroom Dance Club. Read more...

Tuesday, the line of RPI students waiting to buy season tickets for ice hockey finally walked down to the Houston Field House to exchange money for tickets. Many had camped outside overnight since Monday, and some groups had held their spots for several days previous. At 7 pm, the line paraded up through campus to the ice at the Field House, where tickets went on sale at 8 pm. Read more...

The Student Peer Alcohol Monitoring, a peer-monitoring initiative focused on preventing risky behavior, will not be enacted this semester. While it will not be officially enacted, the Student Senate discussed the possibility of finding volunteers to engage in dry runs of the program at events through the end of the year. Nothing was confirmed in the meeting, but the possibility of dry runs was discussed to get more data regarding the real world feasibility of the project. Read more...

Minecraft! I have been playing it a lot lately. Now I know what you’re thinking, isn’t that game kind of out of the lime light? Hasn’t it been out for long enough that no one really cares about it anymore? Well, two things. Read more...

I love animated movies. Let me just get that out of the way. I’m not one to be super pretentious and say animated movies are for kids, or they’re childish or whatever. In my opinion, if a film is good, and if it holds up on its own merits, it doesn’t matter if it’s live action, animated, silent, or black and white. A lot of times, you’ll meet people our age and older who will complain that they don’t want to watch something just because it is animated. You can wax poetic about how brilliant the story was, how wonderful the characters were, how great the cinematography was, but they’ll still turn up their noses at it. The goal of this review in particular is to try to get people to step out of their comfort zones and give a great animated movie like ParaNorman a chance. Read more...

Grilling is a great method of cooking, and it is very simple. An uncooked item is placed on a hot metal grate, and after a short time it is transformed into part of an excellent meal. One can grill meat, vegetables, fruits, fungi, bread, and more. Read more...