[The Stute] February 20, 2026 (Issue 17, Volume CXXIII)

counting down the days till spring break

We write Stevens history HOBOKEN, NJ | FEBRUARY 20, 2026

VOLUME CXXIII No. 17

The student newspaper of Stevens Institute of Technology, and creator of Attila the Duck. www.thestute.com TikTok @thestute Instagram @thestute facebook.com/stevensthestute NEW STUTE EVERY FRIDAY • EST. 1904

Pursuing your artistic ambitions with Jay Weinberg

Stevens Receives NSF Grant on Ionogel Study BY NIHIRA PATHAK, STAFF WRITER Stevens’ associate professor, Pinar Akcora, has been named the lead of the National Science Foundation (NSF) supported study “Revealing Structure-Ionic Transport Relationship in Polymer-Ionic Liquid Ionogels.” Akcora and her team are focusing on how ions move within ionogels, with particular attention to the specific polymer chain conformations and ion distributions within the gels. Ionogels are formed by trapping an ionic liquid inside a 3D polymer matrix, giving them the shape of a solid but the internal properties of a liquid. Similar to a hydrogel, like jelly or contact lenses, while ionogels have properties of both liquid and solid, they do not evaporate. Current hydrogels are susceptible to air and heat, leading to dehydration. On the other hand, the ionic liquid in an ionogel makes the entire structure stable even at high temperatures. Ionic liquids are made up of both

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BY SOFIA STOECKEL, STAFF WRITER

BY HUGO HOLLAND, CONTRIBUTOR Stevens students put on William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night in the DeBaun Performing Arts Center this past weekend, the venue’s 13th annual production in its Shakespeare series. The production of Twelfth Night brought out the play’s music and humor, one of Shakespeare’s early romantic comedies. The play follows the various romances and hijinks that occur one winter in Illyria, a Mediterranean-inspired land ruled over by Duke Orsino (Christian Fodor) and Countess Olivia (Isabela Allen). Just as

Artificial intelligence is often framed as a future that engineers will eventually step into. At Stevens, students are already there: presenting, testing, and debating how AI should work in the real world, not just in theory. That momentum was on display at the iCNS AI Engineering and Science Symposium, where students, faculty, and industry researchers gathered to explore how artificial intelligence is moving from academic exploration to applied engineering practice. Hosted by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the event brought together campus researchers and external experts to examine both the opportunities and responsibilities that come with rapidly advancing AI technologies. The symposium, formerly known as DuckAI, featured keynote talks alongside student poster sessions and live demonstrations highlighting projects developed during the Fall 2025 semester. NEWS (2-3)

SCIENCE (6)

FEATURE (4)

Black History Month Discover the black-owned businesses in Hoboken and of their success!

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DeBaun PAC presents Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night

Rather than focusing solely on conceptual models, many of the student presentations emphasized implementation — building tools, evaluating systems, and addressing emerging technical challenges in areas such as large language models (LLMs), safety, and optimization. According to Min Song, Professor and Chair of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the evolution of project topics reflects how quickly student work in AI is maturing. Students are moving beyond foundational discussions of bias and model training toward improving and securing the newest AI architectures themselves. The scale of participation underscored that shift. A total of 34 student teams presented posters and demonstrations, sharing research that connected classroom learning to real-world technical applications. The projects ranged from efficiency improvements in LLM deployment to questions of trust, transparency, and system-level reliability; issues increasingly central to how AI is adopted

Debaun Pac presents Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night Learn more about the Debaun Pac’s version of the Twelfth Night!

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PHOTO COURTESY OF @DEBAUNPAC ON INSTAGRAM (SHOT BY JEFFERY VOCK)

Orsino is seeking to marry the countess, a shipwreck washes up on Illyria’s shores, leaving siblings Viola (Kai Raiola) and Sebastian (Ryan Grigoletto) stranded, each believing the other one dead. Viola, believing herself unable to survive alone as a woman, soon disguises herself as a man and joins Orsino’s court under the name “Cesario”. The comedy and the tension come when Countess Olivia, believing Viola a man, falls in love with her instead of Orsino, creating a love triangle that lasts to the end of the play. The story is much more than Orsino and Olivia, with the various members

Stevens student-led AIinnovation takes center stage at iCNS AI Engineering and Science Symposium BY NIHIRA PATHAK, STAFF WRITER

clothes. The court jester (Ayyoob Saeed) is particularly fiendish and humorous in the plot. Adorning a gray beard and low booming voice, the fool toys with Malvolio—now locked in a cage after his romantic advances—making him admit his wrongs. The music of the DeBaun production is an additional bright spot, laying the groundwork for both the story’s sentimentality and its comedy. The music takes center stage as Orsino—to the backdrop of the court guitarist’s strums and the singing of the en-

On Wednesday, February 11, Jay Weinberg ‘14, an alumnus of Stevens, came to speak on his experiences while he was a student, as well as his growth into a successful drummer, having toured with multiple bands during his time here and afterwards. He grew up in a musical family, with his father having played the drums for Bruce Springsteen in the E-Street Band, inspiring him to take up the drums himself at around 14 years old. Weinberg then talked about his experiences with bands in college, having started in 2008, by looking at MySpace and messaging any band in the New York area that needed a drummer at the time until he got a response. He started touring his freshman year with the E-Street Band, filling in for his father, who had schedule conflicts that night, which catapulted

Caffeine = no dementia? ACL injuries? Tear gas? Read about what’s going on in the world of science. PULSE (10)

Read answers from the Stevens community to our weekly Roving Reporter, plus solve our weekly puzzle and sudoku.

across industries. Among the projects recognized during the symposium’s Elite Poster awards was LLM-Powered Agentic Systems and Applications, led by Ph.D. candidate Yupeng Cao, which explored AI agents capable of planning, reasoning and executing complex tasks beyond traditional chatbot behavior. Second place went to DEMI: A Reinforcement Learning Agent that Embodies Collective Intelligence to Minimize Attrition, developed by Drishti Parekh, Eden Charles, and Meetkumar Gajera, applying reinforcement learning to address retention challenges. A third recognized project, Trustworthy Models and Data by Sabbir Ujjal, focused on ensuring AI systems remain reliable, secure and free from bias. Industry voices added another dimension to the conversation. Speakers from organizations such as opAIda, Prescient Design (Genentech), and NVIDIA discussed how AI is being applied in areas ranging from business strategy to

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of their courts providing both comic relief and significant subplots of their own. The play sees most of Countess Olivia’s court plotting against Malvolio (Hissam Effendi), a servant famously described as being “sick of self-love.” The group of courtiers makes Malvolio believe that the countess is in love with him, planting a fake letter from her with the intent that he read it and make a fool of himself — and make a fool of himself he does. Dressed in bright yellow stockings, Malvolio follows the advice from the letter he believes is from the countess, disgusting her with his romantic advances and neon

NATIONAL NEWS Super Bowl halftime show 2026 BY JOSHUA BODENSTEIN, ASST. BUSINESS MANAGER

Bad Bunny took center stage at this year’s Super Bowl halftime show, delivering a performance defined by high energy, vibrant visuals, and a strong emphasis on cultural identity and togetherness. The Puerto Rican artist, one of the world’s most-streamed musicians, became one of the few Latin artists to headline the globally watched event. The performance followed a major milestone in Bad Bunny’s career, as just one week before the Super Bowl, he earned multiple Grammy Awards, most notably, Album of the Year. This, along with his dominant performance on music streaming services such as Spotify, where he was the world’s most-streamed artist, helped heighten anticipation for his halftime performance. The performance opened with an immediate burst of sound and movement, setting the tone for a production built around rhythm, choreography, and visual storytelling. Accompanied by a large ensem-

ble of dancers, Bad Bunny moved through a medley of hits that highlighted his signature blend of reggaeton, Latin trap, and pop influences, with Lady Gaga joining him as a guest performer. Rather than relying on elaborate stage gimmicks or surprise-driven spectacle, the show leaned heavily on coordinated dance sequences and colorful set pieces. The staging evoked scenes of community and celebration, with visuals that emphasized social connection and shared experience. A notable aspect of the performance was Bad Bunny’s decision to perform primarily in Spanish. While multilingual performances are not uncommon at large-scale events, a Spanish-dominant halftime show remains relatively rare. The choice reflected Bad Bunny’s consistent approach to maintaining his artistic identity on international platforms. The choreography and production design reinforced themes of unity and joy. Dancers filled the stage with synchronized movements, and the visual palette featured bright colors and dynamic tran-

sitions. The performance maintained a continuous pace, with minimal breaks between songs. In addition to its beautiful visual palette, the show explored many themes of Puerto Rican culture and heritage. The set featured grassy fields, a bustling (and real) Latino wedding, and a Spanish Mercado. Each of these elements was purposefully and intentionally placed to invoke a feeling of Puerto Rican culture and make Latinos at home and around the world feel recognized. Thematically, the show emphasized positivity and inclusion. The tone remained celebratory throughout, with visuals and staging that suggested togetherness rather than dramatic tension. The closing moments featured imagery centered on connection and shared humanity, with the quote “The only thing more powerful than hate is love” displayed around the stadium. Reactions to the halftime show were mixed but widely engaged. Many viewers praised the performance’s energy, choreography, and

SEE SUPER BOWL PAGE 3

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News Masthead Volume CXXIII No. 17 Executive Board

