Features


Health

An inside look at the Health Center

A key part of adulthood is maintaining your physical and mental health. Features Editor Soma Patra ’26 takes a look at Rensselaer’s Student Health Center and the various services it offers.

Photo Short Story

PSS: Latinx Heritage Month Closing Ceremony

On Saturday October 15th, we attended the Latinx Heritage Month Closing Ceremony held in the McNeill room. The celebration—packed with music, dinner and dancing—was coordinated by the LHM Eboard and clubs such as Alianza Latina, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, Phi Iota Alpha, and Omega Phi Beta.

Empac Event

Deep Listening: The Story of Pauline Oliveros dives into the life and legacy of the RPI professor

Editorial/Opinion Coordinator Justin Chassin ’22 recounts his experience seeing Daniel Weintraub’s Deep Listening: The Story of Pauline Oliveros in EMPAC on October 9th.

On-Campus Event

The legacy of Dr. Eddie Knowles immortalized

Dr. Eddie Knowles’ legacy is celebrated by alumni in a painting commissioned by Raymond Parker III ’77.

Restaurant Review

If you're hungry, donut worry!

Set directly across the street from Blitman Commons, 518 Donuts offers a welcoming space for food and fun. Features Editor Soma Patra ’26 gives the Rensselaer student body an inside look into this hot new snack spot.

Empac Event

Light displays, flue pipes ensnare audience in Only Breath, Words

Editorial/Opinion Coordinator Justin Chassin ’22 recounts his experience seeing Anna Craycroft’s Only Breath, Words in the EMPAC theater on Friday, September 23.

Campus Event

Shining an activity spotlight on the upcoming Activities Fair

This Saturday, September 10, 2022, over 200 of Rensselaer Union’s clubs and programs will gather on the ‘86 Field for the annual Activities Fair. From 10 am to 11:30 am, RPI students will be able to explore the various organizations on campus.

Club Spotlight

How Morgan's Message is "taking a shot" against mental health stigma

A new chapter of Morgan’s Message, an organization advocating for student-athlete mental health, has been established on campus.

On-Campus Event

Student Sustainability Task Force proposes Office of Sustainability

As a part of the Earth week events, the Student Sustainability Task Force held a conference to bring attention to the need for an Office of Sustainability at RPI.

On-Campus Event

Clubs eager to grow change at Earth Day Sustainability Event

In celebration of Earth Day, Sodexo tabled outside the Union alongside student-run sustainability clubs.

Lesser-Known Locales

Where to weep

Opinion Editor Vaughn Greason ’25 suggests a few quiet places on campus to bawl your eyes out during finals season.

Campus Event

I got second place at the Integration Bee (So you can do it too)

Features Editor Vaughn Greason ’25 shares his experiences at the Integration Bee, an event hosted by Pi Mu Epsilon and the Association for Women in Mathematics.

Club Event

Going Into the Woods with the RPI Players

Features Editor Vaughn Greason ’25 shares his experience watching and reviewing the RPI Players’ production of Into The Woods. The Players will be performing Into the Woods on April 22 and 23 at 8pm, along with a 1 pm matinee on April 24.

Downtown Troy

Cafe Euphoria, downtown Troy's new trans safe-space

Cafe Euphoria challenges traditional norms of labor, gender, and service in many new and interesting ways, writes Features Editor Vaughn Greason '25. At the cafe’s busy soft opening on March 5, Cafe Euphoria highlighted its extraordinary business model amid a buffet of Belgian waffles, smoothies, and coffee. Cafe Euphoria's grand opening is April 29.

Lesser-Known Locales

Bannerman’s Armory and the Scottish castle on the Hudson

Why is there a lonely stone castle sitting in the middle of the Hudson river? "Frank Bannerman built a castle and filled it with all of the coolest things he could get his hands on," writes features editor Vaughn Greason '25, who dives into the history of the curious Bannerman's Armory.

Game Review

Chess that even grandmasters find hard to comprehend

Staff writer Ryan Hickey '25 explores the complex systems of the PC game 5D Chess with Multiversal Time Travel.

Student Spotlight

RPI's Miss Tennessee breaks down the history of pageants

“People can’t imagine how you wouldn’t be ripping each other’s dresses and high heels like the movies…but it’s a sisterhood.” Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, graduate student Lily Donaldson is the 2021 Miss Tennessee title holder in the Miss United States division. In her interview with staff writer Maanasa Pulavarty '25, Donaldson goes into the history of American beauty pageants and her role as Miss Tennessee.

Book Review

Yōko Ogawa's The Memory Police is a book you won't forget

Objects mandatorily erased from consciousness and a writer struggling to find her place amongst it all. Publicity Editor Mattaya Gibbs ’24 discusses her views on The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa.

On-Campus Event

Student Film Festival makes its RPI debut

The first-ever Student Film Festival occurred on Wednesday, March 23 hosted by UPAC Cinema in collaboration with the Department of Arts.

Technology

Mixing it up with Apple’s M1 Ultra

Apple released the Mac Studio with the new M1 Ultra chip on March 8. Apple argues that it matches and exceeds the performance of its high-end professional Intel-powered Apple desktops while being the same dimensions of the Mac Mini, at around 2.5 times its height.

Photo Short Story

PSS: Winter Carnival extravaganza

The Winter Carnival at the Rensselaer Union had a variety of events for students to participate in during Election Day of Grand Marshal Week. This included performances, carnival games run by various student organizations, and prizes.

Album Review

Haircuts for Men, Macroblank, and the new vaporwave aesthetic

Vaporwave expresses a variety of emotions that are otherwise hard to articulate through aesthetics and production. Features Editor Vaughn Greason ’25 examines the aesthetics and evolution of the bands Macintosh Plus and Haircuts for Men, and looks to the future of vaporwave.

Sports

En garde, Ready, FENCE!: An overview of modern fencing

While not the same combat sport that the Princess Bride would have you believe, modern fencing is still the same fast-paced world of technique, defense, and mind games.

Club Spotlight

Shooting for the stars with the Rensselaer Astrophysical Society

Features Editor Vaughn Greason '25 interviews the Rensselaer Astrophysical Society about their place in RPI's community.