On Gun Control

     Columbine. Newtown. Santa-Barbara. These places are scarred with tragedy. All too often, a person with serious mental illnesses gets their hands on a firearm, and uses it to kill people. We've seen it happen before, and unfortunately, I believe that we will see it again before meaningful changes to a broken and outdated system can take effect. Every time we see this kind of atrocity, we swear that changes will be made, our politicians insist that they will do everything in their power to prevent anything like it ever happening again, but then news cycle turns over.

"I am Become Death"

     J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the lead scientists of the Manhattan Project, is among the founders of the atomic age. He was present at the Trinity Test, the first-ever detonation of a nuclear weapon. After the Second World War, he remarked that the Trinity event brought to mind a phrase from a Hindu scripture, Bhagavad Gita: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

On Artificial Intelligence

     In the past century, the human race has expanded at an unimaginable rate. Our knowledge of the universe and its workings has grown more profound with each year. Our capacities for innovation and creativity have proven themselves time and time again. But among all of these developments, there's one that has horrified science-fiction writers and conspiracy theorists for decades: artificial intelligence.

On Stephen Galloway's The Cellist of Sarajevo

     The Cellist of Sarajevo, told from the viewpoints of four individuals caught in a time of war, is Stephen Galloway's in-depth exploration of human nature. Throughout the novel, which revolves around The Siege of Sarajevo which took place from 1992 to 1996, Galloway depicts the horrors of war, and makes us all question what it means to be human.

On a Photoshop-Addicted Media

     We all know that the models we see on the front of magazines don't actually look that good in real life. However, a lot of us can't help but feel just a slight pang of jealousy/resentment while we're in line for the grocery store check-out. Even though we can all acknowledge that this reaction is irrational, we continue on staring at the Kardashians and then criticize them when they put on an extra five pounds.

On Climate Change Denial

     There are certain things in this world that we know to be true. The sky is blue. The sun is big. These are just two examples of truisms that have been proven by science. Human-caused climate change is among these facts, and I'm getting very tired of people who say otherwise. Climate change is very, very real, and it has the potential to destroy life as we know it. Despite enormous and ever-growing consensus within the scientific community as well as the general public, some people just really don't seem to care. Many politicians and members of the masses refuse to acknowledge the very existence of global warming, let alone what catastrophic consequences it could wreak.

On Nerdyness

     You may have already noticed, but I'm a nerd. Nerdyness comes with many benefits. A better understanding of the World around you, the ability to win arguments without being reduced to name calling, and good grades in school. However, it also comes with its drawbacks, including but not limited to: the need to expand your knowledge of the World around you when you should really be getting that math homework done, the need to win any and all arguments - no matter what, and the soul-crushing feeling of receiving anything less than an 85% on your report card.

Save the Internet!

     Net Neutrality is an issue I'm passionate about. It is the only thing standing between a free and equal internet, and an ISP-controlled Web, rampant with discrimination. I'm sure you've noticed that it is now under fire. It is up to us, the general public, to protect the Internet, something we're becoming increasingly dependant on for everything from communications to information and education. If Net Neutrality gets struck down at the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) meeting on May 15, it will be nothing short of a corporate coup d'etat.

On The End of Libraries

     I was reading an article by Slate the other day, which you can find here. It was a thoughtful commentary on the evolution of the library, and a forecast for its future. Describing a future without paper books, Michael Agresta points out that if libraries are to survive the digital age, the're going to have to completely remodel their entire purpose.