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.............................JIYA JAISINGHANI ‘27 BUSINESS MANAGER.....................................FIONA SHI ‘27 MANAGING EDITOR.................................TIANNA SPITZ ‘27 LAYOUT EDITOR...............................EILIYAH SAROWAR ‘28 OUTREACH CHAIR..................................TANYA AVADIA ‘25 DIGITAL MANAGER..........................CHARMY KOTADIA ‘27 SECRETARY.....................................JOSEPHINE CHOONG ‘28

Editorial Board

NEWS EDITOR........................................... CLAIRE DEANS ‘29 SCIENCE EDITOR..................................RIYANA PHADKE ‘27 OPINION EDITOR.........................................ITAI GELLER ‘26 SPORTS EDITOR..................................CAMRYN WINANT ‘28 FEATURES EDITOR ...........................PRISHA VAGVALA ‘28 HEAD COPYEDITOR..............................TASHA KHOSLA ‘25

Operations Board

HEAD PHOTOGRAPHER.......ISABELLE VILLANUEVA ‘26 ARCHIVES LIASON....................................ISABELLA ZIV ‘25 ASST. SOCIAL MEDIA...............................CHRISTINE YI ‘29 DELIVERY BOY.........................................JONATHAN LAI ‘28 ASST. LAYOUT EDITOR.............................SHREYA ROY ‘27 ASST. LAYOUT EDITOR....................BRADY SANSOTTA ‘29 ASST. BUSINESS MANAGER........JOSH BODENSTEIN ‘29

Staff & Contributors Sophia Soteckel Hugo Holland Jeylan Jubran Nihira Pathak Sean Palermo Prisha Vagvala Disha Gohil Misayo Idowu Robert Dietrich

Abigail Thomas Tanya Zanes Miagros Carbajal Dominic Souza Vedhesh A. Kamaraj Chris Kalish Claire Deans Sydney Leung Breona Pizzuta Wesley Yu Christina Thomas Viktor Palmer Disha Rana Gavin Ruby

Contact Us

GENERAL.........................................EBOARD@THESTUTE.COM EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.........................EDITOR@THESTUTE.COM ADVERTISING.............................BUSINESS@THESTUTE.COM OFFICE.................................UNIVERSITY CENTER ROOM 216B

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GRANT

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 positively and negatively charged ions, which allows for high conductivity. Akcora says, “Ionogels are fascinating because they let electricity flow while remaining soft, which makes them useful for sensors, soft electronics, drug delivery, and biomedical devices.” Most research on ionogels is centered around strengthening the gels, whereas Akcora’s team will “explore what happens inside the gel at the molecular level.” The complex polymer chain interacts with the ions rather than simply “holding” the ionic liquid. The interaction between the polymer and ions can attract certain ions more than others, restrict ion movement, or change shape entirely — ion movement within

the gel is not uniform. Essentially, since ionogels combine polymer networks with liquid salts, there exist areas where ions move differently than they would elsewhere and overall cause the gel to swell unevenly. One of the research team’s methods includes using a neutron scattering facility in Oak Ridge, TN. The technique will examine atom locations and molecule arrangements to further investigate how polymer conformations change and how ions are distributed in the gel. Combined with the gel’s nonvolatility, the high thermal stability and conductivity make ionogels a prime material for future applications in wearable and flexible electronics, energy storage devices, and sensors. However, because of the higher concentration of ionic liquids, it is difficult to observe an ionogel with high conductivity and mechanical stability, an area

where more research is needed. Akcora is most looking forward to ionogel applications in biomedical technology. Ionogels are incredibly flexible and conductive, lending themselves to wearable technology. Sensors created out of these gels can adhere to human skin and monitor physiological signals. Another biomedical application of ionogels is controlled drug delivery systems. If ionogels can contain drugs for controlled, localized, and consistent release, it would significantly streamline biomedical operations. The study will take place over three years and is funded by the Chemical Structure and Dynamics (CSD) program within the NSF. The grant allows for increased exposure for Stevens’ undergraduate and graduate students’ research, and puts the next generation of researchers on a higher footing.

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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 tire cast—discovers his love for the still-disguised Viola. Music also provides considerable comic relief throughout the production. Coming home drunk and elated after a night of revelry, Olivia’s uncle Sir Toby (Ryder Bidwell), and potential suitor Sir Andrew (Kalman Zold) break out into song with the court jester and fool. The ensuing scene sees the two knights lift Feste up on their shoulders and dance across the stage, provoking the humorous outrage of Olivia’s lady-in-waiting, Maria (Taylor Terry). The story ends with a scene worthy of the rest of the show’s emotion and humor. The show’s cast, having resolved their quarrels and confessed their romances, have only one thing left to do: they look to the audience, grasp each other’s hands, and start to sing and dance a merry tune.

WEINBERG

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 him into the summer before he started at Stevens. He then talked about how he would do work for his classes on the bus, sometimes in the middle of nowhere, writing essays about the topics taught to show that he understood the material required. He also talked about having to take a break from academics to continue touring, then going back to finish his bachelor’s in business two years later, finally graduating in 2014. While touring with the band Against Me!, he had realized that committing to both academics and the band would be detrimental to one or the other, so he took a break from academics to

PHOTO COURTESY OF @DEBAUNPAC ON INSTAGRAM (SHOT BY JEFFERY VOCK)

focus on music. He spoke to the Dean, saying that he wouldn’t be able to finish the semester, but that he would be back to finish his education at some point. After eventually finishing his academics and graduating, he got a message from the band Slipknot, asking if he could join them. He was in the band Slipknot for the longest, from 2014 to 2023. Weinberg spoke on how Stevens influenced his music career, and how his major contributed to the work he does. He majored in Business and Technology, and it taught him how to conduct himself within the business side, and how to get his message and music out there in the world to other people. He liked Business and Technology because it gave him an education on business practices integrated with modern technology. Stevens helped him

chase his dreams and pushed him to do more, not just academically, but musically as well.

PHOTO COURTESY OF STEVENS.EDU

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News AI

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 drug discovery and autonomous systems, reinforcing the connection between academic research and professional practice.

For students, the symposium functioned not only as a research showcase but also as a professional environment, encouraging them to communicate technical ideas to industry leaders and engage in conversations about career pathways and emerging research directions.

One external advisor described the event as offering a “comprehensive and optimistic view” of AI’s role in shaping the future. What distinguished Stevens’ presence was its emphasis on responsibility alongside innovation. The event encouraged students to approach artificial

intelligence with curiosity while recognizing the need for safety, trustworthiness, and human alignment as systems become more embedded in everyday life. As AI continues to reshape engineering disciplines, the work presented at the symposium suggests that Stevens stu-

dents are not simply learning how to use these technologies — they are helping define how they should be built, evaluated, and integrated. The future of AI may be global, but much of its groundwork is being laid in collaborative research spaces much closer to home.

PHOTO COURTESY OF STEVENS.EDU

REMINDER

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representation of Latino culture on a global stage. Others debated musical preferences and stylistic choices, reflecting the broad and diverse Super Bowl audience. Even though many members of the community may have disagreed with the show’s premise or disliked it, the numbers show it was the second-most-watched Super Bowl halftime show in history. 128.2 million people tuned in to watch, and the overall game also had the most views ever, with 137.8 million viewers, nearly 1/3 of the U.S. population. Of viewers, 4.8 million watched in Spanish, the most in Super Bowl history, demonstrating Bad Bunny’s reach and influence over the Latino community. The Super Bowl halftime show remains one of the most-watched musical events of the year, often reflecting broader trends in music and popular culture. This year’s performance highlighted the global reach of Latin music and the increasing presence of international artists in traditionally U.S.-centered events. Bad Bunny’s appearance marked another milestone in his career, underscoring his crossover appeal and status as a major figure in contemporary music.

PHOTO COURTESY OF HOLLYWOODREPORT.COM

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Feature

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

THE INFLUENCE OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARTISTS OVER GENERATIONS Over generations, there have been countless African-American artists who have contributed to and greatly influenced the American music industry. Ranging from the ragtime and blues of the late 1800s to the new waves of hiphop of the modern era, here is a dive into the historical impact and stories of prominent African Americans in the music industry throughout the years. African-American influence in the industry can be traced back to the creation of ragtime and blues in the late 1800s—rooted in religion and faith—with spiritual gospel working as a foundation for a multitude of later unique genres. Specifically, blues singers would focus on slow, sorrowful tunes reflecting the poverty of African-Americans and begin establishing a rich cultural heritage through the medium. Not too long after, the early 1900s would birth jazz, having a hold on the public until the 1960s, with its syncopated beats and use of new instruments such as the saxophone, which would become one of the defining sounds of the time. This era would mark the beginning of contemporary American music, including singers such as icons Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat King Cole. Among these artists, Louis Armstrong

and his orchestra’s 1938 rendition of “When the Saints Go Marching In,” previously traditionally a gospel-performed song, would perform one of the most famous versions as a jazz standard, causing many to argue he put both the song and genre on the map. As a result, Armstrong would act as the influence for many artists such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Bing Crosby. The 1960s gave way to soul and funk, borrowing elements from jazz, blues, and ragtime by prominently featuring improvised solos, horn arrangements, and guitar foundations. Many artists, such as Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, and Earth, Wind & Fire, would succeed in the mainstream through the genres, emphasizing lyrics and themes reflecting the changing socioeconomic status of African-Americans and a struggle for racial equality, as soul would be expanded beyond romance and relationships to include social awareness and injustices against African-Americans. James Brown, who became one of the most recognizable performers in the genres and earned the nickname “The Godfather of Soul,” earned several Billboard Top 40 charting singles, such as “I Got You (I Feel Good),” and would inspire many up-and-coming artists, such as Michael Jackson. Recent cultural liberation in the 1970s would give way to a

