Opinions

Fang '26: No, we don’t need to know what you eat in a day

By Juliet Fang | September 25

The videos are all the same: A thin, conventionally attractive person poses in front of a mirror before the screen cuts to a beautifully staged bowl of oatmeal. The next shot is lunch, a colorful salad, and then dinner, a mix of grains and greens. Bonus points if “macros”— the grams of carbohydrates, ...

Slusarewicz ’23: It is time we reassess the pervasive college drinking culture

September 22

As a nostalgic senior, I’ve often found myself reminiscing about my first year, and in particular, the inextricable link between my first-year experience and partying. Drinking is at the core of the American college experience. For first-years eager to immerse themselves in college life, partying ...

Gaber ’23: The importance of aimlessness

By Yasmeen Gaber | September 21

As I enter my senior year at Brown, I’m watching everyone around me make decisions that, on the surface, seem life-defining. What will our futures hold, and what is the best way we can shape them? For some, this question starts early. Many students in my class already know where they will be working ...

Editorial: Brown, get boosted

By Editorial Page Board | September 21

COVID-19 is still going around. Despite declining case counts nationwide, our country currently faces about 55,000 new infections and hundreds of deaths a day. At Brown, many of us know peers who have recently ...

Glickman ’23: Not censorship, respect.

By Noah Glickman | September 21

Self-censorship must have existed since humans first formed groups. Some powerful majority always decides which values, ideas and ways of being are permissible, and those who transgress these norms face the backlash of the community. As a result, we often censor ourselves, filtering out certain thoughts ...

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Letter: Brown has a long-established commitment to freedom of expression

By Russell Carey | September 19

I deeply appreciate and agree with many of the views expressed in the Sept. 14 op-ed by Sean Fischer ’23, “Brown must embrace contentious conversations to discourage a persistent culture of self-censorship.” I welcome its clear articulation of the value of confronting viewpoints that are different ...

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Sender ’25: Our highway system has failed. We shouldn’t wait to try something new

By Gabriel Sender | September 19

In 1991, the Federal Highway Administration revealed that the total cost of the Interstate Highway System was a whopping $128.9 billion, or about half a trillion dollars in 2016’s money. In 2019, state and local governments spent $203 billion to maintain existing highways and roads, only 37% of ...

Opinions

Peng '26: Why most gift economies fail

By Christina Peng | September 16

On Aug. 28, the Burning Man Festival returned to its home in Black Rock City after the event had moved online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Opinions

Fischer ’23: Brown must embrace contentious conversations to discourage a persistent culture of self-censorship

By Sean Fischer | September 14

If you had to pick the most important component of a healthy relationship, what would it be? For me, the answer is clear: the ability to have honest and difficult conversations. Candid dialogue has the ability to sort right from wrong, to build trust and to encourage learning between partners. ...

Opinions

Chang ’23: What it means to be Taiwanese

By Christopher Chang | September 13

As I heard a student’s impassioned speech advocating for the forceful unification of my country, my frustration began to boil over. I rushed to the restroom, only to see my teary reflection staring back at me. Quickly drying my tears as the bathroom door opened, I wondered when I had lost my ability ...

Opinions

Fang ’26: The dangers of eco-fads

By Juliet Fang | September 12

On move-in day at Brown and college campuses across the world, millions of students race through superstores looking for dorm supplies. The items they purchase reflect the latest environmental trends. “Climate neutral certified,” one shirt promises. “Powered by plants,” a laundry detergent ...

Opinions

Serrano: Brown’s grading system and advising culture are suppressing student achievement

By Roberto Serrano | September 12

Over 30 years teaching at Brown, I have had the privilege of working with many talented students who have thrived through difficult academic challenges and gone on to wonderful careers in academia and the professional world. But, for a few years now, I have been noticing a deterioration in the quality ...

Opinions

Gaber ’23: How to carry on without keeping calm

By Yasmeen Gaber | September 9

Midway through my study abroad experience in Paris, I was sitting in my European-sized single when I got a text from my dad at midnight. “Don’t panic, but call your mom.” I called my mom, who was in pieces. After a fall, my 86-year-old maternal grandmother was unconscious in the hospital. My ...

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Opinions

Letter: All populations want to live in peace

By Boaz Munro | September 9

Seventeen years ago, as a freshman at Brown, I wrote an op-ed for The Herald responding to the vandalism and destruction of synagogues and Jewish-built

Opinions

Schiller '25: The Sixth Love Language

By Eva Schiller | September 7

When it comes to love, words often fail us. Some articulate love as warmth, others as “a madness of delight; an obsession.” My favorite description of love, from Iris Murdoch, is “the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.” Yet no words can quite capture ...

Opinions

Sender ’25: The highway divided Providence. A cap over I-95 can fix it.

By Gabriel Sender | September 7

In the 1950s and 60s, Interstate 95 was constructed through Providence, displacing city residents and cutting neighborhoods ...

Opinions

Editors’ note: A reflection on change and a sincere thank you

By 131st Editorial Board | May 27

This year’s Commencement Magazine marks the end of our class’ collective journey through Brown, and more broadly, a world irrevocably transformed.

Opinions

Senior Column | Collins ’22: Run your own race

By Kimberly Collins | May 27

Finding the words to adequately reflect on the beauty, triumph and at times difficulty of navigating this university is an exercise that is daunting yet necessary. It is my hope that my own personal narrative and understanding of my Brown experience will guide you, uplift you and empower you. ...

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Senior Column | Gutman Argemí ’22: Learning to read

By Clara Gutman Argemí | May 27

This winter break was my last time home as a college student and my first time holding an American phone number in Spain. More than needing to be available to my classmates on College Hill, my 401 number signified a transition that would have seemed insurmountable to my first-year self.

Opinions

Senior Column | Fabrizio ’22: Careful attention

By Nicholas Fabrizio | May 27

For as long as I can remember, my attention has escaped me. It has always been in a million places at once, split a million different ways. But at some point in my educational journey, I figured out how to direct it toward the standard markers of student achievement — academic excellence, extracurricular ...