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PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIPEDIA

more optimistic tone, with artists such as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder dominating with upbeat grooves. In particular, Wonder would release a total of 23 albums and become the youngest solo artist to ever top the Billboard Hot 100 chart when he was only 13 — one of his most famous songs, 1972’s “Superstition,” charted number 1 the year after its release. Additionally, funk would be influenced by wild fashion and science fiction of the time to take on more psychedelic qualities, to give way to the disco genre that would dominate clubs. In the post-disco craze of the 1980s, pop would become the defining sound of the decade. The genre’s accessibility and variety allowed many African-American artists such as Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, and Prince to rise to fame by combining the genre with elements from earli-

er ones, such as jazz, R&B, soul, and funk, to create a revolutionary new sound. Most notably, Jackson—later dubbed the “King of Pop”—once shifting to a solo career in adulthood would find monumental success, especially in his sixth studio album, “Thriller,” which has become the world’s

best-selling album according to the Guinness Book of World Records. The popularization of hip-hop would occur during the 1990s, where artists such as Nas, Lauryn Hill, Tupac, and Biggie Smalls would flourish. Since then, the 2000s brought a continuation of both R&B and hip-hop, continuing to change with the times through the inclusion of the audio processor Auto-Tune, access to new digital instruments, track boards, and mixers, and being themed around the socioeconomic status of many African-American communities. Using the power of creating music as an act of rebellion, artists such as Destiny’s Child, Outkast, Usher, and Snoop Dogg brought forth issues like racism, police brutality, and romantic struggle to inspire listeners. Music would continue to evolve throughout the 21st century with artists such as Drake, Jay-Z, J Cole, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Kanye West, Lil Yachty, Playboi Carti, Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, Kendrick Lamar, ASAP Rocky, and SZA that have become widely popular in the modern day — Kendrick Lamar in particular performing at Superbowl LIX and demonstrating the great influence and prominence of African-American artists to this day.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CTPUBLIC.ORG

BY SEAN PALERMO, STAFF WRITER

PHOTO COURTESY OF PHOLKBEAUTY.COM

Spotlight: local black-owned businesses

BY PRISHA VAGVALA, FEATURES EDITOR Black History Month is a wonderful time to reflect on the past contributions of the Black community, but it is also a time to shine a spotlight on local Black-owned businesses so we can help support these businesses that continue to strengthen and inspire our community. I come to you with a list of local businesses you can support year-round to continue uplifting and investing in our community. Ken Pilates Located at 706 Grand St., the

owner, Kennyth, is a skilled celebrity trainer and certified Pilates instructor. Ken Pilates is a great place to go because it offers programs designed for individualized training. Ken incorporates his “Afro-Latino heritage into all that he does, including running his business,” according to The Hoboken Girl. He focuses on representation in an environment that lacks diversity, and his studio is a welcoming space for all to come and work on themselves together. Issyra Gallery Issyra Gallery, located at 300 Observer Highway, is a curated

space featuring traditional and contemporary artwork from Central and Western Africa. Issa Sow, the founder and curator, is a contemporary Senegalese painter and gallerist who is strongly involved in Hoboken’s education and arts community through relationships with schools, bringing African culture to the Hoboken community. Issyra Gallery has hosted drum classes and jazz shows in the past, and presents a broad collection of Sow’s own work, along with music, dance, and painting workshops. The Biscuit Babe

The Biscuit Babe sells freshbaked biscuit sandwiches, savory gravy, and sweet treats. They are highly rated, and each biscuit looks mouthwatering on their Instagram page. The founder, Carli Bruni, started serving her biscuits at a farmers’ market. They were so popular that she opened a store at 918 Willow Ave., where they continue to serve flaky, buttery biscuits with delicious fillings. As U Wish Nail & Lash Spa As U Wish Nail & Lash Spa is yet another highly rated Blackowned business. Reviews complement their community-like

environment and their flawless services. They are also highly regarded for their amazing customer service. Check them out at 319 Willow Ave. #1. They offer manicures and pedicures, lashes and makeup, and body treatments. Double Dough Twin sisters Jordan and Joelle Hernandez, accomplished media moguls, book authors, and team members of The Hoboken Girl, are based in Hoboken and take custom orders throughout Hudson County for their delicious baked goods. Their custom cookies look incredibly detailed and beautiful, and each one is hand-decorated. You can check them out on their Instagram @double_dough. Pholk Beauty Pholk Beauty is a Black woman-owned beauty, cosmetic, and personal care online shop designed for people with melanin-rich and sensitive skin. On their website, they note that they are inspired by the nourishing folk remedies of the Southern US and the heirloom superfoods that farmers have grown for generations. The story and impact behind Pholk Beauty are wonderful. Founder Niambi Cacchioli draws from her background as a Southerner, vegan skincare expert, avid traveler, and former historian of the African Diaspora. Her extensive experience has allowed her to successfully launch Pholk Beauty.

INTERESTED IN FEATURE JOURNALISM? Join our Features writing team! Reach out to Prisha Vagvala, Features Editor (pvagvala@stevens.edu) for more information – No experience necessary to write • thestute.com/category/features –

Friday, February 20

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Sports

ON DECK IN SPORTS FRI, FEB 20 BASEBALL Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational - Day 1 Washington, DC 3 p.m.

SAT, FEB 21 WOMEN’S AND MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD West Point Tune Up West Point, NY 11 a.m. WOMEN’S LACROSSE Roger Williams University Hoboken, NJ 12 p.m.

Men’s and Women’s Swimming claim double MAC Championship BY MISAYO IDOWU, SPORTS WRITER From February 12-15, the Men’s and Women’s Swim Teams participated in the 2026 Middle Atlantic Conference Championship in York, Pennsylvania. The fourday meet, featuring 11 colleges, marked the season’s final, biggest, and most significant competition, determining the MAC Champions. Both the Stevens Men’s and Women’s teams rose to the occasion, seizing the conference titles and concluding their season as champions. The Ducks started day one with a bang, immediately putting four swimmers in the A final of the first event, the men’s 500 freestyle. Sophomore Karem Dogruer and freshmen Yusuf Tokuz and Sebastien Nappi all raced well, but junior Patrick Cortelli placed highest with a silver medal. Following this, sophomore Eszter Kiss took first place in the women’s 500 freestyle — the first of many medals for her. Freshman Cooper Moffat and

senior Will Stibor earned bronze medals in the 200 individual medley and 50 freestyle, respectively. Sophomore Delaney Klaus earned the second silver medal of the meet in the 50 free. The most significant event of the day for the Ducks came in the women’s 200 medley relay. Kiss and Klaus were joined by seniors Natalia Brunetti and Adrianna Bertolotti to form a relay team that not only won gold but broke the MAC Championship record with a time of 1:45.16. Day two of the championship was even more eventful than the first. Stevens started off the day by finishing in second place in both the men’s and women’s 200 freestyle relays. Another highlight of the day came from sophomore Ethan Emerton, who won the men’s 400 individual medley by a whopping eight seconds. On the other hand, in the women’s 400 individual medley, Stevens may not have gotten first place, but they had five swimmers from second to sixth on the podium. In the 100 butterfly, senior Deo

Bove finished in second place, and Brunetti finished in first place in the men’s and women’s finals, respectively. Kiss earned the Ducks’ first NCAA B cut since 2018 in the 200 freestyle, alongside breaking the MAC record and taking the gold. The women’s 200 medley relay team returned for the 400 medley relay, finished first, and impressively broke another record that had stood since 2019. In this relay, Klaus also posted an NCAA B cut in her 100 backstroke. On the third day, Stevens took home more than 10 medals in the eight finals that took place. In the first events of the day, Bove and Cortelli took silver and bronze in the men’s 200 butterfly, while Brunetti and sophomore Hanna Matheson finished first and second for the women. Klaus won and broke another record (from 2014) in the 100 backstroke with a time of 55.85. The last event of the day was the women’s 800 freestyle relay, which was won by a four-woman team of Kiss, Klaus, sophomore Megan Koek, and senior Gabby

Sokolik. The final day of the MAC started off with the mile, which requires swimmers to swim a brutal 70 lengths of the pool. Moffat won the men’s mile in an impressive race with a personal best time of 16:26.73, winning by 17 seconds. Emerton finished first in the men’s 200 backstroke while senior Lukas Mikulenas did the same in the 200 breaststroke. Stevens took the final victory of the championship as they took home the gold in the 400 freestyle relay. As you can see, this was a very successful championship for the Ducks. Medals were won, records were broken, Kiss and Klaus achieved NCAA cuts, and Cooper Moffat was even named the 2026 rookie of the year. All the aforementioned results, and many that I did not get to mention, led to both the men’s and women’s teams being crowned MAC champions. This marks back-to-back championships for the women’s team, and the men have been MAC Champions for seven consecutive years.

Baseball opens their season with a game against William Paterson BY CAMRYN WINANT, SPORTS EDITOR On February 15, the Baseball team had a season-opening victory of 5-3 against William Paterson University. Ensuring the win for the Ducks was senior pitcher David Finch, last year’s MAC Freedom Pitcher of the Year, who allowed William Paterson only one earned run throughout the game. Along with Finch was junior Garret Wolf, who was returning to the roster after being out for 42 games last season because of an injury, finishing with a home run and three RBI.

Starting off the game strong, first-year John Czernyk, junior Chip Krese, and graduate student Griffin Zitko were on a 4-6-3 double play to end the first and keep the Pioneers scoreless. However, in the second inning, the Pioneers ran a home run, giving them a 1-0 lead. The Ducks tied up the score in the third, senior Dylan Fishbough running home off a hit from junior Quinton Sterling. The fourth inning was quiet for both teams, both going pointless, before the Pioneers attempted runs in the fifth, with Finch pitching to ensure they stayed tied at 1-1. A

hit by Fishbough loaded the bases in the bottom of the fifth, and hits from Wolf, and graduate student Justin Zachery sent Czernyk, Krese, and Fishbough home to put up the team’s first crooked number of the season on the board, and to send them into a lead of 4-1. There was no action in the sixth, but the seventh found the Pioneers narrowing the Ducks’ lead to 4-2 with a throwing error and an RBI groundout. The Ducks were quick to respond, however, with Wolf leading with a home run, his first since April 30, 2024. It wasn’t until the ninth that Finch allowed anoth-

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL Wheaton College Boston, MA 12 p.m. MEN’S TENNIS Virginia Wesleyan University Fredericksburg, VA 12:30 p.m. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL FDU-Florham Hoboken, NJ 1 p.m. MEN’S VOLLEYBALL Wentworth Institute of Technology Boston, MA 2 p.m. MEN’S LACROSSE Springfield College Hoboken, NJ 3 p.m. MEN’S BASKETBALL FDU-Florham Hoboken, NJ 3 p.m. BASEBALL Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational - Day 2 Washington, DC 5 p.m.

SUN, FEB 22

er unearned run, but with the pressure, he closed the top of the inning with his fifth strikeout of the day. It was a seamless win for the Ducks, improving their record against the Pioneers to 4-1 since the 2024 season, with Krese and Fishbough both finishing with an impressive two stolen bases each and a combined three runs. The Ducks will be back on the field on February 20, 21, and 22 for the Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational hosted by The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, where we hope to see the beginnings of a win streak.

MEN’S FENCING Temple Open Philadelphia, PA 9 a.m. MEN’S TENNIS University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA 9 a.m. WRESTLING Mideast Futures Event Reading, PA 10:30 a.m. BASEBALL Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational - Day 3 Washington, DC 10:30 a.m.

STEVENS SCOREBOARD DATE

WED, FEB 11 THU, FEB 12

FRI, FEB 13

SAT, FEB 14

TEAM

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL MEN'S BASKETBALL MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SWIMMING WRESTLING MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SWIMMING MEN'S TRACK AND FIELD MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SWIMMING

OPPONENT

LOCATION

SCORE

DELAWARE VALLEY UNIVERSITY DELAWARE VALLEY UNIVERSITY MAC CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 1

AWAY HOME AWAY

W (64-54) W (77-65) 1ST PLACE

KING'S COLLEGE MAC CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 2

AWAY AWAY

W (47-3) 1ST PLACE

DAVID HEMERY VALENTINE INVITATIONAL WIDENER INDOOR CLASSIC - DAY 1

AWAY AWAY

COMPLETE COMPLETE

NYU DIII INVITATIONAL

AWAY

COMPLETE

DAVID HEMERY VALENTINE INVITATIONAL

AWAY

COMPLETE

MAC CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 3

AWAY

1ST PLACE

Friday, February 20

6

Science Daily cups of coffee lead to lower dementia risk

The lasting health effects of tear gas and pepper spray BY DISHA GOHIL, SCIENCE WRITER Tear gas and pepper spray are designed to cause an immediate and intense reaction, but health experts have voiced that they can have lasting negative health effects. “These are chemical weapons that are harmful to the human body and harmful to particularly vulnerable folks, like children,” says Asha Has‑ san, an epidemiologist at the Univer‑ sity of Minnesota. “We know that tear gas causes tears, but it also causes other things that are a lot more se‑ vere,” she says However, the long-term effects are poorly understood. There have not been any large, systematic stud‑ ies that focused on the lasting health effects caused by the exposure, says Anthony Szema, chair of the Amer‑ ican Thoracic Society’s Section on Terrorism and Inhalation Disasters. However, there is known information about the components of tear gas and pepper spray, as well as their imme‑ diate effects. The most common tear gas ir‑ ritant used today is the compound 2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile, or CS. It is commonly used via exploding gas canisters and sometimes mixed into jets shot from water cannons. After one exposure, tear gas agents can trigger coughing, airway inflam‑ mation, and even lung collapse. Even

minimal tear gas exposure can weak‑ en respiratory functions, making peo‑ ple more susceptible to conditions such as bronchitis and pneumonia. Pepper spray typically contains oleo‑ resin capsicum, or OC, which is a mixture of chili pepper extracts, such as capsaicin. It can be particularly harmful to people with allergies to peppers, says Szema, a pulmonolo‑ gist at Hofstra University in Hemp‑ stead, N.Y. Tear gas and pepper spray activate pain-sensing nerves on the skin, on the surface of the eye, and in our air‑ ways, says Sven Jordt, a pain and sen‑ sation researcher at Duke University. That triggers protective reflexes, such as coughing and tears, which can help wash away the chemicals. “But these agents are so potent that these reflex‑ es become overwhelming, and [they] incapacitate you if you don’t remove yourself from the situation,” Jordt says. If a person is exposed to these chemicals, it is important for them to go to a well-ventilated area, away from the source. To lessen the pain, rinse their skin with soap and water and their eyes until clear of chemi‑ cals. Vulnerable populations to these chemicals include children, the elder‑ ly, people with asthma or COPD, and people in enclosed environments. Much of what is known of the long-term respiratory risks of these chemicals is based on anecdotal ev‑ idence and studies conducted on

healthy populations like military recruits. For example, a 2014 study of more than 6,000 army recruits found the odds of being diagnosed with an acute respiratory illness more than doubled when exposed to such chemicals during basic training. The study also found that higher amounts of exposure led to greater chances of illness. These chemicals, especially the CS agent, can damage the lining of the respiratory system, leading to fluids leaking into the lungs. Longterm and repeated exposure to these chemicals can cause lasting damage to the lungs. Furthermore, Hassan and her colleagues analyzed survey responses of around 1,200 people who had been exposed to chemical agents between 2020 and 2021. They reported that 83 percent of those ex‑ posed experience uterine cramping, breast tenderness, or early or late menstrual bleeding. As well as that, 10 of the 19 individuals who report‑ ed that they were pregnant when ex‑ posed reported a subsequent miscar‑ riage. Even though this sample size is relatively small, it does raise ques‑ tions about the effects such chemicals have on fertility. Overall, even though there are not many studies focusing on the long term effects of tear gas and pepper spray, current research provides a broad understanding of what future issues could arise due to this expo‑ sure.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ABCNEWS.COM

BY JOSEPHINE CHOONG, SECRETARY A morning often starts with a cup of coffee or two. Especially as college students, downing a cup of caffeine kickstarts your busy day at school. But what if those caffeinated cups not only wake you up in the morning but also decrease your cognitive decline? In fact, recent research indicated that your daily cups of coffee or tea could lead to lower dementia risk. The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on February 9. From the long-term observational study of nearly 130,000 adults, it was deter‑ mined that the daily optimal serving was two to three cups of coffee or one to two cups of tea to reduce demen‑ tia risk. However, Dr. Yu Zhang, lead study author and research trainee at Mass General Brigham, does not recommend people who don’t drink coffee start to drink it. Zhang claimed that “we are just seeing that for peo‑ ple who already drink coffee, the re‑ sults are really reassuring.” The research participants were healthy adults who haven’t had can‑ cer, Parkinson’s disease, or demen‑ tia. While participants answered dietary questions every few years, researchers tailed dementia cases from death records or self-reported medical diagnoses. After nearly 37 years, the study indicated that more than 11,000 people were diagnosed with dementia. For participants who didn’t drink caffeinated coffee, there were 330 cases per 100,000 per year. For moderate coffee drinkers, the cases were 229 per 100,000 per year. After adjusting for age and smoking, it was discovered that moderate cof‑ fee consumers had a 19% lower risk of dementia, while high coffee con‑ sumers had an 18% lowered risk. Zhang stated that the study also compared those with different ge‑ netic predispositions to developing dementia and found similar results. That meant that coffee or caffeinated

tea had an equally likely beneficial effect for those with a high or low genetic risk of dementia. In fact, the caffeine itself may play an important role in offsetting dementia. Because higher tea intake dis‑ played similar results to higher coffee intake while decaffeinated coffee did not, it suggests that caffeine is a key factor. Prior research had demon‑ strated that caffeine could reduce inflammation, and other compounds of coffee and tea could lower oxi‑ dative stress, which causes cellular damage. But Zhang commented that dementia is a complex condition that can’t be prevented just through diet changes. One of the study’s flaws is that the researchers did not count for wheth‑ er or not the participants’ teas were caffeinated. It also did not differenti‑ ate between the tea types, like green or black. Other factors, like roast level, bean origin, and brewing tech‑ niques that could have influenced caffeine levels and other compounds, were not noted. Benjamin Katz, an associate professor at Virginia Tech who researches how lifestyle factors can influence cognitive function, ob‑ served that the study did not men‑ tion if the participants added milk, cream, sugar, or other sweeteners. Katz’s prior research had uncovered a link between sugar-sweetened bev‑ erages and increased risk of cognitive impairment. He noted that if you add milk and sugar to your coffee, it could counteract the effects. However, he stated that “[diet]’s really only a small component of a much larger set of lifestyle decisions that you would want to be focusing on to maintain brain health during aging.” Researchers have been particu‑ larly interested in how lifestyle fac‑ tors like diet affect dementia devel‑ opment to increase early dementia prevention. It is especially crucial be‑ cause current treatments typically of‑ fer benefits only after symptoms are displayed. The next time you drink a cup of coffee, think about its poten‑ tial benefits.

Why women are at greater risk for ACL tears BY RIYANA PHADKE, SCIENCE EDITOR Women athletes are significantly more likely than men to suffer tears of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), a small but crucial structure in the knee whose failure can derail months of a person’s life. The ACL is one of four major ligaments that stabilize the knee, running diagonally through the cen‑ ter of the joint to connect the femur (thighbone) to the tibia (shinbone). It prevents the tibia from sliding too far forward, guards against hyperex‑ tension, and resists rotational forces during cutting and pivoting. These functions make the ACL especial‑ ly important in sports that demand rapid deceleration, sudden changes of direction, and explosive jumps, such as soccer, basketball, skiing, and gymnastics. When the ACL rup‑ tures, athletes often describe a pop‑ ping sound, immediate swelling, and a sense that the knee is “giving way,” signs of a complete tear that typically

leaves the joint mechanically unsta‑ ble. Epidemiologic studies show that women sustain ACL tears at much higher rates than men playing the same sports, with female‑to‑male in‑ cidence ratios reported at roughly 3.5 in basketball and 2.8 in soccer, and overall risk estimates ranging from two to eight times higher for women. Researchers now point to a conver‑ gence of anatomical, hormonal, and neuromuscular factors that, together, place the female ACL at greater peril. Anatomically, women tend to have a “knock-kneed” alignment, which means that the way loads pass through the knee is altered when landing or cutting. Imaging and ca‑ daver data show that, even after ad‑ justing for body size, women often have smaller ACLs and narrower in‑ tercondylar notches (the bony groove that houses the ligament), so the tis‑ sue is thinner and resides in a tight‑ er space. Vehniah Tjong, MD, noted that thinner ligament tissue requires less force to fail, potentially raising

the risk of rupture during high‑stress maneuvers. Hormones add another layer of complexity. The ACL contains recep‑ tors for estrogen and progesterone, and several studies report clustering of ACL injuries during particular phases of the menstrual cycle, such as mid‑cycle or around menses. Estrogen‑related shifts in collagen properties may influence ligament stiffness and laxity, changing how the ACL responds to sudden loads. Although no consensus supports modifying hormones purely for in‑ jury prevention, menstrual biology is increasingly recognized as a relevant contributor to risk. Neuromuscular patterns may be where differences become most visi‑ ble on the field. Female athletes more often land from jumps with a more upright trunk, straighter knees, and less hip and core engagement than men. The “female ACL” has slower hamstring activation, greater reli‑ ance on the quadriceps, and difficulty rapidly “stiffening” the knee when

the tibia shifts forward; all patterns that increase strain on the ACL. Dy‑ namic knee valgus, where the knees cave inward during cutting or land‑ ing, and inefficient core stability fur‑ ther amplify these harmful forces. In combination, these features make the female knee more vulnerable in the very movements that define modern sport. A torn ACL is rarely a one‑season problem. Because the ligament sits in synovial fluid and has a limited blood supply, complete tears do not reliably heal on their own. Surgical recon‑ struction is often required to restore stability, and meniscal or cartilage damage is frequently repaired at the same time. Rehabilitation commonly spans nine to twelve months before full‑speed competition is considered, and a history of one ACL tear increas‑ es the risk of a future injury by about sixfold. Data from large clinical cohorts show that while graft failure rates may not be higher in women, female athletes are less likely than men to

return to their prior level of competi‑ tion in the years after reconstruction. Quadriceps strength deficits often last longer in women, and altered neuromuscular patterns remain, both of which are linked to reinjury risk. Psychologically, fear of reinjury and reduced confidence can further delay return to sport, and these fac‑ tors appear particularly prominent among female athletes. These disparities take on global visibility at the Olympics, where mil‑ limeters of ligament and fractions of a second can define a career. Many Olympic sports with high female participation—soccer, basketball, handball, gymnastics, and alpine ski‑ ing among them—feature exactly the high‑velocity pivots, cuts, and land‑ ings most associated with noncon‑ tact ACL tears. As worldwide partic‑ ipation in girls’ and women’s sports has expanded, the absolute number of ACL injuries has climbed, and the higher female injury rate has become impossible to ignore on the world stage.

Rising to the NFL’s challenge: making football helmets safer BY TASHA KHOSLA, HEAD COPY EDITOR On February 6, the NFL an‑ nounced the next round in the HealthTECH Challenge series, which is a “series of innovation challenges intended to deepen understanding of and advance solutions in the ar‑ eas of head protection, materials sci‑ ence, and kinematic measurement, among others.” The purpose of these challenges is to improve the design and safety of football helmets while competitors receive funding and support. Although concussions with‑ in the NFL have decreased by 35% since their peak in 2017, NFL data found that this past season, “44% of in-game concussions resulted from impact to the player’s facemask, up from 29% in 2015.” Despite football’s long history, helmet innovation did not advance much until the early 2000s. The

first hard-shell helmet was worn in 1939 and persisted until 1976. After 38 college and high school football players died of head injuries in 1968, the National Collegiate Athletic Asso‑ ciation (NCAA) and other organiza‑ tions created the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE). NOCSAE de‑ veloped a pass-fail test, implemented in 1973, requiring helmets to keep a severity index below a specified lim‑ it. This spurred helmetmakers to use foam padding in helmets to absorb energy and create larger helmets, giving the head more room to slow down since a hit can inflict an accel‑ eration of up to 180 g. Modern football helmets em‑ phasize “controlled deformation,” meaning that they crumple upon im‑ pact. Without deformation, shock is transmitted to the brain within three milliseconds, but when the helmet crumples, that same impact is spread

over 15 milliseconds, decreasing the instantaneous acceleration by a fifth. Helmet material has changed, previ‑ ously being made from a hard poly‑ carbonate shell and foam padding to now having a flexible nylon elasto‑ mer shell. This shell is able to flex and then return the helmet to its original shape. Liners have advanced by us‑ ing 3D-printing to improve compres‑ sion. For example, Kollide, winner of NFL’s 2019 Helmet Challenge, man‑ ufactures a liner with 18 cylindrical pads containing thin cones inside each pad. When constricted, these cones “fold progressively from their tips, increasing resistance. While regular foam compresses by only up to 50%, these 3D-printed pads can compress by 80-90%, extending the impact duration and absorbing ener‑ gy.” Continuing to test helmet designs remains a focus for the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab, which has its own rating

system. This process involves placing a helmet on a NOCSAE head and re‑ leasing a pendulum with a 15.5 kg bob that hits the helmet. This is repeated to hit the helmet in four spots at three impact speeds of up to 6.4 meters per second. Concussion risk is calcu‑ lated by recording the accelerations to the head and is scaled to estimate how many concussive blows a player wearing that helmet would endure in a season. These estimates are used to assign scores, with 0 to 10 concussive blows earning a five-star rating. Biocore, a research institute fund‑ ed by the NFL, has its own testing program that uses “video from the between 30 and 60 cameras that watch every NFL game and readings from radio tags that track each play‑ er’s location and speed.” Researchers use this data and computer modeling to “deduce the linear and angular accelerations that each head blow generates,” and researchers “even

catapulted dummies outfitted with accelerometers into each other and filmed the collisions “ to study im‑ pacts in a game. These hits are then replicated in a manner similar to Virginia Tech researchers, but with harder strikes at higher speeds of up to 9.3 meters per second. Biocore’s testing protocol is public for helmet manufacturers to use as a guide. The research of these institu‑ tions has had an impact. Since the NFL’s 2019 Helmet Challenge, the league has been banning helmets that perform poorly based on these tests, highlighting the importance of safety technologies to the league. To make the cut, the four helmet mak‑ ers—LIGHT, Riddell, Schlutt Sports, and VICS—have been implementing changes in response to these tests. As the NFL continues to challenge innovators to improve helmet safety, there continues to be an emphasis on data-driven design.

Friday, February 20

7

Opinion THE STUTE EDITORIAL

A support role As a brief interruption to Jiya’s usual updates on the inner workings of the paper and fancy Editor-in-Chief (EIC) responsibilities, I’m stepping in this week to sidebar. This issue is T-7 days away from the first Alumni Gala—RSVP today—and articles aren’t going to RFL themselves. In the very first editorial with The Stute we’ve come to know, Jiya chose to highlight the collection of new, bright-eyed e-board members and every positions’ history with the paper — a choice I always thought was telling of her leadership. She’s alluded to me as her right-hand woman. So I’ll introduce myself as Managing Editor, the inverse image of EIC. While I’ve been getting comfortable in the corner of editing, onboarding, article assignments, Slack deadline reminders, and club meeting planning that all seem to happen simultaneously, I find myself thinking back to my own mental versions of

The Stute to catalog the short span of not only a term, but undergrad. I’m a science-ish journalism major, and so I was drawn to the physical issue of the paper from Admitted Students Weekend, very much geeking out over the idea of a printed byline and the stacks sitting on the rack. While I was not a Stute Weekend veteran, I started getting involved a little distant from the immediate Stute community at the time, being a freshman opinion columnist who virtually submitted my first Book of the Week column application into the ether. GBM article assignments were foreign and The Stute office was an intimidating realm of upperclassmen too busy making a paper to be bothered by basic questions (my own projection, and I’m beginning to appreciate the ironic nature of passing the torch). While this isn’t a very technical glimpse into the workings of the paper as it stands, obviously a well-oiled ma-

chine running 25/8, it’s a reflection into everything gained from stepping into roles that challenge me alongside supportive peers who were ready to pivot. Here’s my favorite day of the week as Managing Editor: Every Tuesday, Jiya and I sit in the Stute office and talk about news articles that will be pitched to a room of students who want to write, willingly participate in the PTA-esque group activity at 9 p.m., and contribute to the growing Stute community. I get so much satisfaction from thinking that we can give back to our writers with free sweet treats or Karma Kafe catering, with the help of Fiona, our Business Manager. We review articles from a news briefing doc spun up from Josephine, our very own Secretary, and Slack messages from the membership — a process that represents current e-board intentions to open up operations to anyone and everyone with ideas. We talk

MIND OF A FRESHMAN

BY ROBERT JACK DIETRICH ‘29 I love all sorts of music but there will always be a special place in my heart for French music. Over the last few years, as I have expanded my music taste, French artists always seem to find their way into my queue. From the first seconds of Stromae and Pomme’s “Ma Meilleure Ennemie,” I was hooked. Since then, I’ve listened to hours and hours of French pop, from the classics like Françoise Hardy to the modern works of Angèle. Most recently, I’ve been listening to the composer Lorien Testard, and I have tickets to a Patrick Watson concert in April. That opening paragraph probably meant nothing to you if you’re not French or listen to French music, but it brings me to my main point: I do not speak a lick of French. This doesn’t mean I don’t know some French, though. Through some Google Translate, there are a

Tianna Spitz ‘27

Managing Editor

SENIORITIS

What is the point of gatekeeping knowledge? handful of songs I now know the meaning of, but that still hasn’t changed the larger issue, which is that I only read, write, and speak English. So, a few nights ago, I decided to do something about it. The first app I downloaded was Babbel. I created an account and did a short survey of why I wanted to learn French and what my current level was. After setting up my profile, it asked me to select a payment plan. The cheapest was $17.95 for one month, and the rates got cheaper and cheaper as the duration of the subscription got longer, until the final plan, which was a one time payment of $299 for a lifetime of access. When I saw this, I ignored it at first. I clicked the “X” at the top of the page and started my first lesson (I know what bonjour means now!). After I finished the lesson, again, the paywall came right back up. However, this time was different. The app would not let me continue without paying. Now this is 10:30 p.m. on a Thursday night. The last thing I wanted to do was to pay for a subscription to learn French. I promptly deleted the app and downloaded the next highest rated app, which was Speakly. This app was similar to Babbel. I created a profile and was met with a paywall.

about a Stute dedicated to other students and e-boards through engagement, succession, and longevity alongside the weekly to-dos. From a bird’s-eye-view of a Managing Editor that gets to work alongside my EIC, I often get deja vu. The self-sufficient workstream that writers become familiar with is a rewarding landscape once the dust settles from viewing the week through priorities and timeslots. While Jiya and I sometimes find ourselves counting down the issues we have left as an e-board, an alumni recently warned us that the experience will be over as quickly as it began. Now I’m trying not to blink. Co-heading an org as old as us, I know that there have been countless versions of The Stute before, and there will be many more after, as my role and the club itself are nothing more than the unique collection of students that dedicate their Tuesdays to begin the cycle all over again.

My favorite coffee shop

I clicked off of it and started my first lesson (I know what bonjour means now!). After finishing the lesson, I went to start another and guess what? Paywall to continue! $9.99 per month to unlock all languages and special AI learning tools! I deleted the app and moved on to the next. This time, Duolingo was my next victim. Download, profile, paywall, bonjour — the process was starting to feel familiar. Once again, I go to start the second lesson, and Duo tells me I’m all out of energy and need to either wait 12 hours or pay their price. It was at this point that I threw in the towel and decided to scroll reels for the rest of the night. What is the point of gatekeeping knowledge? Yes, these apps need to make a profit somehow, but throwing a paywall before you learn anything other than “hello” is diabolical. If I could at least get through more than just the first lesson, I might be more inclined to pay for one of these services, but when you teach me a single word and then say, “give me money,” of course, your stupid app is going to be deleted. So, to these apps, I will give you some advice about your business model using only the knowledge I got out of you for free: Bonjour

BY ABBY THOMAS ‘26 I’m writing this column straight out of Bwe Kafe on the corner of 10th and Washington. I come here often to do homework, hang with friends, and write Stute articles. I was given a nice piece of advice from a very kind faculty member at the Writing and Communications Center on campus. I’m writing up my senior thesis project, and she told me that I should find a location that allows me to just lock into my work and escape from everything else. She said that doing this will allow my brain to get used to working at this location, so every time I walk in, I know it’s time to get to work. Through my time at Stevens, I think Bwe has been one of my favorite places to work. “Bwe” means “drink” and “kafe” means “coffee” in Haitian Creole. This coffee shop shows support for Haitian relief efforts, like education and clean water initiatives. Being that I’m Haitian myself, I think I have an underlying attachment to this place, or maybe it’s just that they have such good coffee, not sure. Either way, I love it here. I’ve come to this place during really interesting times throughout my college experience. This cafe has seen me stressing for interviews and studying statistics that I will never use while battling yet another cold from being too stressed. I’ve been heartbroken at the back table, holding back tears as Gracie Abrams plays in my ears and I struggle to focus on the fi-

COMIC CORNER BY TANYA ZANES

nals I have to study for. I’ve found myself on a date or two, excitedly sitting back as someone orders two coffees instead of one. I’ve been seated at a side table, trying not to literally kick my feet and giggle at my phone as I text someone. I’ve made friends with some of the baristas, and on good weeks at work, I drop tips in their jar to show my gratitude monetarily. As I sit here right now, I can’t help but be my introspective and emotional self. I’m scanning the room, observing each individual as they grapple with life. The complexities within their facial expressions and the stories their wrinkles tell. How they react to the first sip of their drink or the soft gaze they might take as they zone out, looking out the window. The girl right in front of me is dressed in vibrant colors, perfect for Valentine’s Day season. She has a whole set-up at her table — coffee, water bottle, computer, planner, pen, not one, but TWO phones. Maybe she works in marketing or PR or something. She seems really coordinated, like she’d be a really good friend. The man over there is slowly turning the pages to an interesting book. It’s titled The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F***. I’ve heard of this book, may-

be watching him read it was my sign to finally pick it up from the library. He seems cool but I hope he’s alright. You never know with selfhelp books; sometimes they come out when someone is doing extremely well or when they’re doing extremely badly. There’s a mom who just walked in with her baby in a carriage. Her baby is old enough to want a cookie, but still too young to ask. She knows her kid more than anyone else in the world, so naturally she got her a cookie. I can’t wait to be a mom. It seems so fun. I hope nobody here thinks I’m weird. I just really like looking around. Humans are so funny. Typing away on laptops and contributing to the economy, this coffee shop is alive. Creating diseases and finding the cure, everyone has a story. Asking ChatGPT which companies to boycott, I love the irony. We live in such a catastrophe of beautiful noise and chaos. Hopefully, I’m not being too deep or philosophical this week. I’m just looking around and befriending my surroundings, trying to see if my reflection lies within any one of these people. If you’re ever curious where I am when I’m not in class or at work, I’m either at home with friends or at Bwe Kafe.

PHOTO COURTESY OF BWEKAFE.COM

Friday, February 20

8

Opinion BOOK OF THE WEEK

Questioning Humanity with Klara and the Sun

BY CHRISTINA THOMAS ‘26 Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro follows Klara, an android who dreams about being able to see the sun. She is an AF, or artificial friend, stuck in a department store, available for purchase but continuously waiting for that moment. One day, she is taken home by Josie, a sick child,

and becomes both her companion and her caretaker. As she becomes involved in Josie’s life, Klara begins to develop perceptions of the world around, outside of the limited worldview she is programmed with. This is a novel about consciousness and humanity through the eyes of an outsider. The novel is told through Klara’s point of view, which is possibly the most interesting factor of the story. We are witnessing the plot of the story unfold through the mind and consciousness of an android who is unexposed to the real world until she is adopted by Josie. Klara, as an AF, does not participate in human events until she meets Josie, so we see everything

BEYOND THE PLATE

The food we don’t finish

BY DISHA RANA ‘29 In my house, leftovers were wrapped carefully. Emotions were not. Long after the conversation fades, after chairs scrape back and plates are cleared, it remains — untouched or barely eaten. No one claims it, but no one throws it away either. It sits there quietly, as if waiting for someone to decide what it means. In my family, wasting food was never casual. Every grain of rice carried labor. Every leftover container meant tomorrow’s lunch. We were taught to finish what was served, to take only what we could eat, to respect the effort behind the meal. And yet, there were always things left unfinished — not because we were ungrateful, but because appetite and emotion do not always align. I started noticing this most during gatherings. Celebrations where food covered every inch of the table — silver trays, stacked plates, bowls balanced carefully between elbows. The abundance felt like proof of love. But by the end of the night, the table told a quieter story. A half-scooped dessert. A serving spoon resting in a dish no one reached for twice. Something once presented proudly, now cooling under fluorescent lights. Food is supposed to disappear. That’s its purpose. But what lingers reveals more than what is consumed. There are conversations that trail off the same way. Questions asked but not answered. Feelings expressed halfway, then folded back into politeness. In my household, emotions were often handled like leftovers

— carefully stored, rarely revisited. We fed each other generously, but we did not always speak generously. The language of love was practical: eat more, take seconds, I saved this for you. Sometimes I think about the meals after loss — the way appetite changes when grief enters a room. Plates shrink. Flavors dull. You chew out of habit, not hunger. Food becomes an obligation rather than a joy. And still, someone insists you eat. Because nourishment feels like the only thing they can offer when words fail. I remember sitting at a table once, staring at a plate I could not finish. It wasn’t that I was full. It was that something inside me felt unfinished too. The untouched portion mirrored the conversation we weren’t having, the silence we were maintaining for the sake of peace. I wrapped the leftovers carefully, knowing they would sit in the refrigerator longer than they should. The food we don’t finish carries weight. It holds the things we avoid, the emotions we postpone, the truths we are not ready to digest. It reminds us that hunger is not always physical. Sometimes we are starving for clarity, for comfort, for permission to say what we mean. Beyond the plate, what remains matters just as much as what disappears. The unfinished dish is not a failure. It is evidence of complexity — of changing appetites, human limitation, and moments too heavy to swallow whole. I used to think strength meant clearing the plate. Now I understand that growth sometimes looks like acknowledging what you cannot consume yet. Like wrapping it gently. Like returning to it when you’re ready. Not everything needs to be finished in one sitting. Some things require time. Some truths soften overnight. And sometimes, what we leave behind tells the most honest story of all.

PHOTO COURTESY OF STOCK.ADOBE.COM

through her naive and innocent eyes. Things that may be obvious to us human readers may not be the same for the perspective we are reading, and it makes the story even richer. Klara and the Sun takes place in a dystopian future society where androids are purchased to be companions, supervisors, friends, caretakers, etc. The main issue surrounding the characters is the idea of time and change. New advancements in technology result in newer models, which is an issue considering that Klara is an older model with the chances of being taken home diminishing each day. Her relationship with Josie is a close one because of how unlikely she would

have been able to leave the store if Josie had never chosen her. This is a very timely story, suggesting humanity and consciousness within an android in a time when we face overwhelming advancements in technology. It considers how something artificial might assume a human mind, and whether it would become capable of feeling and thinking the same way that humans do. You try to answer this question with Klara, witnessing her feel empathy and sadness and want, but because you are experiencing this through her eyes, everything is unreliable, which personally makes it more intriguing. The novel is admitted-

ly slow, at least in the first half. While it did not bother me, it was noticeable. There is a plot that unfolds that is too nuanced for Klara to understand at the beginning of her tenure as Josie’s caretaker, so the audience needs to sit with Klara while she tries to piece together what she is missing from the story. I think the philosophical nature of the book is successful and creates an interesting paradox when considering the human characteristics of a robot. The book seems to question how human an android can be, and whether that humanity is merely an imitation of what they are seeing from the world around them or a natural creation of their own conscious-

ness. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in attempting to answer this hypothetical question for themselves and is curious about the developing psyche of an android with dreams.

because I had been told to take 19 credits my first semester by my advisors, while all of my friends at different schools were taking a max of 16. On a more personal level, I feel that I get so absorbed in all that goes on, and I tend to over-commit myself. For years, everything that I did was concentrated on joining more activities, jobs, and clubs, and such, so I always kept moving. Now, I feel myself still doing the same thing. I have been joining more and more clubs as I find more opportunities for myself to do so while maintaining a high course load. I get reminded often that my busy schedule is a consequence of my own doing, but sometimes it feels as though you don’t have a choice. It

is not external pressures from family, friends, or advisors but from my own gut feeling. The feeling that no matter what you do, you always feel like you could be doing more. Working harder, studying more, taking on more positions. This tenacity is what the ambition of a scholar means to me. It can be hard to remember sometimes that it is our own ambitions that drive us crazy, and it can be even more difficult to make room for ourselves to breathe. At the end of the day, it’s important to leave time for laughter, joy, and rest, regardless of what they may appear to be for you. This to me is what the Hollyhock flower represents. So, in the flurry of a chaotic life, remember to take a break.

PHOTO COURTESY OF AMAZON

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

Hollyhock

BY CLAIRE DEANS ‘29 The Victorian Language of Flowers was used for decades to relay feelings that people had a hard time expressing or were too embarrassed to share. Each flower has its own meaning, and each color further explains the emotions they arise. The flower we will be looking at today is the Hollyhock. With tall stalks standing six feet tall, the blooms of the Hollycock are disc-shaped and run from the bottom of the plant to the top. In the Victorian Language of Flowers, the Hollyhock symbolizes ambition, ambition of a scholar, fecundity, fruitfulness, and liberality. To narrow it down, today we will be looking at the ambition of a scholar. At Stevens, if there is one thing that I have learned, it is that all of the people here tend to be very driven. I recall last semester, as I walked into all of my classes for the very first time, I saw a room already densely pop-

ulated with students. Having been my first semester, I arrived 20 minutes early for my classes, and to my surprise I wasn’t the only one. Not even 10 minutes before the class started did I see every student in that class. I knew that college would be different from high school for a host of reasons. One of those reasons is that I would be surrounded by like-minded students. By many people who genuinely cared and are trying their best. Sometimes I think that I get lost in it all. While we most certainly know how to have our fun, I feel that as students, we can become so absorbed in our studies. Another example of this is when you reflect on the amount of credits that is typical for a student here. I remember being confused

IMAGE COURTESY OF JACKSON AND PERKINS

Friday, February 20

9

Opinion THE THINKING FRAME

Good Will Hunting

BY VEDHESH ANANDHAN KAMARAJ ‘28 At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a genius hides behind a janitor’s uniform. In Good Will Hunting, Will Hunting solves mathematical equations that stump world-class professors and mathematicians. But, he is unable to face the emotional turbulence in his life. The movie first appears to be a story of untapped potential but slowly reveals itself

as something else entirely. It is a story of a young man terrified of love, failure, and change. The movie doesn’t celebrate his intelligence, but exposes the fear and danger that comes with it. Will Hunting, played by Matt Damon, is a young man with an extraordinary IQ and an ordinary life. He works as a janitor at MIT, drinks with his friends at night, and uses humor as both a weapon and a shield. Whenever someone recognizes his potential, he reacts with hostility. He does not fear failure as much as he fears change. With change, he will have to leave the world he knows and confront a future where he might be abandoned. This fear of change becomes most evident in his relationship with Skylar. She is in awe of his intelligence and urges him to imagine

a life outside his neighborhood. As their relationship deepens, Skylar asks him to move with her to California. For Will, this means an even deeper relationship. Given his past, he knows becoming closer always ends in pain. Rather than risk being hurt, he sabotages his relationship, pushes her away, and claims he doesn’t love her. His greatest struggle—a fear of attachment—prevents him from seizing the great opportunities presented to him. To help him with these fears and his hostility, he is introduced to Sean Maguire, a therapist played by the late Robin Williams. Where professors see Will as a puzzle to be solved, Sean sees him as a wounded person needing help. Their sessions are filled with confrontation and long conversations rather than forced solutions. Sean chal-

lenges his veil of sarcasm and intelligence, refusing to let him go without helping him. The park bench scene becomes the moment when Will finally starts to trust Sean. Sean explains that wisdom without experience is meaningless. As Sean says, reading about love, war, and art can never equal living it. He reminds Will that wisdom is not only found in books but in human connection and experiences. Waking up with the person you love, holding your best friend’s head until his last breath, and looking up at the Sistine Chapel in awe. Through Sean’s words, the film suggests that wisdom comes from not how many words we know, but from what we’ve lived. The emotional core of the film arrives when Sean repeatedly tells Will, “It’s not your fault.” This moment

finally dismantles Will’s armor, which he built from years of abuse and abandonment. His collapse is not a weakness, but a release. The film suggests that healing doesn’t come from success and intelligence, but from confronting pain. Will’s best friend, Chuckie, also wishes Will would use the gift to better himself. Staying in South Boston would only mean wasting his gift. Chuckie’s wish of Will being gone one day is not a thought of abandonment but one of love and friendship. The film frames loyalty as the courage of letting someone go in the case of a better life for them, even if it means parting ways. In the end, Good Will Hunting is not a movie about genius but about courage. Will’s hardest struggle is not in solving formulas but in

realizing that he is worthy of love, chance, and a future free from fear. In deciding to take the risk of being vulnerable rather than alone, Will starts to shatter the boundaries he set for himself. The movie teaches us that progress does not always stem from intelligence but from the courage to trust and believe in ourselves and others.

campus positions, and volunteer work can all build experience and confidence. Growth matters more than prestige. 4. Set Boundaries Around the Search — Constantly refreshing your inbox increases anxiety. Instead, designate specific times during the week to work on applications and check emails. Protect your mental space outside of those hours. You’re building more than a resume; internship season can make it feel like your value is tied to productivity. But college is about more than securing a line on your resume; it’s about learning resilience, adaptability, and confidence. Every application you send builds skills. Every interview, whether it be success-

ful or not, strengthens your communication. Even rejection teaches you how to handle discomfort and keep going. Those lessons will serve you long after one internship cycle ends. Careers are long. One semester does not define them. Many successful women didn’t land their “dream” internships in college, or didn’t have internships at all. Progress isn’t always visible in the moment. If winter has you questioning your timeline, remember this: growth rarely feels glamorous. It often looks like persistence when no one is watching. So keep applying. Keep improving. But also give yourself grace. You are not behind. You are not failing. You are building something, and that takes time.

IMAGE COURTESY OF IMDB

HER STEVENS

Internship anxiety in the winter semester: feeling behind but not actually failing BY BREONA PIZZUTA ‘27 There’s something about winter semester that makes internship anxiety louder. Maybe it’s the flood of LinkedIn announcements. Maybe it’s the group chat messages about who “heard back.” Or maybe it’s the fact that while the days feel slower and darker, the pressure to plan your future feels urgent. Suddenly, it seems like everyone has secured the perfect summer internship. Meanwhile, you’re still refreshing your email and wondering if you missed something important. If that’s you, take a breath. Feeling behind does not mean you’re failing. Why Does Winter Feel So High-Stakes? Winter is peak internship

season. Applications are due. Interviews are happening. Rejections (and worse, silence) start rolling in. For many college women, it can feel like their entire future hinges on one “yes.” But here’s the truth: the timeline is not as linear as it seems. Some companies hire early. Others recruit in the spring. Some students land internships through formal applications, while others find opportunities through networking, professors, or even last-minute openings. The comparison trap makes it look like there’s only one path forward, but there isn’t. With the idea of “Comparison Spiral” it’s easy to internalize other people’s wins as proof of your shortcomings. When someone posts, “Excited to announce I’ll be in-

terning at…” it can quietly translate in your mind to, “Why not me?” But social media only shows outcomes; not the drafts of resumes, the ignored emails, or the interviews that didn’t go well. Most students experience far more rejection than they admit. Silence from employers is common. Delayed responses are normal. None of it reflects your intelligence, worth, or potential. You are not behind. You are in progress. Practical Ways to Ease the Anxiety While reassurance is important, so is action. Here are a few realistic steps that can help you feel more grounded and in control: 1. Focus on What You Can Control — You can’t control when companies respond,

THE BIG QUESTIONS OF EVERYDAY

Before I knew it was chemistry

BY MILAGROS CARBAJAL ‘28 When I was younger, one of my favorite activities was making “magic potions.” Cherry-scented shampoo, vanilla perfume, and hand soap were not exactly mystical substances, but when paired with the unlimited imagination of a couple of 9-year-olds, possibilities were endless. Sitting on a bathroom floor, we created an entire collection of mixtures, each one carefully crafted with a purpose. We obsessed over every detail down to the texture, the swirl of color, the combination of scents. Some potions were designed for happiness, others for confidence or beauty. A few were more ambitious, meant to solve our inability to fly or turn invisible. In our minds, every problem had a solution if only we could find the right ingredients to mix together. There was something endlessly fascinating about the transformation of ordinary household products into imagined remedies. I

loved the sense of secrecy and power it gave me — the idea that I could combine things, label them, and suddenly possess solutions. To “cure it all” with something I had created myself, then proudly share it with everyone I knew, convinced that my mixtures alone could take on anything. This memory came to mind unexpectedly in my organic chemistry lab, as my friend and I geeked out over successfully completing our Grignard reaction, and I felt a strangely familiar sense of excitement. Once again, I was captivated by the idea that simple components could combine to produce something intricate, complex, and meaningful. Over the years, I’ve learned that I can’t simply decide my potions will work. Things are, as it turns out (shoutout Orgo Exam 1), far more complicated than my childhood self assumed. Scientific understanding has now replaced my belief in magic, yet it’s the feeling that somehow remains the same. Before we began absorbing everyone else’s definitions of who we should be, there were our childhood passions — the interests untouched by pressure, comparison, or practicality. As we grow older, the quiet judgments we encounter often make us question whether what we love will ever be “enough” to build a life

around. Somewhere along the way, we forget about how it feels to be purely fascinated with our passions. In its place came overthinking, doubt, and the exhausting spiral of needing to police our own interests. Although it feels mature to prioritize numbers and salaries, a life based purely on practicality can end up feeling far less logical than we expect. I’ve started to realize that some answers lie in the past. In revisiting the things that once captivated us, we might rediscover the clearest evidence of what genuinely filled our cup. I’ve learned that the magical part of my magic potions was never really in the mixtures themselves — it was in the curiosity, joy, and sense of possibility our childhood selves envisioned for us. Our younger instincts often spoke more clearly than we give them credit for, quietly hinting at the passions and purposes we once felt drawn towards, but that later feel so complicated to define. Maybe I can’t cure the world with cherry shampoo and vanilla perfume anymore. But through patience, persistence, and yes, a few failed reactions, I still hope to spend my life doing what I’ve always loved — creating, discovering, and believing that something I make might one day make a difference.

but you can refine your resume, tailor your cover letters, and follow up professionally. Small improvements add up. Ask a professor, career center advisor, or mentor to review your materials, you don’t have to do this alone. 2. Diversify Your Approach — If online applications feel discouraging, try expanding your strategy. Attend networking events hosted by clubs on campus, message alumni on LinkedIn, or talk to professors about research opportunities. Sometimes the best opportunities aren’t on job boards. 3. Redefine What “Success” Looks Like — An internship at a big-name company is not the only measure of achievement. Smaller organizations, unpaid roles,

UNDERGROUND WORLD OF FASHION

Dario, I doubted you

BY GAVIN RUBY ‘27 A few months ago when it was announced that Dario Vitale was going to be appointed the creative director of Versace, it was met with such high pressure due to Dario being the first non-Versace nameholder to take on the position. Once the show commenced, opinions were very polarizing. As for mine, I was quite disappointed with it. However, I do not claim to be a free thinker and I am very easily influenced by what I see on the internet. Weeks after the show,

Versace was acquired by Prada Group. Vitale suddenly parted ways with the house, only showing one collection. It is rumored that he left because of past negative relationships with Prada Group. Still, this was never confirmed and we as an audience will probably never know. When the collection finally hit the stores and the campaign came to fruition, the tides turned and all of a sudden, fashion Twitter changed their minds on what Vitale was producing. The same people calling his collection boring, were now calling him a visionary and that we were robbed of his creativity. His Steven Meisel taken photos were flooding my feed and now the minds were changed that this could’ve been the new Versace customer. I won’t lie, my opinion was also changed. What felt boring and void of what the masses knew Versace to be,

now became a piece of fashion history and something that will be collectable in the future. I now understand the vision that Vitale was going for and it doesn’t feel like nostalgia-bait, but instead, a more elevated and serious company. Even though I still feel as though he alienated former customers, I am disheartened to not see him carry his vision into future collections with the house. He could have entirely reshaped our current vision of Versace. On the other hand, him leaving so abruptly, was also an insane PR move and I think actually pushed the collection a lot more and has more people talking about it now than it probably would have been if he did stay. Even though the world might never know what a Vitale Versace would have flourished into, I will take what we got and appreciate what he brought to the table.

IMAGE COURTESY OF THE GUARDIAN

Friday, February 20

10

Campus Pulse

Aryan Basetty ‘29

“If you ate 40,000 bananas in 10 minutes, you’ll die by radioactive poisoning.”

Praneeth Vanguru ‘26

Kosta Georgiadis ‘29

“When trees get too cold, they can just explode”

“Windows booting logo is just a 4K mp4 file.”

ROVING REPORTER By Isabelle Villanueva

Christina Chen ‘28

“If you fall into a black hole, you get stretched infinitely. That’s called spaghettification.”

“What’s the most useless fact you know?”

“Sharks are older than trees.”

Raynelis Villa ‘27

Justin Lema ‘27

Sabrina Elgazzar ‘27

Robert Olson ‘26

“Dolphins can get high on pufferfish.”

“Outlets are actually called receptacles.”

“You can’t get high on pufferfish, you die.”

Puzzle Page

Dominic Souza Kings Tour

Mini Crossword Across: Down: 1. Common sans-serif 1. Grocery store in the center of based font Hoboken 6. Tall and narrow type 2. British author known for of drum from Cuba writing ‘Charlie and the 7. Brief episode of an Chocolate Factory’ individual experiencing 3. Indented belly button unstable/irritable mood 4. Italian-American slang term with heightened energy for anxiety, stress, or levels aggravation 8. Of high quality or 5. Tied up prestige 9. No longer alive

Traverse each square one by one in any of the eight directions (like a king in chess) to spell out the answer. The starting and ending squares are bolded. Every letter will be used exactly once. The clue below the grid designates the lengths of each word.

Inspired by the British game show Only Connect, the goal of this puzzle is to find the hidden connection between four seemingly abstract clues. Each answer will use trivia, wordplay, logic, or some combination thereof. The solution is always more specific than “nouns”, “places”, etc. What do the following have in common?

Each of the six clues on the right leads to a two-word phrase or compound word. Insert each answer into two of the boxes on the right. At the end, you will have an interlocking chain of six phrases.

Kanye West

Lady Gaga

Allen

Robertson

Electric

Phillips

Orange

Apple

Cranberry

Grape

*Puzzle instructions by Stephen Pachucki

Sudoku Difficulty: Moderate

R

A

B

D

R

M

A

A

T

H

*Puzzle instructions by Stephen Pachucki

Chain Reaction

Jay-Z

A

Academic Building at Stevens [6-6]

Hidden Links

Beyoncé

Y

Clues: 1-2. Board game themed Nintendo game 2-3. Instance of rude or impolite behavior at a social gathering 3-4. Baseball hit too far to the left or right of the field 4-5. Spending money in an extravagant manner 5-6. Opposite of inside

M____ P____ F___ B___ O__ S___

*Puzzle instructions by Stephen Pachucki

ANSWERS TO LAST WEEK’S PUZZLES CROSSWORD

CHAIN REACTION Valentine’s Day Light Rail Road Work

HIDDEN LINKS

CRYPTOLIST

Chocolates, Flowers, Jewelry, Teddy Bear → Classic Valentine’s Day gifts

Streets in Hoboken

Blackboard, Rock wall, Sidewalk, Billiards → Uses for chalk Elysian, Columbus, Shipyard, Stevens → Parks in Hoboken

Washington

Bloomfield

Grand

Hudson

Willow

Sinatra